Whether they're equipped with claustrophobic spaces, dizzying heights or pitch blackness, adventurous hotel stays are in demand. How would you like to stay deep underground?
Image: gruvtroll.se
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5 European hotels for adventurers
Whether they're equipped with claustrophobic spaces, dizzying heights or pitch blackness, adventurous hotel stays are in demand. Not all are romantic, but they'll offer an unforgettable experience.
Image: Dock Inn
Overnight underground
In Sweden, an abandoned silver mine is home to a hotel where guests can stay 155 meters (over 500 feet) beneath the earth. The elevator down under requires about five minutes to bring you to your room.
Image: Martinus Schwarzkopf
Inside the silver mine
Beneath the earth, the temperature is just 2 degrees Celsius (35.6 degrees Fahrenheit) year-round and very, very dark. Even though the suites are equipped with lamps and heaters, a stay in this hotel is not for the faint of heart.
Image: gruvtroll.se
Overnight inside a Trojan horse
Though the original Trojan horse came from Greece, this wooden replica can be found near Liège, Belgium. Guests can stay overnight inside the unusual hotel on immobile wheels.
Image: Uniqhotels.com
In the belly of the horse
Inside the beast, things look a bit different from the way the mythical horse may have appeared. Instead of soldiers, there is room here for an entire family. It's a part of the hotel grounds for "La Balade des Gnômes," which offers nine other fairy tale rooms.
Image: uniqhotels.com
Overnight in a fort
Here where previously munition and gunpowder were stored and cannons were aimed out at sea, tourists are now welcomed. The Spitbank Fort is one nautical mile out to sea off the coast of Southern England. It is more than 140 years old.
Image: Amanda Retreats
Inside the fort
Soldiers were stationed at the fort in order to protect the harbor entry to Portsmouth. Even after its renovation in 2009, the walls are nearly 20 meters (over 65 feet) thick, making it one of the most secure hotels in the world.
Image: Solentforts
Overnight in a shipping container
Another maritime offering is the Dock Inn in Warnemünde on Germany's Baltic Sea coast. Guests stay in reconfigured shipping containers that measure about 12 square meters. If that's too small, the hotel also offers suites that are comprised of two shipping containers welded together.
Image: Dock Inn
Inside the container
The hostel opened in spring of this year and is aimed especially at young adventure travelers. One night in a multi-bed room can be had for just 19 euros (about $22).
Image: Dock Inn
Overnight inside a crane
If you're afraid of heights, then this hotel in Amsterdam isn't for you. The three suites of the Crane Hotel Faralda are 50 meters above the earth inside a harbor crane.
Image: Crane Hotel Faralda Amsterdam
Inside the crane
Inside, guests sleep where the crane operator previously worked. It's especially adventurous to stay during bad weather. When the wind picks up, the swaying of the crane might just lull you to sleep.
Image: Crane Hotel Faralda Amsterdam
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While planning your summer vacation, you're more likely to be on the lookout for a hotel with a pool and a panoramic view. In short, a nice place to visit with comfortable temperatures.
A small hotel in the Swedish town of Sala has none of the above — and yet it manages to draw visitors, despite year-round temperatures of 2 degrees Celsius (35.6 degrees Fahrenheit) and pitch blackness.
In the Sala Silvergruva hotel, guests sleep 155 meters (over 500 feet) below the earth in an abandoned silver mine.
The labyrinth of tunnels is enormous altogether the pathways are a good 20 kilometers long. At one point, the mine was the largest supplier of silver in Europe. The precious metal was mined here for around 500 years.
Sighing rocks
Now the pit has become a hotel. At night, the place can, admittedly, be a bit creepy. There is no hotel personnel underground, and no other rooms or guests. Just a bed in a stone cave.
At the same time, though, it's heated to a comfortable 20 degrees Celcius. All around there is nothing but stones, a few underground lake and ponds, and every so often a quiet sigh from the rocks.
Whistling, cursing and spitting are forbidden so as not to aggravate the cave spirits — at least that's what the miners used to say, and the hotel personnel passe the tradition on to guests.
The hotel staff are situation above ground and are equipped with a radio call system, should any of the guests need anything. If anyone gets panicked, they'll still have to be patient. The elevator takes nearly five minutes to travel between the surface and the rooms below.
Click through the High Five gallery above for more unusual hotels in Europe that offer a one-of-a-kind experience within their walls.
