Right now countless Scandinavians are swimming and canoeing in water that’s clean enough to drink. They’ll be going for utepils — what’s not to love about a region that has a word specifically for drinking beer outdoors? — and swerving the faff of cooking by booking a waterside hotel or guesthouse like those below. Skim through this list — we’ve opted for the wider Nordics, including Finland alongside Norway, Sweden and Denmark — and you’ll grasp three things. First, these are strictly freshwater stays. Second, there are a lot in Finland and Sweden, few in Denmark. Third, the goal is less about chic style than simple holidays in pristine nature.

Finns rule at this lifestyle. They call their homeland the land of a thousand lakes but that undersells the thing; a map of the Finnish lakeland northeast of Helsinki looks like blue and green marbled paper. The Swedes come a close second with their own lake district. The vogue for cool-climate holidays explains why more of us are starting to go too. And if you do, you may discover what Scandinavians knew all the time: that a Scandi summer can help you unplug from your busy life and reconnect with family. Perhaps with yourself. Smart cookies, the Scandinavians.

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Finland

1. Lake Resort Paljakka, Lake Rakennusjarvi

Don’t worry about the “resort” bit — Finns don’t do cabaret bands or catering for thousands. It means simply on-site facilities to make the most of Lake Rakennusjarvi in central Finland: paddleboards and canoes, fishing rods, mini golf (Finns have a kitsch side) and ebikes. The three saunas (soft steam, barrel and standard issue) of a newish Sauna Garden are as essential to a Finnish holiday as accommodation, which is in glass-fronted forest cabins. Each has a sauna and outdoor hot tub, obviously. All yours, just an hour’s drive from Kajaani airport.
Details Three nights’ half-board from £1,185pp, including flights and transfers (regent-holidays.co.uk)

2. Kuru Suites, Lake Saimaa

Why are Finns the world’s happiest nation? Places like this can’t hurt. The adults-only offshoot of the family-favourite Jarvisydan Resort on Lake Saimaa, three hours’ drive north of Helsinki, Kuru is purpose-designed for self-indulgent slow life in nature. Breakfast is delivered to your luxury forest spa cabin. There’s yoga, meditation and gong baths in daily wellness classes, plus the usual saunas and lake activities. There’s also Solitary restaurant, voted in the top ten in Finland. This price includes a six-course meal and a night in Helsinki.
Details Four nights’ B&B from £1,695pp, including flights, transfers and two boat excursions (regent-holidays.co.uk)

3. Billnas Gard, Billnas

You want country relaxation. You also fancy city sophistication. Here’s the solution. An hour west from Helsinki, it’s a newish grown-up wellness retreat in a belle époque villa. The style of the six rooms is relaxed glamour. There’s a sauna and morning yoga (a wellness specialist is available for bespoke sessions) as well as a small saltwater pool in the garden and paddleboards should you wish to scull lazily down the Svarta River. Usually the food has a French accent but for summer the hotel has launched a partnership with Sami Tallberg, Finland’s premier foraging chef. Don’t bank on making it into the capital.
Details Half-board doubles from £470 (billnasgard.fi). Fly to Helsinki

4. Radalla Resort, Lake Urajarvi

Think of Finnish summer fun and you may picture somewhere like this on Lake Urajarvi, one of the more tranquil spots in the Finnish lake district two hours northeast of Helsinki. It’s a handsome manor house with 25 rooms plus a brace of modern minimalist cabins with decks overlooking the water. There’s swimming and paddleboarding, kayaking and fishing, plus beach volleyball and 18 holes of golf. This being Finland there are also several saunas, including in small lakeside huts with barbecues. Take extra care when sizzling those sausages.
Details Three nights’ B&B from £335pp, including car hire (discover-the-world.com). Fly to Helsinki

5. Haita Lake Lodge, Lake Pitkajarvi

All set for eco-ethics within easy reach of Helsinki, the new quirky capital of Nordic cool? Then to Haltia Lake Lodge we go. It’s a former nature hostel in Nuuksio National Park that’s been boutiquified. Birds chirrup. Lake Pitkajarvi is outside. You’d never guess the city was 35 minutes away. Environmentalism aside — single-use plastics are banned and you’ll cook your breakfast eggs to reduce food waste — the place is about wellbeing. Alongside free morning saunas there’s forest yoga and hikes at dawn. Just the ticket before a walk or canoe. This package includes two nights’ B&B in Helsinki.
Details Five nights’ B&B from £2,100pp, including transfers, some extra meals and some activities (wherethewildis.com). Fly to Helsinki

