Photography: Adrien Giret
Guests sleep above the freezing Barents Sea at this arctic circle resort, where cabins are raised over the shoreline on wooden stilts.
Tromsø-based studio Stinessen Arkitektur designed the eco-retreat, dubbed Manshausen 2.0, as an extension to polar explorer Børge Ousland’s original outpost, opened in 2015. This addition has a trio of aluminium-covered huts, which are located at a former trading outpost in Norway’s Steigen Archipelago.
One end of each cabin is intended as a glass-covered viewing platform and takes advantage of the uninterrupted views over the Barents Sea. The eco-resort is completely reliant on hydropower, minimising its carbon footprint. In keeping with this ethos, its kitchen also serves guests locally grown food.
In total, Manshausen 2.0 offers just seven cabins, as well as a sauna – with an open-air saltwater pool – restaurant and library. And if the prospect of an icy plunge isn’t so appealing, there’s no shortage of birdwatching to do: the island is home to the world’s largest colony of sea eagles.
