Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 029-007-4050;
www.punkaharjunlomakeskus.fi
;
tent sites €14 plus per adult/child €5/2.50, 2-/
4-person cabins €42/63, self-contained cottages €135-205; )
Near Retretti train station, this enormous lakeside campground has a whole town's worth
of solid cabins and cottages, and a raft of facilities. Good for kids, who'll soon find a posse
of Finnish playmates; there's also a reindeer to feed and a popular waterpark next door.
Mannila
HOTEL, FARMSTAY
( 015-644400;
www.maatilamatkailumannila.com
;Koskelonniementie 127, Vaahersalo;d main/out-
building €110/90, tent site €6 plus per person €3, farm d €60-80; May-Sep plus winter if preb-
ooked; )
This farm complex is remote enough for a great retreat but handy enough for a base. The
highlight is the wonderful lakeside, where there's the campground and welcoming
Rantakatti hotel, offering attractive rooms, some with an enormous balcony. Rooms in a
secondary building are smaller but share a large common area. Cheaper rooms occupy
converted barns. There are also self-contained family apartments, bikes, saunas, ponies
and a restaurant.
There are also self-contained family apartments, bikes, saunas, ponies and a restaurant.
Punkaharjun Valtionhotelli
HOTEL
( 020-752-9100;
www.punkaharjunvaltionhotelli.fi
;Tuunaansaarentie 4;s/d €95/140, tw without
bathroom €95; Jun-late Aug; )
Right on the old ridge-road between Lusto and Retretti, this romantic 19th-century
wooden hotel was once the gamekeeper's lodge for the Russian royal hunting estates, and
includes a majestic separate villa built for the tsarina. There's a variety of room types and
prices, including cabins. Doubles are old-fashioned with cramped sleeping space but an
extra sitting area; superiors are huge and beautiful, with views.
It's wonderfully peaceful up here among the pines, and there's also a fine restaurant
(buffet lunch €21 to €25).
Getting There & Away
Trains between Savonlinna and Parikkala stop at Retretti, Lusto and Punkaharju train sta-
tions (€4.30, 30 minutes, five to six daily).
