Three houses with history
Klippen Hotel is made up of three old houses in Gudhjem. Each has its own story about the fishing village that became a holiday town.
Grevens Dal – built by a mason, run by his widow
The valley below the hotel was in use long before us. When the fortress on Christiansø was built in 1684, Gudhjem’s fishermen shipped soil from here to the bare rocky island so that gardens could be laid out at the fortress. An old legend says the valley is named after a count whose ship ran aground on the cliffs.
In 1906 master mason Sigfred Kristiansen built the house high on the cliff. He was killed by a blast while a well was being dug, and in 1907 his widow opened Pension Klippen. One guest came back every summer for 37 years.
Therns – a farm that became a hotel
A farm has stood at Brøddegade 31 since at least 1834. It burned down around 1911 and was rebuilt. Later it housed a haulier and a milk shop, and in 1938 it became Therns Hotel, named after hotel owner Aage Thern.
Skt. Jørgens Gaard – one of Denmark’s oldest youth hostels
Skt. Jørgens Gaard was a smallholding by the harbour. In the 1800s artillery lieutenant Adolf Nielsen lived here, and in 1887 merchant Harald Jørgensen had a shop in the farm. After a fire in 1930, merchant Jens Robert Hammer and master carpenter Viggo Pedersen opened a youth hostel here in 1932. Viggo Pedersen also built sledges for the polar explorer Ejnar Mikkelsen, whom the street is named after. For 90 years hikers, cyclists and school classes slept here. Today the farm is renovated in classic seaside-hotel style.
Timeline
1684 – Gudhjem’s fishermen ship soil from Grevens Dal to Christiansø so gardens can be laid out at the new fortress.
1834 – Alexander Tranberg runs the farm at Brøddegade 31, where Therns stands today.
1838 – Artillery lieutenant Adolf Nielsen buys the farm by the harbour, later Skt. Jørgens Gaard.
1887 – Merchant Harald Jørgensen has a shop in the farm by the harbour.
1906 – Master mason Sigfred Kristiansen builds the house in Grevens Dal. He is killed by a blast in a well.
1907 – His widow opens Pension Klippen for summer guests.
c. 1911 – The farm at Brøddegade 31 burns down and is rebuilt.
1916 – The railway reaches Gudhjem and brings more tourists to the town.
1930 – The farm by the harbour burns down.
1932 – Merchant Jens Robert Hammer and master carpenter Viggo Pedersen open Gudhjem Youth Hostel in Sct. Jørgens Gård.
1938 – Therns Hotel opens at Brøddegade 31.
2021 – Jannie and Martin Buch Thorborg buy Hotel Klippen in Grevens Dal.
2022 – Therns and Skt. Jørgens Gaard join, and the three houses become Klippen Hotel.
Do you know the story?
Do you have old photos or memories from Pension Klippen, Therns or the youth hostel? Write to info@hotelklippen.dk.
Historic photos: Gudhjem Museum / Local history archive in Gudhjem.
