Everything impresses in Oslo’s Sommerro maxi-hotel, which evokes the film babylon and the lavish parties of Hollywood producers of yesteryear. The dining room, jam-packed with well-to-do Norwegians toasting champagne, its huge ceiling fresco depicting the arrival of electricity in Oslo, the work of Per Krohg (1889-1965), known for painting United Nations Security Council mural in New York. Upstairs, the 231 rooms and suites are in the Art Deco spirit. A pinch of munificence and a zest of tinsel dress them. Adam Greco and Alice Lund, of GrecoDeco, have worked.
In room 516, the parquet is in oak, the carpet soft, the bed in birch and the cushions with Norwegian floral motifs. Chandelier, sconces and bedside lamps illuminate the room. In the bathroom, the tiled floor is slightly heated. If one wishes to frolic in a swimming pool, there are two options. The Vestkantbadet spa is a former public bathhouse, when few apartments in Oslo had a bathroom. Here too, the painter Per Krohg created a masterful fresco. Otherwise, there is the outdoor swimming pool and the rooftop sauna. Like a flying saucer, two additional floors have been added to the original building to accommodate the Izakaya and TAK Oslo restaurants. But, from the outside, all this glam is undetectable. The red brick facade is austere, almost totalitarian. Everything changes inside.
Sommerro, Sommerrogata, 1. Loft room from €195 per night, standard room from €315, breakfast included.
400 meters away: stroll in a royal park
The Buckingham-like Royal Palace is not intimidating. Colorful soldiers stand guard there, whatever the weather. Once dense, the garden has been cleared. It offers paths, ponds and detours under the tall trees. The statues of mathematician Niels Henrik Abel and feminist novelist Camilla Collett are the work of Gustav Vigeland who designed more than two hundred, often expressive, for another park that bears his name.
Henrik Ibsens gate, free entry.
650 meters away: taste a smørrebrød
The Norwegian influencer Sophie Elise (600,000 followers on Instagram) loves coming to 100, an unpretentious bar, a good distance from the big establishments of the Frogner district. Its boss, sommelier by training, Alexander Jones has a passion for Chartreuse, but also for natural wines. To accompany them, he prepares delicious smørrebrød of Danish inspiration (literally, “open bread”), that is, half a rye bread topped with a garnish of vegetables, smoked fish, cold cuts or cheese. Between bites, you can also swallow a glass of aquavit, the Nordic spirit, with a more or less pronounced taste of cumin.
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