Themed hotels are all the rage but a luxury hotel in Norway has collaborated with music legends to design a suite that is bound to get guests talking

In Majorca, the Sol Wave House this year became the first Twitter-themed hotel. It decked itself out in blue and white decor to match the social network's colour scheme, allowed guests to check in via Twitter and introduced dedicated hashtags to order room service, get exclusive deals and so on.

In Scotland, the five-star Isle of Eriska Hotel was just one of many to launch a 007-themed break. On arrival at the airport Bond-wannabes, who had booked a stay with the hotel, were given keys to an Aston Martin DB9, and a recommended route map to take in some of Skyfall’s locations. Another is the Seven Hotel in Paris – its futuristic Bond suite has been specifically designed for 007 fanatics.

These are, perhaps, more mainstream but now The Thief, a luxury hotel in Norway, which opened its doors in January, has roped an eclectic art-and-music collective, Apparatjik, to help it design a suite that stands out in a sea of bland hotel rooms. Apparatjik formed in 2008 and its members including Coldplay's bass player Guy Berryman, a-ha member Magne Furuholmen (who composed the iconic song Take-On-Me), Mew-singer and guitarist Jonas Bjerre, and Grammy winning music-producer Martin Terefe.

Out with the bland

For the four founders of Apparatjik, who have spent a “disproportionate amount of time in hotel rooms”, the hallmark of achievement should never be that every hotel room looks the same. The Thief’s anything-but-bland suite is titled 'Apparatjik World' and includes an eclectic mix of video, art, music, disco textiles and humorous installations. It shines with disco fabrics and features a projector in the ceiling, showing cryptic videos of the group. There is a disco-ball in the bathroom and pixelated carpets on the floor and it’s equipped with a record player so guests can list to a selection of the group’s own music. The suite’s most curious feature is that you can you can choose a projected version of your favorite Apparatjik member sleeping next to you on the bed.

Petter Stordalen, who is the owner of 172 Scandinavian hotels says “their [Apparatjik’s] art and music and general “touch of insanity made this the most ‘out-there’ suite we have in the portfolio.”

In a recent interview with EyeforTravel (Brands beware: fast food style travel has a limited shelf life May 22), Jeroen van Velzen, the chief executive of mobile technology solution company Sound of Data argues that those players able to deliver something truly different, that have truly understood the travel experience will be the winners.  “People want an experience to remember rather than a fast food travel experience where every hotel reception or bedroom looks the same,” he said.

They will certainly get this at the Thief Hotel.

According to Espen Karlsen – The Thief’s chief executive officer, guests are surprised every time in the Apparajtik suite. It is an experience designed not only as a wedding suite, but also for couples in need of a change, and businessmen and women in search of inspiration. “To sleep with a star, to play vinyl and to live in an atmosphere of disbelief and surprises is wanted by our guests,” he says.

A-ha singer Furuholmen believes his group has injected an ambience of the ‘unexpected’ into the room. “We wanted to tweak the existing design into something that make guest’s smile and shake their heads in disbelief at the same time,” he says. “We believe disbelief is an underrated state of mind.”

Putting guests first

Before designing the suite, the hotel defined identified the key drivers of a guest's satisfaction and then went about designing an experience that actually exceeds that. “By creating unique experiences that allow the guests to try enjoy and experiment with new guest room-design, we think that we strengthen our brand, and in so doing become front runners in our business,” says Karlsen.

Earlier this year, the hotel ran a Facebook contest “Can you dance like an Apparatjik?” which invited staying guests to secretly record their moves and

post these on Facebook for the chance to win a weekend for two in the Apparatjik Suite including Nordic breakfast buffet.

On the hotel’s website there is a tab for social media which links you to all networks that it has a presence on including Facebook, TripAdvisor, Instagram and also the Swedish review site, Loopon.