Britt-Arnhild's House in the Woods

A wooden hotel and Christmas breakfast in July

@brittarnhild

Time had come for our annual visit to one of the many amazing wooden hotels in Norway. This time we decided not to visit one of the historical ones, but a place which opened only 15 years ago (an old farm restored), BesteBakken. We had read about the place already some years ago, when we stayed at Walaker hotel with our friends from California, Jane and Lanny. What caught my interest then was to read that BesteBakken sold art by Ingun Dahlin.

As I knew it would, it turn out to become a lovely stay. We arrived a few hours before dinner and had time to sit in the garden, and also to take a bath in the special bubble bath which our bathroom had. At dinner we shared a huge table with other guests, a family from Poland, a mother and daughter from Germany, two young men from Switzerland, a couple from the US and another couple from the Netherlands. Tales from all over the world were shared while we enjoyed the tasteful three course dinner.

The climax though came with breakfast the next morning. Lindis, the owner of BesteBakken, told us that her goal was to show her guests what a Christmsa breakfast in Norway is. A breakfast when the family gather around the table and eat and talk for many hours. A breakfast when you serve ALL the best food you have.

Lindis explained all the food, and let us know what should be eaten together.

We listened, and we ate and we ate and we ate and we ate,

all while I made mental notes - I want to make this, this is perfect together, what a great idea.......

 

We had to leave right after breakfast, other adventures were waiting, but I did have time for some photos first,

and we said goodbye to the lama outside :-)

BesteBakken, a gem of a place,
and with Ingun Dahlin´s angels everywhere :-)

 

 

Kvikne´s Hotel, like a fairytale

@brittarnhild

Every summer we treat ourselves with a visit to one of the historical hotels in Norway (or other special places to stay). We have a couple of books about wooden hotels, and we also use internet when we start to make our plans. We start early, and as soon as I know the date of our stay, I send an email to the chosen hotel, asking for the best, most charming room they have. This year the email was sent to Kvikne´s Hotel in Balestrand, and not much later I got an email back from Kari Kvikne with an offer. A few more emails back and forth and the stay was set, with a demi-suite,a table for dinner and everything. We arrived in the afternoon, but when we wanted the check in our reservation could not be found, and the hotel was FULL!

I almost started to cry. What were we to do?

 

Soon three young people behind the desk were helping us, and soon we found out what had happened, I had booked a wrong date! And as I already said, the hotel was full!

I almost cried again!!

Then the desk person in charged smiled, we seem to have one room left for you, in the new part of our hotel. Not the historical part like you had booked, not a demi-suite, but still a nice room, a room with a fjord view.

I stopped crying, well, I had never actually cried but I stopped wanting to cry. And soon I smiled. We would not have our romantic demi-suite, but we had a room at "The Jewel of Sognefjorden", we could have dinner in the historical part of the hotel, we could swim from the pier, I was there with the man I love. What more could I ask for?

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By the way:
we swam in the fjord before dinner, and we swam again before breakfast in the morning
we had an excellent four course dinner served by the charming young Polish Przemek
we had a morning walk in the village
we slept well
we toured the rooms on the ground floor of the huge historical part of the hotel
we LOVED our stay!

 

and, even though we (so far) visit each hotel only once, there are so many to visit and we don´t have money for more than one of these nights a year, I think we need to do an exception. We must come back to Kvikne, because now we MUST try one of the historical suites.

 

 

 

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You can read more about this amazing place here

 

 Big thanks to the staff at Kvikne´s for making our stay so lovely.

 

What happens when…...

@brittarnhild

 

.......you arrive at the old, wooden hotel where you have booked a room weeks ago and have been dreaming of a romantic stay in one of the suites with the one you love, and you arrive at the hotel and it turns out you have mixed up the dates and the hotel is full........

 

....to be continued.

 

Juvet Landskapshotell, a different Wooden Hotel

@brittarnhild

A few years ago we discovered a secret, well, at least it was a secret for us: the lovely, romantic, historical wooden hotels along the western coast of Norway. For us it started the summer of 2007, at Hjelle hotel, and since then we have had some lovely, romantic stays on different hotels.
I have several books about  these old hotels, and during the winter it is a nice pasttime to flip through them, read about the different hotels, trying to decide where to go next.

