From bank training centre to conference hotel

Hotel Rantapuisto makes a striking impression: its impressive main building was completed in 1963 as a training centre for the Union Bank of Finland (later Suomen Yhdyspankki), set amid the natural surroundings of eastern Helsinki in an area of significant landscape heritage. The bank had previously acquired Villa Furuborg, a 1917 Art Nouveau villa on the site, which had once served as the Rosenlew family’s summer residence.

The training centre’s basic design, with its pavilion-style layout and glass walkways connecting the different buildings, brings the surrounding nature and the interiors together as one. Architect couple Ragnar Ypyä and Martta Martikainen-Ypyä drew inspiration for the training centre from Alvar Aalto’s architecture (Ragnar Ypyä worked at Aalto’s architectural office in the 1920s) and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark.

The highly rational, clean-lined architecture and the surrounding wooded, rocky landscape form a harmonious whole. Every detail of the building has been carefully considered, and the refined finish extends down to the smallest detail. The building is a “total work of art”. A wide range of wood species has been used in the interior. The building still reflects the fascinating architectural features of its era: the complex is made up of several wings and atrium courtyards, the spaces are large, and the spacious corridors are glazed from floor to ceiling. Several gems of the original interior also remain, including light fixtures, fireplaces and ceiling structures.

In the 1980s, demand for banking-sector training grew, and a new conference wing, auditorium and sports hall were built to better meet this growing need. The recession of the 1990s, and ultimately the merger of SYP with Kansallis-Osake-Pankki (KOP) to form Merita Bank, reduced the need for training. During the 2000s, Rantapuisto began welcoming all interested accommodation and training customers as the Unitas Congress Centre and later as Hotel Rantapuisto. The hotel opened its doors under the international Best Western hotel chain in April 2014. On 22 August 2016, the hotel left the Best Western chain and continued operating independently as Hotel Rantapuisto.