Hanko
Tourism

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back to Tsarist times, offering a wide range of sports and recreational facilities as well as the beautiful beaches round the peninsula. Hanko is also an important port (Finland's only free port) and ferry terminal (services to Lübeck in northern Germany). The harbor is ice-free (or is kept ice-free) throughout the year.

History

Strategically situated between the gulfs of Finland and Bothnia, Hanko was settled from a very early period and was a cause of dispute in many wars and the scene of many battles. In the Middle Ages vessels were already anchoring in the sound of Hauensuoli. The peninsula was fortified at the end of the 18th century. Hanko received its municipal charter, however, only in 1874, when the opening of the railroad line from Helsinki gave the town's economy a boost.

Between 1880 and 1930 hundreds of thousands of Finns emigrating to the United States sailed from Hanko. During the Second World War, in 1940, Finland was obliged to lease the town to the Soviet Union, but in the summer of 1941 the Finns recovered it after a long siege, during which 400 Soviet soldiers were killed. In 1960 Finland and the Soviet Union jointly erected a monument to commemorate these events.