6. Hotel Punkaharju, Lake Saimaa

Before I arrived here a few years ago I looked up Punkaharju Resort on Lake Saimaa in eastern Finland online. So instead of an elegant pastel-pink villa owned by the former supermodel Saimi Hoyer, I saw images of a funtastic family resort. Fortunately my travel agent hadn’t made the same mistake. The hotel compensates for its lack of mod cons like air conditioning with real soul and charm. Expect parquet floors and floral wallpapers, plus good dining in Ravintola Metsa restaurant and the obligatory lake sauna. It’s in a pristine nature park that Finns consider almost sacred for its alchemy of water, birch and spruce. Magic.
Details B&B doubles from £171 (booking.com). Fly to Helsinki

7. Lehmonkarki Resort, Lake Paijanne

They don’t do saunas by halves in this place an hour north of Helsinki. A “Sauna World” provides five options in the new AISTI Sauna & Spa centre. Ask and they’ll wax lyrical about the gentle heat of the 100-year-old smoke sauna or the therapeutic power of wood-fired heat with views of Lake Paijanne from a glass-walled sauna. Finns know a thing or two about the subject, so I’m sure they’re right. You may prefer a sauna hut. Although villas like log cabins created by design-obsessed lumberjacks are cheaper, we prefer the fairly new Haasi villas with one-way mirrored glass, because they’re bang on the water.
Details B&B doubles from £418 (lehmonkarkiresort.fi). Fly to Helsinki

8. Sahanlahti Resort, Lake Saimaa

The dilemma: book a cute rust-red cabin beside a lake or go for the teen-friendly facilities of a resort? Here’s the solution. Though Sahanlahti is a resort, with accommodation which ranges from rooms in Saha hotel to cabins to luxury glass-walled villas which seem to hover on the water, it’s on Lake Saimaa, Finland’s largest lake in the country’s east, where the idea of crowds is laughable. The benefits of a resort become obvious in the trio of restaurants (all featuring local produce) and rental options: rowboats, canoes and paddleboards, padel for a knockabout, balls for volleyball. In short, family heaven.
Details Three nights’ B&B from £391pp, including car hire (discover-the-world.com). Fly to Helsinki

9. Ranau Resort, Lake Ranuanjaarvi

Show me the child who can resist a wildlife park in the endless days of a Nordic summer and I’ll show you the child who probably needs less screen time. Busy in winter, Lapland’s most popular family destination is quieter for summer’s low season. That means more time with 50 Nordic wildlife species: owls and voles, musk ox, reindeer, wolves and polar bears. With feeding four times a day in summer there’s usually something going on. The fun continues in your accommodation four miles away — a compact glass igloo on the shore of Lake Ranuanjaarvi. Each has an unobstructed view across the water.
Details One night’s B&B for four from £255 (ranuaresort.com). Fly to Rovaniemi

Sweden

10. Arctic Bath, Rane Valley

When I visited for the launch of this extraordinary luxury spa hotel on the Lule River, northern Sweden, in February 2020 — when floating cabins were seized in ice and the pool at the centre of its doughnut-shaped spa building casually fried your nerve endings — I recall thinking, “I bet this is nice in summer.” I imagined how reflected light would shimmer on cabin walls and how you would start days on the deck outside. How, for all the cool design and impeccable Sami-inspired food, its ethos of slowing down in nature would be best realised in July and August. I returned later. I was right.
Details B&B doubles from £537 (arcticbath.se). Fly to Lulea

11. Season Hotel, Lake Malaren

The three local families behind this new 37-room place, opened in May at a marina near Ekero, an hour west of Stockholm, say their inspiration was nature and design. The staples of Swedish #bestlife, basically. However fine the finish — imagine Scandi minimalism softened by New England charm — or strong the appeal of a spa plus two heated pools, you’ll book for the position on Lake Malaren. It shimmers over breakfast and turns to gold over sundowners on a rooftop bar. Pleasingly, the simplest route to Stockholm begins with a ferry to catch a train from Fittja.
Details B&B doubles from £146 (seasonhotel.se). Fly to Stockholm

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12. Swedish Country Living, Lake Vanern

Off-grid forest cabins beside a reedy lake north of Gothenburg. Traditional decor curated with a fashionista’s flair. A fire-heated bathtub on the deck and a canoe to paddle. I expect we would all be in the market for some Swedish country living if this is what it looks like. It’s the stay of Marie and David Naraine, who sold their fashion business to create a dreamlike vision of rustic life, complete with home-grown cuisine. Swedes will tell you the surrounding Dalsland region is the best bit of the country. They’re probably right. But I’d be surprised if you can drag yourself away to explore it.
Details Three nights’ full-board from £857pp, including car hire (discover-the-world.com). Fly to Gothenburg

