Viikinsaari is an island in Lake Pyhäjärvi accessible by a 15-minute ferry from Laukontori in summer. The island has a summer restaurant and café, walking trails through old-growth forest, outdoor stages for summer concerts, and good swimming off the rocky shores. It is primarily a Tampere locals' summer destination — calm, forested, and genuinely removed from the city despite being a short boat ride away.
The ferry runs multiple times daily from late May through August. On Sunday evenings in summer the island hosts outdoor dance events — a peculiarly Finnish summer tradition that has kept going since the 1940s. The dancing is tango and Finnish traditional forms, and it is both earnest and appealing.