HotelChatter

Snapshot / Killer View / Norway Hotels / Mountain Hotels / → All Tags

For a Killer View, It's Hard to Beat the Norwegian Fjords

Where: Vatnahalsen, 5718 , Myrdal, Norway

In the wilds of the fjords of Norway, travelers braving the hiking and biking trails (or driving RVs around the winding roads) will every so often catch a glimpse of a tucked away hotel, silently calling out like an oasis, We recently came across one of these lovely little properties at a stop along the famous Flåm Railway, just before reaching the high town of Myrdal, Norway.

The Vatnahalsen Hotel is popular with families and outdoorsy types, in the area for a night or two while continuing fresh air adventures through the lush Norwegian countryside, dotted as it is with waterfalls and mountains. When Vatnahalsen is at its busiest, the hotel also plays host to catered meals for cruise ship passengers docked in the lower fjord town of Flåm.

more ›

Missoni Hotels / Lists / Armani Hotels / Norway Hotels / Dubai Hotels / Hotel News / Hotel Openings / London Hotels / → All Tags

Times UK Lists Their Hottest Hotels for 2009

As this last week of 2008 is prime time for best-of lists, The Times of London has released a list of twelve hotels which tip their scales in terms of hotness. Looking ahead to 2009, the list of newcomers includes everything from the Juvet Landscape Hotel in the backwoods of Norway to the Missoni Hotel of Edinburgh and the Dubai Armani Hotel, set to occupy the first 37 floors of the Burj Tower.

Considering the diversity of their choices, hotel openings in 2009 are guaranteed to be a hoot. We mean, who doesn't want to check out the Sassi di Matera Albergo Diffuso in Basilicata, Italy, with its 18 rooms with modern conveniences set inside natural prehistoric caves? Or how about the next venture from the man behind London's famed Conran Shop? Terence Conran is planning to open Boundary, a restaurant with a few rooms in Shoreditch.

Scanning through the various delights to come in 2009, we are most enthralled by the Le Gray, coming to Lebanon's capital city Beirut. From the man behind One Aldwych in London and Carlisle Bay in Antigua, the new 80-room Middle Eastern hotspot will grace the city's scene with a rooftop pool and minimalist furnishings. The Times then drops the bomb on future plans for development: "If Lebanon seems an odd location, the next is even odder: the Falkland Islands." It's another perfect reason for us to head to the middle of nowhere.

If you're planning a blow-out luxury trip for late in 2009, reading this article will help you book the newest and most-hyped hotels around the world. But if you're like the rest of us who simply daydream about the ability to do as much, you can at least add a few of these hotels to your list of places to sleep before you die.

[Missoni Hotel room prototype image: Skyscraper City]

Norway Hotels / → All Tags

Trapper Chic At Basecamp Svalbard Spitsbergen

Where: Vei 223 6 , Longyearbyen, Norway

If you're sick of the standard Paris, Cabo, or Vegas trips, consider heading out to the Svalbard Archipelago of Norway  -- specifically to the island of Spitsbergen, a former base for whaling in the 17th and 18th centuries, now settled by both the Nords and the Russians.

It's in the Arctic Circle, so there's continuous sun from April to August -- and according to its Wikipedia entry, "November to the end of January there is civil polar night, where it is so continuously dark that artificial light must be used 24 hours each day."

It's also home to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. In the event of a doomsday scenario, the world can re-sow all of the world's plant life from a cache of seeds, currently being held in an secure underground cavern.

So when you're there, whether dogsledding, snowscootering, climbing glaciers, exploring ice caverns, fossil hunting, reindeer spotting, or checking out the Russian settlements, cozy up at the Basecamp Svalbard Spitsbergen.

more ›

Killer View / Norway Hotels / → All Tags

Room With a Killer View: Solstrand Fjord Hotel

Where: Main Street, Osoyro, Norway, 5200

We are suckers for a room with a killer view.  We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.

