HOTELS & RESTAURANTS

While our results for the summer of 2022 were not quite on a par with the exceptionally strong previous summer, we nevertheless achieved a better result than in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. From the autumn onwards, our turnover developed favourably both in Lapland and in our urban destinations.

Whereas the COVID-19 restrictions in effect in the winter still had a negative impact on the financial performance of our city hotels in the previous financial year, the past financial year 2022–2023 was completely different. Domestic tourism remained high and the sales of our restaurant services increased both in Lapland and in our city hotels in spite of the general decline in consumer purchasing power.

The end of COVID-19 restrictions and the consequent return to normal life was also reflected in other ways at our destinations. A large number of pre-bookings were made for the pre-Christmas period, and we almost reached the pre-COVID level for the holiday period as a whole. Staycations, which were popular during the COVID-19 pandemic, also maintained their popularity and found traction with new customer segments. According to a survey we commissioned in winter 2023, staycations are no longer just something people do with their partner. For a growing number of people, staycations have become a way to reward or pamper themselves by taking a break from daily life. In the spring, we again saw growth in business travel and bleisure travel.

Operating at full capacity in our hotels in Tampere

One of our most significant renewal efforts during the past financial year was an extensive bathroom renovation project at the city hotel Lapland Hotels Tampere. The project was completed in the winter. The new bathrooms exude the modern magic of Lapland and provide increased comfort at Lapland Hotels’ first city hotel on Yliopistonkatu in Tampere. The hotel is fully available to customers during the new financial year. We are now operating at full capacity in Tampere: a total of over 400 rooms in two hotels, Lapland Hotels Tampere and Lapland Hotels Arena.

The availability of personnel in the hotel and restaurant business again posed challenges during the financial year. While we were not able to recruit quite the number of personnel we aimed for, we dealt with the recruitment-related challenges fairly well, and better than our sector as a whole on average. We also managed to limit the profitability impacts of the rapidly rising costs of raw materials and energy.

During the financial year, we were particularly successful with regard to customer satisfaction, which improved further from its already excellent level. Our Net Promoter Score now exceeds the international average for hotels by a significant margin. Our achievements on the international front also included the silver medal won by Otto Hietamies in the Jeunes Chefs Rôtisseurs Competition held in Mexico. Hietamies works at the Kultá Kitchen & Bar in Lapland Hotels Bulevardi. The competition judges praised Hietamies for his flavours and technique, and the award-winning flavours have since been available for customers to enjoy in his surprise menu at Kultá Kitchen & Bar.