The hotels reflect this in a level of relative unsophistication compared to big city hotels or the aprés-ski resort hotels in the Alps. There is a guest lounge but no bar in the hotel, which given the price of alcohol in Norway is perhaps beneficial. There are plenty of pubs and small restaurants serving some interesting Norwegian cuisine in easy walking distance(obviously as a fishing town the fish is a major item on the menus).

"the exterior decorative treatments in stone and brick that make this town a designers delight"

The town itself is the major attraction with the Jugenstijl buildings giving a reason for walking the town. The Art Nouveau Museum has original interiors from the period, but it is the exterior decorative treatments in stone and brick that make this town a designers delight, and well worth a substantial detour to see.

Whilst the Bryggen remains a welcoming and extremely comfortable hotel it is in danger of becoming as much a museum piece as the town itself, and would benefit from a similar treatment by the operator to their new hotel in Bergen,the Clarion Havnekontoret. As a designer I know that a soft refurb after three years and a full refurb after five may be extended in time by great housekeeping and maintenance, but here the time has come for the owners to spend some TLC on this lovely property.



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