Our shortest trip so far turned out to be Stockholm – the capital city of Sweden. It’s a modern city with many historic sites too. We managed to visit it in one day, arriving in the early morning and going back in the evening the same day. We visited this city during our summer holidays and got to know the sunny side of Scandinavia. Check our travel guide – what to do in Stockholm to get up-to-date info.
How To Get In Stockholm
FLIGHT
Although Skavsta airport is far from the city and shuttles are rather expensive, it’s worth to take a look on it as it has interesting and budget connections with many European cities operated by Ryanair and Wizz Air. They will take you to Stockholm from Spain, France, Italy, UK, Germany, Poland, Belgium, Ukraine, Malta, Latvia and a few Balkan countries.
On the other hand, Arlanda is the main airport in Stockholm and in fact in the whole Sweden. It’s closer to the city but serves mostly traditional carries. However, low cost flights can be found there as well e.g. Norwegian Air Shuttle has wide network to many capital cities in Europe.
OUR ROUTE
Gdansk – Stockholm Skavsta – Gdansk (Wizz Air, $22 RT)
FROM AIRPORT TO THE CITY
Skavsta airport – Stockholm Central Station (Stockholm Cityterminalen) – Skavsta airport (Flygbussarna airport couches, 278 SEK (approx. $31) online RT, coordinated with every flight, takes 80 minutes)
If there are more people than available seats on a Flygbussarna bus, the next bus arrives immediately to take the rest of passengers.
Arlanda airport – Stockholm Central Station (Stockholm Cityterminalen) – Arlanda airport (Flygbussarna airport couches, 198 SEK (approx. $24) online RT, goes every 10 minutes, takes 45-50 minutes)
How To Get Around Stockholm
You can visit main attractions of Stockholm on foot, so there’s no need to buy expensive tickets for public transport.
If you need to take metro here are ticket prices:
single ticket (one zone): 36 SEK (approx. $4)
24h travelcard: 115 SEK (approx. $13)
This city is also friendly to bike riders. See the photo below:
What To Do In Stockholm
Almost all touristic traffic is concentrated in the city center called locally Gamla stan. If you are wondering what to do in Stockholm, here are our advices on how you can organize your time there. Enjoy!
STOCKHOLM CITY HALL (STADSHUSET)
The building of the Municipal Council of Stockholm with ceremonial halls and conference rooms. The Nobel Prize banquet is held there every year.
Also there’s a possibility to go at the top of the City Hall Tower, but it’s opened only from May to September. Tickets cost 50 SEK (approx. $6) and can be bought only on the day of the visit. To make matters worse, after breaking through 365 steps, the time of being 106 meters above the ground is limited – maybe to something about 20 minutes.
THE ROYAL PALACE (KUNGLIGA SLOTTED)
The representative palace of the Swedish monarch with 1430 rooms! Visiting inside includes 3 parts of the palace: Royal Apartments, the Treasury and the Tre Kronor Museum. During peak season also Gustav III’s Museum of Antiquities is in the price. Ticket price: 150 SEK (approx. $17), for students 75 SEK (approx. $8).
VASA MUSEUM (VASAMUSEET)
There’s the only preserved 17th century ship in the world. It sank in 1628 and was salvaged over 300 years later in 1961. 95% of the presented wrack is original. Ticket price: 130 SEK (approx. $14.50), for students 100 SEK (approx. $12).
DROTTNINGHOLM PALACE
The residence where Swedish Royal Family actually live. Despite that, a vast part of the palace is open to the visitors. It’s located on the suburbs of Stockholm on the island called Lovön. That’s why getting there may require a little effort. From the center (e.g. Gamla Stan station or T-Centralen station) you need to take the metro Line 18 in the direction of Hässelby Strand or metro Line 17 in the direction of Åkeshov and get off at Brommaplan station. Then switch to one of the following buses: no. 176 / 177 / 302 / 303 / 309 / 311 / 312 / 317 / 323 (they depart every few minutes) and get off at Drottningholm stop – it’s next to the Palace.
Admission to the Palace: 130 SEK (for students – 65 SEK). From May to September the ticket to the Palace can be extended and include visiting The Chinese Pavilion as well – 190 SEK in total (for students – 90 SEK).
Before your visit check if/when the Palace is open for tourists as it depands on the season and may change frequently. Here’s the link to the official website: CLICK HERE
Sleeping, Eating, Safety and Other Tips
SLEEPING
Finding a place to sleep in Stockholm is always an expensive case. Cheapest doubles rooms go for $60-70. Beds in hostels for $20-25. But be quick – best deals sell out even months before the arrival date.
EATING
Cheap dinner in Stockholm means around 100 SEK (approx. $12). Try to buy food out of the city center (Gamla stan) to get much lower prices. Stores close to touristic spots are a real rip-off.
SAFETY
Stockholm is generally a safe city. However, there are signs and information campaigns about pickpockets in the center of Stockholm and in public transport.
OTHER TIPS
Almost everywhere in the city you can pay by card. Swedes pay a big attention to modern ways of making payments.
Although there are plenty of possibilities on what to do in Stockholm, it’s worth to go there even for only one day – to see the most famous attractions and feel the city :)
How much does it cost? (per person)
flight tickets RT: $22
airport shuttle RT: 278 SEK (approx. $31)
City Hall Tower: 50 SEK (approx. $6)
The Royal Palace: 75 SEK (approx. $8)
food spending: $20
TOTAL for the whole trip (1 day): $87
And that’t all of our advices on what to do in Stockholm. We hope, we encouraged you to go there. If you are scared of the cold just like us, it’s a reasonable option to visit the capital city of Sweden in summer :) And finally, what attractions of Stockholm would you like to see the most? Please write us in a comment below!