One of Europe’s most unique new accommodations – a hotel and spa that floats on the Lule River near the small village of Harads in Swedish Lapland – has opened its doors to the public after much anticipation.
Called Arctic Bath, the incredible new hotel is built in a circular shape that floats on the water in the summertime and sits on the ice in the winter when the river freezes over. Complete with a giant ice bath in the middle, and ringed with three saunas, it includes a spa and treatment rooms as well as baths.
Guests can look out for the Northern Lights in the wintertime and the enjoy the midnight sun (when there are 24 hours of daylight) in the summer months, as well as immersing themselves in a world that leaves a minimal environmental footprint behind.
Different treatments are available, ranging from stone massages to facials. Guests are provided with Arctic Spa Kits, which include body peels, facial masks, foot treatments and face creams, and will even go home with eco-friendly bathing suits, shorts and spa robes.
The hotel has 12 rooms and took inspiration from the timber-floating era when trees were taken downriver to be processed. It has been constructed using local materials that are sustainable and designed to be eye-catching and distinctive. “The architecture in combination with the location and the story is what makes the Arctic Bath Hotel unique. So far the reactions have been really positive. All our guests have been surprised,” a representative of Arctic Bath told Lonely Planet.
The hotel serves up food that is a modern take on traditional Swedish cuisine, prepared with locally sourced ingredients like honey, beef, fresh herbs, reindeer, moose and berries. All of the meat and fish served at the hotel comes from the wild, without any traces of pesticides or antibiotics. Arctic Bath also encourages guests to practice proper nutrition and regular exercise to promote wellness.
Rates start from 9600 SEK (€906) per night based on two sharing water rooms on a half board basis. Arctic Bath also operates private transfers to and from Luleå Airport which take one hour and 15 minutes by car.
More information is available at the official Arctic Bath website.
