Bessheim is a traditional mountain lodge at 964 metres, right by the lake Øvre Sjodalsvatnet. It's one of the classic fjellstuer in this part of Norway, and it's been run by the same family for five generations.
The place started as a seter, a summer mountain farm, for the Nordgard Storvik farm down in Vågå. In the late 1800s, Kari Storvik began offering food and a place to sleep to the early mountain tourists who were discovering this area, partly thanks to Ibsen's Peer Gynt. She built the first proper tourist building in 1890. The family kept both cows and guests for decades, but by the early 1960s, tourism had become more profitable than farming, so the animals finally gave way to people. Some of the original seter buildings are still standing, including one you can rent as a cabin.
Today the lodge has around 30 buildings with 170 beds, plus a restaurant known for traditional Norwegian food using local ingredients: reindeer from Vågå Tamrein, elk and deer from local hunters, and trout from the nearby fishing waters.
The lodge even has its own power supply. The family built a small hydroelectric plant in the river Bessa back in 1948. The water comes from Bessvatnet, 400 metres higher up, and drops down into Øvre Sjodalsvatnet. So when you shower at Bessheim, you're showering in water from Bessvatnet.
For hikers, Bessheim is a good base. Gjendesheim and the Besseggen trail are only about 5 kilometres away. You can also hike from here to Bessvatnet and the boundary of Jotunheimen National Park, with views up to Besshø at 2258 metres. In winter, they groom cross-country ski trails connecting Bessheim with Hindsæter, Gjendesheim, and Besseggen Fjellpark.