At the outermost edge of Isfjord on the wild west coast of Spitsbergen, the Isfjord Radio Adventure Hotel occupies a cluster of historic buildings that have stood since 1933 — first as a remote radio and weather station, now as one of the most dramatic wilderness hotels on earth. Accessible only by boat in summer or snowmobile and dog sled in winter, the 90-kilometre journey from Longyearbyen is itself part of the experience, delivering guests to a place where polar bears outnumber people and the horizon stretches unbroken across the Arctic Ocean.
The Kokeriet Sauna
The Kokeriet — Norwegian for “the cook house” — is the hotel’s dedicated sauna: a free-standing cabin perched on the very edge of a cliff at Cape Linné, with wall-to-wall panoramic windows facing the Isfjorden and the Forlandet islands beyond. Bright aspen benches line the interior, and the view outside shifts with the seasons. In summer, fulmars wheel past on thermals while whales and seals surface in the silver water below; in winter, northern lights arc overhead and the silence is absolute. The sauna is positioned to always face the most dramatic aspect of the surrounding tundra and sea.
The Experience
After the sauna, guests plunge directly into the Arctic fjord from a private bathing spot below the cliff — one of the most extreme temperature contrasts anywhere on the planet. Back inside the main lodge, chefs prepare fine-dining meals using local Svalbard produce, partly sourced from the island’s few remaining traditional trappers.
Practical Information
The hotel holds 22 rooms spread across the main building and two separate houses, each with private toilet and shower. There is no WiFi, no television, and no mobile signal. Packages are all-inclusive (accommodation, all meals, guided activities). For those who make the journey, the Kokeriet sauna represents an Arctic experience that is genuinely without equal anywhere on earth.
