Rovaniemi to join in Aalto travel route marketing

Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland, will take part in a marketing project of the Alvar Aalto cross-country travel route scheduled to begin in May next year.

The participation in the project will cost the city approximately 20,000 euros. The Ministry of Education and Culture has granted 40,000 euros for the project and the Alvar Aalto Foundation will provide 10,000 euros.

Visit Rovaniemi, the company that promotes tourism in the city believes by joining in the project Rovaniemi will see a significant rise in domestic tourists.

“Surely it will help Rovaniemi to get more domestic travellers that value the city’s cultural perspectives,” said Visit Rovaniemi Managing Director Sanna Kärkkäinen to the Daily Finland.

She said cooperation with the Aalto partners would be valuable for Rovaniemi, as it could create more holistic views and add values to cultural tourism, which is a new tourism trend.

“Travellers will get more concerted travel information and easier steps for finding the Aalto route and iconic architectures of Finland,” she added.

Rovaniemi joined the Aalto Cities, a network of collaborating cities, this year. According to the Alvar Aalto Foundation, the network aims at achieving closer collaboration between the partner cities and to increase “Aalto awareness” both in Finland and abroad.

Apart from Rovaniemi, other partners of the Aalto Cities network in its first stage include Alajärvi, Espoo, Eura, Helsinki, Jyväskylä, Kotka, Kouvola, Paimio, Pori, Seinäjoki Varkaus, and Turku.

The Alvar Aalto Foundation and the Aalto Cities maintain a joint website, https://www.alvaraalto.fi/en/visit/, which showcases Alvar Aalto works at different stages in an interesting and high-quality manner for both local and foreign travellers. It works also as a joint marketing website for service providers in Aalto travel destinations, providing up-to-date information on services like accommodation and transport between destinations, reported the Finnish language daily Lapin Kansa.

Rovaniemi City Mayor Esko Lotvonen told the Lapin Kansa about his expectations to get tourism products from the Aalto initiative during the summer mainly for local tourists.

According to Visit Rovaniemi, Aalto’s main focus in Rovaniemi is its administrative and cultural centre, also known as the Aalto Centre, which features the Rovaniemi City Hall, Rovaniemi City Library, and Lappia House, a congress venue and home of the Rovaniemi Theatre.

Beside large public projects, Alvar Aalto also has designed some housing areas in Rovaniemi including the Korkalorinne residential area made of row houses and apartment buildings in park-like surroundings and several buildings planned as part of a tight urban milieu in the city centre.

Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was an architect and designer in Finland. He is famous for is works include architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings.