Mikkeli Hire Car Tips, Experiences & Comparison

Discover Mikkeli by Hire Car

On the eastern half of the beautiful Lake Saimaa area, in the province of Eastern Finland, lies the idyllic town of Mikkeli.

With a total area of more than 2100 square kilometres, the Mikkeli metropolitan area is as huge as Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg combined, but with just under 50,000 inhabitants it has only a fraction of the population density of the major German cities.

History of Mikkeli

The earliest traces of settlement in Mikkeli date back to the Stone Age, although permanent settlement did not occur until the 13th century.

The name Mikkeli first appeared in 1604 and is derived from the archangel Michael. With this name, it is also not surprising that the place was initially a church village and was only founded as a town by Tsar Nicholas I in 1838.

Sights in Mikkeli

Testimony to Mikkeli’s clerical past still includes the impressive cathedral church, which was built from 1895 to 1897 in the neo-Gothic style of red brick. As the tallest building in the town, it also currently dominates Mikkeli’s skyline.

Another imposing example is the Mikkeli Rural Municipality Church, built in 1816, which seats 2000 and is the third largest in Finland.

The oldest church here, however, is the wooden church of Attola, built in Juva in 1729, but demolished there in 1870 and moved to Mikkeli.

Since the construction of the Visulathi holiday resort, with 25,000 houses but hardly noticeable in the huge total area, tourism in Mikkeli became more and more important.

Due to the sprawling nature of the provincial capital, a hire car is recommended during your stay.