Eidfjord Gjestgiveri

Info

Eidfjord Gjestgiveri was built in the “Swiss style” in 1896 and is made entirely from wood.
A “gjestgiveri” is the Norwegian equivalent of an English guest house.

Historie

Eidfjord Gjestgiveri was built in the “Swiss style” in 1896 and is made entirely from wood. In those early days it was called the Sæbø Hotel, after Lars S. Sæbø, the builder and the hotel’s first owner. Because the “pension” was too small to be called a hotel, it was renamed Eidfjord Gjestgiveri. A “gjestgiveri” is the Norwegian equivalent of an English guest house.

During the Second World War, two British naval officers and their families, who were on the run from the occupying German forces, were given shelter in the guest house. After a long and hard journey across the Hardangervidda, and with help of the owner of Eidfjord Gjestgiveri and a few other villagers, they managed to escape by boat to the Shetland Islands. After the war, Lars L. Sæbo, who owned the guest house, as well as four other villagers, were awarded the George Cross, one of Britain’s highest military honours, in recognition of the help they gave to the British.

In 1956, the guest house was taken over by a relative of Lars L. Saebo and his family. They added six camping huts to the grounds and built an annex to the original house. They ran the guest-house until the end of the nineties.

In 2002 Eidfjord Gjestgiveri was taken over, and after a complete renovation during 2003/2004 reopened the doors in 2004, and in 2007 the business was expanded with a pancake restaurant and a cosy terrace.