Hotel Kungsträdgården

If you’re not fluent in one of the Scandinavian languages, then you might find Hotel Kungsträdgården’s name to be a bit of a mouthful. It helps, though, that it’s got the same name as the adjacent subway station, as well as the neighboring park, one of Stockholm’s finest. And they’re happy to translate it into a phrase that should give you a taste of the treatment you should expect here: the King’s Garden is no self-catering, apartment-style lodging, but a proper, old-world, formal-service luxury hotel.

Here you’ll find nothing at all resembling the modernist fantasy that many of us imagine when we think of Sweden. This 18th-century building has seen some renovations over the years, but has stayed true to its historical style. None of this, however, comes at a king’s ransom — here the aristocratic angle is more a state of mind, as the nightly rates are less extravagant than the atmosphere might have you believe.

Kungsträdgården’s restaurant, Brasserie Makalös, is open from breakfast through dinner, transitioning from a hearty Swedish breakfast to contemporary-classic French fare. It’s certainly not the stereotypical Stockholm experience, and in the end that’s what makes for a memorable stay.