Stockholm is the capital of Sweden and at this time of year there is a lot of snow, so lots of layers is definitely advisable. I had a great 48 hours in Stockholm, so here are my highlights.
This was a very last minute trip made less than a week before going away to allow me to meet a friend who was having a short stopover. It was cold and there was a lot of snow, but I made the most of the time available to me. I must admit though that I did not venture very far from Central Station and my walking speed was impaired by the snow.
I flew Norwegian Air - a first for me. It was a pretty standard cheap airline. Both Gatwick and Arlanda airports had water fountains for refilling your re-usable water bottles - saving money on buying water and environmentally friendly. To get from Arlanda Airport to Central Station you have 2 options: the train or the bus. The train takes 30 mins but is twice the price of the bus, which took just under an hour. In the interests of saving money I took the bus as I was in no rush.
I walked around the parts of Stockholm closest to the train station. I had not appreciated that Stockholm is built over a umber of islands, although all the canals were frozen as it is winter. Drottningatan is the main shopping street and is very long. I found a cheap hotel along this road, although I forfeited a lot of facilities. At one end of the street is a bridge and road that takes you through the parliament buildings and on to the Royal Palace.
Gamla, or the old town, came highly recommended - it was occupied by more independent shops. I went in search of a Church as I could see it's spire to find Riddarholm Church, which is set on the waterfront. As the water was frozen it provided a stunning view of white. I was not quite brave enough to join the people who ventured out onto the ice, but it was so pretty I took my friend back there specifically when they arrived. I also walked to City Hall which has a 106m high tower and came into use in 1923.
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| City Hall |
Central station consists of bus, train and metro over 3 floors. I met my friend from their train as I was able to make it all the way onto the platform without a ticket. It has a food court, shops and a rather nice waiting area on the top floor. It reminded me a little bit on the inside of New York Central Station, but was more modern on the outside.
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| Inside Stockholm Central Station |
My friend and I did the same circuit I had previously walked and found a lovely little restaurant in Gambla that did a set menu. The food was good and the staff were good.
I treated myself to a spa day at Central Bad, opened in 1904. You can either pay for spa only or get a package. Robe, towels, shoes and a locker are all provided for you. This is also spread over 3 floors: the ground floor has the Jacuzzi and saunas, the first has the main swimming pool and the 2nd has the treatment rooms. I got a package with a 50 minute massage, which I have to say was a good choice. I used all the available facilities and spent about 3 hours at the spa. I had found the spa opposite my hotel when looking up things to do in Stockholm online before I left, so I had gone prepared for a trip to the spa and pool. It had a lovely calm atmosphere and the pool was huge.
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| CentralBadet's main pool |
Contrary to popular belief it was actually more of a challenge to find somewhere that sold 'typical' Swedish food, Tapas and Pizza seeming popular options. I did however find myself meatballs with ligonberries and a Swedish pastry called Semla which had almond paste in.
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| Semla |
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| Swedish meatballs |
I only had 48 hours in Stockholm, so did not make it to any of the museums. There are a collection of museums clustered together on one of the islands, which include a Viking museum and the Abba museum, so I will have to go back one day for those, although maybe not in Swedish winter.
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| View from Riddarholme |
