The Nordic Aesthetics
Five days between Aalto’s Finland and the city’s classic public baths.
If you love design, architecture and sauna.
One can not say Finland without saying design. Finland is the hidden design gem of the Nordic countries with names such as Aalvar Alto, Iittala, Marimekko and the Moomin universe, just to mention a few.
This journey moves at an even pace between Kotka and Helsinki in the south of Finland. Aalto’s architecture sets the frame, and Helsinki’s public saunas give the days a simple, shared focus. There is time to look, sit, bathe and talk. The group is small. The program is clear.
Designed for guests who care about form, materials and everyday culture. You stay well, eat well and see Helsinki’s design life with a local guide who knows the places and their stories.
The Essentials
Duration:
5 days of authentic sauna culture and Finnish design and architecture.
Saunas to visit:
4 – Ööd private sauna, Floating Sauna in Varissaari, Kotiharjun Sauna, Löyly
Designers to explore:
Visiting Alvar Aalto Homes open house and his home museum, Design Museum Helsinki, Moomin, Marimekko, Iittala, local designers and much more
Accommodation:
1 night in Ööd luxury cabin at Versso Island, 1 night in Sunila Aalto Apartments and two nights in Stylish Hotel F6 in Helsinki
Food:
Breakfast included . Dinner at luxury cabin included .
We have many good recommendations for restaurants.
Group Size:
Small and personal, Max 15 people.
Guide is Ida Kaijalainen, owner of Northern Star.
Getting There:
Fly to Helsinki Airport (HEL)
All transport in Finland is arranged and private.
Experience Level:
No prior sauna skills required — just curiosity and a love for warmth
Season:
28. August-01. September 2026.
Contact us for alternative dates
Gallery
Journey Overview
The Guide
– My intention with this trip is, to combine two things Finns care deeply about — sauna and design. You’ll see Aalto’s work up close, meet people who live with his ideas every day, and get a real sense of how design shapes the way we live here in Finland. This trip will change your understanding of Finland.
Ida, Northern Star
Ida Kaijalainen
• 32 years old
• 221 years of family sauna legacy
• Sauna expert
This trip will be guided by Finnish Ida Kaijalainen, founder and owner of Northern Star. Ida Kaijalainen grew up with sauna as a constant. Even when she lived and travelled far from Finland, sauna was her link back — a ritual that always brought her home again.
Today Ida is involved in promoting finnish sauna culture not only via Northern Star, but also at sauna festivals, fairs and presentations, and is consiedered one of the most knowledgeable sauna experts in the field.
Practical details
- Price: 17,500 DKK // 17,500 SEK // 1,590 € per person
- Group Size: Max 15 people — solo travellers, couples, and small groups
- Sauna experience: Beginner friendly
- Duration: 5 days / 4 nights
Included:
- Accommodation (4 nights)
Breakfast always included, one dinner
- Private transportation (option to switch to rental car)
- All sauna experiences
- Local guide
- All taxes
Not included:
- Flights
- Travel insurance
- Meals and alcohol
- Single room supplement: 420 DKK // 620 SEK // 60 € per night
Accommodation
During The Nordic Aesthetic, you stay in two contrasting settings chosen for calm, character, and easy access to what matters: design and sauna.
Alvar Aalto’s Sunila Apartments
Sunila is Alvar and Aino Aalto’s industrial community on the Gulf of Finland, planned from 1936 as a “forest town” beside the mill. Guests stay in renovated apartments within Aalto‑designed blocks set among pines with sea air and open space. Layouts keep period character with modern comforts added. The area is quiet, walkable and close to the shoreline, which makes it a good base between program points in Kotka and the national parks.
Sunila is a residential and industrial area. Th style is Functionalism / Modernism, and is referred to as a pure functionalist whole.
Former mill manager’s house Kantola was built in 1937, and it’s located in the residential area of Sunila, in the city of Kotka. Guests will reside in this building.
The spaces open up to the visitor step by step, and Kantola’s central hall gathers the other rooms of the building around it.
Hotel F6
Nordic Home-like Boutique Retreat in Helsinki
Hotel F6 is centrally located on Fabianinkatu, right by Esplanadi Park. The atmosphere is homely and stylish – the furniture and colours draw on Nordic aesthetics, with warm wooden floors, calm decor and details that show thoughtfulness and comfort.
The rooms come in three categories: Standard, Superior and Deluxe. The standard rooms are around 25 m² – small but elegant with comfortable beds, wooden floors and a little extra charm like French balconies overlooking the hotel’s quiet courtyard.
Restaurant and communal facilities are good: their bar, Bar Runar, serves as a gathering point in the evenings; breakfast is described as organic and tasty; the hotel also has fitness facilities and a 24-hour reception.
F6 has a court yard with an inviting and friendly atmosphere.
You are saluted by a modern and smart entrance of this boutique hotel.
The standard rooms are around 25 m² – small but elegant with comfortable beds, wooden floors and a little extra charm like French balconies overlooking the hotel’s quiet courtyard.
ÖÖD at Versso
ÖÖD at Versso is set on the sandy shoreline of Versso Island in Pyhtää, surrounded by pine forest, sea views and smooth coastal rock. Guests stay in a mirror cabin designed for two, where the landscape becomes part of the experience while the interior remains calm, private and carefully composed. Each cabin includes a private sauna, double bed, kitchenette, living area and bathroom, combining immersion in nature with everyday comfort. The Räsymatto cabin features a Marimekko interior concept inspired by sustainable living and simple creativity, which adds a distinctive Nordic design layer to the stay.
F6 has a court yard with an inviting and friendly atmosphere.
You are saluted by a modern and smart entrance of this boutique hotel.
The standard rooms are around 25 m² – small but elegant with comfortable beds, wooden floors and a little extra charm like French balconies overlooking the hotel’s quiet courtyard.
Gallery
