A place of much debate and other Stockholm, Sweden Things to Do Tips

Sergels torg (litt. the Sergel Square)
When I was little and first started going in to Stockholm city without my parents I thought that all there was to Stockholm was Sergels torg and the streets surrounding it. This is because Sergels torg is quite close to Central station - the communication hub - and because there are lots of shops and gallerias in the vicinity. Anyway, these days I still think of Sergels torg as the "heart" of Stockholm. Right or wrong.

Sergels torg has been a place of much debate. It is constantly the object of restauration plans, and it's been hugely critizised for being ugly, non-functional etc. And .. .it is not the most beautiful place, I agree to that!

The square is lovered below ground level, but still in open daylight. However adjacent to the square itself is an underground shopping complex. You can also reach Gallerian Mall from underground, Åhléns mall and the Tube.

In my opinion, the Sergel square has used to be very ugly. The whole underground area surrounding it iwas grey, gloomy and smelly. However, recently there has been some reconstruction going on, to make this more like an underground mall, cleaner and closed during night. It seems promising!!

The square itself is in my opinion just boring, an oversized, colorless amoeba in the city centre. I would love to see this place earn some more attention (action!), what's wrong with trees, flowers, statues etc?

My pic is of the fountain with the famous Cultural house (now THATS a great thing) in the background.

Ugly or not - when Sweden wins a particularly important sporting event, the fountain above the lowered square makes a great celebration place for fans who have been ...well just a little bit heavy on the booze!

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Directions: At the crossing of roads Sveavägen, Drottninggatan and Klarabergsgatan. 5 minutes by fott from the Central Station.
Website: For maps: www.gulasidorna.se

Ok, so I just have to add this pic, to give you more perspective. It's a merged pic of two photos taken in Jan 2005 (no snow), the outdoor one shows the lowered part of Sergel Square (goes by nickname Plattan) with its characteristic pavement pattern. The indoor one shows the adjacent underground shopping arcaed that was recently restaured. Nowadays it is closed at night and thus less damaged. Also, it's been freshly made up and has lost its old creepy drugdealers' appeal somewhat.

The police used to (still?) constantly monitor Sergels square esp Plattan for drugdealers. this was supposedly the most active drugdealing place in Sweden once.

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Directions: Adress as before, this time go underground. Also reachable by tube exit Sergels torg.

Open-air museum, the oldest in the world, founded in 1891, combined with a zoological park and an aquarium.

The open air museum shows old Swedish architecture and lifestyles along with for example the Saami Culture and houses. All through the last century Skansen people travelled around the whole country, buying entire buildings and transporting them down to Stockholm.

For tourists to see and for the preservation of history.There is certainly a lot to be said about how cultural heritage in this way was taken away from their original surroundings, but done is done I guess, and surely some of the buildings wouldnt be in such a great shape today, had they stayed where they once stood.

(One farm that Skansen was interested in, but didnt get, was the farm Ystergårn in Hillsta west of Hudiksvall. This farm has been preserved on its original site, and if you travel by the county of Hälsingland, take the opportunity to visit this place. See my Hudiksvall page for more info on this!)

On the major holidays, there are traditional celebrations going on in Skansen. And remember:this may be your one chance to actually see a moose! :-)

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Directions: At Djurgården island in central Stockholm, walking distance from the city centre.
Other Contact: www.skansen.se

Sweden is a monarchy, which means that our head of state is the king (or queen).
The present king is Carl XVI Gustav, who has "ruled" for about 30 years.
The queen is called Silvia and the next in line for the throne is the crown princess Victoria.
There is also another princess (Madeleine) and a prince (Carl Philip).
The royals do not execute any real "power", their function is symbolic.

The royals do not live in the Royal Palace in downtown Stockholm, but rather in a castle called Drottningholm, outside of town.

But whether the royal kids live there or in town with their boy-/girlfriends is subject to speculation in the tabliods.

You must not miss the Royal Castle when in Stockholm. also, try and see the changing of the guard, if you are into uniforms and parades.

Inside the castle you can see the Treasure chamber, the Tre Kronor Museum, Slottsboden and more.
A combination entrence ticket the enables you to visit all parts that are open to the public costs 110 SEK.
(Children/students 65 SEK)

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Phone: +46 8 402 61 30/+46 8 402 60 00
Address: Slottsbacken, Gamla Stan, Stockholm
Directions: On Gamla Stan island. Look for Gamla Stan on your map. It is at the northern part of the island.
Website: www.royalcourt.se

Beautiful, picturesque, narrow, crowded...the most narrow 'street' Marten Trotzigs gata, is only 90 cm wide!!
Gamla Stan ( the Old Town) is the name of the small island where among other things, the Royal Castle is situated. The island is south of the mainland, north of Söder.

