Tag: Stockholm

Travelin’ Man’s Guide to Stockholm

This is an index of all of the current Stockholm activities and places that I have documented. More are being added every week, so be sure to sign up for notifications at the bottom of the page so you will get notified when I add a new article.

Each entry below has a thumbnail image with the name and a description of the attraction. If you want to see the Travelin’ Man’s detailed article of that attraction in a separate window, simply click on the underlined text.

The attractions are grouped by which island they are on. The amount of time for each attraction is given. Use those two pieces of information to help plan a day of sightseeing in and around this beautiful city.

Archipelago

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Fjäderholmarna [2-3 Hrs] Stockholm’s closest archipelago island, and the 30 minute boat ride was scenic and relaxing. It leaves from the Strandvägen ferry terminal. There are several great restaurants to choose from, some scenic walking trails, and a blacksmith that makes jewelry right on the island.

 

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Vaxholm Dinner Cruise [3 Hrs] The cruise goes non-stop from Stockholm to the beautiful Vaxholm. You really can’t go wrong here, the dinner, drinks and cruise were all excellent; we and everyone around us had a marvelous time.

 

Lake Mälaren

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Drottningholm Palace Cruise [4-5 Hrs] Ok, spoiler alert here, in case you haven’t already heard, Drottningholm Palace (aka Summer Palace) is one of the nicest palaces in all the land! It is in this palace that the royal family actually lives.

 

 

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Skokloster Palace – [8-9 Hrs] It’s a boat ride from Stockholm to the Skokloster palace and back. Experience the breathtaking beauty of lake Mälaren’s shoreline. On board cafeteria and bar, and the trip includes an onboard tour guide who will call out noteworthy sights along the way.

 

Djurgården

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Skansen [4-5 Hrs] It’s a museum, a zoo, and a historical town replica. It’s all of those things and all outdoor. There are some rides and activities for children. It also offers some fantastic views of Stockholm.

 

 

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Vasa Museum [2-3 Hrs] This museum displays an almost perfectly preserved ship that sank off the coast of Stockholm in 1628. They claim that it is the worlds only fully preserved 17th century ship. And it is completely intact.

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The Viking Museum [1 Hr] The big challenge for museums is how to present their wealth of information in a way that will be interesting, and also to present it in a way that you will remember it. The Viking Museum does a pretty good job at both of these things.

 

 

 Gamla Stan

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Rooftop Tour [2 Hrs] Walk around on the roof of the old parliament house, eight stories up! Get a full 360 degree view with no windows, walls, or barriers. And the guides give great historical perspective on what you’re looking at.

 

IMG_2817Stockholm Free Walking Tour [2 Hrs] It’s definitely a tour worth taking, even for locals since you probably walk right past a lot of this stuff but don’t know its history.

 

 

Norrmalm

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Under the Bridges Boat Tour [2 Hrs 15 Mins] I listed this one under Norrmalm even though it cruises around Södermalm because the tour departs from the main island. This one was just ok, and didn’t get a good rating. Some good tour information on architecture and history.

 

 

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Stockholm – Intellectual, fashionable, and very cultural. More than 100 museums, some world renowned. Picturesque, stately beauty of a city on the Baltic. Magnificent palaces, exquisite restaurants, unforgettable boat tours. By mid summer, over 18 hours of daylight per day!

 

Södermalm

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Segway Tour [2 Hrs] We had a nice route that took us around Södermalm. I say it was a nice route because they kept us away from the heavy traffic areas and we had limited big intersections to get through.

 

Other

IMG_8163Hagaparken [All day] This is a massive and beautiful sprawling park across the lake from The Stockholm University campus. Not only is it a gorgeous display of nature, but it also has the Haga Palace, King Gustav III’s Pavillion, botanical gardens, a Chinese pavilion and gardens, a Turkish Kiosk, and it is also the site of the Swedish Royal Burial Grounds.

 

 

 

Djurgården Itinerary

UNDER CONSTRUCTION – This is a two day itinerary. Day one is complete, day two is in progress.

Djurgården is a large island a bit south and east of Stockholm proper. The entire island is practically one giant playground for tourists (and locals too). There are a lot of primo things to do here, so you should allow a minimum of two days. And that’s only to do the things I’m recommending, you could very easily spend more time here. So this is a proposed itinerary for you to cover all of the highlights of Djurgården in two days. Below I will summarize each attraction. Note that you can click on the BLUE titles, and a new page will open with a more complete description of that activity.

Remember when planning your days that by mid summer, Stockholm has over 18 hours of daylight per day. Up with the sun means around 3am! But it doesn’t set until after 10pm, so take your time and get a good breakfast before heading out. You should also take some time here to review your maps and see where everything is and the routes you will be taking. Especially if you don’t have a European data package and are using wifi at your hotel.

Djurgården Day One

Start day one at the Vasa Museum. It opens at 8:30, plan on getting there around 9am. Take your time. Definitely start with the movie then do the guided tour. After that, spend time on all 5 floors observing some really amazing exhibits. It takes a couple of hours to get it all.

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Vasa Museum. This museum displays an almost perfectly preserved ship that sank off the coast of Stockholm in 1628. They claim that it is the worlds only fully preserved 17th century ship. And it is completely intact.

 

Once that’s done, it should be pretty close to lunch time. If not, you are already in the middle of an amazingly beautiful part of Stockholm, so walk around and explore a bit. From your morning review, you should already have an idea of where you want to get lunch. There are some outstanding places to eat in this area. Some are further into the park than others and offer a magnificent outdoor dining experience in the park setting.

