Sunday, February 5, 2023

'Katajanokka' Hotel

 

It was evening when I arrived in Helsinki, Finland. The road from St. Petersburg took 8 hours, so I wanted to relax and check into a hotel faster. The room was booked at the Katajanokka hotel. Looking at the hotel, its appearance struck me with its resemblance to a prison.

It turned out that I was not mistaken. 

 

This is a sophisticated hotel housed in a converted prison building. It has been refurbished according to the needs of the hotel's clients. This is what the windows and bathroom look like.



In the morning, when I left the room, I saw a gallery of stairs going up and down, metal railings and beautiful carpets on the floor.

 



 

Some details were reminiscent of the former prison, such as iron railing doors, rooms outside the main corridor, grids on the windows, unknown details on the ceiling between the walls.









I slept really well there, the breakfast was plentiful and tasty, the tea and coffee was of good quality. Now I think I had a good time in the Katajanokka hotel.

 

Here is my video of the ferry trip to Helsinki:

 


 

36 comments:

  1. Thank you for the interesting photos, Nadezda!
    Happy February! 🌷🤗

    ReplyDelete
  2. I guess that going to prison is not so bad after all!

    ReplyDelete
  3. It is beautiful! I'm glad it's not a prison anymore.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm glad it's not a prison anymore, Nadezda. The hotel looks very nice with the beautiful carpets on the floor. Hugs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The hotel looks nice and is comfortable, despite its former purpose, Marit.

      Delete
  5. Me encanta que lo pasaras bien, me alegra que ya no sea una prisión. Un abrazo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Si, Teresa he pasado buen tiempo en este hotel. Abrazo.

      Delete
  6. Boa tarde e um excelente domingo com muita paz e saúde. Bom início de semana. Acho que nunca vi nada igual aqui no Brasil, minha querida amiga Nadezda.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Luiz, que pases una buena semana, un abrazo.

      Delete
  7. Kiva, että hotelli miellytti sinua.
    Mukavaa helmikuun jatkoa.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Nadezda,
    The hotel looked a little out of the ordinary, after all it had been a prison, but if you slept well and the breakfast was nice, that's what's important. After all, when we go on a trip, we spend so little time inside the hotel, for me the important thing is to have a good location.
    All the best
    Maria

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think the same as you, Maria. We spend some time inside, relax and have breakfast. But it was a surprise to stay at such an unusual hotel.

      Delete
  9. A good job that they didn't serve up prison foo! The zterior certainly looks intimidating.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dear Nadezda!
    A very interesting place. I was delighted with the beautiful carpets, but the building looks like a prison.
    Hugs and greetings.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It looks because it was. Lucja. I think the owners have put in a lot of effort to turn the former prison into a great hotel.

      Delete
  11. Si se ve extraño. Ha mantenido su extructura. Me gusta su interior, distinto a los que conocemos. Y se ve que lo pasaste bien . Buen miércoles Nadezda.
    Un abrazo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sí, la pasé bien en este hotel, Laura. Abrazos.

      Delete
  12. Внутри гостиница немного уютнее за счёт ковров. Но всё равно очень суровое место.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Querida amiga lo mejor es que disfrutaras del hotel que sin duda es genial. Besos

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Estoy de acuerdo, Lola. El hotel es interesante. Abrazos.

      Delete
  14. I don't know if Valentine's Day is celebrated in your country. In Finland, it's the Day of Friendship.
    Have a happy week ahead, friend Nadezda! 💟

    ReplyDelete
  15. Well, I am glad that the food was nice and not like prison food! It still seems a rather strange idea to make a hotel in a prison, because there would be many bad memories there, even though the prisoners had all gone. But perhaps one should think that this grim building is changing its ways and making people happy instead, now! Thank you for this interesting post.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jenny, I don't think ex-prisoners would be happy to stay in a hotel right now. Because the building was a prison over 100 years ago :) New clients are interested in the history of Katajanokka.

      Delete
  16. Liebe Nadezda,

    es ist bestimmt ein komisches Gefühl, in einem ehemaligen Gefängnis zu übernachten.

    Vielen Dank für die interessanten Einblicke und schön zu lesen, dass Du gut geschlafen hast.

    Alles Liebe
    wünscht Dir
    Anke

    ReplyDelete
  17. I thought you’ve recently in Finland, which is strange in the war time…
    But your video says that this trip was in 2018.
    There were good times back then….
    Irina

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, Irina, this video was filmed years ago. Thanks for your comment.

      Delete

Thank you for stopping by Nadezda's Northern Garden blog!
I'm glad to read your friendly comments very much.
Feel free to comment on the posts or photos
I warmly welcome the new followers on my blog.