Ikea opens in-store hotel

Check in to the Ikea bridal suite for a flat-pack honeymoon

• Gwladys Fouché in Oslo,
• Guardian unlimited
• Friday July 13 2007

Room without a view ... an Ikea store. Photograph: James Leynse/Corbis

It brought us Swedish meatballs, Billy bookshelves and endless queues on the London North Circular on Saturday afternoons. Now Ikea is going one step further and opening the Ikea Hostel, where customers can stay overnight if they haven't finished their shopping.

Later this month, Ikea Norway will let shoppers sleep overnight in one of its two Oslo warehouses, an operation that will last a week. "It will be like an alternative hostel," said company spokesman Frode Ullebust.

"There will be the regular dormitory with lots of beds stacked up together. We will also have a bridal suite, with a round bed and a hanging chandelier, and the luxury suite, where customers can enjoy breakfast in bed," he said. Family rooms will also be available for parents and children to join into the Ikea fun. None of the guests will be charged for their stay.

Mr Ullebust said that, as far as he knew, this was Ikea's first foray into the hotel business. Every night, the 30 lucky few will be able to stack up on meatballs, Norwegian salmon and cranberry mousse, as Ikea is offering free dinner and breakfast at the usual canteen.

Whereas Brits may associate the Swedish furniture giant with screaming kids, traffic jams in the parking lot and an occassional riot when a new warehouse opens, it seems Norwegians see a trip to Ikea as the ultimate tourist attraction.

"Around 900,000 visitors come to visit Ikea during the summer holidays. It's more than one of the biggest attractions in Norway, the Holmenskollen ski jump, gets in one year," claimed Mr Ullebust.

"We have five Ikea stores in Norway, all situated next to the four biggest cities, which are all in the south in the country. We found that people from the north of Norway include a visit to Ikea as part of their holidays," said the spokesman. "The Ikea Hostel will make the destination complete."

Overnight stayers can check in to their new abodes from 10pm, an hour before closing time, but will have to be quick in the morning. "The shop opens at 10am so if they are lazy, people might get woken up by shoppers testing out their mattresses," said Mr Ullebust.

Customers will also be able to take their bedsheets home afterwards. "It's a nice souvenir," he added, "We will also give them bathrobes with the Ikea Hostel logo on, and some slippers, so they won't get cold at night."