Hotel Kaunispää is an investment opportunity at the foot of a fell in Saariselkä

The unbeatable attraction of Saariselkä is its unique nature, along with its great opportunities for outdoor activities. In the area, it is possible to see the northern lights up to 200 nights a year. Sámi culture, the gold mining tradition and reindeer husbandry are also strongly present in the area.

The international airport is less than half an hour away, and the coast of the Arctic Ocean is only a few hours’ drive away. The tourist center is bordered by Urho Kekkonen National Park, which is among the most popular national parks in Finland with its well over 300,000 annual visitors. Demand for hotel accommodation is also increased by the region’s active automotive winter and tire testing activities, which bring automotive industry operators to the region.

In 2019, 385,000 overnight stays were registered in Saariselkä, almost 60 percent of which were international. The largest international markets were the United Kingdom, Germany, China, France and Japan. The COVID-19 crisis that struck during 2020 reduced Saariselkä’s international overnight stays by 60 percent compared to previous years. However, after the global pandemic, the spaciousness and tranquility of the region will be even bigger selling points. In addition to the European tourism markets, international growth is expected from Asia, the United States and Russia.

• Read more about Inari-Saariselkä as a travel destination

A hotel and a new service center at the foot of the fell

Hotel Kaunispää would be located at the Saariselkä tourist center right at the foot of Kaunispää fell. The hotel will have easy access to the ski tracks, and hiking trails in the summer, and the world’s longest toboggan run will end right next to the hotel.

According to the regional plan made, a new service center, a ski slope area and a ski lift will be located in the immediate vicinity of the hotel, and the routes of the outdoor trails will be realigned so that, in the future, the new Hotel Kaunispää will be right at the junction of the routes.

Metsähallitus’s Sales Manager Kari Männistö says that a plan and calculations have previously been prepared for a high-quality upscale hotel with a total of 150 rooms on the plot.

—According to this plan, the hotel would be constructed utilizing large glass surfaces, through which nature can be brought indoors as well. In the top-floor suites, natural phenomena in the sky could be admired indoors, and the rooms facing the ski slopes would have a glass wall.

In addition to accommodation and restaurant services, the hotel would include facilities for wellness services, two different saunas and hot tubs.

Hotel Kaunispää’s customer base is focused on Saariselkä’s international growth markets and active, experience-seeking customers. The idea behind the hotel is locality, and the goal is for the customer to feel that they are arriving at a hotel that is distinctly Laplandic.

Metsähallitus’s goal is to sell or lease the plot to a hotel developer. Männistö says that the feasibility study and preliminary plans for the hotel project will be made available to those interested in the plot. Furthermore, Metsähallitus and the municipality of Inari are committed to developing the nature tourism infrastructure, routes and slopes in the area in a way that supports new accommodation investments in the area.

Hotel Kaunispää project on the map

(The map is indicative)