The rapids view
The red brick mills on both banks.
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Keskustori — the Central Square — is the heart of Tampere and its largest square, standing directly on the western bank of the **Tammerkoski** rapids. Around it stand the city's official buildings: the **city hall** of 1890 with its ornamented front, the **old theatre**, the timber **Tampere Old Church** in its garden, and the historic Hotel Tammer. The square is working rather than displayed: a daily market of vegetable, flower and food stalls is held on it, a Christmas market in December, and gatherings, and most bus and tram lines start here — Tampere opened a modern tram network in 2021, the first Finnish city outside Helsinki to do so. From its eastern edge you see the **rapids** and the red brick mills on both banks — the image that defines Tampere. **Free and always open**, and the natural starting point for any walk in the city.
The red brick mills on both banks.
Vegetable, flower and food stalls on the square.
Keskustori, Tampere
Tampere Old ChurchTampere Old Church is **the oldest building in the city centre**: a timber churc1 minute walk4.3
Tampere Market HallTampere Market Hall is **the largest covered market hall in the Nordic countries2 minutes walk4.7
The Finlayson AreaThe factory that made the city: the Scot James Finlayson founded a cotton mill o5 minutes walk4.4
The Werstas Labour MuseumThe Finnish Labour Museum Werstas occupies an old Finlayson mill building on the5 minutes walk4.3
HämeenpuistoA wide tree-lined avenue cutting through central Tampere from north to south, th6 minutes walk4.2**Mustamakkara** is black blood sausage, the dish Tampere is known for, traditionally served with lingonberry jam. It is sold in the **Tampere Market Hall** and at stalls, and Finns themselves are divided between those who love and loathe it. **Note**: it is blood sausage — not halal and unsuitable for anyone who avoids it, and it is not always clearly labelled. Tampere's other options are safer: lake fish, salmon soup, Karelian rice pasties, and coffee with pulla, the Finnish cardamom bun.