Just the other day I took the boat to an island named Grinda, it’s situated outside of Vaxholm which is a spot I’ve been talking about before in these articles. There are two greats benefits to visiting Grinda. First of all you get to experience a genuine archipelago relatively close to Stockholm. Secondly it’s a nature preserve which makes the whole island accessible for all visitors. You can hang around and sunbathe wherever you ike!

The island has two ports and most of the activities are situated around “Södra Grinda”. There you’ll find the most departures from, a restaurant, a bar, hotel and more. The restaurant is established inside of an old, magnificent summerhouse. Go there, and enjoy their classic fish soup and a nice wine on a sunny day!

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Grinda | Relaxing, Restaurants (Classic Swedish) | Main meal +/- SEK 195
Södra Grinda | City/Norrmalm | +46854249491
Check website

Have you ever thought about what Stockholmers might do on weekends when having a couple of days off? I´ll tell you…

We hang out along with our family and friends in the archipelago. Either we stay overnights or we head of on a daytrip.

If you’re interested in spending some time along with us locals I warmly recommend you to go visiting an island named Utö. Rent a bicycle, grab a map and head south to a tiny island named Ålö that´s connected to Utö with a small wooden bridge. On Ålö you will find a genuine restaurant in an old boathouse namned “Båtshaket”.

Båtshaket is genuine and authentic. All the locals sit together, eating classic Swedish seafood, having a snaps and a beer and simply just enjoying life. They do their own fishing and preparing. Try some Swedish Lax or their “Silltallrik” if your up for having traditional Swedish food!

To visit Carina at Ålö , take the train from Stockholm central station towards Västerhaninge, at “Handen” change to bus towards “Årsta havsbad” and take the boat from there to “Gruvbryggan” at a island named Utö.

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Ålö | Relaxing, Restaurants (Swedish seafood) | Main meal from SEK 60
Ålö (start trip from central station) | Outside South/East | +4685057463
Opens 23 of june!

The Swedish landscape has extremely beautiful lakes, forests and mountains that are used by most Swedes all year round. Even inside Stockholm it is possible to find a green park or a peaceful lake where one can relax in contact with the nature.

Another thing that makes this city special is the archipelago which is just a short boat trip east out of town. Even though it is very popular among locals during summertime, as the temperature of the baltic sea allows summer baths, the archipelago can also be rather spectacular throughout all seasons.

Utö is a traditional destination, which allow for great walks and bathing (the water temperature in the baltic is around 20˚C in the Summer). Another advantage of being in one of the bigger islands (as Utö) is that if you want to socialize during the evening, just head up for the local pub where there will be some partying going on. For a more calm experience just pick any small island next to Utö like Ålö and Rånö.

Most of the boats leave from the centre of town or Nynäshamn and are one hour away from most islands. Take a newspaper, a book and your camera, head out for a day in an island of your choice and enjoy a delicious meal at one of the great archipelago restaurants before coming back. But if you have the time for it, why not staying an extra day at one of the beautiful inns opened all year round?

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Archipelago | Relaxing | Strömkajen – Grinda SEK 170.00
Strömkajen | City/Norrmalm | +4686795830
Daily

If there are 2 things Swedes love doing, these are hanging out in the sun and drinking beer (OK, maybe they like other things too)! So, when the snow melts and the first sun rays feel lightly warm, you can see all the parks in Stockholm filling up. Vitabergsparken is clearly not an exception.

People come here from all over town to hang out in the sun, relax, have a picnic, make out, read a book, barbecue, listen (and share) music, see and be seen and drink wine or beer! Everything is doable at Vitan. The crowd is usually young and it’s also the natural habitat for the Stockholm hipster during the daylight.

I usually take the newspaper, a book or a friend and grab a beer in Folkungagatan or an ice cream at Nytorget just before hitting for the hill. In fact, if I am looking for something a bit calmer, I just stay at the less flashy Nytorget, typically frequented by families.

Unfortunately sun disappears faster than on the white hill (vita berg). Ah, I almost forgot saying that Vitabergsparken is located above the house level and turned south but then again, is there anyone going there for the sun only?

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Vitabergsparken | Relaxing | Free
Vitabergsparken | Södermalm
24 hours daily

Sweden is very famous for their fashion designers with brands such as Filippa K, Acne, Cheap Monday (see the Weekday – Cheap Monday article) and H&M achieving international status. I believe that this results from the fact that most Swedes give a long thought about what they wear, thus creating a widespread knowledge and interest in their image. And as an haircut is also part of every-one’s image, it’s no surprise that Swedish hairdressers are also popular. In fact there are around 500 hair salons just inside the small Stockholm Municipality.

