Luxury Lifestyle Magazine | Hotel Review: ION Adventure Hotel
Photo by Art Gray
As the world remains on lockdown, we find ourselves longing for travel and an escape to new places. Recently featured on Luxury Lifestyle Magazine, a beautiful hotel review by Christopher Rosar on the ION Adventure Hotel in Iceland, designed by Minarc.
The property is a striking piece of architecture on pillars set on a primeval mountainside in the spectral, emerald moss covered, pitch black lava-encrusted landscape of the UNESCO-listed Thingvellir National Park. Indeed, the ION has the enviable position of having one of the most spectacular settings of any hotel in the Northern Hemisphere.
The ION’s standout feature is its very slick plunge pool and spa that fronts the hotel and is fed by the local volcanic hot spring. The outdoor heated plunge pool has magnificent vistas over the surrounding lava fields, the glittering waters of Lake Þingvellir and beyond the distant, yet still in June, snow-capped mountains. Above the pool is a very impressive bar, Northern Lights, that is spread out with comfortable seating and snugs on two levels.
The ION hotel is designed around its unique natural environment. It is a luxury destination that can be enjoyed year-round whether under the summer midnight sun, or in winter beneath the extraordinary Aurora Borealis – the Norður Lyos as the locals call it. The fact that its location is off the beaten track only adds to its otherworldly appeal. As you turn off the road to the hotel you can see in the distance a giant geothermal power plant. Crystal white smoke bellows silently into the turquoise sky as it looms sci-fi like and almost just alive in the distance.
Each room has a private bathroom with water saving shower. Toiletries include fragrant Icelandic Lóa hand soaps and local herb infused soothing lotions from Sóley Organics. Fair-trade organic linen and towels are standard. The thermal junior suite takes its name from its surroundings and dramatic view over the lava fields, the dormant volcano Mount Hengill and Nesjavellir Geothermal Plant which can be seen through its striking floor to ceiling windows.
The ION’s standout feature is its very slick plunge pool and spa that fronts the hotel and is fed by the local volcanic hot spring
All rooms are designed in a discreet, modern Nordic style with muted greys, blacks and whites
The hotel’s award-winning Silfra restaurant serves local dishes that are simple and seasonal
The ION’s location is a superb setting from which to witness the magnificent natural phenomena of the Northern Lights
The ION is located in the middle of Thingvellir National Park. From the hotel you can easily drive to the nearby breath-taking natural wonders of waterfalls, the volcanic crater of Kerid and Silfra, the rift underneath Lake Þingvellir. Silfra is where the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates meet to form part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The magical underwater world has four main caverns with depths ranging from 10 to 60 meters: Silfra Lagoon; Silfra Cathedral; Silfra Hall and Big Crack, the narrowest section, where the continental plates are so close, they are tantalisingly within reach of your fingers.
The tourist hotspots of the Geysir hot springs and Gullfoss waterfall are under a 30-minute drive away as is the busy, inviting town of Sellfoss. The ION’s concierge service will happily arrange activities including horse-riding, kayaking and snorkeling in caves. The hotel can even offer an unusual wake-up call if the elusive Northern Lights make a dramatic appearance in the winter months, the ION’s isolated location in almost total darkness in winter provides a superb setting to marvel at this magnificent natural phenomena. The hotel can also arrange direct transfers from and to Keflavik International Airport and the capital.
For more on the ION Adventure Hotel, visit ionadventure.ioniceland.is.