Föglö
Föglö is a large archipelago municipality in Åland. It is one of the oldest known place names from the area of present-day Finland, and the island group served as the centre of the Åland archipelago for centuries. The municipality has a gallant history in the seafaring area, and due to its large, colourful wooden houses, the municipality's centre, village Degerby, is often considered as one of the most beautiful villages in the whole Åland province.
Understand
Föglö is the least Finnish speaking community in Finland. Less than 3 % of residents announce Finnish as their mother tongue.
500 year-round residents live in Föglö municipality, in addition to which there are around 700 summer-only residents. The municipal school (grades 1-9) also serves the students from neighboring Sottunga.
- 1 Föglö Tourist Information (Föglö turistinformation), Föglövägen 10, ☏ +358 457 342 7274, turistinfo@foglo.ax. Tourist information office is open June-August. Otherwise the town hall across the street serve as a tourist info. Maps, books, and souvenirs. Art exhibition. Toilet.
History
The name Föglö was mentioned in a 1241 Danish seafaring manuscript as Fyghelde, making it one of the oldest known place names within modern-day Finland. While the exact meaning of the danish name is unclear, it is thought to have its roots in the area's abundant bird life. Föglö is among the best places on the Baltic Sea to encounter open sea bird species. In fact, Föglö southern archipelago is one of the internationally recognized Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA).
Although Föglö church was largely modernized during the 1860s, its oldest surviving parts are estimated to date from the 14th century. For centuries, Föglö served as the center of the Åland archipelago. During the 19th century, the well-being of this archipelago community began to be built more and more on commercial shipping – and especially in Degerby – the street view is dominated by large "captain houses", which wealthy seafarers and ship owners built as their residences. Even though the Russians founded Mariehamn in 1861, Degerby had more residents until the 1920s.
Shipwrecks have also occurred during the centuries-old maritime tradition. There are many wrecks in the depths of the sea, but a particularly interesting one was found in 2003. Bottles of beer and champagne were found in the wreckage of this, so far unidentified ship. In 2012 the Government of Åland auctioned a few bottles of champagne at a price of more than €20,000 each. The income was completely used for marine research.
Get in
Being a set of islands, boat is the only way in. Ålandstrafiken operates a ferry from Svinö harbor in Lumparland to Degerby several times a day. Also one of the mainlines, Södra Linjen, connects Överö harbor in the north of Föglö to Långnäs harbor (Lumparland) as well as to Sottunga, Kökar, and finally Galtby in mainland Finland. The Galtby harbour has a bus connection to Turku but not for every arrival/departure.
There is a bus connection from Mariehamn to Svinö harbour by Ålandstrafiken's line 5. Ticket €2.5/adult (Sep 2023). See their timetable for details. Not all ferry arrivals/departures have bus connection, the connecting bus departures/arrivals are marked black in the timetable and "Svinö färjfäste" is your destination. In the bus timetable "Föglö linjen ANKOMST" is the time when the ferry is at the Svinö harbor.
Ferry trip Svinö-Degerby takes 30 minutes per direction (Sep 2023). There is a café onboard.
When the ferry from Degerby arrives to Svinö harbour there is just few minutes to get the bus waiting at the pier! If you want to reach it, make sure you depart the ferry before the cars.
Of course, sailing your own craft is also possible. There are two guest harbors in Degerby.
Both 1 Degerby ferry jetty and 2 Överö ferry jetty have daily ferry connections. However, Ålandstrafiken ferries call at Överö harbor only by request which must be done by phone and no later than 45 minutes before ferry's scheduled arrival to Överö. It is not possible to reserve a place for a vehicle for a trip between Överö-Långnäs in advance.
Get around
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The Christ and The Santa
In the 1940s, artist Warner Sallman painted a portrait of Jesus known nowadays as the Head of Christ. Another artist, Haddon Sundblom, worked for the Coca Cola Company and his pen created a picture of smiling Santa Claus holding a coke bottle in his hand. Both of these pictures are now somewhat iconic. The families of both these gentlemen moved to the United States from Föglö. |
Degerby village is small enough to get around on foot without any trouble. However, the island group itself is large and the distances are fairly long on the scale of Åland. There is daily kollektivtrafik between Överö and Degerby. Using it is free of charge.
See
- 1 Föglö Museum (Föglömuséet) (in the middle of Degerby village). Local history museum in a former harbor storage house. Lots of stories and photos about history and everyday life in Föglö. Texts are mostly in Swedish but leaflets in English and Finnish are available. Nearby there's a pilot museum, also operated by the municipality. free.
- 2 Föglö church, Kyrkvägen 106. mid-Jun to mid-Aug: Tu-F 11:00-16:00. Föglö church was converted into a cruciform church in the 1860s, but the oldest parts of it date back to the 14th century. In the church there is artist Warner Sallman's Head of Christ. The portrait is estimated to have more than 500 million copies around the world. The church is dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene and is operated by Åland southern archipelago parish.
Do
- 1 Jyddö nature trail, Överövägen. Rare species of plants and butterflies can be observed by this 5-km-long circular nature trail near Överö harbour. Follow the white markings. Several resting places with benches and tables. Observing tower in the southeast corner, fireplace and lean-to shelter NW from the parking lot. free.
- 2 Hastersboda nature trail, Gårglo. A 4-km-long circular nature trail with a bit more emphasis on the livelihoods of the archipelago. Rocky shorelines by the sea, coniferous forest, and pastures with grazing sheep and cows. From the bird watching tower you might be able to see over the sea all the way to Kökar. No fireplace. Follow the white markings. free.
Buy
- 1 K-market Föglöbutiken, Tingsvägen 6. M-F 09:00-18:00, Sa 10:00-16:00, Su closed. A well-equipped grocery store where you can get everything from milk to drill bits. Most common non-prescription medicines available. Also a post office is in a separate room.
Eat
- 1 Restaurang Seagram, Lotsuddsvägen (Degerby village). Large restaurant with seafood, meat dishes, and different pizzas on the menu. Separate lunch menu. Live artists during the summer season.
Drink
Sleep
- 1 Badhotel Carlsro, Lumparlutsvägen 12, ☏ +358 40 839 8111, info@carlsro.ax. A small hotel in a historic mansion and garden built in 1918. Also restaurant and delicacy shop.
- 2 Gästhem Enigheten, Tingsvägen 63 (700 m from Degerby centre), ☏ +358 18 50310, info@enigheten.ax. This idyllic mansion has served as a guesthouse since 1625 when Hansson Winberg got ownership of then abandoned farm and started an inn here. Current buildings are from late 1800s.