We take care of surrounding nature, keep our lawn mowed and our backyard clean, nurture the forest by thinning out old trees from time to time, and have opened the view to the beautiful Pyhävesi. Both the house and the surrounding area have strong historical connections to the railway and you can actually see the modern railway from our backyard still.
We keep the backyard, the rooms and the sauna building clean and in good condition. We have renovated the living quarters where the rentable rooms are located respecting the old but also allowing the house to breathe.
Our place is peaceful and our location at the end of the street ensures that there are no trespassers. The backyard is spacious and every guest of ours has a place in it. Modern trains are silent, and not many pass us to begin with.
We are so close to nature that you can experience it right from the front door. For example, there are plenty of opportunities for outdoor sports: hiking trails along the lake, canoe rentals not far from the B&B, biking routes both in the city and the forest. In winter, should the weather permit, there are skiing trails and an ice skating rink. Mäntyharju also has its own Nordic Walking park.
Our breakfast table is served with as much local produce as possible. For example, the flatbread and the jam are entirely homemade, the baked goods are made by us and only from fruits and berries that are in season, the juice is bought from a local Vierulan Tila farm and the eggs from Kuvalan Tila farm. Food waste is kept at minimum, for example by using the previous day’s fruit salad and yoghurt for the next day’s smoothies.
For us, hosting an inn is a huge part of our livestyle. We want to live in this wonderful contryside, where it is peaceful and private. We believe that our home scenery is inspirational and incredibly beautiful.
We believe in treating and servicing everyone equally. To us, every guest is genuinely important and we aspire to treat everyone as individuals with their own personal needs. We want to create an atmosphere where everyone feels welcome, whether you come alone, with a friend, with a family or a significant other. We have joined We Speak Gay-organisation to further show that sexual minorities have every right to receive the same quality of service as everyone else.
We want to show our guests that our accommodation place has history and we want to share our knowledge of the railwaymen culture, among other things.
We recycle the trash and sort it into mixed waste, paper, plastic, bio waste, metal and glass. Even though there is only one bin in every room, we handle all recycling after the guests have left.
Our guest rooms have several items made from recycled materials. For example, some of the floor mats are made from old pillow cases and bed sheets. Several of the furniture pieces have been purchased at second-hand and trift stores. Our breakfast serving dishes have also been purchased from those.
Our relationship with our neighbours is exceptionally good, as shown, for example, by our renting their sauna since the beginning of our accommodation business. It was built in 1969 for communal use of railway workers and it’s been lovingly renovated by us. Now we tell its history to our guests. For many of our guests, it has been their first wood-heated sauna experience, and we’ve always been eager to tell more about Finnish sauna culture as well as give instructions on how to safely enjoy it.
We are just a kilometer away from the railway station and to promote travel by train, we give a little surprise to every guest who shows their ticket, such as a cup of coffee and a pastry.
For cleaning, we use Finnish, eco-friendly products. For electricity we use green energy. Firewood is delivered to us by a local businessman.
Our summer and temporary workers are primarily locals. We provide monthly financial support for our godchild Esther’s education in Tanzania. Every month we donate to a big rescue animal shelter Takis Shelter in Crete.
Learn more about our Sustainable Finland Pledge by clicking on this link →