The team behind Sweden’s world-famous Treehotel, a set of seven tree house lodgings hotel, is back with a new hotel and spa that floats along a major river in Swedish Lapland during summer and freezes into the ice during winter, all in a prime spot to see the Northern Lights. This is not a joke: Two years after luxury tour operator Off the Map Travel announced its plans for the highly anticipated Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa, the next-level property is officially open—and you can now book your own stay between February 2020 and February 2021.
The Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa is located on the Lule River in Luleå, a small coastal city about 31 miles south of the Arctic Circle in Swedish Lapland. The hotel consists of six floating “cabins” that are connected to a design-forward spa by above-water walkways. The on-site spa features four saunas, a hot bath, an outdoor cold bath, plus outside and inside showers.
The Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa features an open-air bathhouse that invites guests to soak under the star-filled skies.
Photo by Johan Jansson
Designed by Swedish architects Bertil Harström and Johan Kaupp, the hotel’s unique structure takes inspiration from drifting timber in the area as well as a wedge-shaped tool called a flottningshake, which loggers commonly use to lever apart a timber jam. The property also features six additional land cabins near the river’s bank, each of which features a floor-to-ceiling wall of glass that looks out over the Lule River.
Of course, because this is Scandinavia, the design of this 12-cabin Arctic getaway isn’t just visually striking; it was also developed with eco-friendly standards in mind. The entire property was built using local materials with “minimal-to-no” impact on the environment, such as pine and dark oak wood plus low-impact paints and oils. Each of the land cabins is elevated on poles to avoid disturbing the thriving plant and animal ecoystems beneath, and the entire property also uses green electricity as well as a closed water and waste system that ensures minimal impact on the surrounding environment.
The property’s six on-land cabins are elevated by poles to avoid disturbing the ecosystems beneath.
Photo by Anders Blomqvist
A three-day Off the Map Travel Arctic Bath itinerary includes daily breakfast, nightly five-course dinners, unlimited spa access, and a guided Northern Lights tour. Itineraries can also be customized to meet travelers’ specific interests, with various activities available, from a foraging walk through the forest with a wild herb expert to a moose safari led by Sami guides.
To book your stay at the Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa through Off the Map Travel, contact info@offthemap.travel. (From $3,242 per person for a three-day itinerary)
Designed by Swedish architects Bertil Harström and Johan Kaupp, the Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa is inspired by drifting timber on the Lule River.
Photo by Anders Blomqvist
The Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa is now accepting reservations between February 2020 and February 2021.
Photo by Daniel Holmgren
Property rooms were constructed using locally sourced materials and low-impact paints and oils.
Photo by Daniel Holmgren
The unique property is located near Luleå, a small coastal city about 31 miles south of the Arctic Circle in Swedish Lapland.
Photo by Anders Blomqvist
The Arctic Bath Hotel and Spa consists of a dozen accommodations—six floating cabins and six on land—in addition to the on-site spa.
Photo by Anders Blomqvist
This article originally appeared online in January 2018; it was updated on January 8, 2020, to include current information.
