In a nutshell

Oslo’s latest ‘it’ opening sees the landmark pastel pink, Nordic Neo Baroque Watt Building in Tulinlokka enter a new chapter as boutique hotel Savoy 1918. Inspired by its over-a-century-long history of hospitality – it was originally built as an electrical company HQ, but soon shape-shifted into the celebrated Hotel Savoy in 1918 – HEIMR Collection has injected storytelling design that leans into the building’s heritage. The result is an ambience that fuses 1920s Oslo glamour with a contemporary lilt. What’s more? It’s home to an excellent Nils Flatmark-helmed restaurant. The locale – at the crossroads of Kristian Augusts Gate and Universitetsgata – sits just a road back from main thoroughfare Karl Johans Gate, offering a calm city-centre base that’s close to all the action.

Three things I loved

Café WATT; velvet curtains, fluted wooden bar, oak and aged-brass touches capture laidback refinement, while accomplished food by Nils Flatmark sows off Norwegian produce and packs flavours that deserve a hat tip. From a pea and pumpkin byggotto to the lemon and poppyseed cake, I’d order everything I tried again in a heartbeat.The natural, warm energy of the staff; the team, led by GM and boutique hospitality expert Sara Forselius, are a cut above.The residential-feel lobby, dressed with furniture that dates back to when the original Hotel Savoy opened. Reconstructed plaster ceiling medallions rub up against vintage sofas upholstered in French silk brocade and a cosy fireplace.

Rooms

All 92 rooms in this heritage building have slightly different layouts, but share a colourful, soothing palette of pale green, dusky pink and buttery yellow. Butterfly and chrysanthemum-patterned GP & J Baker wallpaper and historic prints of Oslo add confident, quiet joie de vivre and sense of place. Further patina comes from Jugend and Nordic Neo Baroque furniture — a Norwegian mirror from 1910 here, an 18th-century chair with a star motif there — reflects the design of the time when the building was constructed. Each piece has been sourced by HEIMR Collection’s owner Endre Tarald Glastad, and head of product and concept development Hans Christian Thomassen who describes the period furniture as ‘the space’s wrinkles, something you can’t quite put into words.’ Thomassen’s not wrong; there’s something instantly relaxing about a space that looks like it has authentic smile lines. Ranging from classic petite through to duplex and deluxe, rooms have a fifty-fifty split of courtyard and city views, while junior suites all have street views. Duplex bedrooms feel more pared-back and business-like, while other categories hit a more romantic tone. Bathrooms, licked in peach, have neroli-rich Santa Maria Novella toiletries, and deluxes-and-up have marble bathtubs. In autumn, the 80sqm Watt Suite will open with an impressive cove-vaulted ceiling.

Food and drink

At ground floor Café WATT, Eichholtz alabaster lighting, brown leather banquettes and large-scale custom wallpaper murals featuring the city from-the-air as sketched by illustrator Franz Šedivý in the late 1800s, the vibe is that of 1920s corner restaurant in Oslo, infused, just as it would have been then, with continental flair.

Executive Head Chef Nils Flatmark’s ekte, enkelt, og naturlig (genuine, simple, and natural) culinary philosophy holds as much appeal. Flatmark — the only Nordic chef to have won four gold medals in the Nordic Chef of the Year competition, and first ever Nordic Green Chef of the Year — is often found chatting to diners, waxing lyrical about the Norwegian produce he uses, from free-range chicken and eggs from Lindholm farm to black oats from Den Sorte Havre. Dishes pair a brasserie ethos with a distinctly Norwegian personality, think Sirdal trout with warm sour cream sauce, cucumber salad and dill potatoes, spring-green pea byggotto topped baked pumpkin, and frozen Tjukkmjølk – a fermented milk thickened using tettegras – with strawberry granita. Many are revealed with flourish, presented beneath WMF silverware cloches. Come autumn 2026, Savoy Bar, a quiet homage to rugged troubadour and former Hotel Savoy regular, Cornelius Vreeswijk will open.

Highlights and experiences

The last fifteen years have seen a slow-and-steady arrival of polished, luxurious hotel stays open in Oslo, from sultry, contemporary art-filled The Thief and maritime-inspired Amerikalinjen, to Art Deco slick Sommerro and hip newcomer Hobo Oslo. I’ve stayed in all of the city’s best hotels, and Savoy 1918 adds something rather charming into the roster. In a central, but slightly offbeat neighbourhood, it nails an elegant, unstuffy, residential-but-better ambience. The fact that it’s owned by a smaller, family-run hotel group, and references its past life as a hotel, gives stays a boutique, heritage-rich feel, reflected in the fact that it’s the first property in Oslo that’s part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World portfolio.

