Lappeenranta is a city in southeastern Finland, the administrative, economic and cultural centre of South Karelia. It is on the southern shore of Lake Saimaa, the largest lake in Finland close to the Russian-Finnish border.
Founded in 1649 (when it had the Swedish name Villmanstrand) the city marked its 360th anniversary in 2009. It has a population of 72,000 and an area of 1756 sq km including its suburbs.
City authorities position Lappeenranta as an international tourist and university city. Its two higher education institutions, the University of Technology specialising in innovative research and the Saimaa University of Applied Sciences, have 13,000 students.
The city has 12 museums, 12 libraries, a theatre and many sporting facilities. There is a fortress and a port in the picturesque historic city center.
The Saimaa Canal linking Lake Saimaa with the Russian part of the Finnish Gulf is used for passenger and freight traffic both by Finnish and Russian ships and ships of other countries.
Lappeenranta is a twin city with the Russian cities of Klin (since 1966) and Vyborg (since 1987).