Stockholm, Sweden holiday travel

The picture below was taken while on holiday in 1985 from the island of Skepsholmen looking across at the upmarket neighbourhood of Strandvagen in Stockholm, Sweden.

The image says nothing in particular but hopefully captures in black and white some of the stately elegance of Stockholm you'll enjoy if your travels lead you to a holiday in Sweden.

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Sweden holiday travel will take you through a diverse kaleidoscope of spectacular landscapes with picturesque mountains, vast forests, wide fertile plains, nearly 100,000 lakes and plenty of rivers providing a cheap supply of hydro-electric power.

Take note when you buy your flight ticket or train booking that Sweden has chosen not to participate in the euro zone and still uses the kroner as currency. The Swedish kroner is divided into 100 ore.

If you don't mind a bit of rough holiday travel, it's possible to survive in Sweden on less than US$40 a day for supermarket food and a cheap hotel, youth hostel or similar accommodation. But your daily expenditure rises rapidly for travel extras such as transport and venue admission costs.

A more realistic no-frills travel budget is US$80 a day. Travel in Sweden is not cheap and it's worthwhile planning carefully to keep your holiday costs down.

If a friend, relative or even a stranger has a spare bedroom or other holiday accommodation, you'll save a fortune by not having to book a hotel room or dormitory in a youth hostel.

Alternatively, camping in the forests of Sweden is legal and free.

If you've found a cheap flight and will be flying in to enjoy your Sweden holiday travel, the main international airport is Arlanda - about half an hour north of Stockholm by bus.

Sweden has a modern, fast and efficient train and bus system ensuring your holiday travel is of a high standard. The roads are also top quality, although bicycles aren't allowed on motorways.

Scenic cyclepaths criss-cross the countryside and an international drivers license is necessary if you hire a car to travel in Sweden.

Sweden's landscape is a patchwork of beautiful forests and enormous lakes while Stockholm itself is an alluring blend of progressive architecture and village ambience.

The 700 year old Swedish capital of Stockholm is widely regarded as one of Europe's most beautiful cities in which to travel. It is protected from the vagaries of the Baltic Sea by an archipelago of more than 24,000 islands and rocky outcrops.

The archipelago is usually blanketed with an average 20cm of ice during much of winter, when cheap travel can be particularly uncomfortable without warm accommodation in a hotel or youth hostel.

Stockholm is thought to have been founded in 1236.

Also known as the City of Bridges, Stockholm is built onto 14 islands within Lake Maelar. Numerous ferries and pleasure craft navigate her waterways, making travel through the city an aquatic delight.

The old town of Stockholm is called Gamla Stan and is situated on the island of Stadsholmen. Gamla Stan is an entrancing time-capsule community of medieval lanes, stairways, arches and crooked houses, plus the magnificent Royal Palace of Sweden completed in 1760 (freely accessible for tourists to explore corridors and cellars full of crown jewels, costumes and other regal paraphernalia).

Gamla Stan is compact and you should be able to explore most of its nuances within a single day of your vacation. A 700 year old cathedral is a highlight, as are the impossibly narrow streets and laneways of this old quarter. One lane is just 90 centimetres wide.

The larger eastern island of Djurgarden has plenty of relaxing parkland as well as an assortment of unique museums and a zoo that can occupy a full day of travel.

Many buildings constructed in the 18th century have red-brown facades. Yellow-brown was in vogue a century later. The soft northern light provides wonderful colour tints to the buildings of Stockholm, mostly of a golden hue.

South of Gamla Stan is the smaller island of Sodermalm, traditionally a working-class district but becoming increasingly upmarket.

You'll spend much of your holiday travel in Stockholm admiring the city's architecture.

During your holiday in Sweden you'll discover that Stockholm has many picturesque town squares, perhaps the most famous being Stortorget where many of the city's leaders were beheaded by Danish invaders in 1520, the site being used for public executions and floggings in following years.

Other "must see" tourist attractions during your travel in Stockholm include the stately City Hall, the open-air museum of Skansen, Drottingholm Palace, the National Museum containing work by artists such as Monet, Rembrandt, Renoir and van Gogh, and the salvaged 1628 warship Vasa at the Vasa Museum.

In the spring of 2009, ABBA the Museum will open in a 100 year old custom warehouse on the south quay of central Stockholm. The building will be dedicated to the band ABBA and is expected to become one of Europe's most popular tourism drawcards.

A handy way to cut holiday travel costs is with a Stockholm Card, available from tourist centres, hotels or the internet. The card offers one-time entry to 75 museums and attractions, boat rides, parking and unlimited public transport. The Stockholm Card covers 24, 48 and 72 hours, for adults costing 290 kroners (US$45), 420 kroners (US$65) and 540 kroners (US$84). For children, the Stockholm card for children costs 120 kroners ($US18.60), 160 kroners ($US24.80) or 190 kroners ($US29.50) (Oct 2007 prices).

Stockholm is a city where it's best to walk rather than drive and you should set aside at least three days, preferably five, if you want to see all the best sights.

Sweden's second largest city is Gothenburg, home to the Volvo. Gothenburg, on the west coast of Sweden and with a population just over 500,000, enjoys little sun during its winter months. The city has excellent public transport, most people preferring trams. Shops usually open at 10am and the city's central market is called Saluhallen. The city museum, known as Goteborgs Stadsmuseum, has English translations on most of its displays and its admission price includes entry to the Maritime Museum, Aquarium, Art Museum and Design and Art Museum. The Gothenburg Maritime Museum has 19 vessels and is the largest ship museum in the world. A great way to see the city is from the harbour, river and canals aboard a Paddan Boat Tours vessel.

