Now Hotell Continental du Sud

First opened in 1829, Hotell Continental du Sud is an elegant gem of a building, located in the heart of Ystad. Just a stone’s throw from the city’s historic port, it has been an important meeting point for nearly 200 years, with patrons including cultural icons both real and imagined – the hotel restaurant features in the books of Henning Mankell as a favourite haunt of his flawed hero Kurt Wallander. Little wonder then, that co-owner Jenny Nilsson talks about the building having a unique atmosphere. “The feeling you get when you come in through those doors is kind of special,” she says. “It’s hard to put your finger on it, but it’s very calming, like a sense of harmony. You can feel the history in the walls.”