The Swedish InsiderA DIFFERENT KIND OF NORTH

Places to stay

Hyssna Forest Resort: A Childhood Hideaway, Grown Up

A stream runs beneath the cabin, the bedroom looks straight into the forest, and breakfast comes in wooden boxes. At Hyssna Forest Resort in western Sweden, two carpenter brothers have turned their childhood surroundings into somewhere worth slowing down for.

By Lina Skandevall

Two dark timber cabins among trees and moss, with a stream flowing beneath Creek Cabin.
Creek Cabin brings the forest close, with water running beneath the house. Photo: Lina Skandevall
The stream takes an unusual route through Hyssna Forest Resort: beneath a cabin. At Creek Cabin, water passes under the timber building before tumbling over rocks on the other side. Above it, a steep triangular roof frames a wall of glass, with trees close enough to fill the view.

It is an arresting piece of architecture. But what I particularly like is how much of the forest remains part of the experience. Moss covers the ground between the trunks. Wooden walkways cross the water. From the loft bed, the view leads straight back outside.

This is the sort of bedroom that gives you a good reason to stay under the duvet a little longer.

Built on childhood territory

The story behind these cabins helps explain their character. Two brothers, both carpenters, created the buildings according to their own ideas, in woodland belonging to their family. The sites had once been places where they built childhood dens.

I love that continuity. The ambition has grown, and the construction has become considerably more sophisticated, but the fascination with finding a special place in the woods is still recognisable.

It is a family effort, involving the brothers, their partners and their parents. At the separate reception building, wooden rocking chairs lined with sheepskins sit on a covered veranda. Fires were burning outside during my visit. The welcome belongs to the same world as the cabins: timber, warmth and somewhere inviting to sit.

A guest in a bathrobe behind Creek Cabin’s triangular glass facade.
Glass, timber and the forest just outside. Photo: Lina Skandevall
A pine-cone-shaped pendant lamp above a timber table, with forest beyond the window.
The woodland theme continues indoors, down to the pine-cone-shaped light. Photo: Lina Skandevall

A forest you can see from bed

Creek Cabin is particularly good at making a small building feel connected to its surroundings. Its glazed gable opens the interior towards the trees, while timber walls keep the room visually warm.

The details carry that idea through. A pendant lamp resembles an oversized pine cone, its overlapping wooden pieces glowing above the table. Sprigs of greenery form a simple centrepiece. With the real forest just beyond the glass, the connection feels easy and coherent.

The cabins offer different perspectives on the landscape. Treetop Cabin has a timber interior with large corner windows and a terrace overlooking woodland and wetland. Cliffhang Cabin appears to balance on a rocky outcrop, giving it a different relationship with the ground below.

The choice is worth considering carefully: being tucked beside a stream and looking out from an elevated cabin are quite different pleasures. The current accommodation collection also includes Skyland Cabin and Ranger’s Cabin.

Warm water, cold creek

At Creek Cabin, the outdoor bathing area brings you close to the rocks and trees. A heated spa bath sits beside a large moss-covered boulder; the stream provides the possibility of a cold dip.

I particularly liked having both the warm bath and the cold creek here. Together, they make the setting part of the bathing experience. You are close to the cabin, but still outside among the trunks, walkways and running water.

There are practical distinctions worth knowing. The resort lists the outdoor shower at Creek Cabin for spring, summer and autumn, although the accommodation is open throughout the year. The double bed is reached by a ladder to the loft, so anyone who finds climbing difficult should discuss the layout before booking.

The architecture is a large part of the attraction here. Choosing a cabin that suits how you move around matters just as much as choosing the view.

The outdoor hot tub and cold stream beside illuminated wooden walkways at dusk.
Warm water and a cold creek, a few steps from the cabin. Photo: Lina Skandevall


Breakfast with room for quiet

One of the details I appreciated most was the way breakfast was served. During my visit, it was arranged in wooden boxes, with small glass jars inside, and left a short distance away for guests to collect themselves. The intention was to leave us undisturbed.

It is a modest detail, but a thoughtful one. Hospitality can be expressed through careful preparation and a little distance, leaving guests to enjoy their own company.

Breakfast remains included under the resort’s standard booking terms. Creek Cabin also has a kitchen, and dinner packages can be added when booking. That makes it possible to spend an evening around your own table, with the windows still giving the forest a place in the room.

A good place to leave the day open

The nearby Hyssnaleden walking trail offers a reason to venture further into the surrounding landscape. Yet quiet comes first among my reasons for liking Hyssna: time to look into the woods, set screens aside and let thoughts settle.

That seems a useful starting point for a stay. Leave room between the walk and the bath. Allow breakfast to take a while. Choose the cabin for the landscape you would most like to spend time looking at.

The most persuasive detail at Hyssna may still be that stream beneath Creek Cabin. It gives the building a particular place in the forest—and gives you something to watch when there is no particular need to do anything else.

The practical details