Some weeks ago a television program made me put away the books, I had found another place, not at all one of the historical wooden places, no, this time we would go for something modern.

A real "house in the woods"

The television program was about Nikka, a 96 years old woman living in Valldal, just south of Trollstigen. Somewhere, in the middle of the program, we saw a few glimpses of some modern glass cabins in thje middle of the woods.

And I knew!

This was our wooden hotel for this summer.

A few years ago Knut Slinning bought an old farm in Valldal. He renovated it, and built seven modern small cabins, all with one wall completely made of glass.

No curtains.
The most stunning view.

It was like sleeping out in the wilderness.

 

We arrived early, and had time for a bath in the outdoor bathtube before dinner.

Dinner was in the old barn.
One long table where all the guests made one happy family.
There were 12 of us, one couple from Holland, one couple from the US and the rest from Norway.
Dinner shared, and then breakfast the next morning.
For two meals we felt like one happy family and shared travel tales from around the world.

We were lucky,
for dessert we had trollkrem and bakelse made by 96 years old Nikka.

Next summer we will probably be back in one of the historical hotels,
but I am glad we decided to go for Juvet this year.

An experience you can get nowhere else.

A real night in the woods.

Here is a link to Juvet´s webpage

 

And HERE is a link to a BBC program when Hairy Bikers visited Nikka. 

 

The perfect setting for an anniversary

Text and images Britt-Arnhild Wigum Lindland

 

Rain in the hairdress of a bride means luck. Now I have learned that rain in the grey hairs of a woman married for 31 years doesn't only give curls, but also pleasure, happiness, blessings and very good food.

Terje and I have made it a tradition over the past few years to stay one night at one of the old, traditional wooden hotels of Norway during the summer. Call it our anniversary gift to each other.

 

This year our choice fell on Walaker hotel in Solvorn, near Sognefjorden, and for the first time after starting this tradition we were not alone. Jane and Lanny from California traveled with us. Being able to show our beloved country to friends make it the more beautiful for ourselves as well :-)

 

Deciding which historical hotel to visit is a task we start during the winter. Looking through books and websites. Then comes the enjoyable task of sending the first email to the hotel asking if a room (two this year) is available. Discuss the different rooms, and like we did this summer, ending up booking the two best rooms of the hotel, big, airy rooms on the two first floor wings, with a perfect view to fjord and mountains.

 

A gourmet dinner is always included when we have our anniversary night. Local food, prepared with skill, with art, with love.

This year we ate......

.....well, why don't you scroll down to take a look:

 
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What do you think?

:-) :-)

 

After dinner we had a late night guided tour in the art gallery in the old barn, and then late, late, almost around midnight Terje and I had a walk in the village and the hotel garden.

 
Summer night in Norway, oh, how I love the light.

 

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Thank you to the owners and the staff members at Walaker for a lovely stay. And a special thank to Ole Henrik and Ole Preben for the champagne for our anniversary.

 

Late supper, two nice beds and a breakfast.....

The delay of our visit to Flor & Fjære turned our pland a little upside down. We had planned dinner on the flower island on the night of our wedding anniversary, instead we ended up with lunch the next day........which meant that we would be way too late for dinner the next night at the lovely Manor Baroniet Rosendal.

I phoned the Manor to tell them about our changes and asked: "I know we will  be too late for dinner, but will it be possible to get some food when we come? Just some bread and cheese or something?" The young girl I spoked with reassured me; "No problem madam. I will make some food for you and leave it in the fridge"

We were tired after a long day on Flor & Fjære, then hours of driving, and came to Rosendal late. What a lovely surprise then to find plates of art, real art, in the fridge. I sat the table for two, plates, glasses, cutlery, napkins, and the art.......which was made to be eaten. Salmon, vegetables, homemade bread, salami and tomatoes. Pure cold Norwegian spring water.

A meal shared by two people loving each other.

Heaven on earth.

 
Avlshuset at Baroniet Rosendal belongs to the group of historical hotels I call The Wooden hotels of Norway. Most of these are found along the western coast of the country. Terje and I visit one of them every summer, a link to posts about our other visits can be found on the right board on my blog.

  We would love to have had a full dinner at the Manor, but then we would have missed our art meal for two.

