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Press release 10 November 2008

Levin Tori to attract travellers to Lapland year round

The Hotel and Business Centre Levin Tori is ready to welcome domestic and international guests.  The largest travel investment in Lapland, with its varied services, will be the centre of the Levi travel area. The total investment in the area will amount to ca. €50 million.

With the Levin Tori investment, Levi will become an even more luxurious year-round oasis of experiences. Levin Tori will form the new centre of the tourism area and assemble the centre of Levi into one place. The project partners are Osuuskauppa Arina, Hullu Poro Oy and LTA-Group. In addition to Sokos Hotel Levi, the 25,000 square metre, town-like and lively centre will house Hullu Poro Oy restaurants, the Snow White apartment hotel, a shopping gallery and a heated parking hall.

This large travel investment will bring more quality services to the area and employ ca. one hundred tourism professionals. The rich variety of services at Levin Tori will increase interest in the resort as an all-year destination.

In addition to the international FIS and World Cup standard skiing centre, Levi offers opportunities for a variety of sports, from golf to kick-sled safaris and horseback riding to hunting and mountain biking. For those seeking experiences, Levi has a host of offerings: During your stay, you can take part in reindeer feasts, gold-panning, rapid-shooting, survival skill contests or trips to see the Nordic Lights.

Fascinating architectural landscape created from northern colours, stone and wood

The architect planning for Levin Tori was carried out by Archeus Oy, in Oulu with architect SAFA Pave Mikkonen as lead designer.

"Our plan was to create a mountain hotel complex communicating high-class aesthetics and able to compete with any international resort. In the design, we wanted to focus on being Finnish, and this is especially shown in the fine details and genuine materials”, Mikkonen says. “I am really happy that we were able to create the entire area, from zoning to interiors and neon signs. This allowed us to design an intact landscape where all parts complement each other. After the seven-year project I can now say that I am very happy with the results.”

The different-shaped buildings are connected by the use of wood and natural stone and the fresh northern colours. Facades are brought to life by different balconies and modern log themes. The long log corners in buildings are a modern reminder of the Finnish log building heritage. When viewed from the mountain, the building complex looks interesting due to the varied landscape created by the roofs.

Levin Tori complex in brief

Sokos Hotel Levi, built by Osuuskauppa Arina at Levin Tori, functions in three buildings surrounding Levin Tori. The northernmost hotel in the Sokos Hotels chain, Sokos Hotel Levi has 202 hotel rooms (173 Standard, 20 Superior and 9 Suite rooms, of which 77 have a sauna and 34 are combi rooms that can be joined together). The hotel has a total of over 500 beds, increasing the hotel capacity at Levi by 25 per cent.

Hullu Poro Oy opened six different restaurants at Levin Tori. The offering includes a fine dining restaurant, cocktail bar, nightclub, Asian buffet, café and after ski pub.

LTA-Group has built the Snow White apartment hotel Unna ja Mànnu at Levin Tori, with 24 high-quality holiday apartments in two separate buildings. The apartments are individually furnished with high-quality materials and products. All apartments have fully equipped kitchens, saunas and/or Jacuzzis, washing machines and drying cabinets. Built for different needs, the size of the apartments ranges from studios to the Penthouse, with over three hundred square metres and a unique view over the Levin Tori square from the terrace. The Snow White apartment hotel combines the ease of hotel accommodation with the comfort and peace of your own space. An apartment is also a profitable investment for its owner.

A ca. 2500 m2 shopping gallery is also located at Levin Tori, with sporting equipment, interior design and boutique-style shops. The shops are open all year, improving the attraction of Levi in the summer due to increased services.

One of the strengths of Levin Tori is an underground, heated garage with 177 parking spaces.

Levi travel centre growing more attractive

About 500,000 travellers visit Levi each year, about one fourth of which come from abroad. Based on hotel stays, Levi was the largest travel resort in Finland between January and April 2008, beating Ruka by a slight margin.  Ylläs and Vuokatti took the next places. Growth from the previous year was strongest at Levi (+27.8%), Ylläs (+16.6%) and Pyhä-Luostola (+15.2%).

The number of hotel stays by international guests between January and April 2008 was also the highest at Levi (124,600), with an increase of 32.9% from last year. Ylläs recorded 92,100 international hotel stays (+15.0%) and Ruka 66,800 (+15.6%). 

Further information:

Osuuskauppa Arina, Managing Director Veli-Matti Puutio,
tel. +358 50 539 8807, veli-matti.puutio(@)sok.fi

Hullu Poro Oy, Managing Director Päivikki Palosaari,
tel. +358 400 695 166, paivikki.palosaari(@)hulluporo.fi

LTA-Group, Managing Director Pentti Kestilä,
tel. +358 400 392 599, pentti.kestila(@)hece.fi

Archeus Oy, Architect SAFA Juha Paavo Mikkonen,
tel. +358 40 5219 300, mikkonen(@)archeus.fi

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