Experience Norway’s oldest family-run hotel.
By the Sognefjord, in the small village of Solvorn, Walaker Hotel has been receiving guests since 1640. Not as a concept, but as a way of life carried forward through generations. Today, it remains Norway’s oldest family-run hotel, still owned and operated by the Walaker family, who have shaped and cared for the place for centuries.
A stay here feels less like checking in and more like being welcomed into someone’s home, personal and familiar. This has earned Walaker two Michelin Keys, a recognition of places defined by character, quality and a clear sense of place.
The four buildings that make up Walaker span nearly four centuries, from Tingstova, dating back to the 1620s, to Villa Walaker, completed in 2024. Each carries its own expression of its time, without competing with the others.
The oldest rooms hold height, weight and quiet character. The newer rooms are lighter and more open, with views towards the garden and fjord. Villa Walaker sits slightly apart, with four contemporary rooms arranged around a small pond, where water and trees soften the architecture.
Among the buildings is Gallery Walaker 300, a barn from 1883 built partly from the timber of a local church, founded to mark three centuries of the family at Walaker. Nearby, the old root cellar has been converted into a Champagne cellar, quietly stocked with a wide selection of vintage and non-vintage bottles from producers both celebrated and obscure. It sits just behind the iron gate at the garden entrance, easy to miss and worth finding.
That same care carries into the kitchen. Each evening, a four-course dinner is served in the main house restaurant, built around seasonal ingredients from Sogn. Fruit and berries from the garden, produce from nearby farms, and ingredients from the fjord shape the menu. The cooking is precise and restrained, allowing the ingredients to lead. Breakfast follows the same approach, with homemade jams, local cheeses and an unhurried start to the day.
Between meals and moments outdoors, much of life at Walaker gathers in the quiet rooms of the main house. Deep chairs, old wooden floors and shelves lined with books create spaces that invite you to slow down and stay awhile. Light filters softly through lace curtains, while antiques, paintings and personal objects reflect the many lives the house has held over time.
For those who choose to explore, the surroundings are close at hand. Urnes Stave Church lies across the water, visible on clear days. Paths lead into the hills, and the fjord offers movement by boat or kayak. Jostedalsbreen glacier is within reach for those who want scale and contrast. Still, there is no expectation to go anywhere. Walaker has been receiving guests long enough to understand that staying put is is sometimes enough.
Photo: Morten Munthe
When the day winds down and the light leaves the fjord, Walaker becomes something quieter and more private. The history of the place does not announce itself, but it is present in everything: in the rooms, the garden, the way dinner unfolds at an easy pace. Nearly four centuries of the same family caring for the same place leaves a particular kind of mark, one that is felt more than seen. Most guests arrive expecting a hotel. What they find is something harder to leave.
