Sommerro opens the doors to its urban wellness retreat

Serving as the largest city resort wellness space across the Nordic countries and comprising one of Norway’s last remaining public baths from 1932,  Vestkantbadet in Sommerro has been restored and reimagined as a 15,000-square-foot subterranean urban retreat.

Designed as a haven for health and mindfulness, the space is a testament to the hotel’s all-encompassing approach to wellbeing, featuring a series of treatment rooms, an original restored Roman bath, gym, infrared sauna, cold plunge pool offering a traditional Nordic thermotherapy experience, the city’s first year-round rooftop pool, sauna and terrace, and the building’s original swimming pool with a magnificent mosaic wall.

Image credit: Sommerro Hotel / Francisco Nogueira

Giving back to the local community by bringing back to life one of the country’s original public baths and most beloved social spaces, Somerro has opened its spa to both hotel guests, locals and members. With its rich Art Deco details and original mosaic wall created by the famed 1930s Norwegian artist Per Krohg, the building’s original swimming pool, public bath, saunas, and changing rooms have been restored to their former glory. Celebrating Oslo’s famous and historic bathing culture, the treasured Roman bath has been transformed into a cold plunge pool and the public bathing facilities have been given a new lease on life as 18 different treatment rooms, while retaining original elements such as the bright hand painted blue tiles. Upon arrival to the hotel’s main façade, guests can access the space through its former entrance which boasts a historic, restored sign from the early 1900s. Guests are then welcomed to an expansive wellness lobby that is now home to a luxury shop with everything from local and international brands to essentials like swimming trunks and equipment for cold water bathing from sustainable Norwegian swimwear company AIX Studio. Vestkantbadet extends from the lower floor at Sommerro all the way up to the roof terrace, with its flagship rooftop heated pool, spacious sunbeds and a sauna providing a grand view over Oslo to be enjoyed year-round.

Vestkantbadet offers guests a relaxing space to indulge in a wide array of tailored traditional treatments, along with specialised therapies that are on the cutting-edge of wellness. The ever-evolving treatment menu offers pampering massages, restorative reflexology, and rejuvenating sports massages. Luxurious facial treatments include everything from relaxing massages to chemical peels, algae wraps, masks, microneedling, LED light treatments and more, using the highest quality products applied with most advanced tools in skin care. For the ultimate local experience, a traditional Nordic thermotherapy circuit includes an infrared sauna and cold plunge pool. This relaxation ritual is based on a 2000-year-old tradition founded in Nordic countries that involves alternating between hot and cold temperatures to accelerate recovery and healing, improving physical and mental health.

Innovative wellness takes centre stage, as Sommerro is the first hotel in the Nordics to offer specialist medical aesthetic treatments, including a laser treatment skin program with Fotona Lasers and Candela Medical, both world-leading medical laser companies. Wim Hof-style cold water breathing technique sessions are also available, which will leave guests ready to enjoy the year-round Norwegian tradition of outdoor swimming and ice bathing. Other holistic experiences include nutritionist workshops and two-day electric sauna boat retreats on the fjord by sauna masters KOK. Guests looking to improve their sleep health can take part in one-on-one sleeping sessions and masterclasses with a local expert, complemented by a sleep soundtrack and Why We Sleep book in each guestroom, a pillow menu for optimum comfort, and light blocking glasses available for rent.

Image credit: Sommerro Hotel / Francisco Nogueira

Exclusively for hotel guests and members, Sommerro’s gym goes above and beyond with state-of-the-art equipment, exceptional personal training sessions and group classes. The ultimate in post-workout indulgence, changing rooms feature freshly laundered towels, high-end bath products and fully-stocked beauty stations surrounded by rich, sleek timbers and soft lighting. Whether looking to reach new fitness heights or keeping up with a workout routine while traveling, memberships and packages are available to make the most of Sommerro’s wellness offerings.

Complementing Sommerro’s wellness offerings are a suite of bespoke products and services offered through custom partnerships with some of the most trusted names in the industry. One of Norway’s top stylists and hairdressers, Jan Thomas created custom hair products infused with the hotel’s signature fragrance that are featured throughout the wellness space. For the ultimate in cosiness, local bedding company Abate designed exclusive SOMMERRO X ABATE bath robes, while the exclusive Swedish perfume house Byredo’s unisex scents wrap guests in warmth, preparing them for a restful evening. Skincare partners include Elemis, SkinBetterScience, Babor, Skinceuticals, Meline and Noon Aesthetics, along with Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare. A staple of Vestkantbadet’s aesthetic treatments, Sommerro is the award-winning dermatologist’s brand’s first-ever hotel partnership.

Main image credit: Sommerro Hotel / Francisco Nogueira