PassPorter's
Article Tools |
| |
Stockholm, Sweden: Travel Featureby Cheryl Pendry, PassPorter Guest Contributor
Last modified 10/18/2007
| | |
Cool Tip: Click here to get a FREE PDF version of this article, fully formatted to print and put into your PassPorter Deluxe Binder!
Filed in Articles > International Travel > Traveling
Think of Sweden and chances are that you'll think of their most famous exports - perhaps ABBA, a familiar name to most people of a certain generation and nowadays, IKEA, the furniture store that's made it big worldwide. But there's much more to the country than that.
The capital, Stockholm, is in the southeast of Sweden and is built on 14 different islands, which separate the Baltic Sea from Lake Malaren. When we ventured there, it was mid summer. Summer in Sweden was an eye opener in itself. I don't know about you, but I always thought that the Scandinavian countries, like Sweden and Norway, were wintry places, cold most of the year round. Nothing could be further than the truth. During our visit, we experienced a heat wave with temperatures regularly in the high 80s and exceptionally long days, as they're so far north. It wasn't unusual for the sun to still be up after 10:00 pm.
Perhaps one of the first things that hits you about Stockholm is the beauty of the city, surrounded by water, which makes for some gorgeous picture postcard views. In fact, some of those views can be seen in some of the IKEA stores mentioned earlier, helping to promote the city as widely as possible.
The first stop on most people's list of places to visit here is the Royal Palace -- and with good reason. Although it's no longer the private residence of the King, it's got more than 600 rooms and lives up to any of the finest palaces in the world, such as Versailles in France, Buckingham Palace in London, or the Prince's Palace in Monaco. Highlights inside include the Hall of State, complete with Queen Kristina's silver throne and, as you'd expect, the State Apartments. These are still used for official functions and are full of beautiful finery. The Karl XI's gallery, where all the major meals are served, is modeled on the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles and is truly striking.
Outside the palace, it's well worth catching the Changing of the Guard ceremony that takes place every day at midday. The guards make an impressive picture as they march over one of the main bridges in Stockholm to head for the palace. They are an interesting sight, with uniforms that could definitely be described as built for work, rather than ceremony, with colors predominantly navy blue with striking silver helmets.
The Palace isn't just a place to view the various rooms -- it's also home to museums, including Gustav III's Museum of Antiquities, a wonderful collection of statues brought home by that king from his journey to Rome. The Treasury is a bit like the Tower of London, filled with the most important State regalia, including the fount that's used for royal baptisms and the crown, sceptre, orb, and keys of the kingdom.
Although the Royal Palace takes up a huge part of Gamla Stan -- the Old Town -- it's well worth some time to browse this area. As you turn every corner, you're greeted with more beautiful ancient buildings. Many places claim to have an Old Town, but Stockholm's definitely has history everywhere you turn.
A short walk from the palace but a couple of islands away, which gives you an idea of how water based this city is, you'll find the Stadshuset or City Hall. Completed in 1923, it contains the Council Chamber and the Blue Hall, which is where the annual Nobel Prize festivities take place. But perhaps the most stunning room here is the Golden Room -- and that's essentially what it is. It has something like 19 million fragments of gold leaf in it! You're taken on a tour, so time to linger in each room is limited. We could've stared all day in this room, taking in all the detail. It also offers some superb views back towards Gamla Stan.
As you'd expect from a city that's very much based on the water, another must-do on any visit to Stockholm is a boat ride around the city, which gives you a unique perspective. It's also the only way to easily travel to two of the other major visitor attractions in Stockholm. They're located on the island of Djurgarden, which, as the name suggests is a huge natural park and garden area, although it started life as a Royal hunting ground. Today that's where you'll find both the Vasamuseet and Skansen.
If your Swedish isn't that great, Vasamuseet is the Museum of the Vasa, which was a Royal warship that capsized in Stockholm harbor in 1628. It was found on the seabed in 1956 and after a major salvage and conservation program; it was finally put in its own museum, which opened to the public in 1990. Essentially the museum is built around the ship and it's kept fairly dark to help preserve it. You can walk around different levels of the museum, each giving different views of the ship, with exhibitions all around, explaining about life in Sweden at that time and life on board the Vasa itself.
It's a fascinating place and, looking at the ship, it's hard to believe it is actually the real thing and not a very good replica, so good is the standard of the preservation. Highlights include the stern, which has been painstakingly restored to how it would have originally looked and the figureheads on the ship, both giving some indication of the beauty of the Vasa when it first set sail.