One of our favorite places to eat in this area is Ulla Windblabh. It’s a little on the pricey side, but the food, wine, and great atmosphere are well worth it. But look around and find a place that works for you. Chill out, unwind, and recharge since you will be doing a lot of walking on the next phase.

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Skansen Park. It’s a museum, a zoo, and a historical town replica. It’s all of those things and all outdoor. There are some rides and activities for children. It also offers some fantastic views of Stockholm.

 

This is the last activity I have planned for you today. That leaves you plenty of time for a happy hour and a great dinner somewhere. I will eventually be creating a restaurant guide to Stockholm, so stay tuned for that. Sign up for a notification when it’s done by clicking the follow button at the bottom.

Djurgården Day Two

 

Vasa Museum

This attraction is located on Djurgården island. To do it Proper, it takes about two hours. It is all indoor. If you want help planning your days on Stockholm and to include this as part of that, go to the Stockholm button at the top and select Djurgården->Djurgården Itinerary. Or click here and I’ll take you there.

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The museum opens at 8:30am most days. This museum displays an almost perfectly preserved ship that sank off the coast of Stockholm in 1628. They claim that it is the worlds only fully preserved 17th century ship. And it is completely intact.

IMG_2712And wow does it ever have a story to tell, you won’t even believe it! As you approach the museum, you will see some very tall masts coming from the building. This is an effect to show how tall it would be if sitting in the water.

Definitely do the free guided tour (English) on this one and allow at least a couple of hours to take it all in. Unlike most museums in Stockholm, this one isn’t free, but it’s pretty cheap and worth every cent (or SEK haha).

 

Skansen

Skansen

 

Recommendation

The Travelin’ Man’s Overall Recommendation: VERY GOOD*
(surprisingly good, exceeding on some levels)

  • What did I like the most: old houses and scenic views
  • What is the biggest area for improvement: speed up the line getting in

Logistics

Skansen is located on Djurgården island. The island is full of great things to do. I have detailed a two day plan that will help insure you hit all the highlights of Djurgården . To see that, go to the top and select the Stockholm button. Then select Djurgården->Djurgården Itinerary. Or click here and I’ll take you there.

You should allow a minimum of 4-5 hours to see all the exhibits and attractions in Skansen, but if everything is open and/or you have kids, it could easily take the whole day.

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The Park

I’m not sure if I should call this a museum, a zoo, or a historical town replica. It’s all of those things and all outdoor, so be sure to check the weather before you go up. It also offers some great views of Stockholm:

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In my mind, Skansen can be logically broken down into three main areas:

  1. An outdoor mini-zoo.
  2. Historic homestead exhibits.
  3. Food and kiddie activities.

The zoo exhibits display some of the animals of Sweden: reindeer, moose, sheep, etc. There’s a pretty decent brown bear exhibit.

The houses and shops for the homesteads were relocated from areas all around Sweden. They are well documented, so you will know what you’re looking at. Some of them have people working in them, dressed in the garb from that era. Blacksmith, furniture shop, bakery, etc. Very educational and well presented.

IMG_2739Lots of good food up in the food area. Sort of like an outdoor food court. But no chain restaurants here, mostly classic Swedish food, and hamburgers and hot dogs type of stuff. There’s some bumper cars and electric (railed) cars and other kiddie rides.

If the weather is not so good, consider going to the Nordic Museum instead. If you do go to Skansen, take your time and absorb it all.

* Each area is rated on a scale 1-5, with 1 = poor, 3 = good, 5 = exceptional
How did this do compared to what I had expected: 4
How well were the logistics handled: 3
Was the staff helpful and friendly: 4
Overall execution and presentation: 3
Total score: 14

4 – 8 is POOR (was not at all what I expected and/or was not worth the time/money)
9 – 10 is OK (quality of the experience was a little low, but I enjoyed it)
11 – 12 is GOOD (met expectations, would recommend, would do again)
13 – 15 is VERY GOOD (surprisingly good, exceeding on some levels)
16 – 20 is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED (outperformed my expectations, great value)

 

Stockholm

Stockholm

 

Stockholm, Sweden (stats courtesy Wikipedia)
Pop City Proper: 935,619
Metro Pop: 2,226,795
Municipality: 188 km2 (73 sq mi)
Density: 5,000/km2 (13,000/sq mi)
Elevation: 0 m (0 ft)
Weather: Very cold winters, mild summers
Warm season: May – Sep
Language: Swedish, English is very common
Currency: Even though Sweden is in the EU, they do not accept the euro or any currency other than the Swedish crown (SEK). But they are very modern in that all restaurants, grocery stores, etc prefer credit card over cash.

What’s so special?
Intellectual, fashionable, and very cultural. More than 100 museums, some world renowned. Picturesque, stately beauty of a city on the Baltic. Magnificent palaces, exquisite restaurants, unforgettable boat tours. By mid summer, over 18 hours of daylight per day!

As you may know by now, my wife and I are US expats currently living in Stockholm. So this particular journal is not just for tourists visiting Stockholm, but also for locals looking for things to do and ideas for day trips.

There is so much to do in Stockholm that I can’t possibly just lump it all under one journal called Stockholm. So I have put together an index of all the places I have documented so far (and the list keeps growing). Please click below to see the index:

The Travelin’ Man’s Guide to Stockholm

I will also be setting up a journal under Sweden called Stockholm Restaurants. Whether you’re a tourist or you live in Stockholm, and you are looking for things to do, definitely click on the follow button below since I am adding a lot of Stockholm material. This way you would be notified, but only when I add something new.