This Tiny Cabin Village Near Helsinki Is a Model for Off-Grid Living

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For architect and Majamaja cofounder Pekka Littow, designing a seaside retreat in Finland was an exercise in showing people the potential of self-sustaining homes to reduce our reliance on resources. The first cabin at Majamaja Village was built in 2020, and there are now a total of four along a picturesque slice of coastline overlooking the archipelago outside Helsinki.

Because there are no roads or hookups there, minimizing the retreat’s impact on the environment was critical. The cabins’ prefabricated elements, including the vertical wood cladding and crisp gables, make them easy to dismount while lending them a Nordic aesthetic. Less immediately visible is each cabin’s patented sanitary module that, in combination with solar panels, wind generators, and gray water systems, allows them to operate independent of city infrastructure.

While each cabin is its own accommodation, communal living is at the core of the company’s ethos. "The Majamaja philosophy believes in people’s ability—and even their essential need—to live in community," says Littow. "This village creates a sense of security and allows for social interaction for those who desire it."

Read on to learn more about Majamaja Village and what it takes to build along Finland’s craggy coastline.

Tell us about the retreat. What was the idea behind it?

Majamaja is an example of how the energy, water, and waste management required for living can be handled locally. The future goal is to demonstrate that it is possible to transition to off-grid living on a broader scale. Majamaja is already exploring solutions that serve larger living units and village complexes. I think that in the future, self-produced energy or internal water-treatment systems for apartment buildings will be as common as any other fixture or appliance.

Why did you chose prefab for these homes?

Building on-site would not have been possible without the self-sufficiency of the cabins. The site lacks municipal infrastructure, and the city had no intention of providing it due to costs. Self-sufficiency means we could avoid harming the landscape with excavation or aerial cables.

Thanks to the self-sufficiency technology integrated into the sanitary module, no ground modifications are needed. Building this way also saves time, as construction can begin quickly, and actual use can commence soon after. 

Because the cabins are delivered fully prefabricated to the site, and the manufacturing process is industrial, rational, and controlled, the on-site assembly time is short. The cabins can be divided into smaller elements for delivery; for the Helsinki project, they were brought in by ferry, so the natural surrounding stayed almost entirely intact.