Radisson Blu Strand

Hotel description

First-time visitors to Stockholm’s hotels might be surprised to find that the modernist architecture and interiors for which Scandinavia is so well known seem to be produced for export only. Here classics like the Radisson SAS Strand, a 1912 Jugendstil palace topped with an oxidized copper roof, are more the norm, at least for the bigger, mainstream hotels.

Once you’re inside, though, the Strand presents a different face. A recent makeover leaves it looking sharp and contemporary — not achingly hip, but a mellower sort of contemporary that will appeal to the business travelers who make up the Radisson SAS’s core audience.

The views from the Strand’s rooms vary, in unexpected ways. Not just the top-flight suites but the Superior rooms as well look out over the waterways of the Stockholm archipelago — and the harbor-view rooms frame postcard-perfect vistas.

There are hipper boutique hotels in town, and more opulent grand hotels as well. But the Strand stakes out a middle ground, and defends it quite respectably. A conveniently central location is good for business travelers and tourists alike — Gamla Stan, the old town, and the hip shopping and entertainment district of Östermalm are within easy walking distance.