Yrjötapio ”Y.t.” Kivisaari has served as President and CEO of Visit Oulu since 2021. Oulu is the Cultural Capital of Europe 2026 and the fifth largest city in Finland.
Y.t. begun his career in early 90’s as a foreign currency exchange dealer in one of the major Nordic banks. He then established an IT training center for Microsoft products and worked as an educator for nearly 10 years until moving to wellness industry for another decade. After having opened nearly 30 franchise wellness clubs in Finland and Russia and managing Flamingo water park & spa, he got interested in hospitality and tourism.
His first hospitality project was opening and managing a new concept hotel in city of Oulu. He was then appointed as a CEO of the world famous Kakslauttanen Arctic glass igloo resort in Finnish Lapland.
After the years in hotel industry, he established his own consulting agency, Nordic Hospitality Ltd., and worked in several hospitality development projects throughout the Nordic countries before being appointed as the CEO of Visit Levi, the biggest winter destination and ski resort in Lapland. He enjoyed several years working with Santa, his elves, reindeer and nearly 750.000 annual tourists visiting the village resort of only 900 inhabitants.
Although he currently resides in the city of Oulu, he still loves his weekend getaways in Lapland, where his house is located by a beautiful fell in the middle of the Arctic forest.
Y.t. holds a master’s degree in leadership and sustainability from University of Cumbria, UK. He also holds a master certificate in hospitality management from Cornell University, eCornell. He is also a vocational teacher and pedagog with several certifications in adult education. He also has a vocational degree in finance and banking. He holds several positions of trust in hospitality and tourism organizations and Chamber of Commerce.
He enjoys scuba diving trips to Egypt, ski adventures in Finnish Lapland and long walks in the beautiful parks of Oulu with his two French bulldogs Hugo and Noël.