Extant literature on travelling planning ideas has been focusing on the need
to understand the specificities of both origin and destination contexts, and
the need to utilise ‘thick descriptions’ to tie the contexts closer together for a
reflective policy learning process. This article builds on these ideas by connecting
the concept of strategic bridge-building (SBB) to the current debate
to shed light on the importance of collaborative bridging activities between
the planning contexts. The empirical case of the transnational policy learning
process in Tampere city-regional planning illustrates the need for SBB activities
by presenting the case of a negatively connoted although well-intentioned
transfer process