When to go to Stockholm and what to do in Stockholm in 2 or 3 days?

Here is a destination to discover in northern Europe, Sweden and especially Stockholm. It is a place with a higher quality than France, notably in terms of transportation, recycling, and equal rights for women and men.

Stockholm, the capital of Sweden in a weekend!

Stockholm, also called the Venice of the North, is located on 14 islands and is undoubtedly the most interesting major capital in Scandinavia (Copenhagen is much smaller, Oslo and Helsinki do not have the charm that Stockholm has).

I will tell you why I liked this city from the very first day! It is 2 to 3 hours flight from France. Sweden is located in the north, it is part of the Scandinavian countries.

It is a pleasant city with fewer tourists than Eastern European countries due to its relatively high prices.

In my opinion, it is a place to visit at least once for a weekend because it is very different from a trip to southern Europe.

What to do during a stay in Stockholm?

I went to Stockholm in 2012 and 2017.

It is one of the cleanest cities in the world, Scandinavians are generally very eco-friendly! The local currency is the SEK but you can pay everywhere with your credit card.

It has two sites listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites: “the royal palace Drottningholm” which is the palace to visit and also “Skogskyrkogarden” (the Woodland Cemetery).

The city is very cultural with about a hundred museums such as the Natural History Museum or the Modern Art Museum but this is just the beginning!

During my 2 days/3 nights in this beautiful city, I visited several places which I will talk about more precisely in my 2 and 3 day itineraries!

Site	Duration	Price
Vasa Museum	2h	~17€
Gamla Stan	2-3h	Free
ABBA Museum	2h	~24€
Skansen	3h	~17€
Archipelago ferry	4-6h	~30€

If you want to visit museums and the palace, I recommend getting the Stockholm Pass which guides you throughout the city. It can help you save SEK. Now, onto Stockholm and my opinion on the ideal program to do here:

Stockholm in 2 or 3 days :

• First day :

Go to the royal palace, there are several important places such as the throne room, the treasury, and the castle buildings. The royal palace is located in old town (Gamla Stan) in the center as the name indicates, it is the old town !

There are very narrow little streets that have a certain charm. Do your shopping on the old island “Gamla Stan”.

• Second day

There is also a kind of zoo called “Skansen” where you can see Scandinavian animals, traditional Scandinavian houses, outdoors; it is quite an unusual place because it is not really a zoo.

This place is on an island so it is quite fun to walk around the island and get some fresh air when the weather is nice !

Between Old Town dating from the 17th century and the island where “Skansen” is located, there is the island of “Skeppholmen” where you can find the Stockholm museums ! If you are interested in the history of Scandinavia and traditions, go have a look !

 

• third day : added update 2017

You can take the boat and go to one of the islands of the Swedish archipelago. Skeppsholmen and Djurgården are the museum islands, Södermalm is the quiet place to relax appreciated by young people and many others.

On Djurgården, you can visit the VASA museum (maritime museum) which still has an intact ship from the 1600s, impressive to see.

You can see on the city map that the Stockholm archipelago has 30,000 islands; if you have extra days, you can visit them.

Although I only stayed 3 days, I could easily have changed my hotel and flight ticket to stay a week here in Sweden.

When to go to Stockholm ?

You should go preferably in summer and if you have more than a week and want to visit the north of the country to see the northern lights, go in winter. It is day and night during these different seasons because in winter, Sweden has little time when you can see daylight, it can be depressing but you get used to it.

Party in Stockholm :

Since everyone is asking, yes Swedes are very good looking but it’s very different from the vibe you find in Anglo-Saxon and Latin countries! Try it and get back to me!

If you are interested in partying in Stockholm, the place to go is “Stureplan”, it’s the upscale district for going out in Stockholm! There are plenty of bars and clubs in this area, I would say about twenty pubs/club bars are there!

However, be careful because money goes very fast, some cocktails cost up to 15 euros even though they say vacations are priceless! Avoid running out of cash quickly! It is 20 to 30% more expensive than Paris or London.

For buying alcohol, they have a system like in Canada and Australia, where they buy alcohol in a special store that regulates alcohol sales!

You can also try other clubs, for example the opera bar but the entrance costs more than 20 euros!

Some Bars in Stockholm are located south in “Sodermalm”, there is an area with some nice bars much cheaper than Stureplan, it can be a good compromise for you if your hotel is further south!

The weekend in Stockholm went by very quickly and I can’t wait to go back, I was left wanting more, I wanted to change my ticket to stay several more days but reality hit me, I had to return to work in Paris.

 

My opinion on the capital of Sweden, Stockholm:

This city has great potential with the Royal Palace of Stockholm, its open-air museum “Skansen” or the old town Gamla.

Swedes like the French accent so don’t hesitate to talk to them. I met a Swedish woman and it really made me want to come back. Swedes are cold but have a broader open-mindedness about sex and gender equality.

Getting around the city is very easy whether by boat or metro. The quality of service in Sweden is superior to France, you can find many hotels in the city.

Update 17: Stockholm is still such a wonderful city, it is a safe place with few thefts or problems. I also stayed another weekend.

Other readings that follow the same logic: our feedback on where to go in January which sets the tone, the practical guide on traveling for concrete details, and finally a travel choice if you want to extend the reflection.

Prices have remained the same, still as expensive in SEK. I had the opportunity to visit the Vasa Museum and revisit the Gamla STAN center, which in my opinion are places or neighborhoods worth coming back to.

The Swedish language is still as hard to pronounce. Choose to stay in a neighborhood in the center.

There are more and more low-cost flights to Sweden compared to 2012. With the opening of regular lines in recent years by low-cost companies, which gives you one more reason to go there.

If you are going to take and/or plan a tour of Europe, check out this section: Europe travel help!

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