By Ferry

There are daily ferries to Finland (Helsinki and Turka) and Estonia (Tallinn). There are two main ferry companies: Silja Line ferries depart from Vartan port, about 500 metres from T Gärdet Station, and Viking Line services depart from Stadsgården, in the south of the city. There are buses from the City Terminal to both ports or you can take the Metro to Slussen Station.

Ferry services are very efficient and you can get comfortable cabins on the boats and enjoy some good food in the restaurants. The ferry to and from Helsinki is particularly popular for weekend visits and some of the scenery as you go by some tiny islands and towards the city is quite spectacular.

By Rail

Stockholm has excellent rail links, both within Sweden and to European destinations. Trains to Copenhagen (Denmark) take about 5 hours and run daily. To Oslo (Norway), there are two trains a day making the 6-hour journey. Trains to Gothenburg take between 3 and 4 and a half hours, depending on the service, and there is a fast train every hour throughout the day. The train to Malmo takes 4 hours and a half hours and there is one train every hour.

By Bus

Long distance buses and coaches to the city terminate at the City Terminal, next to Stockholm Central Station. Stockholm is on the Eurolines route, so there are a vast number of services to hundreds of destinations including Berlin, Amsterdam, Paris, Rome and London. Copenhagen to Stockholm takes about 8 hours by bus and the trip from Oslo takes about 7 hours and a half hours.

From the same terminal, there are domestic services to destinations all over Sweden, although there are only a few services to the far north of the country. There are regular buses to and from Malmo throughout the day and some night services, with the journey taking 6 to 7 hours. Similarly, there are daily services to Gothenburg and the journey is about 7 hours.

 Djurgarden

On an island reached from Stockholm's Strandvägen on the Djurgårdsbro lies Djurgården, a park laid out on the site of an earlier deer park which was a royal hunting preserve between the 16th and 18th centuries. In the park are a number of interesting museums.

At the north end of the park rises the Bredablick lookout tower, and to the east of this is the 19th century Rosendal Castle, a wooden building once occupied by King Carl XIV Johan and later converted into a Carl Johan Museum. To the south of the park is the Solliden restaurant, where concerts, displays of folk dancing and theatrical performances are given daily in summer. In this area too is Grönalund, a modern amusement park.

Wasa Museum

On the west side of Djurgårdsbro in Stockholm (also accessible from the city by boat) is the Wasa Museum, housing the warship "Wasa", which sank in Stockholm harbor on its maiden voyage in 1628 and was brought to the surface again in 1961. The "Wasa" was located on the seabed in 1956 at a depth of 32m/105ft, and work began three years later on recovering and preserving it. This was a large-scale operation for which entirely new techniques had to be devised. The vessel, 62m/200ft long, is the only completely preserved 17th century ship in the world. It is now displayed in its own museum, together with numerous items of equipment (everyday objects, carved ornaments, etc.). recovered from the vessel.

Stockholm Town Hall

On King's Island in Stockholm, on the shores of the Riddarfjärd, is the Town Hall (Stadshuset), a red brick building with green copper roofs which is the great landmark and emblem of Stockholm (by Ragnar Östberg, 1911-23). At the southeast corner of the building is a square tower crowned by an open lantern, on the tip of which (106m/350ft) are the three golden crowns of the Swedish coat of arms. From the platform below the bellcote (lift) there are fine views.

On the north front is the "Spectacle of St George", with mechanical figures which perform twice daily, at noon and 6pm, when the bells in the tower play "St George's Tune". At the foot of the east side of the tower, under a pillared canopy, can be seen a recumbent figure (by G. Sandberg) of Birger Jarl, founder of Stockholm.

Royal Palace

At the south end of the Norrbro, on the island of Stadsholm, is the Royal Palace (Kungliga Slottet), a building in Renaissance style designed by Nicodemus Tessin the Younger (d. 1728) and completed by his son K. G. Tessin. It occupies the site of a medieval Vasa castle destroyed by fire in 1697. The palace contains some 500 rooms decorated in Baroque and Roccoco style. On the first floor are the apartments occupied by King Oscar II (d. 1907), the Bernadotte Våning, on the second floor the state apartments (Festvåning) and guest rooms (Gästvåning). In the south wing are the chapel and the Hall of the Estates (Rikssal).

In the Treasury are the royal regalia,including the crown of Eric XIV. In the Armory are displayed magnificent suits of armor as well as coronation and ceremonial robes. Also in the palace are Gustavus III's Museum of Antique Sculpture and a museum containing models of the medieval castle (open only in summer).

Stockholm Cathedral

Beyond the Royal Palace in Stockholm, to the southwest, stands the Cathedral (Storkyrka). After its consecration in 1306 building work continued for another 200 years, and between 1736 and 1743 it was remodeled in Baroque style. Here the kings and queens of Sweden are married and crowned. The church has a richly furnished interior. Near the altar, which has a beautiful reredos of silver and ebony (ca. 1640), is a Gothic sculpture in polychrome wood of St George and the dragon by the Lübeck master Bernt Notke (d. 1509), presented to the Cathedral by Sten Sture, Regent of Sweden, to commemorate the Swedish victory over the Danes in the battle of Brunkeberg (1471). The organ is 18th century

April - September

July - September -> 22(°C) - Summer
January - March -> 0(°C) - Spring

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