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The Nordic Nomad

The Nordics

The Nordic hot list
Autumn 2026

The Nordics • Insider guides • The Nordic hot list Autumn 2026

Every season, a few Nordic openings and projects land before the wider hype catches up. The Nordic hot list is our seasonal dossier of what’s shaping the cultural and creative landscape across the Nordics, from design-forward launches and smart new addresses to exhibitions and events that are actually worth planning around. Everything here is filtered hard, with the names and details that matter.

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Top photography courtesy of Earth Lagoon Mývatn

Earth Lagoon Mývatn

Mývatn, Iceland

Earth Lagoon Mývatn is the reinvention of the long-running Mývatn Nature Baths, rebuilt around the volcanic geology of North Iceland. Basalt Architects integrated exposed lava formations directly into the expanded bathing landscape, using local stone across walls, floors and roofs. Guests move through three lagoon zones shaped by a tuff island, fissures and lava walls, with a swim-in natural steam cave, hot pools and lagoon bars adding variety. Earth Lagoon Bistro overlooks Lake Mývatn, with Tom Pops and Caity McNally combining Icelandic ingredients with influences from Asia and the Middle East. The geothermal water and wide volcanic views remain central.

Earth Lagoon Mývatn

Jarðbaðshólar
Mývatn
Iceland

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Photography courtesy of Earth Lagoon Mývatn

Earth Lagoon Mývatn is the reinvention of the long-running Mývatn Nature Baths, rebuilt around the volcanic geology of North Iceland. Basalt Architects integrated exposed lava formations directly into the expanded bathing landscape, using local stone across walls, floors and roofs. Guests move through three lagoon zones shaped by a tuff island, fissures and lava walls, with a swim-in natural steam cave, hot pools and lagoon bars adding variety. Earth Lagoon Bistro overlooks Lake Mývatn, with Tom Pops and Caity McNally combining Icelandic ingredients with influences from Asia and the Middle East. The geothermal water and wide volcanic views remain central.

Credo

Oslo, Norway

Credo treats Norwegian food culture as something to preserve, study and eat – fitting for a Michelin-starred restaurant inside Norway’s National Library. Chef and owner Heidi Bjerkan moved her long-running Trondheim restaurant to Oslo, with Michael Jiro Holman leading the kitchen. The tasting menu draws ingredients from producers across Norway, from seafood and dairy to vegetables and heritage grains, while older techniques and food traditions feed into contemporary dishes. Credo regained a Michelin star in 2026, but the wider idea matters just as much: Bjerkan also uses food, courses and events to make culinary heritage part of the library’s cultural programme.

Credo

Henrik Ibsens gate 110
Oslo
Norway

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Photography courtesy of Credo

Credo treats Norwegian food culture as something to preserve, study and eat – fitting for a Michelin-starred restaurant inside Norway’s National Library. Chef and owner Heidi Bjerkan moved her long-running Trondheim restaurant to Oslo, with Michael Jiro Holman leading the kitchen. The tasting menu draws ingredients from producers across Norway, from seafood and dairy to vegetables and heritage grains, while older techniques and food traditions feed into contemporary dishes. Credo regained a Michelin star in 2026, but the wider idea matters just as much: Bjerkan also uses food, courses and events to make culinary heritage part of the library’s cultural programme.

26/6

Saunasaari

Helsinki, Finland

Helsinki’s sauna culture gets its most literal setting on Saunasaari: an entire island devoted to smoke, heat, sea swims and dinner over fire. Connected to Vasikkasaari in the city’s eastern archipelago, it has two traditional smoke saunas, wood-fired hot tubs and direct access to the Baltic. Restaurateurs Nina Stenros and Riku Stenros opened the experience to individual guests in 2026, adding summer kitchen Rök, where local ingredients are cooked over embers, smoke and open flame. Visits begin with a short boat ride from Market Square, turning a Finnish ritual into an island escape with Helsinki still visible across the water.

Saunasaari

Vasikkasaari
Kruunuvuorenselkä
Helsinki
Finland

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Photography courtesy of Saunasaari

Helsinki’s sauna culture gets its most literal setting on Saunasaari: an entire island devoted to smoke, heat, sea swims and dinner over fire. Connected to Vasikkasaari in the city’s eastern archipelago, it has two traditional smoke saunas, wood-fired hot tubs and direct access to the Baltic. Restaurateurs Nina Stenros and Riku Stenros opened the experience to individual guests in 2026, adding summer kitchen Rök, where local ingredients are cooked over embers, smoke and open flame. Visits begin with a short boat ride from Market Square, turning a Finnish ritual into an island escape with Helsinki still visible across the water.

