The Saimaa Canal will be opened on Monday 30 March 2020 at 15.00 for cargo traffic. Travel by pleasure craft and all passenger transport is prohibited in the Saimaa Canal due to the coronavirus situation.
The Taipale and Konnus Canals will be opened for traffic on Monday 30 March 2020 at 15.00.
The Saimaa Canal connects Lake Saimaa to the Gulf of Finland. Nearly half of the Saimaa Canal runs through a land area leased from Russia. The eight locks of the Saimaa Canal are operated via remote control centres at Mälkiä and Brusnitchnoe.
The Saimaa Canal was first opened in 1856 and was, at that time, the largest construction project ever completed in Finland.