One of the perks of living in London is the ability to hop on a plane and in just a few hours arrive in another country. Makes weekend adventures that much more tempting, right? So, when my friend Jake said he would be passing through Stockholm for a weekend and asked if I wanted to join, the answer was a resounding YES!
Plus, Stockholm has been on my travel bucket list for some time. Between the city’s beautiful architecture, unique makeup of islands, great restaurants and shopping, I had a feeling that I would love it there. Turns out I was right…
The Arrival
To maximize my 36 hours in Stockholm, I took a 6:40 a.m. flight on SAS from London Heathrow. I had never flown SAS before, but the experience was great. The seats in economy are a little tight if the person in front of you reclines, but the legroom is sufficient for me at 5’7”. Onboard, tea and coffee are free, but you do need to purchase any other food or drinks if seated in economy.
I took my 19” suitcase, but my 22” would have easily fit in the overhead bin. SAS was easygoing with baggage and the boarding process. The only advice I would give with boarding is that priority passengers go first and then it’s a free for all, so be bold and get in the line or near the economy boarding entrance at the gate if it’s a full flight to ensure you bag gets on the plane.
Upon landing in Stockholm, Jake and I decided to take a taxi, as he had a big bag and didn’t want to mess with the train. Our taxi from the airport to the city center cost 520 SKK. Another option is to take the Arlanda Express train. The Arlanda Express is similar to the Heathrow Express train in London. The train leaves every 15 minutes and takes 20 minutes from the city center to the airport. For my one way return to the airport, it cost 280 SKK. In hindsight, I think we would have been fine with Jake’s big bags on the express train, as there are elevators and no stairs to navigate, however, with two people, a taxi was slightly cheaper, so fair enough!
Accommodation
Jake stayed at Freys Hotel, while I stayed at Central Hotel, as I booked my entire trip on credit card reward points and I couldn’t find a room at his hotel.
Jake’s described his single room at Frey’s Hotel as, “straight out of Pottery Barn teen.” I would describe it as feminine and French country. It was tiny, but cute with a twin bed and an adjacent trundle bed. Plus, the room came with free wifi and what Jake said was an amazing free breakfast buffet.
My room at the Central Hotel was fantastic. The room was also on the small side, but easily double the size of Jake’s room. What I didn’t expect was how comfortable the bed would be! It was truly one of the most comfortable hotel beds I have ever experienced. I even took a photo of the fluffy mattress topper to see if I could buy one for my bed in London. The obsession is real!
In addition to the comfy bed, I really loved the little, thoughtful touches at the Central Hotel. When you arrive, there’s Swedish Glogg drink (mulled wine) to greet you, plus free coffee, tea and little cookies all day. My room also came with free wifi and an incredible breakfast buffet – think scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, yogurts, breads, pastries, fresh fruit, smoothies, meats, cheeses. And naturally, I had to try a little bit of everything!
Also, Central Hotel is quite possibly the only hotel that I have ever seen to offer free weights in the room for travelers who want to squeeze in a little lifting in between sightseeing and sleeping!
What to See and Do
Visitors to Stockholm are seriously spoiled for choice. I could easily have stayed a few more days to check off everything on my travel wish list. However, with only 36 hours in town and chilly temperatures to contend with, here’s what made the cut.
The Royal Palace
The Royal Palace is the official residence of the Swedish monarch. The offices of the King, the other members of the Swedish Royal Family, and the Royal Court of Sweden are located in the palace. One of the largest Royal palaces in Europe with 600 rooms, it is built in a baroque style and decorated impeccably.
If you do visit, be warned, there’s a lot of ground to cover and you’ll want to set aside a few hours to properly take it all in. My favorite part of the palace was easily the State Rooms. I was so impressed by the grandeur and attention to detail throughout.
The Vasa Museum
When I asked friends for Stockholm recommendations on Facebook, the Vasa Museum was unanimously recommended. Before visiting, I had thought it was a bit random of a recommendation. However, upon visiting I can see why travelers recommend the Vasa Museum. Simply put, it’s amazing!
The Vasa Museum is a museum for well-preserved, 17th-century warship, called Vasa. What’s interesting about the Vasa ship is that so much went into constructing this amazing ship, but it sank during its maiden voyage in 1628 after sailing just over 1300m….which is not very far.
The Vasa ship lay below the surface of the ocean for 333 years until being discovered by Anders Franzén and salvaged in 1961.
The museum details the entire story of the Vasa ship, from its construction to why it sank, who was on board, who survived and who passed away. In different levels of the museum, you can see incredibly well preserved skeletons from those who passed away when the ship sank, plus details about their lives. What’s interesting is how the museum paints a picture of what life was like in Stockholm during the 17th century.
The museum also dedicates a substantial portion of time to the excavation of the Vasa – and rightfully so. It’s incredible to learn how they excavated the ship as a whole versus in pieces. It’s also incredible to learn the story of how archaeologists were able to save and study tens of thousands of items from the ship.
Abba Museum
If you are visiting the Vasa Museum, there are quite a few other museums in the area, including the Viking Museum, Liljevalchs, a contemporary art museum, and the Abba museum. As we had flights to catch, we couldn’t explore them all, but decided to stop by the Abba museum. Even if you don’t go into the museum, you can pose for silly photos outside and enjoy the gift shop.
Nobel Prize Museum
Another great museum is the Nobel Prize Museum celebrates the Nobel Prize and Nobel prizewinners, plus information about the founder of the prize, Alfred Nobel. I loved wandering through this museum and exploring its curated displays about the Nobel Laureates and their life stories.
Mårten Trotzigs Gränd (narrowest street in Stockholm)
Mårten Trotzigs gränd is an alley in the old town of Stockholm. It has a width of its 36 steps tapers down to 35 inches, making the alley the narrowest street in Stockholm. The alley is named after Mårten Trotzigs, the merchant and burgher who bought properties in the alley in 1597 and 1599, also opening a shop there.
A Traditional Swedish Festive Meal at Restaurant Hjerta
On our first night in Stockholm, we were lucky to experience a traditional Swedish festive meal at Restaurant Hjerta. Located on a tiny island off the coast of Stockholm which was accessible by a series of bridges, we opted to walk from our hotel, which took about 30 minutes.
As we stepped into the warm, cozy restaurant, I knew immediately that it was going to be an experience to remember. The restaurant does serve a la carte menu offerings, but it was clear that everyone there on that evening was enjoying the buffet.
After enjoying our welcome Swedish Glögg, our host explained how the buffet worked. Traditionally, you would start with a fish course, then a meat/cheese course and then the hot buffet items. Hungry and ready to dive straight in, we decided to follow suit.
I’m honestly not too into herring, but otherwise I loved everything. The buffet option made it easy to try a little bit of everything, but also load up on options that I knew I would enjoy. Plus, hearing tables around us spontaneously burst into song after taking shots over the course of the evening was amusing and added to the festive atmosphere.
Final Thoughts
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my 36-hour trip to Stockholm. It’s definitely not a lot of time – and certainly not enough to thoroughly explore Stockholm, but it was a great start. Seeing the city all lit up for Christmas was truly a delight. And, while the weather was cold, walking along the water made me wonder what the city is like with incredibly long, sunny summer days.
If you want to experience our travels, I created two travel vlogs, one for each of our days in Stockholm. Check them out below – and please subscribe to my YouTube channel! I often post there before I can update my blog :).
For more of my travel adventures, click here.
You can also subscribe to receive my latest blog posts via email – it’s on the right column of my homepage.