Gazing over a Norwegian fjord is clearly something tailor-made for a killer view. So views from many of the rooms at the Solstrand Fjord Hotel just south of Bergen qualify as a killer view that we'd definitely like to enjoy.

The Solstrand Fjord Hotel is a family-owned hotel that has so far been passed down through four generations, so there's plenty of tradition there. Average room rates are around $200 and there's all kind of activities to keep you busy: sea kayaking, sailing and boat trips will all help you make the most of the view.

[Photo: luna summer]

Killer View / Norway Hotels / → All Tags

Room With a Killer View: Down Into The Valley From the Stalheim Hotel

Where: Stalheim, Norway, 5715

We are suckers for a room with a killer view.  We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. We will feature our favorites in this space from time to time. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number of the hot view.

We've already checked out a Norwegian hotel once this week and since that one turned out to be a bit boring, we're back on the hunt and have this killer view from the Stalheim Hotel overlooking the Naeroe Valley, in the middle of the Western Fjords of Norway.

It's a hotel with such fantastic views that if you check the TripAdvisor reviews, half the recent guests don't even mention the hotel itself: they just make comments like "Stay for the view!", "views don't get much better than this" and "breathtaking views". The tip is that you need to request a room at the back of the hotel to be able to fully appreciate the view over the valley--they have large windows to make the most of it, too.

As far as the hotel itself goes, reports suggest it's comfortable and clean, although sometimes swamped by tourist buses. The average room rate starts around US$230 a night which is pretty reasonable for Scandinavia. Especially with those views.

[Photo: CarlisleJane]

Norway Hotels / → All Tags

Engø Gård: Hard to Pronounce, Boring to Look At and Kind of Expensive Too

Where: Gml Engo Vei 25, Tjome, Norway, 3165

If you are pining for the fjords of Norway, maybe it's time to check in to Engø Gård, one of those hotels that comes with a couple of odd-looking letters in its name. (And we can't even get how to pronounce them right).

But seriously, the Engø Gård small country inn on the coast about an hour and a half from Oslo, and travelers have been enjoying staying there off and on since it was first built in 1845. In its most recent incarnation, it labels itself a "country house hotel", which reopened in 2000. It's got just 13 rooms and 11 suites, but it also has a restaurant called the Relais Gourmand which seems popular. (Note: The hotel is a Relaischateaux property.)

Their website is still only in Norwegian--although English is on the way--but we can just figure out a few coming attractions that help summer visitors to Engø Gård get the most out of their stay. For example, they're holding a classical music performance there in early July; jazz singing and dinner dances are set to follow.

Remember Norway is a particularly independent part of Europe, not part of the EU let alone using the Euro, so their room rates show up in Norwegian Kroner: rooms starting at 1800K (US$340) and suites from 2450K (US$465). Don't be too surprised: nothing is cheap in Norway.

[Photo: fanoffrance]

New Europe Hotels / Norway Hotels / → All Tags

New Europe Hotel: Try The Other Side in Norway

Where: Neiden, Norway, 9930

In the July/August issue of the European Travel Commission's newsletter, they highlighted several new and upcoming hotels in Europe. We'll be taking a closer look at some of these hotels this week but we're always interested in hearing your recommendations for hotels in Europe. So send 'em our way.

If you're looking for a hotel that's on top of the world then Norway's The Other Side, opening next spring, is a place to try. A pretty exclusive-sounding place up on the top of the map at Neiden, near Norway's borders with Finland and Russia, The Other Side is a design hotel made up of 12 "houses" arranged in groups of three. The houses are designed to match the elements: for example, the "Wind House" is suspended midair and the "Water House" is on top of a pond.

The innovative architects behind The Other Side are in fact a Swedish and French pair, Birgitta Ralston and Alexandre Bau, and they've made a special effort to incorporate the traditions of the local Sami people into the design process. On top of that the hotel is intended to provide "an ultramodern interpretation of luxury" and sounds really worth checking out in Spring '08.

Related Stories:
· The Other Side, Neiden [Design Hotels]
· Hotels in Norway [HotelChatter]