Here’s Why Wealthy Travelers Are Flocking to the Hamptons of Sweden

Sitting on the Bjäre peninsula, where Danish and Swedish royalty summered more than a century ago, is an unassuming guesthouse with kale-green shutters and a red-tile roof. There are no Murano chandeliers in the lobby, no oversized contemporary artworks down the halls, but there is fine craftsmanship found in the lovingly chiseled new staircase, bespoke furnishings, and 200-odd vintage lamps that have been restored and brought back to life, much like the century-year-old inn itself. Looks can be deceiving in this part of Sweden: this self-proclaimed “extraordinary inn with a perfectly ordinary restaurant, and bakery” opened with a three-month waitlist. Welcome to the Hamptons of Sweden, minus the posturing; here, Swedes still mow their own lawns and walk their dogs despite being CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. The inn Furuhem, with its unassuming white facade, kale-green shutters, and restored red-tiled roof, is actually the home of chef Magnus Nilsson, the former Michelin two-star chef behind Faviken and one of the original Chef’s Tablers on Netflix. During the height of the New Nordic Movement, when Noma’s René Redzepi and other top regional chefs crafted a manifesto on pure ingredients heard worldwide, Faviken lured well-heeled travelers and true gastronomes to the deep evergreen forests of Jämtland to dine on dried pig’s blood and bone marrow, meticulously scooped out and served with diced cow’s heart and grated carrots. Experience was everything with the 32-ish-course degustation costing (at the time) a mere $350 per person, including wine pairings that ranged from “expensive” to “very expensive” wines, a la Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Les Chenevottes 1er Cru from Burgundy that had to stand up next to ingredients like arctic char Nilsson caught in nearby Lake Kallisjon. Following the closure of Faviken in 2019, Nilsson has pivoted to quiet luxury on the shores of Bjäre—and his inn, co-managed by chef Frida Nilsson and Noma alum Daniella Rebelo, is the hottest opening in Sweden this year. As temperatures along the Mediterranean climb each summer, luxury Nordic travelers are opting to stay local, filling the many new destination-worthy properties on the west coast of Sweden. “In Sweden, luxury isn’t loud—it’s intentional,” says Janel Carnero, a luxury travel adviser with Embark Travel. “It’s not about gold leaf or marble lobbies. Luxury here is found in the extreme purity of the experience. It’s foraging for your own dinner ingredients with a master chef or taking a private ice-bath ritual. It’s an understated elegance that feels incredibly grounded.” Furuhem, the newest addition to the peninsula, is certainly calling out to locals and contributes to a growing list of Michelin-starred chefs and home-grown hoteliers who have opened up new restaurants and guesthouses across the region, all of which are catering to the high social circles of the Nordics. An hour’s drive from Furuhem, in the Halland province where farm stays lure Nordic travelers on weekends, is Astad Vingard, a third-generation former dairy farm turned small-scale winery and spa run by siblings Linda, Daniel, and Mattias Carlsson. Frequented by a mixed crowd of bankers, affluent Danish families, and couples holding LVMH totes who want to escape the capital on weekends, the hotel is a couples’ retreat with eight saunas and a standout Michelin restaurant housed in a designer glasshouse, Restaurant Ang, led by chef Filip Gemzell and wife Ann-Catrin. If looks are deceiving on this side of Sweden, this is the case and point: the old dairy farm vibe—complete with cows grazing in the background—invites guests to enjoy Gemzell’s 19-course hyper-seasonal tasting menu in their finest sneakers and resort wear. Meanwhile, they can admire uninterrupted views of Åkulla Bokskogar Park while sampling what might be Sweden’s largest and definitely most impressive wine collection, which includes Krug Clos du Mesnil Blanc de Blancs Brut deg. 2020, Roeder Cristal Vinothèque deg. 2020, and Montrachet Grand Cru. “The idea of quiet luxury has been shaping things globally for a few years now, and in many ways it shares DNA with the Nordic cultural approach, which tends to be more understated and somewhat wary of overt displays of status,” says Daniel Carlsson. “The other day, I walked past the car park and saw a rather worn old car parked right next to a Bentley. That is probably a fairly accurate picture of who we are at the moment, and I very much like that.” Further investment by the Carlsson family includes the purchase of an iconic 1822 bathhouse, Varbergs Kusthotell, a 30-minute drive from the family’s estate on the Halland coast (also near Apelviken, aka the best surf beach in Sweden). The property is currently undergoing major renovations—including the opening of a million-dollar spa and revamped rooms—in anticipation of increased demand from city dwellers in Denmark and Sweden. “We Swedes are born as nature romantics; we have an idealized love for nature. I believe we’ve always used nature as a way to heal,” says Mathias Dahlgren, Michelin-starred chef and “Godfather” of Swedish cuisine who coincidentally opened a new restaurant, Ateljé Vita duken – Tornhuset in his hometown Umea earlier this year. “It has been our escape from industrialization, urbanization, and modern stress,” he says. “Picking wildflowers by the roadside, cooking over an open fire, swimming naked in a lake—that is the ultimate luxury for us.” Further down Skåne county and overlooking the Österlen coast is Vyn Restaurant and Hotel, where the same crowd of HNWT’s from the Nordics choose to spend most of their weekends now. The darling of the region (and my personal favorite), Vyn opened in 2023 and marked the return of much-celebrated chef Daniel Berlin. Vyn’s bookings remain next to impossible—akin to snagging a Taylor Swift or Harry Styles concert ticket—but the reward is great. A retreat for the senses, an exquisite 18-course dinner takes you to the fields, land, and sea of Skåne county with everything hyperlocal and hyperseasonal. For the full experience, indulge in the dinner ($410), say yes to the prestige wine pairing ($460), and book the largest suite (high season $848) just so you can have the famous Berlin breakfast that, dare I say, is worth traveling for. Although the Nordics fell out of love with the south of Sweden when the Med started attracting the rich and famous in the 1970s, a small but mighty renaissance is taking place on the Swedish countryside and shores. Not comparable to the party scene found on the beaches of Saint-Tropez or the glamour of the French Riviera, luxury is undeniably different. Call me crazy, but give me freshly baked cinnamon rolls and a jiggly wiggly local egg specialty, Äggakaka, baked to perfection, in lieu of Champagne sparklers and salad Nicoise any day.