Elite Hotel Marina Tower

A mill building at the entrance to Stockholm

Elite Hotel Marina Tower is located in the listed brick building Saltsjökvarn in Nacka, directly by the quay facing Saltsjön. The building functioned as a flour mill until the late 1980s. The façade and the characteristic towers were preserved during the conversion to a hotel, whilst the interior was replaced with modern rooms and facilities. The result is a building where the original brick walls and the relatively small windows – a legacy from the mill era – still characterise the feel of the rooms and give the building a distinct industrial historical character.

The hotel is part of the Swedish chain Elite Hotels and is a four-star hotel with 186 rooms. Nacka is its own municipality, but the location is geographically close to Stockholm city centre. Slussen can be reached by car via Stadsgårdsleden and Kvarnholmsvägen, and by SL boat from Nybrokajen the journey into the city takes approximately fifteen minutes. The view from the hotel is open towards Djurgården and the entrance to Stockholm, which gives the facility a distinct maritime character that sets it apart from a conventional city hotel.

Those seeking a central city hotel within walking distance of Gamla Stan or Stureplan should note that the hotel is actually located in Nacka, not in Stockholm city centre. The location is better suited for those who want proximity to water and tranquillity without being far from Stockholm, or for conference groups who want to gather participants at a defined facility with a clear identity and natural distance from the city's hustle and bustle. The combination of a historic mill building and an open waterfront location is the hotel's most distinctive feature.

Room choice: courtyard or view towards Stockholm's entrance

The hotel offers several room categories with clear differences in view and design. Superior rooms are the smallest and are available in variants with and without sea views respectively. Rooms facing the courtyard lack sea views but can be experienced as more secluded from the quay environment. Superior rooms with sea views face Saltsjön and provide a completely different visual impression. Since the building was originally a mill building, the windows tend to be relatively small, which affects the light intake in rooms without sea views.

Deluxe rooms are more spacious and are also available in variants with and without sea views. Both deluxe variants have a bathtub in the bathroom, which is a concrete difference from the Superior category. In the upper parts of the tower are the suites, which are the hotel's most distinctive rooms with the most open views towards the water and surrounding landscape. Those who want guaranteed sea views should specify this when booking, as the category is available in both view variants and standard allocation may vary depending on occupancy.

All rooms have a minibar, safe, hairdryer and bathrobe. Breakfast and wifi are included in the room rate according to the hotel's official website. Check-in is guaranteed from 15:00 and check-out takes place no later than 11:00 on the departure day. The hotel offers luggage storage both before check-in and after check-out, which facilitates guests with early arrivals or late departures. Package offers combining accommodation with other services at the facility can be booked via the hotel's official website.

SQ Bar & Restaurant and the outdoor seating on the quay

SQ Bar & Restaurant – where SQ is an abbreviation of Saltsjökvarn – is the hotel's main restaurant and is located with direct views towards the water. The menu combines Nordic and international cuisine. The environment is characterised by the preserved brick from the mill façade, and the restaurant functions as an open neighbourhood café and meeting place rather than a closed hotel restaurant. Since it is accessible to outside visitors, occupancy can vary considerably, which is worth considering when planning dinners during weekends and summer season.

The outdoor seating by the quay is one of the hotel's most concrete features during the summer months. From the terrace tables, the view is open towards Saltsjön and Djurgården. It is a different type of waterfront location than what Stockholm city centre offers – here you sit on an actual quay with boat traffic in the foreground rather than by a city park or square. The hotel also has a bar with the possibility to sit both indoors and outdoors, which means that the restaurant and bar sections can be used independently of each other depending on weather and the size of the party.

The breakfast buffet is served in the restaurant and is included in the room rate when booking via the hotel's website. The hotel offers room service. Those planning a visit solely for food or drink without accommodation can use both the restaurant and bar as standalone destinations. Package offers combining accommodation, dinner and spa access are available via the hotel's official website, which makes it possible to plan the entire stay collectively at one and the same time.

Vana Spa Saltsjöqvarn and the conference floor with the Golden Hall

The spa facility is called Vana Spa Saltsjöqvarn and is operated in the hotel's premises. It contains a Turkish hamam with experience shower and steam bath, dry sauna, infrared sauna, indoor pool and gym. Hotel guests pay a fee for the gym at the spa reception, which means that spa access is not included in the room rate but is booked and paid for separately. There is also a membership club with access to gym and spa. The facility is open to hotel guests, visitors and members, and package offers with spa access can be booked via the hotel's website.

The conference section is a central part of the hotel's operations. There is a conference centre on a continuous floor with staffed reception and areas for mingling and exhibitions, as well as several flexible meeting rooms. Several of the rooms have views towards the water and Djurgården. The largest room, the Golden Hall, is 400 square metres and accommodates up to 400 people in cinema seating and 250 people at a banquet. The room can also be used for exhibitions and events, making it one of the more versatile conference halls in Nacka.

For conference groups who want to combine meetings with recuperation, the combination of a conference floor and spa in the same building is a practical argument that reduces the need for external transport during multi-day conferences. Parking is available at the hotel for a fee. Those arriving by car from Slussen follow Stadsgårdsleden towards Nacka and turn left at Henriksdal towards Kvarnholmsvägen.