Flatmark’s restaurant is a destination in its own right, and throughout the property, there are lots of small, thoughtful touches to discover, from a bowl of Freia Lakrids twists at reception to a tucked-away courtyard (a rare treat for a central Oslo hotel) and lobby-lounge and reading room with a growing collection of antiquarian and zeitgeisty Oslo-focussed books. Partnerships with popular Tulinlokka haunts means the team can give guests the nous to get to know the neighbourhood, by securing patio tables at Becco Wine Bar and queue jump for Justisen’s club nights.

What to do nearby

In the lively, Tulinlokka neighbourhood, on the corner of Universitetsgata and Kristian Augusts Gate, Savoy 1918 offers an ever-appealing combination of city-centre location, that’s set back from the main drag. Home to historic university buildings, and close-to-the-theatres of Karl Johans Gate, Tulinlokka’s long drawn enquiring minds and artistic types and today there’s a hint of offbeat bohemia to be found between the steady stream of locals passing through en route to work. The brick-built architecture of the gryphon-topped former National Gallery building is just over the road, the Historical Museum two minutes’ walk, plus, much to this bibliophile’s delight, celebrated indie bookshop Tronsmo Bokhandel and rich-in-rare-books Norlis Antikvariat are close by. Plus Delat, a ribboning light sculpture flows across the pavements in the neighbouring Tullinvartalet development, where you’ll find Michelin-starred French fine dining at Esben Holmboe Bang’s Mon Oncle.

Oslo’s compact and exceptionally well-connected by public transport, meaning nothing’s very hard to get to The National Theatre, Royal Palace, City Hall, and sustainably-minded fjord cruises aboard electric Brim Explorer which depart from Rådhusbrygge are within a fifteen minute stroll. Plus there’s a tram stop right next to Savoy 1918, making visiting Bjørvika for the fjordside Snohetta-designed Oslo Opera House, Munch Museum and floating saunas a breeze.

The backstory

Some buildings are built as hotels, others are destined to become them. In 1916, the Watt Building, designed by R.E Jacobsen in Nordic Neo Baroque style with a handsome mansard roof was originally built as the HQ for electrical company, A/S Watt. By 1918, German-born hotelier Hans Nielsen, who’d worked at illustrious European hotels including The Ritz in Paris opened Hotel Savoy on the building’s third and fourth floors. It’s had a rich history of hospitality since. At a time when English lords were flocking to Norway to fly fish in the fjords, Nielsen’s naming inspiration came courtesy of the original London grande dame. By 1928 Oslo’s Hotel Savoy had proved a hit with artists and intellectuals such as Olaf Bull and Per Krogh, was renowned for its personal, understated service, and expanded to fill the entire building. Many reinventions and changing-of-hands followed, and whilst overseen by progressive hotelier Olga Rasmussen post-WWII, and later, Atle Brynestad (founder of SeaDream Yacht Club), the property’s Savoy Bar became a happening spot for musicians, academics, yuppies and artists to gather. Dutch singer-songwriter and poet Cornelis Vreesjviik was a regular; he recorded his 1979 album Hotel Savoy in then-room 202. By the early 00s, after several more new owners, it had become a more functional business hotel, with the majority of its original character features stripped out. Come 2024, after purchasedby Glastad family, owners of the HEIMR Collection — a small group of Norwegian hotels including Opus XVI in Bergen — an 18-month reimagining followed. Its latest chapter began in June 2026, with its opening as Savoy 1918, a new boutique property with storytelling design which riffs on the building’s over-a-century hospitality heritage.

Insider tip

Pause and admire the design details. Behind reception, spot a hand-carved beechwood door (one of the few items dating from when the building was first built). The acanthus motif adorning it is referenced in bedrooms’ new, custom-made headboards. Outside, the facade’s neon ‘Hotel Savoy’ signage has been recreated based on the 1940s original, as has the striking ‘W’ which sits atop the roof, an oxidised copper replica of an original which stood there until the fifties.

Final considerations

Can’t miss: Nils’ Flatmark’s delightful restaurant
Best for: Couples and business travellers after an elegant city escape
Location: Tulinlokka, a lively, Oslo city centre locale with an offbeat, arty streak
Family friendly: Geared towards grown ups, or families with teens
Wellness: There is a small hot-cold wellness setup and gym
Accessibility: Given it’s a heritage building, the property isn’t best suited to those with accessibility needs
Loyalty group: Small Luxury Hotels of the World