A small, exclusive hotel with a lot of history


Rjukan Admini Hotel boasts one of the county’s most distinctive offerings in terms of accommodation, conferences and function rooms. The hotel is part of the great industrial narrative that saw the Rjukan–Notodden Industrial Heritage Site inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2015.

Until summer 2015, the premises belonged to Norsk Hydro and were used by the company for entertaining. Previously, only specially invited guests were able to enjoy the unique experience of visiting the protected building, which dates from 1908 and was designed by the architect Thorvald Astrup.

Norsk Hydro and its Director-General Sam Eyde had the building erected in 1908 for entertaining, and used it for accommodation, stylish dinners and receptions, and meetings with partners and financiers. The company planned and realised construction of what was then the world’s largest hydropower station and the world’s largest fertiliser factory, as well as transport systems to convey their products to a world market. A completely new ‘garden city’, on the English model, was built to house several thousand people. Sam Eyde’s plans to develop Rjukan, the power stations and the factory premises were costed at NOK 50 million back in 1907 – at a time when Norway’s state budget was around NOK 35 million.

Guests over the years have included all the kings of Norway and their families, Denmark’s Queen Margrethe, former Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, the former Shah of Iran and his wife Farah Diba, and Norway’s WW2 heroes, the ‘heavy water saboteurs’, to name a few. And now you can be a guest here too, whether you’re enjoying a family holiday or a romantic weekend away, celebrating a family event or need an undisturbed, comfortable and inspiring place for your board to meet.

Rjukan Admini has now opened its doors as a small, exclusive hotel with 15 unique guest rooms, tastefully furnished with an exquisite combination of period pieces and modern amenities. The kitchen serves menus based on local seasonal ingredients.