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Fefor Hotel, Fefor, Norwegian HighlandsBy Anita Blundell
What I particularly liked about the hotel is the friendly, even homely, atmosphere. The owners are always on hand and are perfect hosts – highly professional but very warm and welcoming at the same time. Proof of this is the fact that many guests (who tend to be largely Dutch or Danish) return year after year. Everyone at the hotel, staff and guests alike, is so friendly and keen to talk to you, though if you come from the north of England, beware of disclosing this information – everyone we talked to seemed to be obsessed with Leeds United and kept asking if we lived near the grounds! The hotel enjoys a lovely secluded position above a frozen lake and is surrounded by woodland. The most famous guest was Captain Scott, in 1891, and there are fascinating old photographs all over the hotel documenting his stay. Most of the rooms look out over the lake and you can watch people coming and going on skis. There was always plenty going on at the hotel in the evenings, with games and activities for the children, and live music (though nothing too loud) in the bar.
With mile upon mile of trails, Fefor really is a cross-country skier’s paradise, and for an intermediate/advanced skier like me, the trails provide enough challenges (ie lots of ups and downs!) so as to be rewarding. Many of the routes are quite long, so we tended to go out for an entire day. There was a pleasant bustle at start of trails and it was lovely to see entire families setting out on skis – a father carrying a small child on his back, the mother towing a toddler in a puck (a fibreglass pod on skis) and a slightly older child confidently following behind. We saw other people head out on old but well cared for wooden skis. After we’d skied for an hour or so, though, we never usually saw another soul for the rest of the day – it was great to have the expanses of snow to ourselves!
> Fefor Hotel, Fefor  |
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I
regularly took a winter holiday with Inntravel even before I started working
here, and over the years I have been to many of the hotels featured in
the winter programme. Of all the places that I have stayed at, 
I
have to admit that the food was not gastronomic, but there was always
plenty of it and lots of choice. Except on Saturdays, when a sit-down
meal is served, dinner is usually an extensive buffet, and you can help
yourself to as much as you like of the different salads, cheeses, soups
and hot main courses of pork, chicken and fish. For dessert, you can take
your pick of mousses, ice-cream and cakes from the fridge. Breakfasts
are again a huge buffet including cold meats, ham, cheeses, rolled herrings,
bread and cereals. I discovered the porridge on the first day. Topped
with cinnamon sugar it was delicious, and I soon became addicted. Another
discovery we made was the hot strawberry drink, and every morning as we
were making up our lunch pack from the breakfast buffet, we each filled
our flasks with this – it’s just what you need when you pause
for a rest along the trails. 
One day that I regret missing out on (I unfortunately succumbed to blisters)
is the excursion to Hakon VII Hytte. Everyone told us that we had to go
there, and Martin, my husband, seeing that it was a perfect, sunny winter’s
day without a cloud in the sky, decided to ski there by himself. Hakon
VII Hytte is a refuge with superb views over the frozen lake, and is used
as a resting and meeting place. While admiring the views, Martin got chatting
to a small group of Danish skiers who told him that they were going to
carry on up to the summit of Ruten (1,516 metres) and invited him to join them.
The climb takes another hour from the refuge but the panorama from the
summit more than makes up for it – Martin says that he felt on top
of the world – as does the descent across virgin snow. It sounds
great and it’s a shame I couldn’t go. To look on the bright
side though, at least missing out on this experience means that I’ve
got a very valid excuse to go back to Fefor another year!