The oldest town in Sweden is Sigtuna, between Stockholm and the university town of Uppsalam. Sigtuna is home to about 6500 people and is believed to have once been the seat of Christian Viking kings, the region dotted with historic Viking artefacts dating back more than a thousand years.

Another great Swedish attraction is the medieval city of Kalmar on the Baltic Sea, one of Sweden's most important settlements from the 13th to the 17th centuries. Kalmar has a magnificent 800 year old castle which is Scandinavia's best-preserved Renaissance palace. The cobble-stone streets of Kalmar wind through historic forts, houses and churches, including a cathedral built betwen 1660 and 1700 and regarded as the finest baroque church in Sweden. Worth exploring is the Kalmar Lans Museum, which houses salvaged treasure and remains of the 17th century Kronan, a 53 metre man-of-war Swedish warship discovered in 1980 at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. Kalmar is about four hours by train from from Copenhagen and about five hours by train from Stockholm.

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Farming communities settled in Sweden around 3000BC to 4000BC and rock paintings from this era survive in various locations around the country.

From about 50BC the Swedes began travelling by sea to trade with the Roman Empire, preceding their Viking travel raids along the coasts of England and parts of Europe from 800 to 1100AD.

Pagan gods were worshipped until the 11th century when Christianity began to shape Sweden's culture.

Sweden, Denmark and Norway were joined under the Union of Kalmar during the 1400s until the Swedes broke away under King Gustaf Vasa to create a centralised state economy. Constitutional rule took hold in the 1800s, as did advanced industrial development.

Sweden declared its neutrality in World War I but the ravages of war and the depression led to civic revolt which saw the introduction of social democratic political and economic policies from the early 1930s till the 1970s, focusing on a welfare state.

Since then, Sweden's political mandate and economic policies have swung from left to right.

Sweden is one of the largest countries you'll explore during your holiday travel through Europe.

It covers 450,000 square kilometres and is home to about 8.9 million people, of whom about 750,000 live in Stockholm. The official religion is Lutheran.

Sweden has a 7,000 kilometre coastline dissected by numerous narrow fjords, particularly in the west and around Stockholm.

If your holiday travel takes you to the northern half of Sweden, you'll find a sparsely populated region blanketed by forest, rivers and lakes. The dominant wildlife are deer, fox and moose.

The most scenic area for hiking is Sareks National Park, although the terrain is a bit hazardous for holiday travel.

At the height of the summer holiday season, some good swimming beaches can be found east of Uppsala. If you're into diving, travel to the east coast of Sweden.

Swedes love their outdoor sports and the country has produced a disproportionate number of tennis, ice hockey, skiing and soccer champions.

There are various ski centres and resorts at Siljan, Vastmanland and Stockholm for travelers who enjoy downhill or cross-country skiing.

Two staples of the Swedish diet are fish and potatoes.

More than four fifths of the Swedish population live in cities and most Swedes speak English as a second language.

Albeit steeped in romantic history and storybook castle spires, Sweden is a technologically advanced country and has brought the world various famous icons such as the Volvo, the fridge, the zip, the ball bearing, the monkey wrench and even the computer mouse which is probably near your hand as you read this.

Citizens of most western countries can travel into Sweden without a visa for up to 90 days, although there is no holiday time limit on citizens from other Nordic countries.

Sweden is fanatically hygienic and travel vaccinations aren't necessary before entering the country. The metric measurement system is used and the electricity current is 220 volts.

The most picturesque and comfortable time to enjoy Swedish travel is in the summer holiday months from May to July when there is plenty of sunshine and the days are sometimes hot.

August is somewhat rainy and humid. The rains increase before winter snow and ice blanket the countryside, sometimes making travel outside the major cities difficult and uncomfortable but creating a holiday paradise for people who enjoy skating.

Atlantic winds provide mild winters in the south of Sweden but mountains block the winds in the north, creating bitterly cold winters during which the mercury has been known to dip as low as -43 degrees Celsius. Northern travel in Sweden can be uncomfortable at this time of year if you plan a cheap holiday without warm hotel rooms.

January and February snows can be expected in the south and it snows from mid-October to mid-April in the north of Sweden.

The July average temperature in Stockholm is about 22 degrees Celsius. The July average in the northern mountains of Sweden is about 11 degrees Celsius but the mercury can dip below zero throughout the year, sometimes making travel uncomfortable.

Due to Sweden's latitude, the night retains a dull light from mid-May to late July while daylight is dim during December.

Sweden's far northern slice experiences the midnight sun and this can be a great lure for holiday travel off the beaten track.

Travel to Stockholm in summer and you'll find the temperature rarely gets much higher than 20 degrees Celsius.

This is despite the sky remaining bright until about 11pm at the height of summer.

Winter in Sweden is dark and long but the citizens of most cities such as Stockholm make up for it with a plethora of indoor activities and nightlife.

If you plan driving in rural Sweden, be aware that moose are found throughout the country. For your information, a moose can weigh more than 800kg and they are a road hazard involved in as many as 15 accidents a day, mostly at dawn or dusk.

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