On the approach to Sweden’s capital, my ferry rolled past islands dotted with log cabins, leading out to the occasional town or village.
The Stockholm archipelago consists of 30,000 islands, breaking away from the mainland as they stretch eastwards. This means that, when taking the ferry from Helsinki or Aland (a Finnish archipelago of autonomous Swedish-speaking islands), you’ll spend a glorious two or three hours sailing right through them.
While most British tourists look southward for summer holidays, the continent’s north offers long days, mild temperatures and stunning nature. And Stockholm, Sweden’s capital, sits right in the heart of it all.
A wonderful archipelago
Sweden has the most islands in the world, and the Stockholm archipelago is remarkable.
Formed in the last ice age when glaciers carved into the earth, the Stockholm archipelago takes hours to sail through, either on a ferry or Northern Europe cruise.
Or if you’re sticking to Stockholm, various companies offer archipelago cruises, from a few hours to Viking Line’s offering which takes a full day.
Some of the world’s greatest music
I admit it… ABBA is my favourite band. As a child, on road trips with my family, my mum would always select the ABBA Gold album. As we drove, I’d memorise the words to Dancing Queen and Super Trouper.
As an adult, my ABBA fandom never dimmed – I persuaded my partner to not only go to the ABBA Voyage concert, but also dress up, and we went through a phase of watching both Mamma Mia and Mamma Mia, here we go again every Saturday night (this was during 2020, when there wasn’t much else to do!).
So of course, ABBA the museum was an important stop for me in Stockholm. The exhibition details the band’s life, from that fateful Eurovision contest to modern day, through pictures, writing, memorabilia and – of course – music. It’s fully interactive, so there are plenty of opportunities to belt along to Take a Chance on Me!
But another of my favourite artists was Avicii, who tragically died by suicide in 2019. Avicii was the soundtrack to my young adulthood – Levels played during every Freshers’ party I attended at university – and I was devastated to learn of his passing.
So it seemed fitting to visit the Avicii experience, a museum dedicated to both the star’s life and EDM. Emotional in parts, it explores the toll fame took on Tim Berg (Avicii’s full name) and his legacy.
Plenty of other museums
Vikings, the Nobel Peace Prize, the Royal Palace… there’s a lot of history to explore in Stockholm.
And its range of museums traverse through this history, from origins to modern day.
Possibly the most famous is the Vasa Museum, home to the only preserved 17th century ship in the world.
The Vasa capsized and sank on its maiden voyage in 1628, just a few hundred metres from Stockholm’s harbour. It was salvaged over 300 years later, astonishingly well-preserved thanks to the brackish water of the Baltic Sea.
Today, you can walk around its hull and take in the painstaking detail carved into its timbers.
Just across the courtyard is the Nordic Museum, which focuses less on royalty and more on the lives of ordinary Swedes. Its vast hall covers everything from Sami culture and Swedish traditions to interior design, food and fashion.
Then there’s Fotografiska, a contemporary photography gallery set in a former customs house by the water. Exhibitions change frequently, but the focus is often on global issues, identity, and culture. The top-floor café is one of the best spots in the city for sunset!
The weather’s not always bad!
With so many indoor attractions, it doesn’t matter if you have one or two rainy days in Stockholm.
In the summer months, sure, the weather isn’t as reliable as destinations further south. But the temperature today (in mid-July) is four degrees warmer than Paris, so in the middle of summer you should have a chance to don your shorts and sunglasses!
This is especially prudent if you’re taking a cruise in summer around Sweden – you’ll likely have some deck weather, but don’t forget layers!
(Pro tip: if you are interested in cruises, use Bolsover Cruise Club to compare!).
There’s ample sunlight
Visit as close to 21st June as possible, and you’ll find a city bathed in sunlight.
The sun doesn’t set until 10pm, and even then it glows on the horizon, not getting properly dark before it rises again at around 3am.
Hotels are well kitted out with blackout blinds, but the magic of summer travel in Scandinavia is that the hours open up to you. Sure, museums close around 5pm, but parks, the harbour, the coastline and Gamla Stan (the old town) all stay open.
Restaurants spill onto the streets, and the city pulsates in the warm sunny glow.
So, should you visit Stockholm?
Everyone talks about Copenhagen, but Stockholm sits just a six-hour train ride away (on incredibly comfy SJ Swedish trains) and has fewer tourists, more islands and – in the summer – near endless hours of daylight.
If you’re looking for an alternative European capital this summer, choose Stockholm.
