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Hanko Peninsula

South coast  >  Finland

Beautiful walk crossing several habitats like forest, pebble beach and rocky coast. The area also has a bird observatory.

Added* by Linus Rahn
Most recent update 16 junij 2025

Description

Hanko peninsula is the southernmost tip of mainland Finland and a perfect spot to observe migrating birds. You also have a great view out to sea. A bird research station is located in a traditional fisherman’s cottage. During migration you can observe numerous songbird species, gulls, waders and waterfowl passing by. Birds include gaga, siva gos, labod pevec, zvonec, veliki žagar, srednji žagar, zimska raca, komatni deževnik, školjkarica, bodičasta govnačka, srebrni galeb, rečni galeb, veliki galeb, rjavi galeb and belorepec.

Details

Access

Hanko peninsula is located directly west of the town of Hanko, on the southernmost tip of mainland Finland. There is a parking lot with information boards at the entrance to the nature reserve. 200m further on you have to park your bike, from there you have to continue on foot. Press P on the map for directions to the parking.

Terrain and Habitat

Forest , Scattered trees and bushes , Sea , Beach

Conditions

Rocky , Dry

Circular trail

Yes

Is a telescope useful?

Can be useful

Good birding season

Autumn , Spring

Best time to visit

Autumn migration , Spring migration

Route

Narrow trail

Difficulty walking trail

Average walk

Accessible by

Foot

Birdwatching hide / platform

No

Extra info

The Hanko Bird Observatory (1) was originally founded in 1979 and is maintained by the Helsinki region’s ornithological association. The scientists and volunteers of the station are dedicated to monitoring and researching bird migration patterns. While the observatory itself is primarily a research station, it does welcome visitors during certain periods. The best times to visit are spring (March–June) and autumn (August–November), when migration is at its peak. The observatory also organizes guided tours and visits. See for more info the weblink below.

Links

View other birding spots in the area that are published on Birdingplaces

Map

Top 5 birds

Other birds you can see here

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