Sorrisniva Arctic Wilderness Lodge

I’ve rated this as 4 out 5 rather than 5 based on what I felt was less than perfect service at the hotel. The hotel itself is situated about a 20 minute drive outside of Alta. It’s very picturesque in snowy surroundings and the riverside rooms are perfect for viewing the northern lights. The rooms are well appointed but there is no TV or speakers for music. The rooms are very comfortable and exceptionally quiet. There is also a small outside seating area too. Your food options are fairly limited; either a set menu fine dining experience or an a la Carte restaurant with fairly limited choice. Having said that, all of the food we had was good. Breakfast is included and there is a good deal of choice. You can book lots of excursions from the hotel but it might be worth trying to prebook as when we tried to book snowmobiling two days before we wanted to do it there was nothing available (we booked via Get Your Guide and were able to drive into Alta to meet our tour there). There is nowhere else within walking distance for food or drink so you are somewhat at the mercy of the hotel. The thing I think the hotel could improve is the quality of service. Don’t get me wrong, it was good but all felt very robotic and transactional. It wasn’t very friendly. We’d just come from another hotel in Finland where the service was exceptional and I think we were expecting something similar whereas what you get is something akin to any normal hotel. There were a few stand out members of staff .. Julia, the Australian guy in the Ice Bar, the lady with pink hair but other than that, everyone else seemed to just be going through the motions.

All the staff was so supportive, child friendly, patient and smiling all the time. A gym would be a good additive. The activities were very expensive. Included sauna would be great.

Staff is lovely , Fine dining is delicious, Good vibes, The room is very clean, everything is good .

Hard one to rate given there is a lot to like, but quite a few things let it down unfortunately. We stayed for 3 nights. A lovely building in a lovely spot, rooms are very nice & spacious with good bathrooms & very comfy beds. The surrounding area is very picturesque, with a frozen river right outside when we were there (fleeting views of the resident White Tailed Sea Eagles, none of the Moose unfortunately). Communal areas all very pleasant & good facilities. The bits that let it down: Given its location you’re probably going to eat in the hotel, which means the same menu every lunchtime & a different but same menu every evening gets very dull very quickly. Apparently they keep the same menu all season because “no one tends to stay for more than a week”. Our experience at the front desk was very mixed. Quite a few of the staff couldn’t do the basics like work out how to authorise a room key when it didn’t work, or know about different trips they offered: “as long as you book by 4pm you can go tonight”. 3pm “sorry it’s not running tonight, but you can go tomorrow”. Next day? “Trip full. Sorry” Our Spa experience was similarly confusing, with a hot tub that didn’t work & another that wasn’t actually hot, despite them taking bookings so knowing we wanted to use it. We found out the Manager is rarely on site, which explained a lot about how disorganised it was and the lack of attention to detail? Would we go back? At that price probably not, I’m afraid guests should get a lot more for their money

My wife and I stayed the night here in December to experience the Igloo hotel and it was unforgettable. The main lodge is lovely and cozy with all of the arctic charm and amenities. There are lots of couches and comfy places to sit with views of the Alta river and surrounding mountains. The restaurant Lavvu has wonderful food in a charming replica of the Sami home. Pros on Igloo hotel: It is definitely worth the experience for one night. Each year the artists create a different theme for the hotel. This year it was Greek Mythology. It is truly amazing what they were able to create in such a short time. The ice sculptures and glowing interior lights are definitely something to see. If you're not staying the night, you can still pay to tour the hotel and see the sculptures. We chose to upgrade and stay in a suite which was larger and less claustrophobic than the regular rooms. Each suite features different gods and goddesses. We chose the Aphrodite suite. The sleeping bags they provide are super warm and go down to -30C so don't worry about tons of layers, it's better to sleep with less on. The hotel is literally a cave with a constant temp of -4C to -7C so you will be fine (as long as you don't have to get up in the middle of the night! ha) Also it is so quiet. We literally did not hear another soul for the whole night and felt like we had the place to ourselves. In the morning, the sauna opens at 7AM. (pro tip: get up and out right at 7 and get in the sauna! The showers get crowded once everyone wakes up and there will be a line if you wait) Highly recommend the sauna before a shower to warm up and then enjoy the delicious Norwegian breakfast buffet at Laavu. Cons: This experience is not for everyone. I am telling you if you just want the Instagram pics of the Igloo then just go tour it, but to stay overnight you need to be prepared for a few things. (You can also always stay in the main hotel and still experience the igloo by touring it) You can't take any personal belongings to your "room" in the Igloo since it's so cold so everyone who is overnighting there has to store their luggage in a small room on racks. And every time you need something from your luggage you're going into this room to get it (with everyone else). You are of course not able to go to your room to relax because it's cold so everyone who is staying in the Igloo hangs in the hotel's common spaces or goes on excursions until the evening when the hotel opens for sleeping (after 8PM). The main hotel is super cozy with lots of places to land and chill but not having your own space to relax may be hard for some...be warned. The sleeping bag room opens at 8 and anytime after that you can get your bags and pillows and head to the igloo to sleep. Make sure you go to the bathroom right beforehand because no one wants to get up in the middle of the night and walk back to the main hotel to pee! Trust me! One guest even wore depends to bed (he was happy he did!) Pro tip! :) We slept ju

Sorrisniva Arctic Wilderness Lodge is an outstanding location with such nice staff - recommended for everyone looking for the an exceptional vacation experience