Stockholm, Sweden

Review: Villa Dagmar

The Nordics • Stay • Review: Villa Dagmar in Stockholm, Sweden

What’s the hotel in a nutshell?

Modelled after grand continental retreats like Villa d’Este and Capri’s Villa San Michele, Villa Dagmar brings the idea of a city villa to lower Östermalm, Stockholm. Housed in a late 19th-century Art Nouveau building fused with a former caramel factory, it opened in 2021 under the Malmström family of Hotel Diplomat fame. Its 70 rooms blend pale oak, velvet and marble, inspired by European travels and artists like Karin Larsson and Sonia Delaunay. A piazza-like atrium, secret passage to Östermalms Saluhall, spa, gym and a boutique by designer Susan Szatmáry complete the picture. It’s grand yet intimate, and unmistakably continental in spirit.

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What are the rooms like?

The first thing that hits us walking into our Double Superior Room is a delicate, elusive scent – clean, sophisticated, never intrusive and impossible to pin down. It’s the perfect introduction to Villa Dagmar, which trades in subtlety and confidence.

Subtle luxury

Villa Dagmar’s 70 rooms and suites range from petite doubles to lavish suites, all wrapped in a soft palette of pale oak floors and velvet upholstery, anchored by dark wood furniture. The interiors, by Anna Cappelen in collaboration with architect Per Öberg and designer Helena Belfrage, mix custom-made pieces with chinoiserie-style wallpaper and marble bathrooms that manage to feel both grand and genuinely inviting.

Tech and comfort go hand in hand: Lavazza coffee machines, Chromecast TVs, Marshall speakers, heated floors and a pillow menu determined to keep even the lightest sleeper happy. Deluxe Balcony rooms add terraces overlooking the central courtyard, perfect for a coffee or simply spying on the world below.

Details that linger

Our bathroom came with a proper full-size bathtub and generous marble surfaces. The toiletries carried that same signature scent (if you are as compelled by it as we were, you can purchase the matching candle in the hotel’s boutique). But our favourite detail was the view over the courtyard, where morning light poured in like a spotlight on the four-poster bed – the kind of bed that makes you question why you’d ever bother leaving the room.

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What else?

A villa in the middle of the city – that was the vision when Villa Dagmar opened in 2021. A beautiful, creative home for the seasoned traveller looking for a hotel with both heart and soul. After wandering the public spaces, we’d say they have nailed it.

A grand arrival

Reception doesn’t feel like the usual echoing lobby. Instead, it’s small and refined. A circular table overflows with fresh flowers, built-in banquettes hug one of the walls, and on the scorching summer day we arrived, open windows let the breeze wander in. Behind the reception desk hangs an antique tapestry and off to one side sits a quiet lounge, lined with books. It’s the kind of spot where you might catch someone leafing through Proust – or pretending to, while subtly scoping who else is coming in.

The heart of the villa

Step past reception and you’re in Trädgården, the hotel’s glass-roofed atrium and its true living room. Sunlight filters through the iron lattice overhead, turning the space into a sort of urban conservatory. By day, it’s all cappuccinos, laptops and quiet conversations. By night, it shifts into a lively piazza, the air perfumed with cocktails and plates coming out of the kitchen. Trädgården’s menu pulls together Villa Dagmar’s signature dishes, and the crowd is a mix of locals, fashion types and hotel guests.

One of Villa Dagmar’s greatest secrets? A discreet stairway that drops you straight into Östermalms Saluhall, Stockholm’s 1888 food hall. You could be eyeing gravlax, oysters or a toast Skagen, and five minutes later be back in your room.

Mediterranean flair

Restaurant Dagmar is led by chef Niclas Jönsson, who still helms Aloë and several other ventures. Clearly, sleep isn’t on his schedule. The food leans Mediterranean, bursting with clean, bold flavours and served from an open kitchen where you can watch the chefs at work. We were especially taken with the delicate seafood dishes and the peach melba. The wine list, bearing a White Star distinction, is serious, though the sommeliers keep it refreshingly unpretentious.

Breakfast, two ways

Breakfast at Villa Dagmar happens either in Trädgården or Restaurant Dagmar. If you’re the sort who likes a slow, quiet start, the restaurant is your spot. Trädgården buzzes from the first shot of espresso. Another perk of choosing the restaurant? You’re closer to the buffet, which is one of the highest quality we have come across in Stockholm. Breads, pastries and biscuits are made in-house under pastry chef Annie Lundin. And if you leave without trying the miniature cinnamon buns, we’re not sure we can be friends.

An à la carte breakfast menu rounds things out, offering sandwiches, porridge, egg dishes and a line-up of coffees and teas that could fuel you through a day in the city.

A corner for wine lovers

Dagges is Villa Dagmar’s relaxed wine bar, a little hideaway where Neapolitan pizzas are matched with serious bottles from Chablis, Burgundy, Jura and the Douro. Sommeliers stand ready to guide you through pairings, but it’s the vibe that seals the deal.

In summer, Dagges spills onto Nybrogatan, Stockholm’s chicest pedestrian street, lined with boutiques, design stores and elegant façades. On warm days, the terrace is one of the city’s prime people-watching perches. Somehow, anyone who’s anyone seems to find a reason to pass by.

Wellness with a twist

Hidden below the hotel, Dagmar Spirit & Retreat includes two treatment rooms, a sauna, steam room and a gym with floor-to-ceiling windows. The treatments range from classic facials and massages to the hotel’s wildcard: the gong bath. You lie there, eyes closed, while deep vibrations ripple through your body, supposedly massaging your organs and swirling your blood cells into a more harmonious state. It’s equal parts science and cosmic mystery – and oddly calming.

A boutique worth a detour

Tucked inside Villa Dagmar is the boutique of Swedish designer Susan Szatmáry, whose sculptural handbags have been carried by royalty and fashion insiders alike. Szatmáry, awarded Accessories Designer of the Year by Elle Sweden in 2020, offers pieces designed in Stockholm and handmade in Florence. The boutique also has a sustainable rental service, exclusive to hotel guests.

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What’s our final take?

We understand why Villa Dagmar is loved. It’s a rare blend of elegance and ease, where a grand atrium and Art Nouveau bones coexist with modern comforts and genuine warmth. The food, the atrium buzz, the discreet stairway into Östermalms Saluhall – it all adds up to something uniquely Stockholm yet utterly continental. It’s stylish without being showy, personal without feeling precious. For us, Villa Dagmar is the kind of place you come back to because it feels like a city villa where you’re always welcome, and maybe just a bit cooler for having stayed.

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What’s the neighbourhood like?

Östermalm in Stockholm, Sweden, is often perceived as the city’s most upscale yet subdued district. But beneath its refined exterior lies a dynamic scene. The district surprises with an array of chic bars, top-tier restaurants and boutique shops. Key attractions such as the renowned Östermalm Saluhall food hall, the impressive Royal Dramatic Theatre, the Bergius botanic garden and the expansive Humlegården park show that Östermalm successfully merges Stockholm’s historic charm with contemporary appeal.

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