Ekenäs Old Town and Church

Ekenas, known in Finnish as Tammisaari, is a coastal town in the municipality of Raseborg in western Uusimaa, Finland, where Swedish is widely spoken. King Gustav I Vasa of Sweden founded the town in 1546 as one of several new trading towns on the Gulf of Finland, intended to draw merchants away from Tallinn and from the Hanseatic network and to strengthen royal control over trade. The town grew slowly, relying on shipping, fishing and small crafts, and it suffered periods of war and fire. Its old centre, known as Gamla stan, preserves a street plan of low wooden houses, narrow lanes, and small gardens, with many buildings dating to the 18th and 19th centuries and painted in pastel colours. The fire-resistant layout and the limited rebuilding after the 1800s mean the area has a notably intact character. Ekenas Church, from the 1600s, is a stone church in the town centre, with a bell tower and interior features typical of Swedish-era Lutheran churches in Finland. Around the old town are museums including the Ekenas Museum and the nearby Raseborg Castle ruins, which together give context to the region's history from the medieval to the early modern period. Conservation rules guide the repair of historic houses, and many are residences, shops, cafes, or galleries. Visitors normally explore on foot in one to three hours and often continue to the harbour and the Pohja and Fiskars areas. The old town is about 90 kilometres west of Helsinki and is reached by car or by bus and train connections. Signage appears in Swedish and Finnish, with English information available from the tourist office.