Finally we got the chance to Stockholm which has been on my bucketlist since forever. We spent 2 nights at beautiful Hotel Rival. The slogan of the hotel is 'Made in Stockholm' and that's a 100% true. The building has an interesting history dating back to the 1930s where the Rival was a cinema and was a real hotspot back then. In 2002 it went through a complete renovation and became the Hotel Rival it is today. The cinema part is still there and is now used as a theatre and concert venue. I loved the Art Deco design and the bar so much. It felt like you are in the Great Gatsby movie. Fun Fact: The owner is Benny Andersson member of the famous Swedish music group ABBA
The hotel is located in Söndermalm, which is the 'hip' neighborhood of Stockholm with many cute restaurants and cafes nearby. The even hipper neighborhood Sofo is just a couple of minutes away and the famous old town 'Gamla Stan' is reachable by 20 minutes walk. If you don't fancy walking, the nearest subway station Mariatorget (red line) is 2 minutes walk away. So location wise perfect. It's central but you still have the local flair and it's not in the middle of the touristy part, which I always like way more.
Although the hotel has 99 rooms it still felt like a boutique hotel to me because there was so much attention to detail. For example there was a teddy bear in our room which made me smile when I entered the room.
There are different room types ranging from Standard to Suite. I especially recommend the De Luxe rooms that have a private balcony overlooking the Maria Square. Perfect to enjoy your morning coffee.
Our room was big an spacious and had an unique design. The bed was ultra comfy and the pillows also. I really liked the choice of DVDs in the room. It might seem old school but we actually stayed in one evening and watched movies and had some room service in our comfy bed and had the best time. That probably wouldn't have happened without the DVDs :) The amenities offered where all we needed, from tooth brush to slippers, everything was there. The room itself didn't have any coffee machine or boiler but on the 4th floor there was a snack station for all guests where you could take coffee/tea and sweets for free anytime you want. In the morning I would have preferred the coffee machine in our room though.
Now here's the best part of all: The breakfast! I am a breakfast lover in general and this one was one of the best hotel breakfasts I had in Europe so far. Best thing was that the breakfast was available until 11:30, perfect for sleepyheads like us. No rush in the morning is really priceless. The buffet had a lot of high quality options also with choices typical for the region. On top there was an A La Carte menu from which you could order eggs, pancakes, french toast etc with no extra charge. My favorites where the Pancakes and the Kale, Avocado & Halloumi salad.
I also highly recommend having drinks at the bar, the setting is just beautiful. It seems to be a popular spot in town since it was full every evening when we stayed there.
Last but not least when staying at Rival make sure to get some local tips from Sean, the Concierge. You can check out his blog The Stockholm Tourist where we found many great local tips on Stockholm. So make sure to check it out before you visit this beautiful city.
I can recommend the Rival to everyone looking for a great place to stay in Stockholm. Check out rates here.
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