When a friend of mine told me that he was moving to Stockholm in Sweden, I thought – Great! Another excuse for me to go on holiday again!
So I grabbed a mutual buddy and we booked a 3 night stay in Stockholm at the end of August. We hadn’t seen each other for a while so spent the majority of our time having a good old catch up whilst we wondered the city (hence the lack of photos).
Whilst we only scratched the surface and admittedly, visited the main tourist attractions, I have listed below some of the highlights of our trip that you cannot miss when visiting Stockholm.
1. Exploring Gamla Stan: the City’s Old Town
Gamla Stan is one of Europe’s best preserved Medieval cities and dates back to 1252 (now that’s old!). With its narrow cobbled streets and 17th/18th century multicoloured houses, I found that the best way to enjoy the town was to simply wonder around and take in its delightful charm.
2. Having Fika
Fika is defined as enjoying a coffee break with friends, accompanied with a treat. And it is a very big part of Swedish culture. Whilst I am not a coffee fan, I certainly enjoyed the treat and socialising aspect, where I indulged in far too many cinnamon buns; they are seriously to die for! When the weather was raining, Fika was a perfect way to stay warm and cosy.
3. Visiting the Vasa Museum
This museum took me by surprise as it was far more interesting than I thought it would be. It houses the Vasa; a preserved 17th century ship which sank in 1628 and was only recovered in 1961. It is the only ship of its kind in the world. Whilst the reason behind why it sank isn’t as juicy as one would expect, the museum also gives you a great insight into how the ship was built, what life was like at that time and how it was excavated.
4. Eating Swedish Meatballs (Köttbullar)
Obviously you cannot come to Sweden without trying their famous meatballs! (and they are so much better than Ikeas!) We learnt that most meatball dishes are served with potato puree, sweetened lingonberries and pickled cucumber, with a sort of creamy/gravy sauce. One notable place we visited was Meatballs for the People, which does a range of different animal meatballs, some more obscure than others. We opted for the ‘sharing is caring’ option where the chef chooses 4 different types of meatballs; we ended up with beef, reindeer, roe deer and boar.
5. Singing out of tune to Abba
It was purely worth it just to see the sheer look of absolute joy on my friends face! Jokes aside, you don’t need to be a superfan of Abba to enjoy this museum. It is light hearted and fun, with various interactive activities, a detailed history of the band and an endless supply of original stage outfits and records (for example) on display.
6. Visiting Fotografiska: Museum of Photography
This was an absolute first for us, having never even been to a photography museum at home. It displayed a series of fascinating exhibitions which completely blew us away. If you love photography, or even if you don’t, this is definitely a place worth visiting.
7. Admiring the view along Monteliusvägen
Monteliusvägen is a pathway which runs along the top of a cliff in the Södermalm district. It is a little further out from Stockholm’s city centre, but once you make the journey, you will not regret it. I provides beautiful views of the city, Gamla Stan and the lake.
