SAMK EduTravel Daytrips offer nature magic and cultural heritage

SAMK EduTravel is a learning environment where the international student team of Tourism and Hospitality Management operates as an incoming travel agency together with professional mentors. This autumn SAMK EduTravel’s product selection has expanded to guided daytrips to Satakunta Region’s visitor attraction highlights.

Students walk along the elongated trees in the woods.

Day trips’ tour leaders, Lu Jichen and Cedrick Wright exploring the beautiful Joutsijärvi Lake nature reserve.

– With the coronavirus pandemic, we have set out to seek new products and target groups. We got the idea together with the SAMK International Office to organize leisure trips for our international students. We are excited about it, says EduTravel Manager, Senior Lecturer Maaria Berg.

– We want to bring out Satakunta’s nature and cultural sites and, on the other hand, the Finnish way of life to our international guests. For example, we can go hiking together in the wild forest, make campfire and visit places of cultural heritage.

– Our next trip head to the Joutsijärvi nature reserve, which is Satakunta’s silent paradise. It is a real gem, Berg tells.

– On the same trip, we also visit the Leineperi Ironworks area with its autumn market and enjoy harvester’s buffet of local ingredients in historical Savipakari restaurant, says Anniina Leikas, a third-year Bachelor student of Tourism and Hospitality Management. She is a team member, working as Daytrips & B2B suppliers coordinator productizing, marketing and handling the bookings and payments.

Great food, professional service providers, communality, and special destinations

The day trips are accompanied by professional guides who tell about the nature, characteristics, and history of the areas. To bring extra value for guests, student from EduTravel lead the excursion from start to finish.

The travel destination have been selected on the basis that they have already been commercialized in previous tourism courses. Their highlights are therefore known. The excursions are mainly outdoors, and the group sizes are small.

– Satakunta has a diverse cultural and nature offer, Berg says.

– We offer these especially for international students and other organizations with international customer groups in Pori and Rauma. The idea is not only to offer experiences, but also to help them get into this Finnish culture.

– It’s nice to be able to do something concrete and see the imprint of your own hand. At the same time, we are also going through the concept of virtual tourism, Leikas tells.

– Great food, professional service providers, communality and special natural and cultural attractions, Berg sums up the content of the trips.

Brochure of Daytrip 30th October: FOREST MAGIC & CULTURAL HERITAGE, Joutsijärvi Lake & Leineperi Ironworks, Ulvila. (Bookings by 11th October) Anniina Leikas and Maaria Berg

SAMK EduTravel

SAMK EduTravel is an incoming travel agency coordinating educational tours like educamps and theme group visits in the safe and peaceful Satakunta region, West Coast Finland.

Read more about SAMK EduTravel.

There are Anniina Leikas (in left) and Maaria Berg in the picture.

Share this page

CERN representatives Jan Janke (on the left) and Matthias Braeger arrived to Pori at the end of last year for a site check and to discuss with event arrangements. Also in the photo is lecturer Sara Kfouri Koskinen from SAMK, who is coordinating the event.

CERN Spring Campus in Finland for the first time – SAMK to host the event in May

CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, is organising its annual CERN Spring Campus Event in Finland for the first time. In May 2025, Satakunta University of Applied Sciences (SAMK) will host this major international event focusing on computer science and modern technology.

People posing outside in front of the university.

Three Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences embark on fact-finding and cooperation

Centria, SAMK, and SeAMK are pleased to announce a fact-finding and cooperation trip to Nepal in March 2025.

Timo Mattila, Vice President for Education, is pleased with the students’ good employment rate.

Excellent employment rates among SAMK graduates

According to the latest career monitoring survey, as many as 94% of SAMK graduates were employed or working as entrepreneurs. A further 3% were on study leave or family leave.