This is a very VERY popular place with tourists. Therefore, it is very commercial and exploited. The main road that goes along the island is called Vasterlanggatan, and this is the most exploited part of all of Gamla Stan.

NB: Do NOT just follow the main street Vasterlanggatan, where all the souvenir shops are. Devote plenty of time to explore this part of Stockholm.
The square Stortorget is a popular place to sit down for a coffee.

On saturday 31 of May 2003, a terrible tradgedy took place on Vasterlanggatan. It is a pedestrian street, but somehow a driver found his way into the crowded narrow street and sped through it killing one person and injuring a huge number.

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Address: South of the city center.
Other Contact: well, any tourist information

Being a city of islands, of course Stockholm also should be seen from the water.
Tourist boats depart several times a day from Strömkajen down town.
The summer of 2003 I went on the trip called "under the bridges of Stockholm", a two hour boat trip with guiding in headphones. The tour takes you into lake Mälaren, and through two locks, one of them i Slussen. You get to see several islands and sights and the guiding was in various languages including english, french, german, italian and japanese.

A bit costly though; 160 SEK per person, but I can definitely recommend this trip, I really enjyed it and saw many sights that I had so far missed in Stockholm.
(this tip is also under transportation)

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Address: Strömkajen
Directions: Departure from Strömkajen. Check your map, it is close to Kungsträdgården. Check for departure times and details on the webpage mentioned below.
Website: www.stockholmsightseeing.com

Go visit the Vasa Museum
Have you heard of the huge ship thank sank in 1628 and was taken to the surface again in 1961? It was found in the waters in the middle of Stockholm, and the ship is now exposed at the museum along with numerous well-preserved objects from the 17th century.
This is a definite must-see in Stockholm!

The museum is genereally open 10-17 every day, during summer 9,30-19.
Entrance: 70 SEK
(students/children: 40 SEK)

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Phone: +46 8 519 548 00
Address: Galärvarvsv. 14, Stockholm
Directions: By subway descend at station Karlaplan. Buses 47 and 69 depart from T-centralen/train station. You can also ask directions if you want to walk...!
Website: www.vasamuseet.se

This is a building that you have probably( (?) heard of. The Globe arena in Stockholm is actually the largest spherical building in the world (or so the city brags).
I remember when this was built in the late 1980's, it was thought to become such a cool building, and actually I think it is in some ways.

It was inaugurated in 1989, and has since then been the arena for both huge rock concerts (a memorable one in 1992 by Bruce Springsteen drew a crowd of some 16 000 people) and hockey games.
I have been to a number of concerts here, and it is an impressing edifice.

Surrounding the Globe arena is a huge shopping complex with stores, cafes and restaurants. Get some shopping done while you're here!

In the pic: The tip was created before I got myself a digital camera, so I treat you here to my own image of the Globe...:-)

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Directions: Southern Stockholm. It can be reached by subway. The station is called "Globen"

The Church Storkyrkan (Grand Church) is located on Gamla Stan island. It it a lovely structure, and the Swedish King and Queen actually got married here in 1976 (or something close to 1976).
We visited a mass here in August 2003. The building itself is beautiful and the interiors as well. Noteworthy is the sculpture of St:Goran and the Dragon by Bert Notkes from 1489 AD.
The church is also called St: Nikolai Kyrka, remnants of the oldest part of the structure date back to the 1200:s.

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Address: On Gamla Stan Island, Stockholm
Directions: Gamla Stan island, close to the Royal Castle.
Website: www.svenskakyrkan.se

The city council building is very close to the Central Station.

It faces the water, and it looks in some ways similar to a church from certain angels, with a high tower and all. Speaking of the tower, it is actually 106 metres high, and open daily for visits from may to september... count on some good views!
You can also enter the main building of course. There are several guidance tours, especially in summer but even the rest of the year.

The building is not very old, in fact it was inaugurated only 80 years ago, in 1923. Supposedly 8 million bricks make up the brownish red facade.
Especially beautiful is it when the sun hits the colden adornments on the roof... I passed a fine sunny spring day, and got some really nice pics...!

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Phone: Guiding tours: +46 8 50829058
Directions: Behind the station, it is the tall brownish brick building with the gold on top...