Finland celebrates nature as part of centennial jubilee

Finland has launched The Nature Days 2017 campaign to encourage people to explore the great outdoors on four designated days throughout the year.

The campaign is a major part of the extensive celebrations – known as Suomi Finland100 – to mark the centenary of the country’s independence, and the all-important Nature Days dates are 4 February, 20 May, 17 June and 26 August.

On each Nature Day, dozens of events will be organised throughout the country, giving visitors the opportunity to experience the world’s largest ski school, sample wild herb delicacies in a traditional lean-to shelter, spend a summer night sleeping outdoors, learn to identify wild flowers and listen to choir concerts in all national parks. On 17 June, the country’s 40th national park, Hossa, will be inaugurated.

The Nature Days campaign encourages people to visit Finland to enjoy the celebrations of nature in all its forms, from an exciting adventure to a new experience in an outdoor setting.

Hiking in forest, Muonio Finland

Nature Days have inspired a huge number of organisations to come up with ideas for celebrating nature. The 50 organisations involved in arranging events have a cumulative total of 1.5 million members. The ideas for the events have been generated at dozens of workshops across Finland to encourage visitors to celebrate nature.

Project manager, Joel Heino, said: “We have good reason to be confident that we can attract lots of visitors from the UK to Finland to experience the great outdoors.

“These pre-organised and independent events provide an opportunity to celebrate nature together for play, exercise, experiences, recreation and cultural inspiration, as well as a source of culinary enjoyment.”

‘Diverse seasons’

Leena Yli-Piipari, project manager Outdoors Finland, added: “One of Finland’s main attractions is its unique and natural beauty. The Nature Days showcase the wonderful diverse seasons and Finland’s splendour throughout the year.

“To celebrate Finland 100 this year will also see the naming of Finland’s 40th National Park, Hossa, providing visitors with yet another reason to explore the Finnish outdoors.”

As well as generating buzz in Finland, the Nature Days campaign has attracted international interest. Nature Days and the related programmes played a key role when Lonely Planet and National Geographic ranked the country as one of the best destinations for 2017. With that in mind, Outdoors Finland will be hosting a stand at the Telegraph Outdoor Show at ExCeL in London on 16-19 February to promote adventure and nature in Finland.

You can watch the video of the campaign launch below.

For more information see www.luonnonpaivat.fi/home-en-us / visitfinland.com.

• RCI has 37 resorts across Finland. Look out for a cover feature on this great travel destination in the next UK market edition of the RCI member magazine Endless Vacation, out on 23 February. We celebrate the centenary of Finnish independence by looking at a variety of events planned throughout the year, as well as the great holiday experiences to be enjoyed in this country year-round.