Welcome to Solo Sokos Pier 4, Helsinki’s fascinating new timber hotel
Architecture director Ellie Stathaki visits Helsinki’s timber hotel Solo Sokos Pier 4, designed by Anttinen Oiva Architects

Stepping inside the timber hotel Solo Sokos Pier 4, a delicate fragrance reminiscent of Finnish forests gently hits. The new Helsinki hotel certainly makes good on its sustainable architecture's unspoken promise. The refreshing scent of a box-fresh wooden design? Check. A calm and soothing, wall-to-wall environment in timber? Check. Birdsong subtly humming in the background? Check, check, check. Indeed, as cliché as such features may sound in the context of the building's wood architecture, its environment is everything you expect it to be in the best possible way.
A night at a timber hotel: experiencing Solo Sokos Pier 4
The new player in the Finnish capital's hospitality scene is situated within the Helsinki harbour's Katajanokan Laituri, a recently opened timber-framed building designed by local studio Anttinen Oiva Architects. It contains the headquarters of Finnish forestry company Stora Enso on one end and the 164-room Solo Sokos Pier 4 Hotel on the other – both span four floors.
The round, timber gymnastics of the lobby area – which is shared between hotel and office space – and the overall spatial planning is the work of Anttinen Oiva, but hotel spaces, such as hotel rooms, a separate restaurant, and conference facilities, were created by interiors outfit Franz Design. Not that you could immediately tell, as the envelope and its contents were carefully curated to work seamlessly, following the theme of natural wood and light, neutral tones throughout.
A specially created signature scent is present throughout the hotel. The rooms are minimalist, and the walls – alternating glazing and wood – are punctuated by specially selected pieces by local artists. A well stocked, curated fridge places an emphasis on sense of place (beer from a Turku brewery and blueberry juice make this an unmistakeably Finnish experience).
A café off the main lobby and the Harbore restaurant on the opposite side of the building (also where the hotel breakfast is served) enjoy expansive waterside views. Once the ongoing works on the seaside promenade just outside are completed, guests will be able to enjoy the simple, seasonal Nordic and Finnish ingredient mix on the menu with a backdrop of the nearby port's majestic ferries and people on leisurely strolls, making this an ideal spot for a drink outside during the mild summer months.
A rooftop terrace offers more outdoor space, with a planted garden and a dedicated bar. Meanwhile, on the lower ground floor, a gym is accompanied by a flexible wellness space. Eschewing rigid booking systems and classes (those are on offer as well, however, if needed), guests can pop in for an independent yoga or meditation session – or to enjoy the most Finnish of pastimes, a sauna.
The ground floor's state-of-the-art conference facilities make this a flexible destination – equally open to business and family travel. This timber hotel's sense of luxury lies in its sustainable, design-led origins – an element Solo Sokos Pier 4 is rightly proud of.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Ukrainian Modernism: a timely but bittersweet survey of the country’s best modern buildings
New book ‘Ukrainian Modernism’ captures the country's vanishing modernist architecture, besieged by bombs, big business and the desire for a break with the past
By Jonathan Bell
-
Fancy a matcha-beer cocktail? Visit this dashing new LA restaurant
Café 2001 channels the spirit of an American diner with the flow of a European bistro and the artistry of Japanese cuisine
By Carole Dixon
-
Los Angeles businesses regroup after the 2025 fires
In the third instalment of our Rebuilding LA series, we zoom in on Los Angeles businesses and the architecture and social fabric around them within the impacted Los Angeles neighbourhoods
By Mimi Zeiger
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the world
Celebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
By Léa Teuscher
-
Finland has been named the happiest country in the world, again – here’s what to do in this Nordic utopia
If you want a taste of life in a country deemed the happiest in the world for eight years running, be sure to check out Wallpaper* editors’ favourite spots while you’re there
By Anna Solomon
-
Finlandia Hall apartments: now, you can stay at a modernist masterpiece
The two Finlandia Hall apartments, Finlandia Homes, have now been restored to their former glory and are open to the public for booking, offering stays at Alvar Aalto's modernist masterpiece
By Ellie Stathaki
-
Finlandia Hall bistro blends culinary indulgence with reborn modernism
Finlandia Hall bistro opens in Helsinki, adding a foodie dimension to the Finnish modernist architecture marvel by Alvar Aalto
By Ellie Stathaki
-
Helsinki’s Hotel Maria is marked by history and opulence
The Hotel Maria sets out to redefine the Nordic hospitality landscape with luxurious interiors, in-room saunas and a sumptuous spa
By Naomi Moriyama
-
Panorama Landscape Hotel and Forest Spa is a serene retreat in the Finnish forest
Panorama Landscape is a new hilltop hotel in eastern Finland sporting a sauna on stilts and pared-back cabins
By Emma O'Kelly
-
Finnair marks a century of connecting horizons
Finnair celebrates its 100th anniversary with global festivities
By Sofia de la Cruz
-
Club culture and winter swimming: what to do in Helsinki
What to do in Helsinki – public saunas, an artful hotel and classic Finnish cuisine are all on our Helsinki tour, courtesy of Wallpaper* contributing editor Emma O'Kelly
By Emma O'Kelly