Floating hotels offer unique experiences, from being watched by fish in a tiny one-room hotel with underwater views, to birdwatching from a lodge moored in a pristine rain forest. Floating hotels are more than a mere gimmick; their portability can serve a practical purpose in areas plagued with congestion and rising sea levels.
Utter Inn, located west of Stockholm on Lake Malaren, was designed by Mikael Genberg, a Swedish artist and sculptor, to help people expand their sensory boundaries. Utter Inn consists of a kitchenette, a dining area and a wrap-around terrace that floats on a platform above the water, while a single room is located 3 feet below the surface. The room features windows with panoramic underwater views. Guests are taken by boat to the hotel and left with an inflatable canoe and instructions. They can paddle to the nearby uninhabited island or swim and sunbathe at Utter Inn before retiring to bed underwater.
Utter Inn Hotel
Vasterasfjarden
Vasteras
Sweden
011-4621-39 01 00
visit-vasteras.com
The Amstel Botel is a budget floating hotel moored next to a former-shipyard-turned-artistic-district on the IJ River in Amsterdam. The hotel has 175 rooms with a choice of water or dockside views. Amstel Botel has a 24-hour reception desk where you can hire bicycles or arrange tours, a breakfast room and a bar with a pool table, a pinball machine and a jukebox. The hotel is close to downtown, and there are free ferry and shuttle bus connections to and from Amsterdam Central Station.
Amstel Botel BV
NDSM-Pier 3
1033 RG Amsterdam
011-31-20 626 42 47
amstelbotel.nl
This 59-room hotel was once the world’s largest motor yacht, built in 1924 for Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton. The accommodations range from a small cabin on the lowest level to the spacious owner’s cabin on the top deck. The Malardrottningen shows evidence of the luxury yacht that it once was, with a gangplank entrance and a wood-paneled lobby. The hotel is conveniently located in the center of Stockholm close to the Royal Palace. The full-service restaurant offers a smorgasbord breakfast on the deck with expansive views over the city.
Malardrottningen Hotel
Riddarholmen
111 28 Stockholm
Sweden
011-08-545 187 80
malardrottningen.se
Salt and Sill Hotel, on the tiny island of Kladesholmen on Sweden’s West Coast, was built by the owners of the Salt and Sill Restaurant as a floating hotel to avoid taking up space in the fishing village. The hotel was built on a nearby island and towed into the harbor to rest on floating pontoons next to the restaurant. The 23 ocean-view rooms are decorated in modern Scandinavian style. Salt and Sill features a sauna boat, a smaller replica of the hotel.
Salt & Sill Hotel and Restaurant
471 51 Klädesholmen
Tjörn
Sweden
011-46-304-67 34 80
saltosill.se
King Pacific Lodge is moored in the heart of the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia during the summer months. In October, the lodge is towed south to its winter home in Prince Rupert. King Pacific was selected as the best resort in Canada by the Conde Nast Readers’ Choice Awards in 2008 and 2009, and the establishment was on the publication's Gold List in 2010. The hotel has 17 suites with wilderness or ocean views, king-size beds and deep tubs. King Pacific Lodge is committed to reducing its carbon footprint in this pristine wilderness area.
King Pacific Lodge
255 W. First St., Suite 214
North Vancouver, British Columbia V7M 1B3
Canada
011-604-987-5452
kingpacificlodge.com
