Tips for accessible places to visit in Lahti
This article brings together tips for accessible places to visit in Lahti. The recommendations include cafés and restaurants, nature destinations, a museum and even a festival!
I’m Eve, a young woman from Lahti, and I have used a wheelchair throughout my life. More than anything, I love spending time in nature, enjoying good food and listening to live music. I also believe that these experiences belong to everyone and that everyone should have an equal opportunity to enjoy them. Lahti has many attractions and places where accessibility has been taken into careful consideration. Here are ten of my favourites, all personally tested!
Lahti Museum of Visual Arts Malva
Lahti Museum of Visual Arts Malva is definitely one of my favourite places, both for the variety of art on display and the attention paid to accessibility. My experience at Malva was very pleasant and easy, and I honestly could not find anything that needed improving in terms of accessibility.
When I arrived, I noticed an accessible parking space in front of the museum, which is very important from an accessibility perspective. The entrance door had a push button that made it easy to open, and a ramp provided easy access to the building. There was also an accessible toilet on the ground floor. The lift made it easy to reach every floor, and all of Malva’s exhibition spaces were accessible.
As a wheelchair user, I can wholeheartedly recommend Malva to other wheelchair users and certainly to other visitors with reduced mobility as well!
MalvaVesijärvi Harbour
Vesijärvi Harbour is a wonderfully refreshing place to visit when you want to enjoy beautiful lake views without travelling far from Lahti city centre. In my own experience, the harbour also works well in terms of accessibility.
It is easy to reach the harbour by accessible taxi, for example, and the distance from the car park to the waterfront is short. The lower pier levels can be accessed conveniently via a gently sloping ramp. Many of the floating restaurants, including Teerenranta, also have ramps, and some of the cafés are wheelchair-accessible. Several accessible toilets are available around the harbour.
Lahti HarbourAccessible forest trails
Lapakisto
Lapakisto Nature Reserve is located in Nastola and offers visitors beautiful lake scenery and forest landscapes. An accessible route leads from the Sammalistontie car park to the Lapakisto campfire site, where you can even grill your own sausages!
If you arrive by accessible taxi, it is worth asking the driver to continue all the way to the last parking area. This means you can avoid travelling over rougher terrain in a wheelchair. The accessible route is very easy to navigate by wheelchair, as the trail is level and wide. At around 100 metres, the accessible nature trail to the campfire site is not very long, but it is all the more rewarding.
The trail near Pirunpesä in Tiirismaa
The Pirunpesä trail in Tiirismaa is a magnificent nature destination and is also partly accessible. Reaching Pirunpesä itself by wheelchair is quite difficult, but the approximately two-kilometre forest trail leading towards it is beautiful. It can be travelled using a powered wheelchair and possibly a manual wheelchair as well, although in that case it is advisable to bring a friend or assistant just to be safe.
The forest trail towards Pirunpesä follows fairly even terrain, but it includes some uphill and downhill sections and is therefore classified as a demanding accessible nature trail. The accessible route begins near the car park for the Tiirismaa trail on Arvi Hauvosentie. From the car park, continue a little further until you see the gates. The relatively even route continues almost all the way from the car park to the vicinity of the Messilä golf courses.
Kiveriö trail
The approximately one-kilometre Kiveriö trail, which begins near Joutjärvi Church, offers beautiful forest scenery and plenty of blueberries! The terrain is even and easy to navigate by wheelchair, although the route does include a few uphill and downhill sections. It is therefore classified as a demanding accessible nature trail.
If arriving by accessible taxi, you can be dropped off at the small car park near the Lounaanpuisto playground. Alternatively, you can stop in the grounds of Joutjärvi Church and set off along the narrower trail opposite the church. This smaller trail is easiest to navigate using a powered wheelchair. There are also several benches along the route where you can stop and rest.
Accessible nature trailsAccessible lean-to shelter at Pajulahti
Pajulahti Olympic and Paralympic Training Center is Finland’s only official training centre for both Olympic and Paralympic sports. It develops sport and coaching in cooperation with national sports federations.
The Pajunpesä double lean-to shelter at Pajulahti has been designed to be accessible. It is easy to reach by wheelchair, and you can grill your own sausages there while enjoying the natural surroundings. The Pajunpesä shelter can be booked through Pajulahti’s sales team.
Kuja Street Food Lahti
Kuja Street Food Lahti serves stylish street food and unique drinks, including a good selection of non-alcoholic options. It is conveniently located in the very heart of Lahti city centre.
Kuja has an accessible entrance, and the restaurant itself is spacious. Most of the tables are easy to reach by wheelchair. At the tables with booth-style seating, a wheelchair user can remain seated at the end of the table. Kuja is connected to the Solo Sokos Hotel Lahden Seurahuone, where an accessible toilet is also available. A gentle ramp and an automatic sliding door along the route from Kuja to the hotel make access easier.
Kuja Street FoodAmarillo
Amarillo is a Mexican-inspired restaurant in the heart of Lahti city centre. Its menu offers delicious food and drinks for both bigger and smaller appetites. Accessibility has also been taken into careful consideration.
The dining area has a variety of table options, most of which are easy to reach by wheelchair. There is also an accessible toilet close to the dining area.
Amarillo LahtiArnolds
Arnolds is a café in central Lahti serving delicious doughnuts, salads, bagels and smoothies, among other treats. It is located near the Market Square, and an accessible taxi can easily stop outside. A ramp makes it easier to enter the café by wheelchair, and an accessible toilet is also available.
ArnoldsHeadland Festival
Headland is a modern Finnish music festival held at the Niemi event venue in Lahti at the end of July. The festival lasts two days and features artists representing several different genres. Visitors with reduced mobility have also been taken into consideration.
As a wheelchair user, I have attended Headland ever since the very first festival. Each year, Headland has done a great job of improving accessibility.
Before the event, comprehensive accessibility information was provided on the festival website and social media channels. The festival site was easy to reach by accessible taxi. Visitors requiring accessible entry could also use the VIP entrance without a VIP ticket, avoiding long queues and crowds. This made getting around much easier for me, at least.
The festival site had two stages, and the main stage featured an accessible viewing platform. The platform was easy to reach via a ramp and had plenty of room for several wheelchairs. There were also several accessible portable toilets around the site.
Some parts of the terrain were slightly difficult to navigate by wheelchair, but there were also paved areas. Overall, it was reasonably easy to get around using a powered wheelchair or a manual wheelchair, especially with the help of a friend or assistant.
Headland