In the spring of 2026, the landscape hotel Ytri Island Retreat will open, in the summer of 2026 the adventure center SKREI will open, and in the summer of 2027 the spectacular The Whale will open.
It’s going to be completely raw and World-class
These will be three brand new year-round attractions and tourism lighthouses. “Standing there and glowing in the dark, as a signal of the right direction in life“. Experiences that take you out and about, whether you just shrug your shoulders in front of the panorama from the hotel window at Træna, learn something new about the skrei in Lofoten that built Norway, or you meet the great whale at the edge of the ocean at the far end of Andøya.
Ytri Island Retreat
Far out in the middle of the ocean, where the great ocean takes over and the next stop is Greenland, lies Ytri – a name taken from the Old Norse word meaning “outermost”. Here, people have lived and shaped the landscape together with the wind and weather for 9,000 years. Ytri on Træna is located at the very edge of the Helgeland coast. It will be an exclusive “high-end” landscape hotel. The hotel will offer rooms and suites with panoramic views, a seafood restaurant, bar, saunas and an outdoor wellness area, designed to provide a unique experience in the middle of the ocean.
Key information about Ytri:
- Location: Træna archipelago, on the far coast of Helgeland
- Opening date: Planned opening spring 2026
- Concept: Exclusive landscape hotel/boutique hotel
- Facilities: 38 rooms/suites, restaurant with local seafood, bar, sauna, wellness area, guest harbor, and meeting room facilities
- Design: Architecture inspired by coastal culture, designed by Vardehaugen
- Name: Ytri is Norse for “Outermost”
The hotel is part of a long-term commitment to create sustainable tourism and year-round jobs in the island municipality of Træna. For more information and future bookings, see their website at ytri.no.
Ready for a journey into the ocean?
The Helgeland coast is known as one of the world’s most beautiful archipelagos with over 12,000 islands, white beaches and steep mountains. Read more at Visit Helgeland. Here you will find time to really relax, find peace and feel the forces of nature. Read more about En reise til det ytterste punkt. The journey out to Træna is an experience completely out of the ordinary. You can get here by ferry or Nordlandsexpressen. Read more at Reis Nordland.
The SKREI Experience Center
The Atlantic cod – skrei – has for millennia migrated from the Barents Sea to the Norwegian coast to spawn. Lofoten has unique spawning conditions for the skrei, and is the reason for the world’s largest seasonal fishery here. For centuries, fishermen from Norway’s long coast have gone to Lofoten to fish. In the history of Lofoten and Norway, the skrei, the Lofoten fishery and the enormous values this has created are central.
SKREI in Storvågan in Kabelvåg opens on June 30, 2026. It will function as a national knowledge and culture center dedicated to the skrei, the Lofoten fishery and coastal culture. The center will extend beyond traditional museum operations and offer a holistic experience of the importance of fish for Norway throughout history and into the future. First and foremost, the new building Otolitten and the portal to the area are brand new, and embrace the gamle handelsstedet i Storvågan, Galleri Espolin Johnson, Lofotakvariet og Nyvågar rorbuhotell in one great overall experience!
The main elements of SKREI will be:
- The new building “Otolitten”: A spectacular new museum of 5000 m2 that forms the heart of the center
- Integrated experience area: SKREI will connect four main parts to provide a holistic presentation: The new building Otolitten, the Lofoten Museum, the Espolin Gallery and the Lofoten Aquarium
- History presentation: The center will tell the story of the migratory cod, the Lofoten fishery, the culture, sustainability, as well as the people and values that have been created over centuries
- Focus on the future and research: Through the SKREI Research Center, work will also be done on the knowledge base for exhibitions, with a focus on the future of the ocean
- Year-round offer: The “Service House” is planned to be open all year round
SKREI is realized by Museum Nord and aims to highlight the stories about the fish, the people and the culture in the heart of Lofoten.
How do you get to SKREI?
Lofoten probably needs no further introduction and you can find most of the information at Destination Lofoten. SKREI is located close to the E10 which runs from the Norwegian border north of Narvik, through all of Lofoten out to Å and the ferry port at Sørvågen. From there there is a ferry to Bodø, where you can get there via Nordlandsbanen, plane or Kystruten/Hurtigruten. There are also airports at Leknes and Svolvær. The Nordlandsexpress also calls at Svolvær. Read more at Reis Nordland. From there it is a relatively short car/bus ride to Kabelvåg and SKREI. Read more at Museum Nord about public transport here.
The Whale
Andøya in Vesterålen is one of the best places in the world to see whales all year round. This is due to Bleiksdjupet, an underwater canyon that extends towards land, just 10 km from the coast. Nutrient-rich water wells up here, creating perfect conditions for a rich wildlife and nutrient-rich areas for the whales. Whale safaris were established in the late 1980s, and since then people from all over the world have been able to experience the whales and the beautiful nature. The Adventure Center The Whale at Andenes in Andøy, which is scheduled to open on June 3, 2027, will be a year-round destination dedicated to whales and whale watching experiences.
The Whale will offer you the following:
- Unique whale exhibits: The content is being developed by Ralph Appelbaum Associates (who also designed the Tower of London), and will offer spectacular displays and exhibitions about whales and their world
- Knowledge dissemination and research: The Whale will combine whale watching with research, and function as a learning center focusing on the whales of the Bleiksdypet
- Architectural experience: The building itself is designed as a “whale’s back” that rises from the landscape, and will contain exhibition halls, offices, a café and a shop
- Viewpoints: The roof of the building will be accessible, offering panoramic views of the sea, mountains and the Andenes area
- Cultural hub: The center will reinforce Andøya’s position as an international center for whale watching and strengthen tourism in Vesterålen
The project aims to care for the whales and increase understanding of the marine environment in the Arctic. Read more about the experience center at thewhale.no.
How to get to Andøy?
Det er mange måter å reise til Andøy på, enten med fly, bil, buss eller båt. Andøya lufthavn ligger nær Andenes med daglige flyvninger, og veiforbindelsene til øya inkluderer både nasjonale turistveier og ferger om sommeren. Hurtigruten anløper også Andøy daglig. For detaljer om reiseruter og alternativer, se Visit Andøy and Visit Vesterålen.
Ytri Island Retreat, SKREI and The Whale are all prominent examples of innovative, place-making projects in Northern Norway that focus on sustainability, architecture and unique nature-based experiences. They are designed to attract quality-conscious tourists and strengthen local communities off the beaten track.
“Landmarks of hope and dream. Which take you away and away from home. Where the cormorant flies and where the Skrei swims. Right out on the edge of the country” (lightly paraphrased from Har du fyr? (Do You Have Fire?) by Ola Bremnes).