Ilmatar Airplane Lodge – Our Night in the Sky (on the Ground!) ✈️
During our stay in Uurainen, we had the absolute joy and honor of being the very first guests at the brand-new Ilmatar Airplane Lodge – and we made the most of it! What a fun, inspiring, and unforgettable experience.
🛩️ How Did We Find This Place?
Our followers on Instagram actually tipped us off! When we announced Uurainen as our next destination, a few people recommended Ilmatar. At that point, the booking calendar wasn’t even open yet and final preparations were still underway — but something about it sparked our curiosity.
So, we took a leap of faith and reached out. After reading the story behind Ilmatar on their website, we were truly inspired. Their values — Courage, Community, Trust, and Hospitality — perfectly aligned with our family’s own way of living and traveling. We just had a feeling this was going to be something special.
Oh, and let’s not forget — Emppu-mom is a skydiver, so… an airplane lodge? Yes, please!
Soon after, we got an email from Mandi:
“WELCOME – you’ll be our first-ever guests!”
Cue the happy dancing! This felt like a dream come true. Off we went to Ilmatar Airplane Lodge!
We believe bold ideas and brave execution deserve celebration. Nothing new happens in the world if no one dares to do something different — and you did it. Now that we’ve seen what you’ve created... WOW. Just, wow. Absolutely amazing work.
🧭 How Was Our Stay?
In a word: Excellent.
We received the door code, drove up the lane, and arrived full of excitement. Naturally, the first thing we did was explore every corner of the place before settling in. We always say: home is wherever our family is — and we made ourselves at home right away.
We fired up the air traffic control tower sauna and prepared a lovely summer dinner. Once everything was ready, we sat down at a beautifully set table and enjoyed a peaceful meal together.
When the sauna was warm, we headed off to enjoy the heat and bubbles. And let us just say — this was one of the BEST saunas we’ve ever been in! The kids even preferred it over the hot tub. Everyone agreed: “We need to build a sauna like this at home.”
The entire lodge was brand new, cozy, and every single detail had been thoughtfully designed. We love this kind of creativity brought to life.
The rest of the evening was pure bliss: snacks, UNO, laughter, and that constant feeling of “can you believe we’re sleeping in an airplane tonight?”
✨ Sleeping in the Sky
Choosing sleeping spots was easy. Mom and the girls took the cockpit (of course), while the boys took the pull-out sofa. Funny twist: while we were cozy in our grounded plane, Brian (dad) was actually in the sky, flying home from Toronto at the very same time. We’re pretty sure our sleep was much more restful than his. 😉
🥐 The Next Morning
We enjoyed a relaxed breakfast, cleaned up after ourselves, and set off on the next leg of our adventure — grateful and glowing.
💛 Thank You, Ilmatar
From the bottom of our hearts: thank you.
We truly hope many of our followers get to experience this one-of-a-kind place with their loved ones.
Because shared adventures bring people closer and make life richer.
And life?
It’s absolutely worth it. ❤️
What Does Ilmatar Offer?
Ilmatar Airplane Lodge can accommodate eight guests, plus additional sleeping space on a pull-out sofa.
You’ll find a fully transformed aircraft — complete with original airplane seats and details all the way to... yes, a sauna inside a plane!
On the property, there’s also a custom-built Air Traffic Control Tower-style villa with:
Lounge area
Kitchen & grill
Sauna
Hot tub
Multiple terraces
Plus, there’s a charming guest cabin (aitta) for additional accommodation.
Who Is It For?
EVERYONE who loves memorable experiences and quality time with loved ones.
Ilmatar is perfect for:
Family holidays
Bachelor/bachelorette parties
Relaxing weekends with family friends
Work team getaways
Or any special occasion you can dream up!
Highly recommended!
✈️ The Story of Ilmatar
Ilmatar’s journey began in autumn 2022, when a SAAB 340B passenger aircraft appeared at auction. In a bold move, entrepreneur siblings Oskari, Mandi, and Elias, along with business partners Toni and Markus, decided to buy the plane — with one clear vision: to turn it into a unique lodging experience.
The 35-seat aircraft, most recently operated by RAF-Avia, was involved in a landing accident at Savonlinna Airport in January 2019, rendering it unfit to fly. Its avionics and valuable technical parts were removed, and what remained was the airframe — which went up for auction in October 2022.
Transporting the aircraft from Savonlinna to Uurainen was no small feat. It required serious creativity and logistical magic. The 22-meter wing section was detached using a crane, and the plane was loaded onto special transport trucks.
By November 2022, the aircraft had arrived at its new home in Uurainen. From there, design work began on converting it into a fully functional lodge. The transformation — which included clever engineering and unique solutions — took time. Construction officially began in autumn 2023.
In addition to the airplane conversion, the team also designed a villa inspired by an air traffic control tower and added a guest cabin for extra lodging.
We only share locations, where we have been exploring and visiting as a family of 10, you get very special things in our website!
Suomeksi: https://www.savolaisetseikkailee.fi/l/ilmatar-airplane-lodge/
