In Iceland I stayed at the Apotek Hotel, a new boutique hotel in the centre of Reykjavik. It’s in the perfect location right off the main street- all you have to do is stroll out the front door and you’re right near all the shops and bars. The hotel itself is small but luxurious and cosy- my favourite type of hotel.
Our Room
The hotel has 43 rooms and 6 floors- our room had a clean, contemporary Icelandic design in greys, whites, browns and blacks, with an incredibly comfy double bed.
It also featured a flat screen TV, a desk, mini bar, tea & coffee making facilities and a wardrobe containing an ironing board and iron, coat hangers, a hairdryer and slippers. From the window I could see a beautiful view of the snow covered square and the city of Reykjavik.
The Bathroom
The bathroom featured white tiling and an open, wet-room style shower with heated towel rail and nice, fluffy dressing gowns. The vanity mirror in the bathroom was brilliant- well lit for putting on makeup before our night out on the town! Toiletries included shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, soaps and shower cap from a company called Duke & Lyle.
The Breakfast
The breakfast is served in the hotel’s gorgeous restaurant, which also serves lunch and dinner. The decor is fabulous and it’s quite nice to eat breakfast in such an opulent setting! There was an array of cold options laid out on the table, including smoked salmon, salami, ham, cheese, fruit, bread, cucumber, tomato, cereal and croissants. Drinks-wise there was orange juice, cranberry juice, flavoured water, coffee and an array of teas, which is handy because I can’t drink caffeine any more.
It would have been nice to have a few more hot options, as there were only sausages and scrambled eggs sitting out, however I don’t believe that’s really part of the traditional Icelandic breakfast.
I was very curious about the bottle of oil on the table- at first I wondered if it was supposed to be olive oil for the salad but on closer inspection it was placed next to a row of shot glasses. My friend Anna asked the waitress what it was and she told us that ‘Porskalysi’ is an Icelandic fish oil you drink at breakfast- it’s full of Omega 3s and things that are good for you. You can drink it straight up on its own, then wash it down with some orange juice to get rid of the taste. So I tried it. It didn’t taste too bad but it didn’t sit well in the stomach afterwards so I didn’t go back for another the next day.
We stayed a total of 4 nights in the Apotek Hotel and had a lovely stay- it was the perfect place to come back to after those chilly days braving the wintry Icelandic weather!
Apotek Hotel
Apotek Hotel is run by Kea Hotels, leading Icelandic hotel company, who also own two other hotels in Reykjavik (Lights and Borg) as well as three in the North of the country. Apotek was opened in late 2014 and can be booked on Booking.com.
Room rates start from £150 for a double room per night.
For more information visit www.keahotels.is/apotek-hotel.
