The Spectacular Swedish Hotel With A Cold Plunge Bath Surrounded By Snow And Adventure

At a hotel known as Arctic Bath deep in Swedish Lapland, natural beauty, cold weather, and all-encompassing silence are key design elements. Consider a trip to this magical destination if you're looking for a unique spa experience that rivals Austria's breathtaking Aqua Dome. The hotel is a small collection of rustic wooden cabins along the Lule River. Six of these cabins are tucked away in a birch forest, while six others float like tiny zen houseboats on the river itself. All feature a minimalist Scandinavian aesthetic, warm and luxurious bedding, and an ample supply of windows looking out on the serene setting. This far north in Sweden, you may even get to see the Northern Lights from your hotel room. 

At the center of it all is the remarkable spa — or what Arctic Bath considers a spa anyway. You can probably visualize based on the name. The floating spa building juts out of the river like a spiky logjam. At the center of the building's open-air core is a cold plunge pool, a simple circle with two ladders descending into the icy river water. This is where guests subject themselves to the frigid shock that medical science says may reduce stress and inflammation in the body and improve overall cognition and mood. Fortunately, in addition to the polar bath, the spa also houses two dry saunas and one steam sauna to bring bathers' body temperatures back into the range of living beings.

Feeling invigorated after your polar spa treatment? Now's the time to discover the region's breathtaking beauty. The Arctic Bath hotel offers an impressive array of activities and excursions, from hiking, horseback riding, kayaking, and fishing in the warmer season to ice fishing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, backcountry skiing, husky tours, and sleigh rides in the colder months. Those interested in learning more about the local environment and culture can go on a moose safari, take classes on wild edible herbs and plants, help bake traditional northern bread, or spend a fascinating day with the indigenous Sápmi people, learning about their ways. 

Romping around in the fresh Arctic air will definitely stoke your appetite, but don't worry. You won't have to forage for your meal around here. At Arctic Bath's on-site restaurant, the culinary team prides itself on celebrating edible Arctic treasures in creative dishes, using wild-caught fish and game meats, local honey and dairy, and fresh herbs and berries gathered in the forests. The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and multi-course dinners. The hotel prefers that you pre-book lunches and dinners (and share any dietary preferences, restrictions, or allergies) when you make your reservation. Another dinner option the hotel can arrange for guests is ice dining: a three-course meal served in a heated, candlelit tipi erected on a nearby ice-covered lake. 

Arctic Bath is in Harads, Sweden, around 600 miles north of Stockholm and 115 miles west of the Sweden-Finland border. The hotel can arrange a private transfer (car or helicopter) from the nearest airport in Luleå, which is around 50 miles away. Daily flights run between Luleå and Stockholm, Sweden's capital city. It's also possible to arrive by night train from Stockholm to either Luleå or an even closer town like Boden, which is only about 30 miles from Arctic Bath. Car transfer is then available from Boden to the property. It's true that getting to Arctic Bath requires some time and effort, but the journey is part of the adventure. Also, if you're arriving by train and haven't experienced Stockholm's otherworldly metro stations, you're in for a real treat. 

If you're headed here in winter, be prepared for average low temperatures below zero to average highs of around 20 degrees.  While visiting in winter may provide a truer taste of the Arctic, visiting in the warmer months can be amazing, too. In summer, the temperatures in this part of Sweden climb all the way up into the 50s and 60s. During this period of the midnight sun, the Arctic landscape glows with an otherworldly light all night long, creating a mystical ambiance for outdoor adventures and dips in the river or the infamous cold plunge pool, which remains shockingly chilly even through the warmer months.