IsoKristiina is a meeting place for Lappeenranta townies of different ages all year round. Sokos Hotel Lappee’s guests also enjoy this city’s common living room. Hotel Manager Katja Pellinen confirms that the hotel and the shopping centre are very harmonious neighbours under the same roof.
Katja Pellinen has been working at Hotel Lappee for almost 15 years. During this time, the biggest change happened when the extension of IsoKristiina was completed in 2015 and the neighbouring shopping centre and hotel were partially joined. In the expansion project, some of the old premises of the shopping centre were connected to the hotel and they were renovated into hotel rooms. Vice versa, in the hotel's street level floor space was freed up for IsoKristiina's needs.
- We have now direct access from the hotel to the city theatre as well as to Finnkino's cinema, both located in the IsoKristiina property. Hotel guests can also comfortably go shopping - and best of all, without needing to step outside, Katja Pellinen points out.
Nightclub’s disco ball brings joy
Many things have changed over the past ten years – among them Hotel Lappee's customer base and their expectations. During the 1980s and 1990s, the hotel's Doris Night Club attracted both hotel guests and locals night after night.
- Doris is history, but the original disco ball – currently under the ceiling of the shopping centre - brings back the golden days of disco. It's fun to watch toddlers spin and dance in the aisle when they see the ball.
According to Pellinen, today the hotel's customers appreciate the gym, resident saunas, the swimming pool as well as modern meeting rooms. In addition, it is important that guests who follow different special diets always find something suitable and delicious for their plates.
For the hotelier people make the difference
As the Hotel Manager, Katja Pellinen is in her dream profession. She is one of those people who have already in secondary school known where they will be working.
- It was my dream to work in hotel business. After studying tourism, my first jobs were in the Helsinki region where I also met my future husband. When the opportunity came to move together to Lappeenranta, the choice was easy, says Pellinen, who was born in the nearby municipality of Sulkava.
- The absolute best thing about my job is people and different kinds of encounters. I love it that I’m all the time involved in developing something new with my wonderful colleagues and staff. In addition to customers, ideas come both from the owner, S Group, and the management of the shopping centre. In my job, you can continuously develop services and develop yourself.
The staycation holiday concept – created during the COVID-19 pandemic – is here to stay. Why should I travel for a long time when I can enjoy the services of a nearby hotel and take a break from my everyday life, Katja Pellinen repeats the familiar question and invites everyone to take a holiday in Hotel Lappee.
- We have a great setting here, always a lot of life around us. The shopping centre has dozens of shops and feel-good services, such as a hair salons and beauty salons. This is a great domestic holiday destination all year round. Welcome!