13. Hestraviken, Smaland

When I asked a Swedish pal about the Smaland region north of Gothenburg he told me about old-growth forests and summer cottages beside lakes and cycle rides in blowsy meadows. He also mentioned stellar lingonberries and that Ikea came from here. It’s as Swedish as it gets, he said. A fine spot, then, to drop off the radar at this riverside spa hotel. You’re here for tranquillity in a bright 40-room place whose marriage of tradition and style feels as comfy as your favourite cardigan. You’re also here for the price — this is good value for a Swedish short break.
Details Three nights’ half-board from £876pp, including flights and car hire (sunvil.co.uk)

14. Arthotel Tornedalen, Torne River

I don’t know where you expect to find an art hotel but a village of 80 people in eastern Swedish Lapland is a first for me. Mind you, the owner and art gallery director Gunhild Stensmyr is a surprise in Vitsaniemi village too. She’s a twinkly host who has returned to her homeland to create a stay in four renovated houses above the mighty Torne River: contemporary art on walls, classic mid-century Scandi furniture, yet a homely air that’s entirely free from pretensions. A neat trick. Optional meals are home-grown — strictly local ingredients, a talented pal cheffing.
Details B&B doubles from £269 (arthoteltornedalen.se). Fly to Rovaniemi

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15. Hotel Aregarden, Are

When I was here in central Sweden in December the bar was boisterous with skiers fresh from the best pistes in Sweden. The village is much quieter in summer, the barman told me ruefully. Right now, toddlers will be splashing from a sand beach and boat sails will be drifting across Aresjon lake like butterflies. Gondolas will be transporting hikers to the cool air of domed summits, and the adventure operator Are Nature Adventures will be offering moose safaris and guided activities. Your base for all is Are’s oldest hotel — cosy but with plenty of charm. Probably with more relaxed bar staff too.
Details B&B doubles from £150 (aregarden.com). Fly to Trondheim

16. Glashus 72-Hour Cabin, Lake Vanern

Holidays are all about relaxing so it’s sensible to pick purpose-designed accommodation. Four glass cabins at the activity base Dalslands Aktiviteter on Lake Vanern began as an experiment into natural de-stressing. Something to do with resetting circadian rhythms through natural light. Anyway, they were such a success that they’re available to book as 72-hour stays: a double bed on a pine-clad bay, solitude, a rowboat on the European Union’s largest lake. What more do you need? A swimming costume, actually. Vanern’s freshwater sea has beaches around its 3,000-mile coast plus water so clean Swedes say it’s potable.
Details Three nights’ full-board from £481pp (dalslandsaktiviteter.se). Fly to Gothenburg

17. The Steam Hotel, Lake Malaren

Let’s go on holiday in an old steam power station, said no one ever. The Swedes know better, of course. With some clever design this 18-storey art deco landmark on Lake Malaren in Vasteras, west of Stockholm, has scrubbed up very nicely indeed. Glamorous public spaces make full use of triple-height ceilings. The 263 rooms feature brushed brass and rich fabrics. Industrial romance sums it up. Throw in a terrific rooftop bar (one of three) and easy access to Stockholm and you can understand why it’s a weekender for a dressed-up young crowd. Did we mention the indoor waterpark? There’s that too.
Details B&B doubles from £154 (steamhotel.se). Fly to Stockholm

18. Kolarbyn Eco Lodge, Lake Skarsjon

The marketing people proudly call this “Sweden’s most primitive hotel”. See it as the Ritz for bushcamp folk, a stay of sleeping bags and sheepskins in turf-roofed forest huts near Vasteras, 100 miles west of Stockholm. Wi-fi? Are you kidding? There’s no electricity. Showers mean a dip in Lake Skarsjon. The idea is to rediscover the simple life for a while. You’ll swim from a floating sauna (wood-heated, obviously), perhaps join nature walks to see beaver and moose, then barbecue dinner (ideally not beaver or moose — awkward otherwise) before bed in a hut made toasty by a wood-burner.
Details Two nights’ full-board for two from £575 (kolarbyn.se). Fly to Stockholm

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19. Arctic Retreat, Rane Valley

If you’re after stillness and spas in Sweden’s northern Rane Valley you book Arctic Bath. If you’re after soft activity in a landscape of understated splendour opt for Arctic Summer Retreat. The ecolodge and restaurant has upped its offer this summer by including the use of fat bikes, canoes and fishing equipment in the price of a stay — handy given how the cost of a holiday can mount alarmingly in Scandinavia. Accommodation is in cute log cabins with fireplaces and private hot tubs. Top pick is the recently refurbished Timber Cutters Cabin for panoramic river views.
Details Three nights’ full-board from £2,515pp, including flights, transfers and one guided activity (regent-holidays.co.uk)

