Scan Magazine
Hotel of the Month
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Finland
Welcome. Photo: Salpalinjan Hovi
Hotel of the Month, Finland
Salpalinjan Hovi: a unique themed hotel in the middle of nature At the family-owned Salpalinjan Hovi hotel in south-eastern Finland, guests take centre stage from the minute they walk through the door. By Linda A. Thompson
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Photos: Salpalinjan Hovi
Salpalinjan Hovi, a small boutique hotel located a stone’s throw from Lappeenranta in Finland, has been shaped by Anne Sorsa-Vainikka’s own experiences as traveller. When her children were young and the family travelled abroad, Sorsa-Vainikka and her husband would regret splitting the family up at night, with the children in one room, and them in another. This got them wondering which services and activities their ideal hotel would offer. In 2012, Sorsa-Vainikka, a biologist by training, fell in love with a former village 84 |
Issue 150
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January 2023
school building in their native city of Lappeenranta, where she and her husband, a lawyer, had relocated from Helsinki.
Strange rock. Photo: HiskiShow
When the pair came across the gorgeous, listed building, it was immediately clear what Sorsa-Vainikka would do next. She would convert it into a small, cosy hotel, where she would offer guests the best-possible stay. Her hotel would be unique and different from chain hotels. Couples, families, nature and culture lovers would be welcome. Two years later, Salpalinjan Hovi opened. In furnishing the hotel, Sorsa-Vainikka preserved the references to the building’s former life. “I wanted to honour the history of the school building and I decorated all the rooms according to different school subjects,” she explains. “We have a mother tongue room, a history room, a biology, geography and an art