We spent a short but enjoyable couple of days in Stockholm last week.
The first highlight of our trip actually took place during the express train ride in from Arlanda airport. The journey itself was smooth and fast, but we were most impressed by the quality of the automated announcements; as we pulled into Central Station, we were greeted by the dulcet tones of no lesser Swedish luminary than Börje Salming! (Apparently, all of the announcements on the train are made by Swedish celebrities, which in part explains the fairly expensive cost of the tickets.)
Since we were staying right near Central Station in downtown Stockholm, we decided to focus our explorations on the nearby islands and neighbourhoods. The night we arrived, we ate a nice meal at Stockholm Fisk just down the street from our hotel. Here, we sampled a variety of seafood, all of it very good; we tried some oysters, salt cured salmon (quite nice but also quite different from Mom’s gravlax), and herring (both marinated and fried).
The next day (Sunday), we headed out on foot from downtown to the old city, which is located on the island of Gamla Stan. The old city is a picturesque but touristy part of town that resembles the older parts of many European cities; it contains a small network of small streets, densely packed buildings and little courtyards. We continued south to the next island, Södermalm, where we stopped for a fantastic al fresco lunch at the Nystekt Strömming, which some guide books proclaim is the best fried herring stand in Stockholm. It was both excellent (see photo above) and cheap!
After lunch, we stopped in at the Royal Apartments back in Gamla Stan, where we caught a short (45 minute) but informative guided tour. The apartments are kind of like a mini version of Versailles (with several elements of the design actually inspired by the French palace).
Our next stop was the small and attractively landscaped island of Skeppsholmen, just to the east of Gamla Stan. Here, we checked out the Moderna Museet (Modern Art Museum). The space itself is airy and bright, and the collection is both interesting and a manageable size; we did not visit the co-located Arkitektur Museet but it is possible to buy a combined ticket.
For dinner, we went to Café Tranan in the Vasastaden neighbourhood just to the north of central downtown. The restaurant was recommended by a friend who lives in Stockholm. He suggested trying the Swedish meatballs, which are not on the menu but always available. We also tried a traditional crispy pork dish, some duck sausage, and tuna. The meatballs and pork were very good, but the tuna was far less impressive. Overall, Tranan has a nice informal atmosphere and comfortable level of bustle. Based on our experience, it may be a better idea to stick with their more traditional Swedish dishes (e.g., meatballs, herring, crispy pork).
On Sunday, we traveled to Djurgarden island, which was once the garden playground for the royal family. It is a beautiful tree-lined part of the city, and if we had more time, we would have spent some time walking through the parks. We ended up visiting the Vasa museum, which was built to showcase a 17th century Swedish ship (the Vasa) that sank on its maiden voyage before making it out of Stockholm Harbour. The ship was recovered in 1961, and it is impressively displayed in the museum.
Before heading back to the airport, we strolled back along the water from Djurgarden to the shopping district in Östermalm. We checked out some of the upscale pedestrian shopping areas and stopped for a hearty lunch at the Sturehof bistro restaurant. Here, we sampled some excellent smoked and fried herring. Apparently, one of the trendy Swedish labels is called Acne (no, we don’t know how to pronounce this), and we stopped in at their flagship store in Östermalm.
We headed back to Arlanda airport in the late afternoon, in high spirits that not even the Segafredo biscotti incident could scupper. Overall, an excellent trip to the Swedish capital!
Practical Information
Hotell Adlon
Verdict: Great.
Details: Right next to train station and subway; good elevator; nice supreme double rooms with television, electric kettle, fridge, free wired internet (ethernet cable provided in room) and pay wireless; sitting area; good breakfast for 75 SEK/person; bright, pleasant breakfast room; good deals from expedia.
Café Tranan
Karlbergsvägen 14 (Odenplan T)
Telephone: +46-8-527 281 00
17-24 M-Sa, 17-23 Su (Bar: 17-01 M-Sa, 17-23 Su)
480 SEK/ $72 per person
Nystekt Strömming
Södermalmstorg (Slussen T)
11-03 weekdays
80 SEK/ $12 per person
Stockholm Fisk
Vasagatan 1 (T-Centralen T)
Telephone: +46-8-506 541 00
11:30-23 M-F, 16-23 Sa, 17-23 Su (Bar: 10-00:30 M-Th, 10-01:30 F, 11-01:30 Sa, 11-00:30 Su)
400 SEK/ $60 per person
Sturehof
Sturegallerian 42, Stureplan 2 (Östermalmstorg T)
Telephone: +46-8-440 57 30
11-2 M-F, 12-02 Sa, 13-02 Su & public holidays
230 SEK/ $35 per person
Moderna Museet
Skeppsholmen (Kungsträdgården T)
80 SEK/ $12
Vasamuseet
Galärvarvsvägen 14 (Karlaplan T)
95 SEK/ $14
