Fun fact #1: My dad’s family is Swedish. Well, the one side is anyway. But for some reason, that’s the ancestry I’ve always claimed. Don’t ask me why…I don’t know, but this has always led me to being really interested in visiting Sweden. We pretty much know exactly where my dad’s family originated from, too. Though that little village smack dab in the middle of the country wasn’t on our list for this trip, Stockholm was.
Fun fact #2: My next door neighbor growing up now lives in Stockholm. So guess who I reached out to after flights were booked? Yep, my childhood neighbor. She was the nicest ever and did our airport transfer and helped us with a place to stay. Her having a car really allowed us to see some outlying areas of the city that we probably never would have otherwise. Thanks, Danielle!
Stockholm is the city of 14 islands and really has a lot to offer. We spent more time in Stockholm than any other stop during our 12 days. It actually was probably one day too long, but it was still great having that much time to explore. We were there during the week so the city felt busy with locals and tourists alike. If ever there, check out the subway stations for amazing art that’s been painted on the walls and ceilings.
Where We Stayed: As I mentioned above, Danielle really hooked us up in this case. We stayed in the suburb Huddinge, about 15-20 minutes south of the city by train. It was super easy to take the commuter train into the city every day.
Areas We Explored: I didn’t realized the ground coverage we made until I started marking places on the map! Inside Stockholm, we literally just walked miles and miles. The only activity we “planned” was a boat ride through the harbor. We prefer just exploring and seeing what we come across!
Neighborhoods in the city: Gamla Stan (Old Town), Sodermalm, the City Hall and the shore line to the west of it, Vasastaden, Normalm
Other areas: Vaxholm – an area in the archipelagos northeast of the city / Drottingham Palace straight west of the city / Sigtuna – a cute, but slightly touristy harbor town northwest of the city closer to the airport. Reminded me a bit of Holland, Michigan
Currency: Krona
Were We Ate/Drank
Bullando Krog Marina: A nice marina in an outlying archipelago that gave us our first introduction to Swedish food after arriving in Sweden. I didn’t realize my cold smoked salmon was going to be raw and that potato salad is served warm. Rookie move.
Boulangerie in Vaxholm: Fika! Coffee + dessert
Alfred’s Cafe in Huddinge: We popped in here a couple times (wine and coffee) because it was directly across the street from the apartment we were staying in. If I lived in Huddinge, I would be a regular here.
Kaffeekoppen: Our first stop in Stockholm city proper—for coffee of course. Placed in the center of Gamla Stan, it was touristy but our patio spots also gave us optimal people watching opportunities.
Riche: Went based off a recommendation of one of Nicole’s coworkers and it did not disappoint! We popped in for lunch and got Swedish meatballs and the fixings. It’s located in an upscale shopping district.
Cafe Pascal: I loved my coffee from here! We went to the one in Sodermalm.
Espresso House: A chain coffee house that we popped into a couple different times. They had this hummus side that was SO good.
Herman’s: A quirky little vegetarian buffet (Ha, yes I know…we went to a buffet) with water views. Apparently this place is known with the tourist community. It was pretty good though!
Fjallgatans Kaffestuga: More fika! Cafe just down the road from Herman’s with outdoor seating looking over the water.
Brostugan: Cafe/restaurant right on the water near the Drottingham palace.
Strandvillan’s Cafe: Quaint cafe in Sigtuna that we stopped at for fika on the way to the airport.
Link to my map of places of interest or things we checked out while in Stockholm.
Next stop: Norway!
—m.