More about Hotel Rival
Best Hotel Ever Stayed In!
by TripAdvisor Member Clive166
Put simply, the Hotel Rival is the finest hotel I have ever had the fortune to stay in. As a birthday present for my fiancee I booked flights to Stockholm and came onto Tripadvisor to locate a hotel. The Rival was shown as number one in the city so I booked a deluxe room. For a poor police officer like me it was reasonably expensive but on arrival it was obvious that the extra expense was more than worth it.
Located in the beautiful and thriving Sodermalm, the hotel is well served by the cities T-bana (underground) and the rest of the city is well within walking distance. The hotel itself can be found looking onto a small park with a lovely water fountain. Our room was mind blowingly good with a great balcony looking over the park and local rooftops, tremendously comfortable bed and magnificent bathroom. Words really cannot do justice to the place. Breakfast was plentiful and varied and the staff friendly, approachable and relaxed. On the Friday evening there was a live band playing in the bar area who were really good and added to the whole experience of staying in the hotel.
Stockholm is beautiful and the Hotel Rival more than reflects the stylish, cool and friendly city in resides in.
Great, but too hot!
by A TripAdvisor Member
Stayed in the Hotel Rival for a weekend recently. Agree with the other reviews that it is a modern, well situated hotel. However, the weekend we were there, the daily temperature was in excess of 30 degrees both days, and the hotel has no airconditioning! With the sun coming up at around 3am and hitting peak temperature shortly therafter, this made for a particularly unpleasant couple of nights sleep. Even worse, the underfloor heating (which is no doubt fab in winter) is on all year round - as a result, the bathroom became a mini sauna!
Would consider going back, but definitely not in summer.
Great City, Great Hotel
by TripAdvisor Member NYChelsea
This is a great hotel choice in Stockholm, which after our four day visit in July I would say is one of my favorite cities in Europe. It's a beautiful town spread among different islands, historic architecture, sophisticated population, not overrun by tourists, wonderful restaurants, trendy shops and cafes....don't cut your time short here if you enjoy an urban environment on your vacation. We wished we had planned to spend more time here. (However, do note that we visited in July with warm temperatures and lots of daylight.)
A big part of the reason we enjoyed Stockholm so much was the Hotel Rival which is in a wonderful residential neighborhood just minutes away by subway from the center of the city a couple of islands away. It overlooks a park filled with local residents; there is a very popular cafe and bakery on the ground floor.
This is one of the few "design" or "boutique" hotels we've visited where the service was every bit as good as the decor. The staff is welcoming and helpful (with a few minor lapses at breakfast but probably explained by the fact that we usually arrived just minutes before they closed the doors.)
We had a deluxe room with a terrace overlooking the park; stunning design and very comfortable. As other reviewers have noted, there is no air conditioning (like most places in Stockholm) and this wasn't a problem for us as temperatures never got above 70F but at times I guess they do. There is no gym but they provide passes to a small one just next door for US$12.
There is no indoor smoking allowed in Stockholm which made the beautifully-designed three-level lobby lounge even more enjoyable in the evenings. Highly recommended without reservation.
Lives up to high expectations!
by A TripAdvisor Member
My wife and I stayed here for two nights on the basis of the excellent reviews posted here. We also wanted to stay in a different part of the city that we had before, but still be within walking distance to the main sightseeing and shopping in Stockholm.
The staff were very friendly and helpful, the room (we chose the deluxe room because of the good summer rates in effect) was clean and very comfortable, and the atmosphere was extremely pleasant.
Because the weather was warm, we kept the door to our balcony open, thus ensuring that we heard most of what was going on in the adjacent park throughout the night. I considered this part of the charm and a reminder that Stockholm doesn't sleep when the weather is so good and there are only a few hours of darkness each night.
What a wonderful place
by TripAdvisor Member JEL023
This is by far the best hotel I have stayed for a long time. Well, Stockholm is a nice city, the weather was beautiful, so everything was perfect. The service, the location, the breakfast on the balcony, the lively area and the very friendly people made this (business!) trip into an unforgettable stay. Crown on everything was the way the staff dealt with some stuff I unfortunately left in the safe.
