Get to know us
We're a family business that believes in environmentally friendly travel. Ollero Eco Lodge started with the desire of its owners, four siblings, to bring a new style of adventure travel to Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland.
Ollero Eco Lodge is a traditional Finnish cottage where we used to spend all our childhood holidays and weekends. Now our goal is to provide a top holiday experience to you in our lovely retreat and the natural beauty that surrounds it.
Ollero Eco Lodge aims to diversify Lapland travel culture by presenting visitors with an authentic stay amidst the arctic landscape and genuine local activities.
Arttu is the oldest of us and manages the daily tasks at Ollero Eco Lodge. He is your host and company CEO. 38-year-old Arttu is an easy-going family man who lives in Rovaniemi with his wonderful wife Irina and their two beautiful daughters.
Arttu is an engineer by profession and a passionate entrepreneur. He likes to spend his free time with the family, as well as going fly fishing or hunting with his dog. In the picture below, next to Santa Claus, is Iiris. She is the manager of our team happiness.
Arttu is more than happy to help you with planning your trip as well as assisting you during your stay at Ollero Eco Lodge. He'll make sure everything runs smoothly – please don't hesitate giving him a call or texting if you have any requests or concerns. Arttu lives only a few kilometres away from Ollero Eco Lodge.
The rest of us work more behind the scenes. Aaro is the second oldest of us. He lives in Oulu with his family. Aaro is a pragmatic guy and gives outstanding know-how on pretty much everything regarding Ollero Eco Lodge.
Sisters Anni and Amalia have put their efforts into creating the brand and story in an environmentally friendly way. They have also given valuable feminine opinions on interior design. They both live and work in Helsinki.
Huge thanks of making this all happen go to our loving parents Tapani and Sirpa who bought the place more than 40 years ago. If lucky, you might even meet them during your stay. Tapani is still the one in our family who knows the best heating technique for the smoke sauna.
The hISTORY OF OLLERO ECO LODGE
Ollero is the name of the property on which Ollero Eco Lodge lies. Ollero is also the name of the cottage where we, the four siblings, used to spend all our holidays and weekends as kids. For us, the place is very important and dear. Below you'll find its history in a nutshell.
In 1975, the Main Lodge was brought to its present location by the previous owner. Before that, it was located in a village called Savukoski in eastern Lapland, where it served as a base for lumberjacks logging in the forest far away from home for more than 100 years.
The cottage was imported in parts and rebuilt one log at a time. At the same time, the Sleeping Cabin was shifted to Ollero. It used to serve as a woodshed. The same year, an outdoor toilet was built in the yard.
In 1979, Tapani announced in the local newspaper that he was willing to buy a summer cottage or property for a cottage within a 50-kilometre radius from Rovaniemi. He received four offers and ended up buying Ollero with his wife Sirpa.
In 1980, lots of trees were cut from the yard as the property was heavily wooded. Also, a damp path leading to the shore was filled with soil from a nearby road repair. In the same year, the cottage got supplied with electricity and an old wood-burning stove got replaced with an electric stove. At the time, the Main Lodge was similar to today, except that the water came from a spring.
In 1981, Tapani renovated the woodshed and turned it into the Sleeping Cabin. At this time one of the rooms served as a storage space and the other one was a bedroom.
In 1982, an old barn from close-by Sinettä village was shifted to Ollero to be a woodshed. Both of our grandfathers helped Tapani rebuild the barn.
In 1983, Tapani renovated the rest of the Sleeping Cabin and built a sleeping loft. In the same year, an old granary travelled to Ollero from a farm in Tervola. A year later, Tapani rebuilt it one log at a time and got a big stove installed – this is how our smoke sauna came into being. In the summer of 1985, the roof got fixed and the sauna goers enjoyed their first steam.
In 1984, an old shed and a small sheep shed arrived to Ollero. The former became a playhouse for us kids, and the latter a storage shed. Also, a tin roof got installed on the main house.
In 1985, Tapani made a liana from a rope and a five-metre-high treehouse for us kids.
In 1986, Tapani built a barbecue shed behind the Main Lodge. The old wood-burning stove from the Main Lodge was shifted there.
In 1987, Tapani made a tennis court under a power line near the Main Lodge. It was a clay court for a year before water-permeable asphalt was laid on the clay. Shortly after, the court lines were painted and the boundary nets and sphere wall installed.
In 1988, an authorization was obtained and an exit from Ollero pond to the Ounasjoki river was dug. At the same time, dredging was carried out on the Ollero pond shore. The following winter, a filter cloth full of sand was placed on the ice above the dredging site. As the snow and ice melted in the spring, the filter cloth and sand sank to the bottom of the pond. As a result, Ollero has a nice sandy beach.
In 1992, an old hay barn from Loue was shifted to Ollero. It was placed behind the Sleeping Cabin and rebuilt one log at the time to serve as a storage shed. Since then, there have only been minor renovations on the property.
In 2003, the ceiling of the smoke sauna was renovated and replaced with a board ceiling.
In 2019, the floor of the smoke sauna was renovated. During the summer, an old wooden sauna next to the Main Lodge was converted into a modern bathroom. Also, a modern toilet was built next to the bathroom and the kitchen was fully renovated. In addition, a well was built behind the Main Lodge to provide clean and fresh groundwater to Ollero.