Quite a walk away is Skansen, which celebrates life gone by. When it opened in 1891, it was the world's first open air museum. Today it's home to houses and cottages from the past, along with craftsmen, including glass blowers and shoemakers, demonstrating work from the 19th century. But perhaps one of the biggest draws here, especially for the younger members of the family, is the animals. When we were there, we were lucky enough to see the brown bear cubs, only a few months old, and they were truly delightful. It was also the closest we've ever been to creatures like wolves and elk and it was quite an eye opener to see them so close up.
We spent three days in Stockholm and came away with plenty of places that we didn't get time to see, such as Drottingholm, the actual home of the Royal family today, and the Archipelago, the outer islands of Stockholm with their traditional wooden houses, linked to the main city center by frequent boat and even steamboat services.
If you thought that Sweden was just about winter, ABBA, and IKEA, then Stockholm will definitely change your mind. It's packed full of history and things to do and see and is definitely somewhere that's well worth a few days of your time.
About the Author: Cheryl and husband Mark live in England and love to travel, particularly to Disney, and they have made numerous visits to destinations across America and Europe. They recently completed their tour of every Disney theme park around the world, which culminated in their visit to Japan, including the Tokyo Disney Resort. Click here to view more of Cheryl's articles!
Related Links:
Traveling Carry-On to Walt Disney World - Avoid Those Baggage Fees last updated 3/2/2011
New York City - Something Old, Something New last updated 01/02/2009
On the Road to Walt Disney World - Doing "The Drive" last updated 01/20/2009
Airline Security - 10 Important Tips and Reminders last updated 1/21/2009
Sick at Sea - (But Not Sea Sick!) last updated 5/14/2009
Reader Comments:
View all comments in forum thread
So what do you think? Click here to share your comments, feedback, and experiences on this article and topic!
(Note: You must be a member of our PassPorter Message Board Community to leave comments. Join today for free!)
Updated 10/18/2007 - Article #220
Read additional articles from PassPorter.com
|
Subscribe to our free e-mail newsletter, PassPorter News, published for more than 50,000 opt-in subscribers worldwide.
As an added bonus for subscribing, you will receive a 20% discount coupon for the PassPorter Store -- no catch!
We respect your privacy and never sell or rent our subscriber list. Subscribing will not result
in more spam! We guarantee it.
|
Copyright 1999-2011
by PassPorter Travel Press, an imprint of MediaMarx, Inc.
| | | LEARN MORE |
Learn More With Our Award-Winning Guidebooks
|
RSS General
PassPorter Community - Boards & Forums on Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disn...
Planning a trip around the globe, or just away for the weekend? Ask questions and share experiences!
Forum Sponsored by CruisingCo.com
Cruising Questions??
by kingfamily1129
31 Jan 2012 at 8:31pm
Hello everyone!!
So, my DH just surprised me by telling me we are going on a 3 day cruise to the Bahamas for our Anniversary in June!! YAY!!!...
(click title above to view replies)
DC's Chinatown
by Carousel96
31 Jan 2012 at 10:09am
This may be the narrowest, most specific question ever, but I know my PP'r friends can help.
DD and I will be in DC this summer. She wants to go...
(click title above to view replies)
Gatlinburg in April
by Wendyismyname
17 Jan 2012 at 7:11pm
We are heading down to Gatlinburg for our first time, finally! We have put this off for so many years and I am looking forward to it.
We have...
(click title above to view replies)
Kid friendly Philly?
by Suzie&Jay
16 Jan 2012 at 12:16pm
DH and I are planning a log weekend road trip to Philadelphia, stopping at the Crayola factory on the way :) we have 3 kids; DD 5, DS 3 and DD 18...
(click title above to view replies)
Where in the U.S. is it nice in September?
by Disneybine
14 Jan 2012 at 3:50pm
If we were to travel anywhere in the (continental) U.S. in September, where would we find the best weather?
We like sunshine, temperatures in the...
(click title above to view replies)
A trip to D.C.
by pago
13 Jan 2012 at 12:17pm
I would love any suggestions on where to stay in Washington DC with two kids ages 11 and 17.
Thanks in advance.
(click title above to view replies)
grand canyon
by cburke
10 Jan 2012 at 4:24pm
We would like to go to the grand canyon but not sure where we like to stay. Our budget is tight and I was thinking of a cabin but not sure how their...
(click title above to view replies)
DC off the beaten path
by Carousel96
10 Jan 2012 at 10:47am
I've gone to DC for a conference every year since 1990 and my roommates and I manage to fit in some sightseeing every year. So we've seen all the...
(click title above to view replies)
Tell me about your last non-Disney vacation in the US!
by Disneybine
6 Jan 2012 at 8:23am
Hi guys, I'd love to hear about your last trip you took *in the U.S. that wasn't Disney-related:*
1) Where did you go?
2) How long did you stay?...
(click title above to view replies)
Total Visits: 1193
|
