Yes, You Can Spend the Night at IKEA

Last week I wrote about how home goods retailer Restoration Hardware is planning on opening a hotel similar to the one IKEA already has. Reader Courtney wrote to me and said,

OMG Ikea is my bae and mine’s fav place. Are the hotels inside the Ikea store or somewhere else?

IKEA has a chain of budget hotels developed in collaboration with Marriott called Moxy, but you’d be hard pressed to find any tell-tale signs since the furniture, colors, and layout are all Marriott’s doing. IKEA’s role is simply as a property investor.

IKEA does indeed have their own hotel with all the expected IKEA frills, but there is currently just one. Hotell IKEA is conveniently located close to a train station in Älmhult, Sweden.

The hotel came about five years after the first IKEA was opened in 1958. The home goods store was instantly so popular that people came from far and near to get affordable yet modern furniture. After a long day of shopping, people were worn out and needed a place to rest, recharge and think about their big purchases before heading back home.

Queue the now-famous meatballs and Swedish comfort food, and the IKEA Hotel.

For many years the hotel even had a swimming pool where visitors could take a refreshing dip. While the swimming pool is gone, the hotel still has a sauna, gym, and offers self check-in. Wifi and parking are free, and all guest rooms are decorated with IKEA furniture.

A bit unique is that the hotel is arranged a bit like a home rather than a hotel. You sleep in your guest room at night, but during the day there is no need to stay there. Guests are encouraged to explore.

There’s an herb garden to wander in, a shared living room, lounge for watching movies, a kitchen where you can cook, and you can even freshen up your clothes in the laundry room.

The IKEA Hotel’s website says –

Make Yourself at Home.

If you’d like to try out some different looks for your guest room (picturing how they’d look in your own home), there is a decoration cupboard in the lounge where you can borrow items from to see if they inspire you.

When it comes to the guest rooms themselves, are four different room types with the Kabinrum being the smallest (and least expensive) and the Grand Lit being the largest. Pricing starts at 495 SEK, about 55 USD.

If you’re trying to decide if Ikea bunk beds are the best fit for your family before you shell out a lot of money and arrange delivery, there’s a room with bunk beds too, appropriately dubbed the Family room.

Booking tip: Most guest rooms have private bathrooms but the smallest Cabin Room (Kabinrum) type only has shared bathroom facilities.

The hotel website often has promotions, and it is worth it to take a look at those before doing a booking. For example, you can get a golf package including green fees, breakfast and dinner in a Grand Lit room (the largest) for 750 SEK per person (about 83 USD).

Being an IKEA, the hotel has a Swedish restaurant (and bar!) and most room rates include breakfast. Breakfast runs between 7 and 9am during the week, and 7-10:30am on the weekends.

The restaurant menu changes often, and here’s a link to the current lunch menu.

If you stay the night and decide you definitely want the bunk beds (or any of the gazillion other IKEA items) an IKEA store is just a mile away. There’s also an IKEA Museum across from the hotel.

Here’s a hotel booking link.