Gotland gets over a hundred more hours of sunshine per year than mainland Sweden. That fact alone helps explain why the island, located in the Baltic Sea about 146 miles southeast of Stockholm, is a favorite destination for Swedes fleeing their often drearier clime. Throw in the dramatic coastlines, picturesque farmland, and a well-preserved medieval city, and Gotland becomes pretty much the epitome of summer vacation for Scandinavians.
But now, with their stylish hotel and farm-to-table restaurant offering the island’s first truly upscale boutique stay, the owners of Sibbjäns are hoping to draw a more international crowd.
When co-owners Pontus and Susanna Ronne, who spent their careers in the film and fashion industries, set about renovating a 19th-century farm located in the southwestern corner of the island, they were inspired by highly personal properties like Ett Hem in Stockholm and The Newt in Somerset, England. “We don’t have much of that in Sweden, and you don’t have it at all on Gotland,” says Susanna. “We were bold enough to think that we could make something here.”
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That boldness has paid off. The saplings that line the driveway are still a long way from the shaded avenue they will one day become, but once you’ve arrived at the renovated barn that doubles as restaurant and checkin, Sibbjäns’ design ambitions come into focus. Flower-filled gardens out back lead to the original farmhouse that acts as a hotel. The ground floor houses public areas, where thoughtful details are plentiful: tactile sculptures in the living room, jars of house-made cookies in the kitchen, and shelves of Tretorn rainboots in the mudroom.
Upstairs, the nine guest rooms are decorated in shades of sage and stone. With oak beams and sheepskin Little Petra chairs, they emanate Nordic calm, but sharp details — from vintage hardware and Egyptian cotton linens to hightech Orbital showers — ensure they feel plush, rather than minimalist.
But it’s not just style that distinguishes Sibbjäns: so too do its environmental ambitions. Set on nearly 200 acres, the hotel is encircled by recently planted gardens that already look rather lush, the outdoor bar draped in clematis and wisteria; the naturally fed swimming pool encircled by lavender and cornflowers. Blossoms and fruit trees yield to rows of fennel and artichokes, a greenhouse bursting with tomatoes of all sizes, and a pod of curly-haired (and curly-horned) indigenous sheep. Beyond that lie meadows and forest.
Reviving the land and all that comes with it (including a thatch-roofed cottage being restored without mortar, in the traditional Gotlandic style of masonry) is Pontus’ part of the project. “Everything we are doing here, we do with biodiversity in mind,” he says.
Pontus and Susanne’s passions converge in Sibbjäns’ restaurant. Open to the public, it draws an urbane crowd of vacationing Stockholmers, who start with cocktails at the outdoor bar before moving into the barn for refined dishes showcasing the farm’s bounty. But the real treat awaits overnighters the next morning: a table-drowning breakfast that includes the freshest eggs, house-made jams, and brioche still warm from the oven.
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Sibbjäns is not the kind of place where guests will be waited on hand and foot (Scandinavian notions of equality and self-reliance run deep, even when it comes to service). But Susanna delights in creating special experiences, from picnics on her favorite hidden beach to the yoga retreats she is planning when the studio is complete.
It’s all part of her plan to bring Gotland, long-known to summering Swedes, to a broader public. “This is one of the best places in the world,” Susanna said. “We wanted to show it to people.”