1/9

Cori Hornbæk Hotel

Hornbæk, Denmark

Hornbæk has long been the Copenhagen escape with better sand than attitude. Cori Hornbæk Hotel gives the north-coast beach town a proper hotel anchor, restoring architect Ole Falkentorp’s 1935 functionalist seaside hotel as a five-star year-round resort. The scale is serious: 77 rooms and suites plus five townhouses, interiors by hospitality designer Afroditi Krassa and a front-row position by Hornbæk Beach. Cori Table is led by chef Brian Mark Hansen, formerly of Michelin-starred Søllerød Kro, with Nordic coastal cooking and Mediterranean warmth. Go for sea, spa logic, design polish and a Denmark beach stay that feels less summer-house borrowed.

Cori Hornbæk Hotel

Havnevej 25
Hornbæk
Denmark

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Photography courtesy of Cori Hornbæk Hotel

Hornbæk has long been the Copenhagen escape with better sand than attitude. Cori Hornbæk Hotel gives the north-coast beach town a proper hotel anchor, restoring architect Ole Falkentorp’s 1935 functionalist seaside hotel as a five-star year-round resort. The scale is serious: 77 rooms and suites plus five townhouses, interiors by hospitality designer Afroditi Krassa and a front-row position by Hornbæk Beach. Cori Table is led by chef Brian Mark Hansen, formerly of Michelin-starred Søllerød Kro, with Nordic coastal cooking and Mediterranean warmth. Go for sea, spa logic, design polish and a Denmark beach stay that feels less summer-house borrowed.

3/7

Kistefos Visitor Center

Jevnaker, Norway

One of Norway’s most compelling art destinations now begins with architecture worthy of what comes next. Lund Hagem Arkitekter designed Kistefos’ new southern entrance as a low timber structure woven into exposed bedrock, water and woodland, creating a calmer arrival to the sculpture park and industrial museum outside Jevnaker. Dark-stained columns reference the timber once floated down the Randselva, while an open atrium allows the landscape into the building. Inside are ticketing, a shop and Kistefos Café, alongside permanent works by Cory Arcangel and Skuja Braden. It gives visitors a stronger starting point before continuing towards The Twist and the sculpture park.

Kistefos Visitor Center

Kistefossveien 112
Jevnaker
Norway

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Photography courtesy of Einar Aslaksen and Kistefos Visitor Center

One of Norway’s most compelling art destinations now begins with architecture worthy of what comes next. Lund Hagem Arkitekter designed Kistefos’ new southern entrance as a low timber structure woven into exposed bedrock, water and woodland, creating a calmer arrival to the sculpture park and industrial museum outside Jevnaker. Dark-stained columns reference the timber once floated down the Randselva, while an open atrium allows the landscape into the building. Inside are ticketing, a shop and Kistefos Café, alongside permanent works by Cory Arcangel and Skuja Braden. It gives visitors a stronger starting point before continuing towards The Twist and the sculpture park.

7/8

Daphne

Copenhagen, Denmark

Beautiful, straightforward cooking is the idea at Daphne, chef and restaurateur Frederik Bille Brahe’s 80-seat restaurant in central Copenhagen. Known for Atelier September and Apollo Bar, Bille Brahe works within a classic French bistro frame, but keeps the food loose, seasonal and produce-led. The menu moves from Gillardeau oysters with cucumber, shallot and horseradish and burrata with preserved gooseberries and nasturtium to chargrilled haddock with cold ratatouille and a cast-iron roasted yellow chicken for two with morel rice, Vin Jaune sauce and mustard greens. Warm wood, generous tables and an unfussy rhythm make it equally suited to lunch or a long dinner.

Daphne

Pilestræde 58
Copenhagen K
Denmark

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Photography courtesy of The Nordic Nomad

Beautiful, straightforward cooking is the idea at Daphne, chef and restaurateur Frederik Bille Brahe’s 80-seat restaurant in central Copenhagen. Known for Atelier September and Apollo Bar, Bille Brahe works within a classic French bistro frame, but keeps the food loose, seasonal and produce-led. The menu moves from Gillardeau oysters with cucumber, shallot and horseradish and burrata with preserved gooseberries and nasturtium to chargrilled haddock with cold ratatouille and a cast-iron roasted yellow chicken for two with morel rice, Vin Jaune sauce and mustard greens. Warm wood, generous tables and an unfussy rhythm make it equally suited to lunch or a long dinner.

1/7

KG Hotel

Klaksvík, Faroe Islands

The Faroe Islands finally have a design-led base for exploring their dramatic northern archipelago. KG Hotel sits on the waterfront in Klaksvík, the country’s second-largest town and gateway to islands such as Kalsoy, Kunoy and Viðoy. Its name comes from the registration letters carried by local fishing vessels, tying the 83-room hotel to a town built around the sea. Sand restaurant focuses on seafood, grilled meat and Faroese produce, while Alda Spa adds an outdoor pool, sauna and steam room overlooking the harbour. Large windows frame neighbouring Kunoy and the surrounding mountains, making the landscape part of the hotel from almost every angle.

