Welcome to Nurmes!

Fishing, hiking and other outdoor recreational activities are really spoilt for choice there. The lakes abundant with fish, guarantee great catches throughout the year. The Bomba House and Karelian Holiday Resort, along with the Bomba Spa with its bubbling pools and baths, offer relaxation and invigoration whenever you feel the need.

Its idyllic wooden houses and the Karelian village Bomba make Nurmes an especially charming small town. The center of the city, which raises up between two lakes, is known for its magnificent esker landscape, unique wooden house quarters and thousands of birches, and that’s why Nurmes is also called the City of birches.

Bomba and the Karelian village.
The main attraction of the Karelian village in Nurmes is the Bomba house, which is a copy of a house build by Jegor Bombin in 1855 in Suojärvi. Suojärvi was part of the Karelian areas that Finland lost to Soviet Union in 1944 as a result of continuation war between the two countries, and Karelians were evacuated from the areas. The current Bomba house in Nurmes was built in 1978, its opening day was celebrated on the first of August. A full Karelian village was built around the replica to supplement the atmosphere and the experience of the area.

Traditional Karelian building expertise were honored in making the replica of the Bomba house; it was built from long, round logs and no iron parts were used while making the flamboyant house. The ground plan was drawn for the replica by Vilho Suonmaa and Jarmo Santala, and it is done in the same module as the original house built by Bombin, although the replica is slightly bigger than the original house. Because the original house was built for a large family and their daily lives, the replica build in Nurmes naturally had to have some changes in its design; for example, in place of the cowshed in the original house, a restaurant was built in replace in the replica.

In the Bomba restaurant you can taste the traditional Karelian cuisine, but also with a modern twist. During summer time, you can also find a beerhouse and summer terrace in this idyllic building! The atmospheric house is a popular choice for a different type of events all around the year, and no wonder as the traditional house provides a memorable place for any kind of event! It is also possible to accommodate in the houses of the Karelian village, which gives another dimension to your Karelian experience! On the site of the Karelian village, there is also a market square open during summertime, where you can enjoy traditional Karelian baked goods, summer vibes and the unique milieu of Bomba and the Karelian village.

Walk along the Path of Silence to Orthodox tsasouna and get captivated by the surroundings
At the Bomba region, you can also get familiar with the Karelian history through Orthodox tradition, as there is also an Orthodox tsasouna, a prayer chapel, in the area of the Karelian village. Walk along the Path of Silence to the Chapel of Sergius and Herman of Valaam, and sense the unique feeling of the place. The tsasouna was inaugurated in the 1980s, and it was drawn by Erkki Helasvuo. The model for the tsasouna was taken from a tsasouna build in Ägläjärvi, which was also part of the areas lost to the Soviet Union in 1944. Visit the unique place and sense the serene atmosphere around it! It is open regularly, and services are also being held in the chapel.

In co-operation with Pielisen Karjalan Kehittämiskeskus Oy PIKES we welcome You to the area of Nurmes!