Finnish Eco-Agrotourism Association – ECEAT Finland

Hotel Krepelin is located at the centre of the protected wooden house district of Kristinestad, a short distance from the marketplace. Our mission is to offer our guests unique accommodation experiences. We also cater for special occasions for a maximum of 30 persons.

Since 2002, we have followed Hotel Krepelin’s vision by restoring apartments in the protected buildings to their 1810s look, this being the decade in which the main building was constructed. The other buildings are also old: The Bakery, the Spice Storage and the wood shed date back to the years between 1806 and 1870.

Brothers Esko and Harri, who live on the top floor of the main building, are the fourth generation to operate at Krepelin: their great-grandfather Kalle Hektor moved to Kristinestad in 1910, their grandmother Kerttu bought the place in the 1960s, and their grandfather Esko held auctions in the yard. The brothers’ father continued auction activities until the 1990s, after which Esko and Harri’s parents turned the storage areas of the auction house into hotel apartments.

The beautiful main building has touches of the European neo-gothic style. While its features include craftmanship and colour schemes of the late 18th century, the possibilities created by the dawning industrial revolution were also typical of this era. The current entrepreneurs have worked together with local museum experts to combine the old-world look with 21st-century conveniences.

Welcoming accommodation

The concept of Hotel Krepelin is “Make yourself at home”. The ground floor of the main building, the Bakery and the Spice Storage contain a total of nine hotel apartments, each one with a private kitchen and bathroom. The hotel has 30 beds, 23 rooms and 9 apartments.

The ground floor of the main building contains one double and two single apartments. The Cowshed, which was renovated by building restoration students, is a family apartment on two floors. The Bailiff’s House of 90 square metres is the largest apartment of the hotel and also suitable for families.

The former Bakery has two single apartments renovated in the old style (2 beds). In summer, accommodation is also available in the Spice Storage and Horse Stables, where many visitors say they have slept particularly well.

The hotel does not serve breakfast but you will find coffee, tea, muesli, oat flakes and spices in the apartment kitchens. Outside the summer season, you can order a breakfast package for an additional fee. Bathing in the sauna is free for hotel guests.

Our new online shop offers such items as wool socks knitted in Kristinestad, Krepelin’s gift vouchers, shopping bags made with recycled cotton, a set of Kristinestad-themed post cards, and bars of vegan and/or organic soap made with meadowsweet, the emblem flower of Ostrobothnia.

Further information:

Welcome to Krepelin
Accommodation
History

Surroundings and activities

The merchant’s buildings and yard were designed for buying, storing, and selling such goods as salt and spices imported into the country. The yard was once busy with horse-drawn carriages. Go along Hotel Krepelin’s guided history tour to hear more about life in the old days.

Activity packages:

• History package: a walking tour with a wealth of information about the origins of the town, the 17th century and the life of an 18th-century merchant family. The tour concludes with the story of Krepelin and coffee served in the drawing room in 19th-century style.
• Instagram package: a guided walking tour, or a tour using bicycles provided by Hotel Krepelin, to the most scenic spots in town.
• Wellness package: health consultation, an ayur veda treatment and product surprises.

”A slow town”. Kristinestad is the first and only town in Finland that has been approved as a member of the international Cittaslow network. The Slow Cities movement, which stems from the Slow food philosophy, stresses life in the slow lane, uniqueness and respect for local things, as well as human, environmentally friendly and sustainable solutions.

There are many destinations for independent touring in the local area, and hotel guests can borrow bicycles.

• walking tours in Kristinestad’s centre of 300 wooden houses. For the most important sights (and an adventure trail for children), visit krsdigimap.com.
• destinations for a cycling trip and picnic: the villages of Alesund or Skata, or Kanuunakalliot cliffs.
• Ulrika Eleonora’s Church, Lebell’s Merchant House, the Maritime Museum and Carslro Mansion.
• More information from the tourist information office: visitkristinestad.fi (also walking maps).

Directions

• Train: Pori 100 km, Vaasa 100 km
• Bus: 500 metres: Kristinestad bus station. For bus timetables and routes, visit www.matkahuolto.fi. Onnibussi buses take you to Lålby village 5 km away. Visitors should book a taxi to cover the remaining distance to Kristinestad.
• For taxi information: https://www.visitkristinestad.fi/tutustu…/hyva-tietaa

Opening times and prices

• https://luomumatkailu.fi/en/matkakohteet/hotel-krepelin/Open: year round
• Prices: Ask for our prices/visit our website
• Single room EUR 70, double room EUR 90 (price/person EUR 45).
• breakfast package EUR 10/person
• sauna EUR 10/person, free for hotel guests.
• Wellness package EUR 119, history package EUR 49/person, Instagram package EUR 25/person.
• Bonus for ECEAT Finland members and visitors arriving without a motor vehicle or a flight: We can give guests arriving with Onnibussi bus company a lift from and to the bus stop on Road 8 (5 km away).

Ecological and cultural actions

• We replaced our oil heating with geothermal heat
• Some apartments have underfloor heating that is turned on and off automatically as seasons change
• Clay paint was used in renovations
• We draw attention to environmental issues and sustainable tourism in our blog and on the social media

Future

• We are actively involved in projects that promote sustainability in Kristinestad and the tourism industry, and work to preserve local cultural heritage (Harri is a Board member in Kristiina-Seura association and Kristiinan Matkailu association)
• We are gradually restoring the yard to its 19th-century look through renovations, landscaping and visual solutions. We are also dreaming of historical outfits for the staff.
• The chocolate cherry bush in the yard will be complemented with other plants typical of the 19th century.
• Over the long term, we will also restore the interior decoration of the apartments to 19th-century styles, for example by using traditional paints and colour tones, renovation techniques and building and decoration materials.