I am learning over and over again that I can not have it all, and it is for me to make what I am given The Best!

And there is no doubt. Breakfast the next morning really was The Best.

How I would love to gather all of you here for a blog party breakfast:-) Would you come?

Here is a link to Baroniet Rosendal.   

Enjoy your visit.

Tomorrow I plan to take you to The Manor Gardens.

Finally........

Finally......my afrticle from Røisheim, the old wodden hotel, is published:

Lev Landlig/Røisheim

Dinner at Røisheim

 

 

 

 

 

Can you see what we eat?

After the meal we had coffee in the "peisestua", the livingroom with the hearth.

 

Wendy, the sixth picture down is a "stabbur" a storeroom for food on the old farms. To keep the mice away there is always some space between the stairs and the door.

Susan, how great that you have been to Røisheim. I wish I could take all my blogging friends there..... Well, of course I can't. But tomorrow I plan to take you on a blogride along Norwegian fjords, up Norwegian mountains.

Romance at Røisheim

 

Terje and I have a tradition which we both love. Every summer we visit one of the old traditional wooden hotels in Norway, to spend a night. A night in old fashioned luxury, a night with a lovely Norwegian dinner.

 

There are alot of old hotels to choose among. I have several books about them, and I search on internet, showering Terje with suggestions. Let's go there, oh look here, this one looks great!

 

A week ago our choice for this year fell on Røisheim. I sent an email to check if they had a room available for us, and soon afterwards I got an email back - Wecome to Røisheim. We can give you the most romatic room we have here.....

 

Here is what Røisheims own pamflet writes about the place:

This old coaching house consists of 14 related buildings from the 18th century. Røisheim has a long tradition of looking after dicriminating, adventurous tourists - whether heading for the peaks of Jotunheimen or seeking out the preserved old atmosphere of this coaching house and its famous cuisisne. After 150 years as coaching house and hotel, Røisheim still reigns supreme as the ultimate that Norway can offer. Set in a rich landscape, the wood of its buildings blackened with tar, the bedrooms and reception rooms have been sensitively restored. The hosts ensure the very best treatment for all guests. Many wish to walk up nearby Galdhøpiggen - Norway's highest mountain - during their stay. But Røisheim remains a love affair.

 

Dinner is served at Røisheim every night at 8.30. We had a long, long drive from our summer village, leaving Marta "on the road" to go to Denmark with relatives, but we came to Røisheim in time for a shower and a few photos before the old outdoor dinner bell rang.

 

The dinner, created and cooked by the hostess of Røisheim, needs its own blogpost. Come back tomorrow and I can guarantee you leave my blog  craving some good, Norwegian food.

 

Let's meet then, at Røisheim, shall we?

The good, sweet life

     It is a long way between camping in a tent and staying in a luxury hotel like the old wooden historical places along the western coast of Norway. Tenting has its charm, but after a week at a cabin without electricity, without indoor water, I am in no doubt about what to chose.

Last year I bought a book about old wooden hotels in Norway, and since then it has become a passion to visit at least one of these places every summer.

     Union hotell is a perfect place to live the good life. The owner, dressed in gold, and all his helpers spent all their time making sure that we had a good time, all we needed to concentrate on was to enjoy every minute of our stay. A simple task!

     We ate a four course dinner based on lokal food, and afterwards spent a long night out in the garden with our coffee. I brought a book, Terje brought a paper, but it was so much easier to enjoy the snowcovered mountaintops embracing the hotel valley, accompagnied by steep waterfalls pregnant with melted ice water. Late, after the sun went to sleep, all the guests at the hotel gathered in the lounge. The owner had a basket filled with stories and anectdotes to tell, young Henrik played the piano, Mariann song old Norwegian songs. In the middle of the room was a coffee table filled with colourful books about the mountains and fjords of western Norway. We went to bed very late.

     Union Hotel has a fasinating story, from the time, more than one hundred years ago when British and Continental adventures and royals came to explore the nature of Europe's outpost!

.....I hope to write an article about the hotel.......some day. Untill then, all you are given is this post :-) Hopefully it is a seedou can plant. Let it grown, and one day the plant might take you all the way to Norway. May be we meet next year, in one of the old wooden hotels?