SOULFUL SANCTUARY

Villa Dagmar is more than Stockholm's newest luxury address; it is a creative family home, steeped in history and soul

- Maritess Garcia Reyes

There is a distinct pulse at Nybrogatan 25-27.

Set in the beating heart of Stockholm’s chic district, next to the venerable Östermalmshallen, Villa Dagmar presents itself not as a hotel but as a city villa. It is a title that is not a marketing ego, but a genuine statement of intent. This is a home, curated with heart, and its story is one of hospitality, history and formidable women.

Villa Dagmar is, at its core, a family story. It is the vision of the Malmström family, the same hands that have guided the city’s grande dame, Hotel Diplomat, on Strandvägen since the Sixties. This is not a new venture so much as a new chapter, born from a long-held dream to create a sister hotel that captured a different, perhaps more personal, energy. Where Hotel Diplomat is a statement of Art Nouveau magnificence, Villa Dagmar is an intimate and eclectic embrace.

The hotel’s soul is drawn from a tapestry of inspirations. The name itself is a tribute, originating from a classic Båstad residence, Villa Dagmar, a beloved family retreat during the Twenties and Thirties. That original villa was an eclectic sanctuary, a place where friends and family gathered, surrounded by rose gardens and an extensive art collection gleaned from European travels. It was a home inspired by the grand romance of Villa d’Este near Rome and Axel Munthe’s San Michele in Capri.

Munthe, who was Queen Victoria's doctor and is said to have been her lover, lived at Nybrogatan 25-27, where Villa Dagmar stands today.