Koli Nature Centre Ukko

Koli Nature Centre Ukko

Koli Nature Centre Ukko
4.5
About
The Koli Nature Centre Ukko offers Finland's best known national landscape, the hills of Eastern Finland and heritage sites. The Koli Heritage Exhibition displays Koli's geological features, natural environment and culture in a variety of ways and provides advice and tips for hiking in the Koli National Park. The Nature Centre is only a few hundred metres from the Ukko-Koli lookout point.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles19 reviews
Excellent
10
Very good
8
Average
1
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0
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JariJK
Kouvola, Finland7,050 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2015 • Family
The visitor and nature center (named Ukko) of Koli National Park is situated next to Break Sokos Hotel Koli, the municipality of Lieksa.

They have the very good nature exhibition which tells about natural and cultural heritage of Koli hills. Did you know that there have been 10-kilometer high mountains here (higher than Mount Everest)? Did you know that people lived in Koli and obtained food by hunting and gathering as early as in the Stone Age (8000 - 1500 B.C.)?

They also have nice multivision and slideshow presentations about Koli's natural landscape. Entry to the 15-20-minute presentation in the auditorium is included in the entrance fee.

Several hiking trails start off the courtyard of the visitor center. Some of them are very short and some of them are long (Herajärvi Circle Trail 60 kilometers, recommended hiking for three days). One of the short trails (only 0.3 kilometers) leads to the Ukko-Koli lookout point. This is "the must" for every visitor, I think. If you want to have a bit longer trail, I recommend Mäkränkierros Circle Trail (Ukko-Koli - Mäkränaho - Purolanaho - Mäkrä - Ikolanaho - Mäkränaho - Ukko-Koli). It is 7.5 kilometers and takes about three hours.

I recommend that you buy the hiking map of Koli from Koli Nature Center Ukko. They also answer all your questions about Koli. They can recommend the best route (by hiking or by car) to get to Tarhapuro Waterfall, Pirunkirkko Cave etc.

Remember to see the ancient sacrificial site (a 15-meter deep crack in the middle of a rock) named Uhrihalkeama only 100 meters from the door of Koli Nature Centre Ukko, in the immediate vicinity of the northern side of Break Sokos Hotel Koli.

So Koli Nature Center Ukko tells you all important information about Koli Area and Koli National Park. It is also the best starting point for many interesting hiking trails.

It is a good idea to leave your car in the parking place which is situated below the hill, because parking in front of the nature center is allowed only for 15 minutes. Then you can choose between the steps and the free funicular railcar (a kind of lift) to get from the parking place to the nature center. If you haven't an own car, public transportation is also available (e.g. Koli-Joensuu-Koli shuttle taxis).
Written November 1, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

KLsWanderlust
Houston, Texas1,022 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2016 • Couples
The staff were friendly but it was difficult to get the most of this educational center as there was no English translation, obviously geared only for the locals, but we still had a nice conversation with the employee on duty about the area and the park.
Written April 29, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anni K
Lanzarote, Spain292 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2015 • Couples
Interesting permanent exibition that tells about the nature and history of Koli. They also have art exibitions, a souvenir shop and a small cafeteria. Customer service officers gives you all the information you may need when visiting Koli. They also have free WiFi for guests to use.
Written September 17, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

milla
Kuopio, Finland9 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
Wanted to have a quick lunch in the Café.
Took a long time for the soup to arrive.
Recommed to just to have a coffee brake instead.

Had both veganfriendly soup and fish soup.
Written July 31, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Maria R
Porvoo, Finland818 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2017 • Friends
The ladies in Koli Nature Center Ukko knows the answers to all your questions regarding the area. You can also shop Your souvenirs here and take a walk in the exhibition area.
Written March 3, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Katalin W
Joensuu, Finland12 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2016
Lovely coffee, pretty souvenirs, small exhibition and snow shoes rental...all in one place. It is worth to stop by and look around, not only pick up the maps of the national park.
Written December 7, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
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