KG Hotel

Biskupstorg 8
Klaksvík
Faroe Islands

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Photography courtesy of KG Hotel

The Faroe Islands finally have a design-led base for exploring their dramatic northern archipelago. KG Hotel sits on the waterfront in Klaksvík, the country’s second-largest town and gateway to islands such as Kalsoy, Kunoy and Viðoy. Its name comes from the registration letters carried by local fishing vessels, tying the 83-room hotel to a town built around the sea. Sand restaurant focuses on seafood, grilled meat and Faroese produce, while Alda Spa adds an outdoor pool, sauna and steam room overlooking the harbour. Large windows frame neighbouring Kunoy and the surrounding mountains, making the landscape part of the hotel from almost every angle.

1/9

Reykjaböð Hot Springs

Hveragerði, Iceland

Hveragerði’s famous hot river has gotten a more intimate alternative at the bottom of the valley. Reykjaböð combines a 900-square-metre geothermal lagoon with an adults-only indoor spa limited to around 50 guests, keeping the scale deliberately restrained. Saunas, cold plunges at two temperatures, a Kneipp pool, relaxation areas and a swim-up bar broaden the bathing ritual, while a bistro and treatments turn it into a longer stop. Greenhouse-inspired architecture refers to Hveragerði’s century-old use of geothermal heat for horticulture. The location, around 35 minutes from Reykjavík, also puts it directly on the route towards the Golden Circle and south coast.

Reykjaböð Hot Springs

Árhólmar 5
Hveragerði
Iceland

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Photography courtesy of Reykjaböð Hot Springs

Hveragerði’s famous hot river has gotten a more intimate alternative at the bottom of the valley. Reykjaböð combines a 900-square-metre geothermal lagoon with an adults-only indoor spa limited to around 50 guests, keeping the scale deliberately restrained. Saunas, cold plunges at two temperatures, a Kneipp pool, relaxation areas and a swim-up bar broaden the bathing ritual, while a bistro and treatments turn it into a longer stop. Greenhouse-inspired architecture refers to Hveragerði’s century-old use of geothermal heat for horticulture. The location, around 35 minutes from Reykjavík, also puts it directly on the route towards the Golden Circle and south coast.

26/6

Skáld Hotel Akureyri

Akureyri, Iceland

Skáld, Icelandic for poet, sets the theme at this 86-unit hotel on Akureyri’s historic Hafnarstræti in North Iceland. Owner and managing director Magnea Hjálmarsdóttir built the concept around Icelandic writers, storytelling and books, with THG Architects responsible for the architecture and design. Skáld Hotel Akureyri combines a new building with a 1919 structure and contains 71 hotel rooms plus 15 serviced apartments. Restaurant and bar Abba-Labba-Lá carries the literary idea into its name, menus and events, while two rooftop terraces, a gym and ski storage broaden the offer. The central location puts Akureyri’s waterfront, shops and cultural venues within walking distance.

Skáld Hotel Akureyri

Hafnarstræti 80–82
Akureyri
Iceland

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Photography courtesy of Skáld Hotel Akureyri

Skáld, Icelandic for poet, sets the theme at this 86-unit hotel on Akureyri’s historic Hafnarstræti in North Iceland. Owner and managing director Magnea Hjálmarsdóttir built the concept around Icelandic writers, storytelling and books, with THG Architects responsible for the architecture and design. Skáld Hotel Akureyri combines a new building with a 1919 structure and contains 71 hotel rooms plus 15 serviced apartments. Restaurant and bar Abba-Labba-Lá carries the literary idea into its name, menus and events, while two rooftop terraces, a gym and ski storage broaden the offer. The central location puts Akureyri’s waterfront, shops and cultural venues within walking distance.

5/8

Noma

Copenhagen, Denmark

Noma’s new Copenhagen chapter starts in a city with its own confidence. The Refshaleøen restaurant helped define New Nordic cooking, but its alumni, sharper casual rooms and produce-led neighbourhood kitchens have made the scene less dependent on one address. The format is now twelve monthly seasons, built around ingredients, landscapes and research instead of the former three-part calendar. Annika de Las Heras leads as CEO, Mette Brink Søberg heads research and development and Pablo Soto runs the kitchen, with René Redzepi remaining founder and creative director. Book for Noma in transition: influential, scrutinised and still capable of setting a room on edge.

Noma

Refshalevej 96
Copenhagen
Denmark

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Photography courtesy of Noma