Travel Secrets Nov-Dec 2015 | Page 14

The Utter Inn, Sweden What looks from outside like a shed, not spacious enough to even house a bed is actually just the entrance to an underwater hotel room submerged ten feet beneath the surface of Sweden’s Lake Mälaren. Built by Mikael Genberg, a local artist and sculptor, The Utter Inn (Otter Inn in English) has an above-surface kitchen inside a little hut made to look like a traditional Swedish cottage ­— a small red house with white gabled roof. Swim, watch the fish, sunbathe on the deck, and in case the little hut gets too claustrophobic, get into the inflatable dingy and take a trip around the lake. At bedtime, climb down the hatch to the sleeping quarters with an all-round view of life under the surface. It is a remarkable feeling to go to bed with the lapping sound of water to soothe you while the fish are watching you carefully: You are in a “reverse aquarium” for the night. Get me there: You arrive at the port of Vasteras located in southern Sweden, just east of the capital Stockholm and sail one kilometre into Lake Malaren in an inflatable boat. After receiving all the instructions you need, you are left alone. Source: www.visitvasteras.se 14  Travel Secrets November-December 2015