Kultaranta Castle

The Kultaranta or Gullranda Castle ("Golden beach castle") is the summer residence of the President of Finland. The castle is located in the district of Kultaranta on the island of Luonnonmaa, in Naantali. The granite castle is surrounded by 560,000 square metres of park, belonging to the property.

Kultaranta's original owner was the businessman Alfred Kordelin, who had the castle built for himself in 1914. It was designed by the famous architect Lars Sonck. When Kordelin died in 1917, the castle's ownership shifted to the University of Turku, and in 1922 the Finnish Parliament voted to acquire it for use as the president's summer residence.

The parks around the castle, containing approximately a thousand square metres of greenhouse and a garden with 3500 roses called "Medaljonki" ('medallion'), are open to the public. Tours in the garden are organised by the City of Naantali's tourist service.

External links

* [http://www.presidentti.fi/netcomm/news/ShowArticle.asp?intNWSAID=34096&LAN=EN Kultaranta]