Närpes
Närpes (Finnish: Närpiö) is a town in Ostrobothnia, Finland.
Understand
Närpes is the Tomato Capital of Finland. In the greenhouses all around the local people grow the main harvest of Finnish tomatoes all year around. If you buy Finnish tomatoes in any supermarket in Finland, chances are they come from here. And people are proud of that fact. Otherwise this place is spread out over a large forest area and you need a car to get around.
Närpes is unilingually Swedish and thus many of the inhabitants do not speak Finnish that well, so it's probably much easier to speak English than to express Finnish "survival sentences" in the town. The town has its own, ancient Swedish dialect , so understanding the local lingo can be a real challenge, even for native Swedish-speakers.
The flourishing agriculture has led to significant immigration from far away, and the town is an example of successful integration.
Get in
By car
Coming from the north (Vaasa/Vasa) or south (Pori/Björneborg), take national road 8/E8 and then transfer to route 673 and 676 to reach Närpes. Coming from the east, take route 67 instead of E8.
By bus
Buses from Vaasa and Pori stop at Närpes. Ingsva has connections from nearby province. Onnibus route between Turku and Oulu uses highway stop named Närpiö th P.
Get around
A car is really needed to get around the distances.
Matka.fi includes some bus services to ruralside. Service line offers dial-a-ride service.
See
- The old church has one unique thing: over 150 little log houses which were built as stables so local people travelling all the way to Sunday church could keep them safe.
- Öjskogsparken, Kyrkvägen 23, ☏ +358 40-505-5377. Open air museum area with over 20 historical houses to discover allowing a great insight in 19th century countryside life. Step inside a traditional country shop, learn about wedding traditions and don't miss the pharmacy museum.
Do
Buy
Tomatoes
Eat
Drink
Sleep
Go next
To Kaskinen (Kaskö), an idyllic harbour town, an enclave of Närpes and the smallest town of Finland.
| Routes through Närpes |
| Tornio ← Vaasa ← | W  E |
→ Kristinestad → Turku |