Opening Shot is a column that peeks inside new hotels, restaurants, bars, and shops with interiors to drool over.
Location: Windham, New York
Designer: Julija Stoliarova
On Offer: A former hillside bunkhouse has been renewed as a sophisticated year-round boutique hotel that brings a taste of warm Scandi ambience to the Catskills. The brainchild of founders Bjorn Boyer and Julija Stoliarova, who also serves as creative director, the secluded 19-room getaway forges a convivial, home-away-from-home atmosphere through group activities and an earnest scale. Outfitting the 1920s-era bunkhouse’s communal spaces are vintage mid-century furnishings, an authentic Malm fireplace, hand-woven Turkish rugs, and reclaimed wood paneling—an alchemy that sets the tone for the Scandi vibes laden throughout the understated guest rooms. Visitors opt for either traditional digs, which feature Frette linens, Masaya & Co. furnishings, and blackened barn doors, or a glamping adventure outside.
Standout Features: Three A-frame lushna cabins embody the idea of lagom—Swedish for “just the right amount”—through cozy interior space, sweeping hillside views, and intimate seclusion in equal measure. Each room sits near an oversized barrel hot tub and sauna, but those seeking true isolation can venture to one of the four hammocks backdropped by the lush greenery of Batavia Kill and Windham Mountain. For more adventurous pleasure-seekers, daytime diversions run the gamut from communal morning yoga sessions and cycling journeys through nearby thyme fields to guided foraging escapades that offer a crash course on the region’s abundance of culinary and medicinal flora. At sundown, enjoy either a craft cocktail or a glass of infused tequila in the lounge, which also plays host to chef’s-style Saturday night dinners.
