My review of The Thief hotel, Oslo

When it comes to the Choice Hotels group, we’ve watched it go from a “hidden gem” to the rather ordinary programme it is today, which is admittedly a little sad. While doing a round-up a while ago, I discovered that Oslo’s The Thief hotel had actually dropped back down in redemption price. An opportunity like this doesn’t come around often, so naturally I had to go!

The relationship between The Thief and Choice is a rather complicated story:

• The Thief is part of the Strawberry hotel group
• Strawberry was originally called Nordic Choice and was once part of Choice, and the two continued to collaborate after they separated
• The Thief can be redeemed directly through the Choice website for 35,000 points
• The Thief is also a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, and redeeming through Choice’s Preferred channel costs just 20,000 points

It sounds complicated, but the only thing you really need to remember is to redeem through the Choice-Preferred channel — it’s much cheaper! Buying 20,000 Choice points costs roughly €100, while The Thief regularly sells at least €300. In other words, that’s a pretty ridiculous deal.

If you have Preferred’s Titanium status, remember to contact customer service after booking and have your account linked.

It’s not right in the heart of town, but the neighbourhood is actually very pleasant, with plenty of shops, restaurants and museums. It’s lively without being noisy, and the waterfront is a lovely place to take a stroll and enjoy the sea breeze.

It’s also very close to the ferry terminal at Aker Brygge, which is definitely worth experiencing.

I’m already very familiar with this building that The Thief occupies, and it’s certainly quite distinctive. The oval-shaped building on the left is the hotel, while the colourful building on the right contains serviced apartments.

The kneeling “sinner” outside the entrance is the hotel’s signature bronze sculpture.

I was curious about the story behind the sculpture and the hotel’s name, so I asked at reception. The answer was rather eye-opening: Tjuvholmen was historically known as “Thief Island”, with a reputation for crime, and it was also a place where thieves and other criminals were executed. The sense of humour here is perhaps a little too strong!

The hotel lobby is quite small, but the décor has a modern, substantial sense of luxury.

I arrived at the hotel after 10pm and check-in was very quick. I was upgraded two categories to a Deluxe Room on the seventh floor, which was slightly larger and came with a harbour view.

The room is mainly decorated in shades of grey and black, giving it a sense of understated luxury. You can definitely tell that this is a five-star hotel where a lot of effort has gone into the design. The TV supports casting, and the bed was extremely comfortable.

Every room also comes with a balcony, although the view from my particular room wasn’t anything special.

There was also a welcome pastry, which was actually pretty good. I hadn’t had dinner, so it was perfect for filling the gap.

In addition to the room upgrade, Preferred Titanium status also comes with complimentary breakfast and a NOK 250 dining credit. Oslo is seriously expensive, so you definitely want to make the most of that breakfast!

The restaurant supervisor was very friendly, with just the right amount of attention without being intrusive. The duty manager was more enthusiastic, constantly chatting with guests and making the rounds.

Let’s take a look at the rather refined little buffet:

Everything looked incredibly appetising. Most of the ingredients were fairly standard European breakfast fare, but there was also some excellent salmon, along with courgette and broccoli — ingredients you don’t always see on a European breakfast buffet.

You can also order dishes from the kitchen, such as Egg Benedict, waffle and Acai bowl.

The quality of the ingredients and the cooking were both excellent. The salmon was great, of course, but the courgette was particularly delicious!

I also had dinner at the rooftop restaurant to make use of the dining credit. Even in August, Oslo evenings can be surprisingly chilly, with the doors and windows open.

NOK 250 is roughly £20, and after quietly scanning the menu, I discovered that the only thing it was actually enough to cover was one starter: three oysters!

The hotel has its own spa, although it’s not complimentary for hotel guests. Even more bizarrely, even if you purchase a massage treatment, you only get discounted access to the facilities rather than free use.

When I checked in, I was told that I could use the spa for free as part of my Titanium benefits. When I asked about it the next day, they initially said that wasn’t the case. Before I even had a chance to argue, though, they immediately added that since I’d been told that at check-in, they would waive the fee anyway.

The swimming pool is colourful, but not particularly large:

The Finnish sauna was incredibly hot — almost too hot to put your feet down. Now that’s what I call a proper sauna.

There are also two steam rooms.

A nice little touch: bath salts and face masks were provided.

The only real downside was the lack of a Jacuzzi, but overall I enjoyed the experience. Since you have to pay to use the spa, it was pleasantly quiet.

At check-in I also asked whether a 3pm late checkout would be possible. The hotel seemed pretty busy, especially as it was a Saturday, but they happily agreed.

The way they handled the spa situation was also very much appreciated. Overall, the hotel has excellent hardware, while the service and food are both very good. It certainly lives up to its reputation as one of Choice’s most valuable redemption options. If you’re tempted, I’d get in while the redemption price is still low!

For my final night, I decided to change things up and used Finnair Avios to redeem a night at Scandic Byporten. The value was equally impressive, so here are a few photos:

The room and facilities are obviously worlds apart from The Thief, but the price is much lower too. The hotel itself is fairly basic, but the location is absolutely fantastic — right next to Oslo Central Station. And despite that, I didn’t hear any noise at all!