Downtown camper – more than a hotel

Myself and a lot of other think associate Scandic with hotels for business travelers on the road, looking for a place to sleep during the night while driving from one meeting to another. Scandic might have been the chain strictly focusing on those travelers and they still do, but in the highly competitive hotel market in Stockholm they have now stretched their brand to also build hotels that are way more than a bed to sleep in. One of them is the two month old Downtown camper at Brunkebergstorg. My first visit was right after they opened when I came here to enjoy a glas of wine a rainy evening in September. After that this place has become one of my favorite hangout spots in Stockholm. Now I would like to take you on a guided tour of this centrally located oasis that is way more than just a place to sleep at. Like the hotel manager told us when I and Readyfortakeoff recently went for a guided tour of the property – the purpose of the place is to create a meeting place for locals and travelers and a base for providing a unique experience of Stockholm.

The drawback of sharing favorite spots is of course that they become too popular but hey, I like sharing so here comes a guided tour of my favorite hangout in Stockholm minus the stayacation experience that I hope to share with you another time.

The lobby

I been to hundreds of hotels around the world. I do of course not remember all of them but the unique ones. Coming into Downtown camper is like getting off the train at Sentosa Island in Singapore – you meet a smiling employee that personally greets you. Wether you are a guest or just coming in for a drink, dinner, a meeting, any of the activities or putting up your home office here. When you come inside it feels like you traveled from Stockholm to Åre in one millisecond.

Office area

When you think about places to work from here in Stockholm it is easy to think of Espressohouse, stepping into a hotel if you are not a guest there doesn’t sound that natural but actually DC has allocated a whole table for remote workers from outside the hotel to come, have a meeting or work at. How perfect isn’t that?

If you don’t want to sit at the tables there is a lounge area aswell. Just perfect. The hotel manager also told us they have yoga classes in this area a few days a week. Smart thinking. Some days they even offer yoga and brekkie. Perfect combo if you ask me!

Meeting rooms

There are also more traditional conference rooms. Maybe traditional with a touch would be a better description.

And this cozy movie theater where there are different themed movie events. The worst thing is that it is potentially a place you can fall asleep at due to the comfort of the sofas.

The golden juvel

If you walk as far as you can in the back the best conference/party room I ever seen were located. I immediately fell in love with it. It is really the perfect venue to have a creative conference or host a party at.

It had swings to sit on, a shuffle board and loads of games you could take a gaming break with, great places to sit at and it was just the perfect place to host events at.

Eating and drinking

Since it is a hotel there is also a restaurant and bar area. Like with everything else here there is a clear purpose behind everything.

Centrally located in the restaurant part there is a campfire where you can do BBQ. How awesome isn’t that?

Or if you are a solo traveler there are shared tables with the purpose to make people that most likely otherwise wouldn’t meet talk to eachother.

Activities

Apart from working, meeting, eating, drinking and sleeping you find loads of activities here. For example you can join a guided running tours, try a longboard, borrow one of the canoes to explore the waters of Stockholm or go for a bike ride while listening to pod casts specially made for that purpose.

Future

Do you see the net on this picture? that spot will for sure be one reason why I will come back here again and again. That place will transform to a pillow area. Yet another smart and unique thing.

And this. The Nest. Opening the 15th of December. An urban retreat with a rooftop pool and sauna. This is going to be the place. But you can only visit it if you are a hotel guest so both Readyfortakeoff and I immediately marked our calendars of excitement when we heard the great news.

With that said. This is the place to hang out at in central Stockholm. Have you been to Downtown camper yet? If not this is my very best recommendation for Stockholm right now wether you are a local or visitor.

Many thanks Heidi for arranging this tour on a super short notice and to the hotel manager showing us around!

/ Pernilla that is in love with DC