Sometimes, words can seem so futile. Perhaps if I were blessed with the sort of powerful grasp on the English language as a Jack Kerouac, or a Hunter S. Thompson, then I may feel differently; but every now and again I stumble across images, places, or sights that render my use of syntax and vocabulary useless. More so than usual anyway. The peninsula of Furillen on Gotland, Sweden’s largest island, is one such place. Where do you start? Blathering on about the raw, untamed beauty of Scandinavian extremities would be pitifully clichéd

I could bang on about the otherworldliness of the former limestone quarry, the foreign terrain incomparable to familiar landscapes, an alien world that evokes mystery, inspiration and exquisite, breathtaking beauty. I could make up pretentious, wanky nouns for the factory that photographer Johan Hellström began converting into a hotel and restaurant in 1999; post-apocalyptic-chic perhaps? But, just as Hellström did when he came across the then off-limits area when searching for photo-shoot locations, I’ve fallen in love, and words mean very little.

Now in the hands of super-stylish Swedish hotel brand Nobis, Fabriken Furillen‘s rooms are awash with luxury and emotive aesthetic – Hästens beds, Bang & Olufsen TVs, cast-iron fireplaces and reindeer hide rugs – the restaurant offers up all that locally-sourced, foraged goodness, and the setting? Stop reading, and start looking…