Snowhotel Kirkenes Restaurant - Bjørnevatn

Hamish Webster

There was nothing overly terrible about our experience at the Snow Hotel, but neither was it a particularly pleasant or enjoyable time. Given how much we had spent on our night there, we had hoped that the staff would make some sort of effort to be welcoming and that they would provide reasonable service. Instead we were made to feel like we were in their way and taking up their time by being there.

The snow hotel is set in a great location and we enjoyed the opportunity to sleep in an igloo-like room. We also loved the delicious dinner and breakfast that was provided. Unfortunately, however, our stay was clouded by the very poor service and hospitality we received. The check-in experience was extremely complicated and unsatisfying. We had accidentally arrived an hour early due to the time zone differences and the receptionist made it very clear that we were too early which in turn made us feel uncomfortable (even though we were not expecting our rooms to be ready). We were then directed to put tags on our bags without being explained what these tags were for or what would be done with our bags. After many questions we still could not understand when or where they were being taken (which was important to us as we needed gear out of them for the afternoon's activities). In the end, nothing about this situation needed to be complex yet the receptionist made it painfully difficult to understand how the processes worked.

We were also dismayed with the hotel's service at dinner. While members of our family were still in the middle of eating their entree, those that had finished had their plates cleared making the experience feel very rushed and pressured. After pointing out to the staff that we would like our empty plates to remain on the table while the rest of the table finished their course, they followed up at the next course by serving desert to one family member while another member was still eating their main course! While these are in some respect just a small part of the experience, when you're paying such big money you would expect that basic things like waiting for everyone to finish their meal would be part of the service when instead we were made to feel rushed and pressured to eat to keep up with the server's timeline.

Unfortunately the experience at breakfast was not dissimilar. While they advertise breakfast until 10am, I would highly recommend you leave before 9 otherwise you will be surrounded by staff dragging tables and chairs around the room and grunting. It is hard not to feel like you are in their way and it is impossible to enjoy a pleasant breakfast. Again, simple but pretty basic things that when are not done well can really ruin the experience.

All in all, it's not a very class place. When we checked out and thanked the staff as we left, the receptionist couldn't even be bothered looking up when she returned the goodbye. If you're expecting a quality service commensurate to what you have paid then I would recommend looking elsewhere. There's nothing terrible about the experience, but there's nothing particularly to be delighted about. At the end of the day it's a beautiful location and the food is great, but don't go expecting much more from the place in terms of hospitality than what you would get from a relatively cheap hostel.

Paul Roattsky

Had a fantastic experience eating the world's biggest Red King Crab at Snow Hotel Kirkenes! Took an RIB boat out to pick the crabs out of the trap. Then brought them back where they were cooked up right in front of us. We were served in the hotel restaurant - amazing. Then we toured the snow hotel. People were great.

Vanja Blix Olsen

Kjempe skuffet over maten.
Spiste bugøyfjordmeny:
Hval hvaltatar, vaffel med krem å tyttebær
Det va grusomt vi va 9 stykk å 6 som spiste det å ingen likte det.
Rein kjøtte va stekt for mye
Desseren va helt ok

John James

Snow Hotel is a great place especially seeing for the first time. Also dog sledding, snow mobility and King Crab expedition.

Aubrey Toh

Lovely place to stay in. King crab hunting is very good.

Doug Brown

Ate crab until we burst. The best!!

Geoff McClure

Amazing place great food and service

Evgenii Pozhidaev

Nice and interesting place!