Håkansböle Manor Museum

A hot summer day exploring Håkansböle Manor Museum and the nearby café-restaurant Håkans with my 3-year-old.

During the trip, I was remembered how about a year ago, I joked that while some people push their limits through extreme sports, I head to the villa museum alone with my toddler (you can find the photos and story from Villa Rulludd here).

Now, a year later, we’ve officially left the toddler stage behind and dived headfirst into the “threenager” phase. Since the summer heat already had us sweating, I figured we might as well raise the stakes a little and head to a manor museum in Vantaa: A place where you’re not supposed to touch just about anything 🤭

According to the museum’s info, architect Armas Lindgren was originally commissioned to design the renovation of the manor. However, the plans changed to an entirely new main building, which was completed in 1908.

At least two earlier manors have stood on the same site, and the basement of the current building dates back to the 18th-century.

Håkansböle represents the Art Nouveau style. It is a so-called total work of art, meaning that in addition to the buildings themselves, the architects also designed the furniture, interiors, and even the gardens. The style is characterized by decorative nature motifs and rich detailing. Most of the objects designed by Lindgren are now permanently on display at the new manor museum.

The manor museum’s permanent exhibition tells the story of the manor and the people who lived there. The temporary exhibition was now dedicated to Armas Lindgren.

In addition to the manor itself, the grounds include a small stable, granaries, and a playhouse.

There are guided tours for both the manor museum and its gardens, which are sure to give you an even deeper insight into the site! You can find more information on the manor museum’s website.

Café-Restaurant Håkans is located right next to the manor, in the former steward's house. The space is beautiful, combining old and new, and wonderfully bright. On this trip, we only stopped for ice cream, but the other dishes also looked and sounded delicious.

We happened to arrive at the perfect time for taking photos, as it wasn’t long before all these empty tables were filled. The place seemed popular, and the yard was already being prepared for the evening’s live performance.

One of the best things about exploring with a child is that we often end up admiring completely different things. At the manor museum, we both loved the scale model (which was, of course, a dollhouse according to my child), but at the café-restaurant, the most fascinating sight was probably watching the staff expertly unfold rows of folding chairs 😊