2_1_ScanMag_80_Sep-Oct_2015_Q9_Scan Magazine 1 15/09/2015 19:39 Page 98
Hotel of the Month, Norway
Back to basics Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a 19th century sleep over? Paulsens Hotel in Lyngdal creates an authentic space where guests can escape the mayhem of modern life, reminisce, experience Norwegian traditions of the past, and maybe even hear a few ghost stories along the way.
in 2011. “We tried to keep everything within the same sort of time period – around 1900,” says Sandvand. “It has a ‘grandma’s old living room’ sort of feeling.”
By Maya Acharya | Photos: Paulsens Hotel
If you choose to stay at Paulsens, you are in for a full immersion. Sandvand and Neiienand like to keep signs of modern technology to a minimum and are indeed attentive to detail. Stepping in, you find yourself surrounded by an authentic 19th century interior. The staff await wearing locally-sewn traditional uniforms and in the café you will see an antique cash register, camouflaging the computer hidden behind it. There are ten bedrooms, two with private bathrooms. The rooms can accommodate up to 23 people in total and come complete with old-style furnishings and even chamber pots, which are deco-
Paulsens Hotel’s owners, couple and business partners Bent Sandvand and Jimmi Neiiendam, also known as Simon and Godtfred, are earnest as they suggest that the unique experience offered at their niche hotel is an informative, atmospheric and above all fun antidote to a contemporary society drowning in luxury. “My philosophy is that the simple things in life are often the best. I think it’s good for us to be able to experience things the way they were and know how people used to
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live. It’s engaging and it gives us perspective,” says Sandvand. Journey back in time The historic building itself dates back to 1894, when it was a hotel for British lords who fished for salmon in the area. Today it is owned by Reidun Nørsett who inherited the property. Sandvand and Neiiendam breathed fresh life into the building in 2010, and after a year of renovations, a coat of fresh paint and the riddance of anything that just did not fit, Paulsens opened