Sweden is a country I’ve been to as a child as well as an adult.
So the first time was as a 10-year old (or something like that) in summer to probably south Sweden with my parents and sister. The only place I remember is Mora and its lakes, where I tried out a canoe for the first time. I also remember seeing a moose and getting eaten alive by the many mosquitoes.
The second time was in 2012 during my semester abroad in Aarhus Denmark in November. During that time, I joined the infamous ‘booze cruise’ from Stockholm to Tallinn and back. After that, I traveled to the north and hitchhiked at least from Luleå to Gällivare via the Jokmokk road. In Gällivare, I ran into the Cross Country Skiing World Cup. From there, I hitchhiked to Kiruna, where I drove the skimobile of my driver who hosted me.
I crossed the border into Norway to Narvik with a plan to visit Lofoten, but then I received the message that my absent grandpa had passed away, so I hitchhiked back to Kiruna, took the train to Stockholm, and tried hitchhiking to Copenhagen (which failed). I ended up on a bus to Göteborg where I took the ferry to Frederikshavn in Denmark and hitchhiked back to my town Aarhus. Perhaps one day I’ll write a better story about this instead of just dumping this info here. Anyway!
Things I’d Like to Do Next Time in Sweden
- Revisit Stockholm and go sea kayaking in the archipelago. Also, I’d love to visit the Rådhuset metro station, which looks spectacular.
- Hitchhike even more. It’s a good country for long distances! Also, I should retry to hitchhike an icebreaker across the Gulf of Bothnia. And if not an icebreaker, then hitchhike with someone on one of the two ice roads.
- During summer travels, I’d love to hike the Kungsleden trail and maybe even hike up the highest peak called Kebnekaise (masl 2096)
- More kayaking. There must be some nice rivers or lakes to kayak at. I’m looking at the Lule River that passes the Rapa Valley, the Kalix River, the Torne between Sweden and Finland, and the longest river in Scandinavia: Klarälven (460km), shared with Norway.
- Also lakes, such as Vänern with the island Torsö. Also, Mälaren is full of islands former islands such as Munsö. Both look like kayaking fun.
- Revisit areas in Swedish Lappland with more attention and learn more about the Sámi way of life.
- During the winter, experience the northern lights again.
- Revisit Kiruna and see if the town has finally moved away from the mine. Back in 2012, I felt the nightly minor planned earthquakes from the explosions.
- Some natural areas, such as Döda Fallet, Korrallgrottan, and Hoverberget cave. Then some historical areas, such as Boden Fortress, Struve Geodetic Arc, the five funicular railways, Norsjö ropeway, and R1 nuclear reactor. Some remote places such as the three-country border between Sweden, Finland, Ladonia micronation, Norway and the Strömstad area nearby Norway.
- Visit some UNESCO World Heritage sites, such as Karlskrona (looks good for sailing!), Stora Alvaret in Öland, and the High Coast
- Travel to as many beautiful lighthouses and cool islands as possible:
- The island of Ven between Denmark and Sweden. It has old observatories, hence the inclusion on this list
- The massive Gotland. It has the Lummelunda Cave. The town of Visby is also a world heritage site.
- Nearby Gotska Sandön, which is a national park and uninhabited
- Nearby Fårö, which is inhabited and looks absolutely stunning
- And Stora Karlsö, the second-oldest nature reserve in the world plus nearby Lilla Karlsö
- Yacht-friendly Tjörn near Göteborg
- The Haparanda Archipelago and its national park
- Ljusterö and Ornö nearby Stockholm
- Mjältön
- Alnön
- Visingsö
- Holmöarna archipelago nearby Umeå. In winter, when the ice can’t be broken by a ship, there is sometimes a connection with a hydrocopter. There’s also a ferry (€38 in 2022) from Umeå to Vaasa in Finland across the super shallow Kvarken Strait
- The Koster Islands
- Then take the ferry to Åland and see if it’s possible to visit Märket from there
- Do some urban exploring at abandoned airports and other places. On my radar are: one near Fällfors, Bakraby airport, Malmö harbor heliport and Tullinge airforce airfield. Most abandoned airports in Sweden used to be military and some even had underground/rock hangars like the public one at the Aeroseum nearby Göteborg.
If you know cool places and things to do in Sweden or if you are Swedish, comment at the bottom of this page so I can always find your suggestions again once I start plotting my return!
Are you a travel blogger and do you have good posts about Sweden? Drop them in a comment below and I’ll read them!
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