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Summer holidays for families

Lappeenranta is an ideal choice for families with children on a summer holiday. There are plenty of things to do and enjoy near the city centre, for both the younger and older family members.
Most of the summer fun in Lappeenranta is free-of-charge and located within easy reach of each other. The street train is also a fun way to get from one place to the other.

Summer begins at the Sandcastle

Summer starts at the Sandcastle, for families with children, and with a new castle theme every year, it is sure to grab the attention of the whole family. We are not short of sand! More than 3 million kilos of sand are used for the Sandcastle and it has a new design every time: the same sand is reused for construction, every year. This is our one, small way of contributing to the City’s strategy of a Green Lappeenranta.
The Sandcastle is a part of the Harbour and Fortress area that is everybody’s favourite. The Harbour area is like a second living room for people in the City, in the summer.

Read more about Sandcastle

All sorts of fun next to the Sandcastle

At the Harbour in Lappeenranta, you will find the largest sand box in Finland, as well as a merry-go-round, a mini train and other fun things to do, for a small fee. Remember that extremely affordable day tickets for the rides are also available!
The city of Lappeenranta’s summer Tourist Information office is located at the Sandcastle and can offer tourists great tips and maps.

The street train is ready to take you from one site to the next

The street train runs throughout the City and you can hop on, at several stops. The Sandcastle is the start and end stop, of the route. Inexpensive family packages are available and they are worth taking advantage of. You can easily catch Pokémon while riding on the street train or practice your language skills, as you can listen to the Lappeenranta guided tour in English, German, Russian or Chinese, or why not try out the Finnish audio!

Read more about street train

Traffic City

Next to the Water Tower on Valtakatu Street, you will find Traffic City, a children’s traffic park. Free parking is available in the area. Traffic City is open 4 June -31 August Mon-Fri at 9 am - 6 pm, also saturdays in July an 11 am - 4 pm.
An instructor is on site to provide instructions and guidance about traffic regulations and to supervise the allocation of pedal cars and turn taking. At Traffic City, parents are always responsible for their children under 12. Driving is free of charge.