The Rival has few Rivals
by A TripAdvisor Member
I stayed at the Rival for 10 days, part business, part pleasure. Its a funky, modern hotel in a great location with easy access to city transportation. There is a nice park across the street and several good restaurants in the area. The friendly staff speaks English and is quite helpful. Its a little away from the main tourist and bsuiness areas, which I liked. Highly recommended.
Rival is well worth it
by TripAdvisor Member JAmieskellington
I have benefited from the opinions on Tripadvisor, so I thought that I’d contribute: The Rival is in a great location, across from a park, in hip Södermalm, convenient to some great shopping, a short walk to nightlife, and a 10 minute walk to Gamla Stan. The rooms are very comfortable with the best bathrooms that we experienced in Sweden. (The shower was both easy to use and powerful, the toilet paper, for once, was soft and there was facial tissue provided. If you like modern Scandinavian décor you will love the sunlit rooms of the Rival. From the comfy beds, to the teddy bears provided in case you feel lonely, there are many little things about the Rival that add a lot to ones enjoyment. An added bonus are the excellent cocktails served in the stylish hotel bar which is staffed by bartenders who actually know what they are doing. The breakfast was fresh and excellent. Price-wise one can find some good deals if you work at it, but its not an inexpensive hotel. The price, the “young people's’ nature of the neighborhood, and “hip factor” might not suit all travelers, but, for myself, I look forward to my next stay at the Rival. Tack tack!
Photos
Sunday Brunch RIVAL HOTEL
Sunday Brunch RIVAL HOTEL
Sunday Brunch RIVAL HOTEL
Sunday Brunch RIVAL HOTEL
Forum Posts
best way to transfer from airport
by anitapurser
hi,
A group of 9 of us are flying into Stockholm Arlanda airport and staying at Hotel Rival.
Has anyone got any idea the best way to get from the airport to the hotel.
Im a bit worried getting taxis as we might need 2/3 depending on how many people you can fit in one
Thank you for your help
Anita
Re: best way to transfer from airport
by pcg821
The best and fastest way is by the Arlanda Express train,it takes about 20 to main train station in Stockholm.Train leave about every 15 minutes,train is designed for passengers with luggage as there is plenty of room to store your bags in your sight so nobody tampers with your bags.Tickets can be purchased at yellow ticket-vending machines at Arlanda Airport Trains are in walking distance under airport terminal 5.
http://www.arlandaexpress.com/
http://www.lfv.se/templates/LFV_InfoSida_Bred____15940.aspx
Re: best way to transfer from airport
by marielexoteria
PCG is right on target. Another (cheaper) way might be taking the airport coach (flygbussen); it takes about 40 minutes with the coach. Check out their timetables and prices at http://www.flygbussarna.se/Default.aspx?lang=EN
Either way you choose to get to Stockholm, you will have to take the subway to the hotel. Both Arlanda Express and Flygbussarna will drop you off at Stockholm's Central and from there you take the red subway line towards Norsborg or Fruängen and get off at the stop Mariatorget. From the subway stop it looks like it's a 5-minute walk according to the map provided by the hotel.
If you have a lot of or heavy baggage you might want to consider taking a cab from Stockholm's central to the hotel.
Re: best way to transfer from airport
by deptlads
Hi!
I agree that Arlanda Express is best and quickest, although quite expensive at SEK 220 per person each way (SEK 420 return). However, last time we decided to take a taxi we really regretted it as we got stuck in heavy traffic and it took neary 90 minutes to get to our hotel in the city centre. If you are travelling at the weekend, you can get a weekend discount for 2 adults for SEK 240 (saving SEK 100 each).
Hotel Rival is very close to Mariatorget metro station. Just remember to take the exit closest to the back of the train (coming from the city centre).
Have fun.
Andrew
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