20. Lapland Guesthouse, Lainio Valley

There are a lot of sophisticated stays in Scandinavia. This east Sweden homestay 120 miles within the Arctic Circle is not one of them, although I expect it’ll be just as memorable. The owners, Johan and Eva Stenevad, built their riverside cabins near Kango as a labour of love. They’re modest but comfortable: homely rooms, a talented pal who cooks delicious dinners, silence. Who needs more? With Johan, the Lainio Valley becomes a giant adventure playground, but I expect you’ll be just as happy to immerse into the stillness of a Lapland summer, slipping between a sauna to the river below.
Details Three nights’ full-board from £1,388pp, including flights and transfers (sunvil.co.uk)

Norway

21. Arctic Wilderness Lodge, Alta River

Why is a billionaire like Jeff Bezos prepared to travel to Norway’s northern tip to stay at this, the latest retreat of Sorrisniva Arctic resort beside the Alta River? Because few stays combine wilderness and luxury like this. While its woody accommodation and glass-walled building cocoon in winter, I reckon it’s best in summer. You dine in a fine-dining restaurant to conversation-killing views of mountains, then drift into sunlit wilderness at midnight. Included in this package are a gourmet boat trip up the river canyon, Europe’s largest, plus king crab fishing.
Details Four nights’ full-board from £2,595pp, including flights, transfers and activities (best-served.co.uk)

22. Juvet Landscape Hotel, Valldola River

Though Norwegians prefer fjords to lakes for their holidays, they make an exception for Juvet, near the central west coast. It’s not just because it’s a retreat of award-winning architecture: glass-walled boxes, cool cabins or the ultra-modern Writer’s Cabin, which you may recognise as the awesome mansion of the tech billionaire in the 2015 film Ex Machina. It’s that Juvet is subtitled a “landscape hotel”, positioned in a remote mossy forest above the Valldola River. There’s a spa of dreams with stellar views of the river and mountains. Activities include kayaking and climbing. But the thing it recommends? To “leave the world behind”. Bliss.
Details Half-board doubles from £376 (juvet.com). Fly to Alesund

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23. Dalen Hotel, Lake Bandak

The Soria Moria sauna, launched in summer 2022, tipped me off to this place 120 miles southwest of Oslo. Only Norwegians would bother to design a public sauna like a castle seemingly afloat on the fjordlike Lake Bandak. Panning back I saw a fantastical buttercup-yellow hotel with towers and carved dragons. A self-styled “fairytale hotel”, the Dalen leans into its heritage of 1894 — think leather club chairs and paintings of whiskered generals rather than Scandi cool. Outside is the wildly picturesque Telemark region, best discovered on a day cruise on the Telemark canal aboard the historic Henrik Ibsen steamer.
Details B&B doubles from £144 (dalenhotel.no). Fly to Oslo

24. Fjaerland Fjordstove Hotel, Fjaerland

I’m slightly cheating here. This is on a fjord but it’s deep inland — a narrow fjord off another fjord that puts you 90 miles from the west coast. Imagine a slender lake cupped in mountains and you’re close. The reason to cheat is because this 14-bedroom 1930s house is a beauty. You’ll adore the good Nordic restaurant and the insouciant meld of tradition and casual elegance that Norwegians pull off so well. The children will love glacier walks, kayaking and trips to spot otters and dolphins. It might be an idea to warn them about the lack of TVs, mind.
Details Four nights’ B&B from £1,660pp, including flights, car hire and some activities (stubbornmuletravel.com)

Denmark

25. Ny Hattenaes, Lake Brasso

Denmark is good at forests; on my last trip in May I lost an hour in one just listening to the birdsong. It’s also good at understated luxury. Put the two together and you get something like Ny Hattenaes, 30 miles west of Aarhus. It’s a 14-room lakeside hotel of 1896 vintage which reopened in spring 2023 after renovation. The style is impeccable: all muted greys and pale linens. Meals on a terrace beside Lake Brasso are a joy. Ask Danes about the area and they’ll describe an aquatic wonderland for paddleboarding and canoeing, boat trips or swims from the hotel’s own jetty. We Brits are yet to catch on.
Details B&B doubles from £177 (nyhattenaes.com). Fly to Aarhus

Do you have a favourite place in Scandinavia? Let us know in the comments