Down the coast, south, and east of the main railway station are the Rowing Stadium from the 1952 Olympics, kayak and canoe rentals, and the beautiful sandy beach of Hietaniemi. Next to this are several open fields frequently used as soccer parks, several restaurants, and a public sauna.
Beyond this lies the fascinating and park-like Hietaniemi cemetery with a cross on its highest point commemorating the fallen heroes of the republic. Here, too, Marshal Mannerheim (1867-1951) is buried.
Near the entrance are the graves of the politicians Risto Ryti, Väinö Tanner, T. M. Kivimäki, and E. Linkomies, who – as a condition of the 1944 armistice – were tried by a Finnish court for their political activities during the war and were given prison sentences, later commuted. A section of the cemetery is dedicated to the Jewish population of the city.
