Manshausen

Set with floor-to-ceiling glass facing the water, each sea cabin frames a view that shifts with the tide and the light. Manshausen occupies a 14-acre island in Norway's Steigen region, reached by express boat or shuttle from the village of Nordskot half a kilometre across the strait. There are 16 buildings in total. Nine are the sea cabins, including two new two-storey towers named Amundsen and Nansen, built in solid wood and clad in burnt larch, with full glass roofs opening to the sky. The design, by architect Snorre Stinessen, strips furniture down to function: drawers double as benches, shelves as tables. A rear bedroom holds a 1.4-metre bed and a single bunk below it. The Main House holds the restaurant, library and lounge, where breakfast, lunch and dinner are served using local fish, lamb, reindeer and moose. Outside, a seawater pond sits beside the sauna and hot tub, refreshed constantly from the sea, with underwater lighting after dark. You can swim from steps straight into the pond before dinner. A New Boathouse holds a meeting room for up to 30. Kayaks, rowboats and fishing gear are kept on hand, and guided hikes run into the surrounding mountains. Winters bring the northern lights, visible from bed through the glass.