101 Hotel, Reykjavik

(Hotel photos courtesy Design Hotels™ )

101 Hotel, Reykjavik
www.101hotel.is

My flight from the U.S. landed in Iceland at 6:00 am local time. I gathered my belongings, walked quickly to the passport windows, fully staffed and with no lines, and within fifteen minutes I had picked up my rental car outside the terminal and was on the highway to Reykjavík, 30 miles away.

For most of the 45-minute drive the sky was black, with sleet blowing sideways across the road, but by the time I reached the outskirts of the city there was a ribbon of fuchsia on the horizon and a delicate glow of light appeared above the city, illuminating the snow covered landscape and the cozy kitchen lights of early rising Icelanders having breakfast before leaving for work.

Arriving at the 101 Hotel in the center of Reykjavík is the perfect ending to the overnight flight, and a perfect beginning to a work week at Iceland’s annual DesignMarch Festival. The 101, named after Reykjavík’s downtown postal code, was Iceland’s first design-driven, upscale boutique hotel when it opened in 2003, quickly becoming popular with visiting film and music celebrities, and the growing number of affluent millennials who have recently discovered Iceland’s stunning scenery and vibrant culinary scene. The 101 Hotel is a member of the prestigious Design Hotels group.

I check in at the reception area near the front door, which, like the entire 38-room property, is a beautiful example of Nordic minimalism. The lovely art objects on the white walls, colorful flowers on the front desk, and the warmth of a wood burning fireplace in the lounge give the first floor area the feel of a private, upscale Icelandic home.

My third floor room is surprisingly, and fortunately, available for early check-in and the heated oak floor in the room and the King bed with a fluffy white quilt cover are, at 6:45 am, the most important amenities I could imagine. In the dawn light, outside the large windows, is Arnarhóll Hill, a city park where a statue of Ingólfur Arnarson, known as Reykjavik’s first settler in the year 874, overlooks the modern Harpa concert hall, and the sea and the mountains beyond.

A few hours later, after washing up in the large, free-standing, glass-enclosed shower, I notice the other beautifully designed amenities in the room including the Electrolux mini-bar, Plexiglass night tables, sleek black work desk and swivel light, SONY DVD, Bose speakers and i-Pod docking station. The square, white ceramic sink and claw-foot bathtub are placed in front of the window in the open-plan bathroom area. The décor of the rooms, and all the interior public areas, is a blend of black, white and grays with, of course, the heated oak floors throughout the property.

The books on the shelf in my room have lots of new art and design titles, as well as Halldor Laxness’ Independent People, a classic novel of Icelandic life which won the 1955 Pulitzer Prize in literature. Sitting in Iceland’s compact and beautiful capital city, with snow-covered Mount Esja on the other side of the bay, seems like perfect place to start chapter one.

The 101 Hotel has a long, glass-roofed bar/restaurant called Kitchen & Wine on the ground floor, serving chef-prepared breakfast items and lunch and dinner menus with locally caught fish, a delicious langoustine soup, Icelandic lamb, salads, burgers and light snacks. On the lower level is a small workout room and mini-spa with steam bath, Jacuzzi and plunge pool. Of course there are also hundreds of outdoor public pools, in Reykjavík and throughout the island, where locals and visitors swim year-round in the warm, naturally flowing geothermal waters that heat the homes, schools, businesses (and fill the swimming pools) of the country.

Although the exterior of the 101 is a typical, somewhat bland, five-story Icelandic façade, a former office building, the interior of the property is so wonderfully designed, with splashes of color against white walls and black furnishings, with subtle indoor lighting and a quiet elegance, it becomes difficult to get up the momentum to go outside. But, of course, the outside is where Iceland really opens up and sparkles, the 101 Hotel is for when you are ready to go home at night.

Ron Bernthal