Kviknes Hotel

I can't remember the last time I left a hotel thinking I wish I'd had more time to just sit in my room and enjoy it, or to just sit in the hotel's charming public spaces. Note that the hotel has a historic building (a truly grand classic sort of place where royalty may have stayed) and a modern building, which offer different experiences. We chose the historic building and splurged for a "demi suite with fjord view" which was expensive but worth it. The historic building has all that grand classic charm, and the spacious demi suite was furnished in tasteful but comfortable antiques that suit the historic charm, and the fjord view was enjoyed from a large veranda. Rich detail like carved wood and moldings everywhere. The ground floor had a rambling series of public spaces that were equally charming (beautiful rich antiques and paintings) where you could sit and enjoy a cider and the view. There's a large dining room, also with beautiful views, and a nice buffet selection for both breakfast and dinner (including plenty of gluten-free options), selections of local ciders, and amiable staff that aims to please. Normally I book on Booking.com or sometimes other similar hotel sites if they have better deals, but I'm pretty sure that Booking.com is only showing the modern wing rooms and not the historic ones. I booked directly on the hotel's own website to get the room that I wanted in the historic building. One consideration about the historic building: it is historic and while the bathrooms are thoroughly modern, the building does NOT have elevators. And surprisingly for a hotel of this caliber, they did not seem to have bellhops. The check-in staff warned us that there was no elevator, but no help was offered with our luggage. We just had to schlep it ourselves up two flights of stairs. Fortunately, we're still able, and given the otherwise overwhelmingly positive experience, it was totally worth it.