And even though there are many good ones, Noir is the spot I pick when it’s time to cut the hair. This is a fairly new place in Stockholm with plenty of extraordinarily talented, fun and young people working there making this salon a relaxed hip place. Also, if you are eager to go out for some drinks or even more serious partying just ask your hairdresser about the hot events for the coming days as they are very updated on Stockholm’s nightlife.

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Noir | Relaxing | Haircut SEK 720.00
Regeringsgatan 80 | Östermalm | +468238090
Tue – Wed 09:00 – 18:00, Thu 09:00 – 19:00, Fri 09:00 – 18:00, Sat 09:00 – 17:00

When in town you might just stroll by Nybroviken and even Strandvägen. Here there are a number of boats all departuring to different destinations in the archipelago, some more nearby then others. For example you have the low canal boats which takes you around the many islands that Stockholm is built upon or you can find the MS Josephiné which takes you out on different theme cruises for the day. You’ll even find the Cinderella boats which take you out to some of the islands in just an hour or two.

Most of the spots that I have been recommending so far depart from here. Depending on the time you have to spend and what you are looking for to experience I recommend you go here and see for yourself what you have to choose from on that particular day.

If you walk from Nybroviken along Strandvägen towards Djurgården you will soon pass a building made out of glass, here you can buy a coffee or some handcraft from the archipelago. There is also a archipelago information where they know more about what´s up in the archipelago for the day. I recommend it, I even hang there myself of and on!

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Nybroviken | Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Shopping
Strandvägen, Kajplats 18 | Östermalm
Mon – Fri 10:00 -17:00, Sat – Sun 10:00 – 16:00

Today Stockholms archipelago contains of loads of private property, many nature reserves and just one National Park. In this national Park there are a number of delicate Orchids and other traditional nature to discover.

Come here and do nothing. There is no place to eat. There is no place to order a coffee. There is nowhere to shop. That’s just good enough! Pack something to eat and take the boat from Stockholm in the morning, on your way out you can get a ticket for a guided tour (SEK 40.00) and as you enter the The National Park a ranger will be there to welcome you and all you have to do is to calm down, listen and soak up the archipelago!

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Ängsö National Park | Relaxing
Ängsö | City/Norrmalm
12th of May – Aug daily

In Stockholm we have a famous area named Djurgården, this has been an area for recreations forever and still is. Joggers, lovers, families, friends and so on hang out there. On Djurgården there is a lovely park named Skansen which I’m sure you have already heard about so I’ll just leave it at that.

One thing that I’m sure you have not yet heard about is a tiny island that’s right outside of Djurgården and connected with it via a small bridge. The island is named Beckholmen and until today it has mainly been a shipbuilding yard. Now there are great plans for this area and I predict that it’s soon going to be a true hotspot. One of Sweden’s most well known ‘fine dining’ restaurants is about to open up there along with others. Also I heard that any day now, the ABBA exhibition that has been on a word tour will settle down nearby. Yet again, remember where you heard it first!

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Beckholmen | Art & culture, Relaxing
Beckholmen | Östermalm
24 hours daily

Every time I go to visit Hjälmö I’m stunned by how leafy it is and how intense the presence of nature appears. I’m always fascinated that this is to experience so close to Stockholm, capital city of Sweden!

This island is situated in the more protected center of the archipelago. The nature is lush and Hjälmö is one of the islands that people have lived on for generations. This combined results in islands with both great biodiversity and a great cultural in heritage.

One of my friends Lill lives on the islands along with her husband and kids. Together they run a small farm, cheeps, cows, hens, cats and so on… At this time of year all the lambs are being delivered so go there and spend some time at their ranch!

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Hjälmö | Relaxing
Hjälmö Gård | City/Norrmalm
24 hours daily

Dream away on one of Stockholms smallest islands!

If you are close to Hornstull it would almost be a shame if you didn’t take a walk out to Reimersholme. I have been enchanted ever since I set foot on the island the first time. To me the tiny island represents the best of two worlds.

As you have crossed over the tiny bridge you have to take a right and walk along the promenade. Every time I walk there I can’t help myself from fantasies about how my everyday life would be like living there. Imagine having a small boat on which you can get around town without being crowded on the busy subways or buses. Living here must be like living on the countryside but with all the benefits of a capital city.

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Reimersholme | Relaxing | Free
Anders Reimers väg | Södermalm
Daily