Klaus K

I enjoy visiting Helsinki year-round, but it is a special place in late spring and early summer when the locals begin to spend their time out and about in the city. A great boutique hotel and centrally located in the heart of the active Helsinki downtown, Klaus K Hotel, takes its name and design inspiration from the Finnish saga, The Kalevala. Firmly grounded in its Finnish heritage, the hotel has a Scandinavian style that is both modern and memorable and one of my favorite places to stay when I am in Helsinki.

With the exception of the oval-shaped check-in desk, which has a sleek, modern design based on the country’s mythological creation story (where the world emerged from seven eggs), the Klaus K has a warm, sophisticated, Finnish living-room-like feeling with comfortable, but stylish leather chairs, wooden shelves filled with colorful books, interesting indigenous art, and neatly stacked, fresh-cut logs for the fireplace.The lounge is a stylish place to work and socialize and is connected to the Klaus K Bar, which offers a wide selection of cocktails and small bites. For those who want a more hearty meal, Klaus K, has a Tuscan-inspired restaurant just down the stairs, Toscanini. Along the same block as Klaus K are two of my favorite restaurants in Helsinki, Boulevard Social and Gaijin.

When I visit Helsinki, I am typically traveling for work so I opt to stay in the Mystical Single room which is cozy, but comfortable at 20m², and very reasonably priced with an oversized twin bed that has a towering velvet tufted headboard and crisp white linens.The high ceilings and tall windows make the rooms feel much larger when the sun shines brightly during the long summer days.

For those who want to explore more of Helsinki, Klaus K offers cruiser-style bikes with baskets that you can borrow for an afternoon.