Prinsehytta in Sikkilsdalen is the royal family’s Easter paradise. Here, since 1924, the royal family has celebrated Easter in good old Norwegian tradition. Also this year, the king and queen celebrate Easter here in Jotunheimen’s courtyard.
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This is confirmed by the Palace’s assistant communications manager Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen to VG.
– Easter in Sikkilsdalen is something in itself. The mountain in a white winter suit is, if possible, even more beautiful than in the summer, Queen Sonja writes in the book “The king’s house – all the royal couple’s places” which she has authored together with Ole Rikard Høisæther and Thomas Thiis Evensen.
–Prinsehytta is beautifully situated at the foot of Sikkilsdalshorn, 1565 meters above sea level in Jotunheimen’s forecourt.
While most of us can now drive all the way to the cabin, it is not as easy for the king and queen to get to the mountains at Easter.
–– After a few hours by train and on by car for a good hour, the last part of the journey to Prinsehytta must take place by tracked vehicle. There we sit quite dark, there are only small “windows” to look out through. It takes another hour to skim into Easter paradise, before we are locked out of the vehicle, the queen writes further in the book.
The prince’s cabin is the royal couple’s private property. It was built and given to the Swedish princes Gustaf Adolf, Wilhelm and Erik while Norway and Sweden were still in union. It was completed in 1902. But after the dissolution of the union in 1905, the cabin was mostly left unused. The then Crown Prince Olav received it as a gift from the Swedes for his official day in 1924.
Originally, it was a half-timbered log cabin consisting of eight rooms. King Olav eventually built several houses around the old cabin. Two boathouses have also been built down by the water, and a log house has been moved from Skaugum to Prinsehytta. A new yard has also been built with an extension for the staff and escort, which has been given modern facilities, including a shower, something Prinsehytta has not had until now. It is also not many years since the outdoor toilet was the only option, but now it has become more modern and contemporary on this front as well.
–– The original living room is today more than twice as big in that it has been merged with two previous bedrooms, which was where today’s dining room is located. The monogram of Crown Prince Olav and Crown Princess Märtha from the 1930s has been supplemented with the King and Queen’s monogram, writes co-author of “The King’s House”, Ole Rikard Høisæther in the book.
As for most cabin people, it is in fact not only hired craftsmen who have been responsible for all the work at Prinsehytta.
– We have had work with friends several times up here. The weather takes a toll on exterior walls and ceilings, there are always challenges to tackle. The more fun it is to see the positive results of the efforts that have been made! Now the houses are lying and smiling in the terrain, the queen herself writes.
–King Olav used the cabin at Easter for all the years with his immediate family. King Harald and Queen Sonja have continued this tradition. Except in 2020 when the corona situation meant that they celebrated Easter at Kongsseteren instead.
– For me, Sikkilsdalen has always been an oasis in life. The silence between the mountains has made me really relax and gather strength year after year in Sikkilsdalen, King Olav said in the book «Sikkilsdalen. The story of the mountain valley and Prinsehytta »which was published in 1989, written by Arvid Møller.
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