Airports in Finland
Finland is situated on the northern border of three countries; Norway, Sweden and Russia. It is also home to Lapland, the largest region of Finland best known for its beautifully unspoiled nature and extremely low-reaching temperatures. The majority of Finland’s 5.5 million inhabitants live along the coast of the Baltic Sea making it a very popular destination for many both international and domestic travellers. Almost all of Finland’s major hotspots are accessible by plane from other major cities around Europe and the rest of the world.
The busiest of all airports in Finland is Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, followed closely by Oulu Airport and Rovaniemi Airport. The Finnish airport company ‘Finavia’ currently operates around 20 airports all across Finland, ensuring some of the best Nordic connections from Finland to the rest of the world.
In this guide, you will find all the necessary information about the international airports in Finland along with a map of all Finnish airports at the end.
The Top 5 biggest airports in Finland
Helsinki-Vantaa Airport – IATA code – HEL
~ 19 million passengers
Today, Helsinki-Vantaa Airport is the main international airport serving the city of Helsinki and most of its surrounding region. It is located in Vantaa, a neighbouring city. Helsinki Airport is by far the busiest airport in Finland, accumulating 20 times more traffic than the next-busiest airport, Oulu. It handles a large amount of international and domestic traffic, with an impressive average of 350 daily departures to various different cities.
Additionally, the airport has around 80 regularly scheduled destinations to other parts of Europe and 21 direct long-haul routes to countries in Asia, the Middle East, and North America.
The airport, which was originally built for the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, now has over 50 regularly-operating airlines which in turn provide employment for over 25,000 people and is home to roughly 1,500 companies regularly operating at this airport.
Oulu Airport – IATA code – OUL
~ 1 million passengers
Oulu Airport is located in the city of Oulu, roughly 10.6 km outside of the city centre. The airport is the second busiest in Finland after Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, measured by the number of passengers passing through. There are not as many daily flights, around 20 to Helsinki.
This airport is popular with and regularly used by the Finnish Air Force, mainly for training purposes. As with Helsinki-Vantaa, the managing body of this airport is also Finavia.
A major renovation and extension of the main terminal was completed in September 2011 following lots of demolition. Four new jetbridge gates were constructed and the main terminal was expanded by 4,300 square metres, raising the capacity of the airport to 1.5 million passengers per year. This was great for the potential of Oulu airports and Finland’s tourism as a whole, so we look forward to seeing many more passengers passing through Oulu.
Rovaniemi Airport – IATA code – RVN
~ 500,000 passengers
Following closely to its competitors, Rovaniemi Airport is the third busiest airport in Finland, located in the city of Rovaniemi, around 10 kilometres north of the city centre. The Arctic Circle actually crosses the runway at one point, closer to the northern end of the airport.
The airport was built in 1940, originally consisting of just two grass-surfaced runways and during World War II it served as one of the main airbases and supply centres for the German Luftwaffe. It continued to be used as an airport after the war, and it has since expanded to include several runways.
It consists of a single terminal, although its capacity increased by 50% in 2019 due to an increase in funding allowing for a substantial amount of refurbishment and extension to be introduced. The airport terminal has been extensively remodelled, and now offers travellers access to eight different boarding gates. This makes it easier for them to get to their destinations quickly and efficiently.
Charter flights from Great Britain and many other European countries typically take place during the primary season, which runs from November to the middle of January.
Turku Airport – IATA code – TKU
~ 300,000 passengers
Much like the other airports we have seen, Turku Airport is located in the city of Turku, 8 kilometres out from the center. It serves approximately 450,000 passengers every year and is the fourth busiest airport in Finland by the number of passengers and the second busiest airport by the number of cargo tonnes. It has a wide range of facilities, including a modern terminal building and a number of aviation companies that offer direct services to various destinations around the world. However, the main company operating at the airport is still Finavia. The airport offers different services specifically designed for low-cost airlines since 2008. This includes things like reduced wait times and priority boarding.
Turku Airport is often referred to as ‘LogiCity‘, which is marketed as a location for logistic companies and manufacturers. Logicity aims to interlink the different modes of transportation together. The airport hopes to attract these businesses by providing a convenient location and attractive surroundings making its current location ideal due to the fact that Turku Airport is just 20 minutes from the seaports of Turku and Naantali, whose combined values are exceptional for Helsinki.
Kittilä Airport – IATA code – KTT
~ 300,000 passengers
Kittilä Airport is located in the town of Kittilä, in the Arctic Circle. It is used for general aviation and handles seasonal international traffic. It is one of the main airports in Northern Finland.
During the winter, Kittilä is regularly visited by passengers from countries such as Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, and Canada. This helps make Kittilä the fifth busiest airport in Finland with a lot of seasonal traffic.
At Kittilä Airport, there are both a restaurant and a pharmacy, but also free Wi-Fi to make waiting time pass by quicker. This is great for those who need to catch up on work or just relax after a long flight.
Smaller airports in Finland
Vaasa Airport – IATA code – VAA
- Passengers: ~ 300,000 passengers
- Airlines: Aegean Airlines, Avion Express, Finnair, Jet Time, Pegasus Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines and Sunclass Airlines
- Nearby city: Vaasa
Kuopio Airport – IATA code – KUO
- Passengers: ~ 200,000 passengers
- Airlines: Aegean Airlines, Avion Express, Finnair, Freebird Airlines, Pegasus Airlines and Sunclass Airlines
- Nearby city: Kuopio
Ivalo Airport – IATA code – IVL
- Passengers: ~ 200,000 passengers
- Airlines: Finnair, Lufthansa, Transavia, TUI Airways and Titan Airways
- Nearby cities: Inari and Ivalo
Tampere-Pirkkala Airport – IATA code – TMP
- Passengers: ~ 200,000 passengers
- Airlines: airBaltic, Finnair and Ryanair
- Nearby cities: Tampere and Pirkkala
Joensuu Airport – IATA code – JOE
- Passengers: ~ 100,000
- Airlines: Avion Express, Finnair and Pegasus Airlines
- Nearby cities: Liperi and Joensuu
Kemi-Tornio Airport – IATA code – KEM
- Passengers: ~ 100,000
- Airline: Finnair
- Nearby cities: Lautiosaari and Kemi
Kuusamo Airport – IATA code – KAO
- Passengers: ~ 90,000
- Airlines: Finnair, Lufthansa, Transavia, TUI Airways, TUI fly Netherlands and Windrose Airlines
- Nearby city: Kuusamo
Kajaani Airport – IATA code – KAJ
- Passengers: ~ 90,000
- Airline: Finnair
- Nearby city: Kajaani
Kokkola-Pietarsaari Airport – IATA code – KOK
- Passengers: ~ 80,000
- Airlines: Amapola Flyg, Finnair and Freebird Airlines
- Nearby cities: Kokkola, Jakobstad and Kronoby
Jyväskylä Airport – IATA code – JYV
- Passengers: ~ 70,000
- Airlines: Avion Express, Finnair and Pegasus Airlines
- Nearby city: Jyväskylä
Mariehamn Airport – IATA code – MHQ
- Passengers: ~ 60,000
- Airlines: Amapola Flyg and Finnair
- Nearby city: Mariehamn
Enontekiö Airport – IATA code – ENF
- Passengers: ~ 20,000
- Airlines: Enter Air and Jet2.com
- Nearby city: Enontekiö
Pori Airport – IATA code – POR
- Passengers: ~ 20,000
- Airline: Budapest Aircraft Service
- Nearby city: Pori
Savonlinna Airport – IATA code – SVL
- Passengers: ~ 10,000
- Airline: Transaviabaltika
- Nearby city: Savonlinna