Päijänne-Risteilyt Hilden Oy
Päijänne-Risteilyt Hilden Oy has long traditions of operating ships across the length and breadth of the majestic Lake Päijänne waterway. Founded already in 1963, the shipping company is a family business with affairs currently in the hands of the second generation. In the 1960s Hannu Hildén started by running a water bus service in the immediate Jyväskylä area, ferrying people to their summer houses on various islands and across the lake in Jyväskylä to the Ainola dance pavilion.
Little by little the company grew. Major efforts were required, however, in the 1970s and 80s to ensure the shipping business as a whole survived on Lake Päijänne.
At the present time the company operates vessels throughout the Lake Päijänne area – from Lahti, Heinola and Jyväskylä and, with the completion of the Keitele canal, also to Laukaa and Suolahti.
The company has five vessels, all of which are in excellent shape and well-equipped in terms of kitchens and other facilities.
Keeping Päijänne pollution-free
From the very beginning one of the company’s key principles has been respect for nature – after all, it is the company’s operating environment. Already long before green values became fashionable, the company was implementing these in its operations. For instance, sorting, recycling and sound management of bilge tanks on board our ships, thus preventing waste water from getting into the waterway. A cruise by ship itself is also an ecological alternative compared to private boating which burdens Lake Päijänne’s delicate island-strewn nature.
Personnel
Managing director
Eija Hilden
Chief engineer
Jukka Hilden
Master
Janne Hilden