Although hunting, fishing and later farming was the primary occupation of the people who lived there, today the most notable activity in Oulanka is tourism.

From the 1930s, the Finnish Tourist Association kept boats on the river and renovated the wooden cabins found across the park for accommodation purposes.

It has a unique river ecosystem and is an example of untouched and unlogged boreal forest, close to the Arctic Circle, which is protected by World Wide Fund for Nature from intensive reindeer herding.

The lichen species Verrucaria oulankajokiensis, described in 2024, was originally collected from the park, where it grows on rocks on the shores of the River Oulankajoki.

Most meadows are managed in a traditional manner, and reindeer herding continues to thrive within the park, although it is restricted to people from Lapland.

The most well-known Finnish trekking route, Karhunkierros (80 km), is located in the national park, and is accessible all year round.