Fine dining in the middle of nowhere.

The story of Aurora Estate is unique. Two young women started a business 2015 from scratch. They designed the concept and they work tremendously towards it. When you love something, you can make it happen.

Two friends, one dream.

Sirly and Heidi. Photo Marko Vasara

Aurora Estate is a concept of two lady entrepreneurs Sirly Ylläsjärvi and Heidi Seikkula. Aurora Estate was founded in 2015 and is located in Finnish Lapland in the cozy small village of Ylläsjärvi. Aurora Estate consists of a fine dining restaurant for 50 customers and of a boutique hotel of two deluxe rooms and five standard rooms. In 2018 Aurora Estate was chosen Europes best new Boutique hotel.

The women lost a big luxury hotel project in the spring 2020 when covid-19 hit the world. They fought for their small boutique hotel for 6 months and they got to keep it alive, together.

Sirly has competed twice in the Finnish MasterChef tv show, for the first time in 2011 and now in the summer of 2020 in the professional season. The visibility brought by MasterChef did its job and there are enough customers in the restaurant. The restaurant has top scores and guests can’t believe they have found such a gem in the middle of nowhere, from a small village in Lapland.

Landscape. Photo Sirly Ylläsjärvi

Owners Sirly and Heidi wanted to create a consept that will stand out from other services on the area. Sirly is the headchef of the restaurant and is in charge of the menu and cuisine style. Sirly gets her inspiration to the dishes from pure Lappish ingredients and from modern European cuisine.

Huffington Post also visited Aurora Estate with kind words;

"All graced the menus of every restaurant I visited and at Aurora Estate young chef Sirly Schinmann ( Ylläsjärvi) had modern Finnish food down to a fine art. Combining smoked reindeer with jäkälä, a Nordic lichen the animals graze on in the forest, she’d successfully transferred the flavours of the scene outside onto my plate."

Sugar salted white fish, buttermilk, fennel and caviart. Photo Tommi Hynynen

Ethicalness is important for Aurora Estate. The restaurant uses pure and currently harvested ingredients. Dishes gets their inspiration from Lappland and from its nature. Wines in the restaurant are mostly biodynamic or organic and they are chosen by Heidi Seikkula. 

Heidi Seikkula, the CEO, takes care of the planning and implementation of the customers holiday. In her professional hands is the hotel and restaurant, especially the perfect combination of food and wine.

Customers dream holiday starts from planing the schedules for dinner, sauna and safari bookings. Everything is organized as much as possible, so when the customers arrive the only thing they have to do is relax and enjoy the holiday. 

Aurora Estate restaurant. Photo Sirly Ylläsjärvi

Other services like smokesauna, jacuzzi and ice swimming opportunities can be found from the courtyard. Aurora Estate also has old log cabin with atmospheric fireplace, relaxation space and electric sauna. Tipi on the courtyard can be booked for private dinners, weddings or parties.

Ice swimming after sauna. Photo Tommi Hynynen

We kindly welcome you to visit Aurora Estate in Ylläs. Find us and we will spoil you!

• Sirly and Heidi -