Perched on the rounded granite rocks of Helsinki’s inner archipelago, just 10 minutes by boat from the very heart of the city, you’ll find a small cluster of Scandinavian high-latitude-minimalist cabins known as Majamaja. If you prefer cycling, the trip is 30 minutes, and while driving is also an option, it’s less in the spirit of the off-grid and sustainable concept of Finnish architects Pekka Littow and Päivi Meuronen.
While the footprint of each of the four mini-houses may literally be the rock on which they stand, their small spiritual and environmental footprint is just as important. Each is a different color – ochre, black, gray, and red – but they were identically prefabricated to exacting specifications before being placed in the landscape. Finnish spruce and birch plywood form the structural vibe, but that’s just the surface of the important stuff: solar power, incredible insulation, a dry toilet, rainwater and humidity collection, and 98% wastewater recycling to ensure that no gray or brown water enters the sea. Don’t worry: despite the eco-credentials, the shower is good!
Every element of the interior of a Majamaja house is perfectly designed and coordinated to make the most of just 250 sq ft while maximizing the view of undisturbed nature through a huge triple-glazed window. You’ll sleep upstairs in the plywood-clad eaves of the mezzanine floor, and if you need a bed for one more, it’s downstairs on the fold-away sofa. Even the dining table flips upwards into the wall when you don’t need it, and with a deck suspended over the rocks, you’ll be tempted to eat outside. Make your coffee in the kitchenette, which comes complete with stove, fridge and all the necessary implements and pans, and then close the cupboard doors to maintain the chic and uncluttered feel of the cozy interior. Even your bags can be hidden away in the floor-integrated storage spaces.
To stay at Majamaja gives you the best of both worlds: easy access to a stunning, sophisticated and exciting city, but from a retreat where the only disturbances are seabirds and the occasional passing fisherman. You’ll love hiking through the taiga forests as much as strolling the elegant, friendly streets of Helsinki. Whatever your daily activities, though, you will be coming back to rest-up in a place which is as inspirational as it is beautiful.
www.majamaja.com
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