Kemijärvi

In the late 19th century, Kemijärvi was a sparsely populated region, with only a few small villages scattered around the lake of the same name. The area was largely untouched by modernisation and remained a remote and isolated wilderness. However, with the railroad, which reached Rovaniemi in the early 20th century and Kemijärvi in the 1930s, Kemijärvi began to develop into a town. The railroad allowed for easier transportation of goods and people, and as a result, the population of the area began to grow. The town has a significant industrial history, particularly in the paper and pulp industry. In the 1950s, the Finnish government initiated a large-scale development program, which included the construction of several new paper mills in the country. One of these mills was built in Kemijärvi in 1954, which significantly boosted the town's economy and population.

Formerly quite off the beaten path, opening of a new border crossing to Russia in nearby Salla brought more international visitors to the city. The railway to Salla and on to Kandalaksha (Finnish: Kantalahti) was built on Soviet demand according to the peace treaties of World War II, but has never carried traffic across the border, and never regular passenger traffic. Thus, Kemijärvi, along with Kolari, are the northern railheads of Finland (although Rovaniemi, with better onward connections, acts as the main railhead).

The city gets its name from the namesake lake by the town centre, the lake in turn is on the route of the river Kemijoki, the longest river in Finland. Kemi is at the river's mouth.

The municipality covers 4,000 km2 (1,500 sq mi), a tenth of which is water, which means less than two people per km² of land on average; some 4,000, 60% of them, living in the town.

Tourist info (Kemijärven Matkailuinfo), Vapaudentie 8, ☏ +358 40-189-2050, info.visit@kemijarvi.fi. Mon–Fri 09:00–15:30. (updated Apr 2017)

By plane:

The closest passenger airport is in Rovaniemi, some 80 km away.

By train:

A daily overnight train from Helsinki to Lapland goes all the way to Kemijärvi. From Turku you may need to transfer in Tampere. See VR.

1 Kemijärvi railway station (Kemijärven rautatieasema), Asematie 4. Unmanned. Waiting room with toilets and ticket vending machine. (updated Dec 2020)

By bus:

There are buses from Rovaniemi, Kuusamo and Sodankylä as well as Kandalaksha in Russia; the Russian service may be suspended because of the Russian war on Ukraine.

2 Kemijärvi bus station (Kemijärven linja-autoasema), Pajulantie 2 (behind the ABC service station). (updated Nov 2026)

By car:

The distance from Helsinki or elsewhere in southern Finland is about 1,000 km, so prepare for a whole day of driving – or get tickets for an overnight train. The car train station has been recommissioned, so you can again take your car with you. If car slots are outsold, you might try to get a ticket to Rovaniemi instead and drive from there. Cabins with bunk beds for four people and a car slot cost about 2·€250+€150.

From elsewhere in Lapland you can usually drive to Kemijärvi in 4–5 hours. Remember to watch out for reindeer on the road regardless of the time of the year! From the Russian border at Salla you can drive to Kemijärvi in less than one hour (but there may be quite some driving on the Russian side, with the road not a highway).