Entrepreneur Kaidi Ruusalepp plans €25M adventure hotel in Põlva, South-East Estonia

Entrepreneur and investor Kaidi Ruusalepp is co-founding a €25 million adventure and sports tourism hotel complex in Põlva, South-East Estonia, under the brand Metsa 7. Speaking on Vikerraadio, she argued that Estonian entrepreneurs must take bigger risks, saying those who avoid risk "drink Kelluke", a soft drink, instead of champagne. The project also envisions a Nordic adventure hotel brand and a global nature tourism platform, Metsa.ai.

Entrepreneur and investor Kaidi Ruusalepp has outlined ambitious plans to build a €25 million adventure hotel complex in Põlva, South-East Estonia, a region that demographic forecasts suggest faces a difficult future. Speaking on Vikerraadio's Friday interview programme, she made a broader case for bold thinking in small nations.

«Those who don't take risks drink Kelluke,» Ruusalepp said, referring to a popular Estonian soft drink as a metaphor for timid, risk-averse behaviour. «I want Estonian society and Estonian entrepreneurs not to reach the point where we are constantly drinking Kelluke because we haven't dared to take risks. In such a small country, we must dare to think big.»

A hotel complex, not just a hotel

The project, named Metsa 7 after the property's address on Metsa Street in Põlva, is conceived as far more than a conventional accommodation business. The site already features a 50-metre underground shooting range, dating back to the 1970s, along with proximity to one of Estonia's best athletics stadiums, tennis courts, cross-country ski trails, and the Mammaste hiking network. Ruusalepp described it as a destination in its own right, designed to draw sports tourists who seek active outdoor experiences.

The target segment is what the tourism industry calls "adventure tourists", typically urban professionals who invest heavily in outdoor pursuits. Ruusalepp noted that sport tourism globally grows at 10–17% per year, compared to roughly 3.5% for the broader tourism sector. The hotel expects guests to stay an average of four nights, considerably longer than typical city tourists.

The shooting range, Olympic-standard sport shooting, not hunting, is planned to be accessible to both competitive athletes and hotel guests. Other planned facilities cater to runners, cyclists, birdwatchers, and skiers. Ruusalepp highlighted South-East Estonia as an exceptional birdwatching destination that has yet to be properly marketed internationally.

Nordic brand with global ambitions

Metsa 7 is part of a wider venture: Metsa Collection, co-founded by Ruusalepp, Estonian businessman Mart Vau, Norwegian technology entrepreneur Aleksander Farstad, and Norwegian Olympic cross-country skiing champion Stine Lise Hattestad Bratsberg. Their longer-term goal is to build a Nordic adventure and nature hotel brand, including a franchise model.

Construction is expected to begin in the second half of 2027, with doors opening around late 2029. Ruusalepp acknowledged that global uncertainty, from the war in Ukraine to geopolitical tensions, could require the project to pause, but said the Norwegian co-investors had not raised concerns about the proximity to the Russian border. «Our business partners from Norway have not once raised that question,» she said.

Alongside the physical hotels, the team is developing Metsa.ai, a digital platform described as an "Airbnb for nature tourism," aggregating adventure accommodation across Scandinavia, Switzerland, and Austria, with bookings to be enabled in the future.

Risk, regions, and the Estonian mindset

Ruusalepp used the Põlva project to make a broader argument about regional investment and risk appetite. She pushed back against scepticism about putting €25 million into one of Estonia's more economically challenged regions, drawing a parallel with the Estonian startup ecosystem: when Skype made its exit in the mid-2000s and early startup capital appeared in Estonia, there were many doubters. Last year, Estonian startup companies turned over €10 billion, growing 20% year-on-year.

She also expressed concern about Estonia's political landscape, saying she would not vote for any party based on a single policy promise such as lowering VAT for hospitality. «I would very much like a party to emerge in Estonia that genuinely has Estonia's life and development at heart again,» she said, adding that the country's growing public debt was a cause for worry and that revenue growth, driven by international investment and business, must be the focus rather than cost-cutting alone.

On technology, she noted a paradox: while Estonia's public sector has been a global leader in digital adoption, many private companies still send invoices as PDF files. «We are in the year 2026. AI is three generations ahead of a PDF document,» she said, urging Estonian businesses across all traditional sectors to embrace artificial intelligence tools.