At a time when social isolation is the order of the day, Rose Dykins reports on a new way to experience Norwegian scenery – from inside a Birdbox micro hotel room.
For much of the global population, unlimited exposure to fresh mountain air and a mesmerising fjord view is a money-can’t-buy experience right now. The Birdbox answers that need.
Once the travel industry starts taking tentative steps towards a new normality, Globetrender predicts travellers will leap at the chance to luxuriate in the great outdoors.
Nature tourism will no doubt rocket in popularity, and, in a post-social-distancing society, travellers may need time to adjust before confidently booking trips to crowded cities, clubbing destinations or festivals.
One option that may offer a gentle transition into exploring in a post Covid-19 world, is an accommodation invention by Norwegian design company Livit.
Designed to appeal to people’s sense of freedom and desire for calm, the Birdbox is a standalone cabin/hotel room-hybrid – a capsule for just one or two people – created to accentuate the uninterrupted Norwegian wilderness outside of it.
Inspired by wooden bird boxes that are attached to trees in the forest – and the colour of local mountains, the Birdbox is designed to provide a unique vantage point from which to admire the surrounding landscape, with huge circular windows on three of its four sides.
There are currently two Birdboxes available to book in Norway. Birdbox Fauske offers epic views of the Blegja mountain range, and is walking distance from a fjord. Meanwhile, Birdbox Langeland is situated above the reviving waters of Langelandsvatnet lake.
“[In the future] Birdboxes will be located across the country, where you get a new experience in every place you visit,” says Livit CEO, Asbjørn Reksten Stigedal. “We are creating an offer [to] showcase our country from its best side, where one can experience Norway through Birdbox.”
Built with minimalism and sustainability in mind, Birdbox taps into the growing appetite for low impact, high-value ways to travel – and Globetrender predicts that #birdboxing could capture people’s imaginations, offering a cosy, high-end and innovative way to simply sit back and admire Norway’s natural beauty. (And any other country’s, for that matter.)
The Birdbox cabin is designed to weather extreme conditions, and comes with a bed, chairs and a separate box with a toilet (which has full-length, one-way glass windows). It’s available in two sizes (“Mini” and “Medi”).
Birdbox’s designer Torstein Aa, says: “We wanted to create a product that could enable unique experiences, with minimal footprint. Built in composites to withstand any environment with no need for maintenance, Birdbox can be lifted in place with a helicopter and mounted on columns for a minimal and reversible footprint in the nature.”
Bookable via birdbox.no – which redirects users to Airbnb – September rates for Birdbox started at £152 per night for Birdbox Fauske, and £243 for Birdbox Langeland (with space for two people). Alternatively, you can buy your very own Birdbox at livit.no.
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