Going to concerts isn’t usually cheap in Stockholm! In fact, most of the times one must even decide well in advance! Well, that was until I found the Royal College of Music in Stockholm a couple of years ago.

The students from this college are among the best music students in the country. They have been practicing for many years and holding a concert is nothing new for them. In short, they are good! Concerts are held frequently and even last year examination concerts are opened for public.

I typically enjoy going to the small jazzy ones on Tuesdays in lilla salen, but check out also for the folk and classical music concerts. I always have a great time there… and it’s free!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Musikhögskolan | Music | Free
Valhallavägen 105 | Östermalm | +468161800
View calendar

East is a japanese restaurant/bar in the heart of Östermalm. Although this spot feels a bit like another I like going to in Stureplan (Riche – check out the Riche article), it as some important differences.

The first has to do with time. Lilla Baren at Riche has an earlier time span than East, complementing each other rather well if one wants to go to both places in the same night. But East used to be almost my second home for another very important reason: it has an extraordinarily large mix of people for a place lying in the heart of Stureplan. It results in a bar in which one can just start talking with the person nearby.

There is also some dancing going on, but everyone tends to gather outside even under the winter time as the heaters are turned on.

I’d recommend to go to East on Friday and Saturday, but this is one of the few places in town where there is actually something going on every day of the week.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
East | Bars | Beer SEK 62.00
Stureplan 13 | Östermalm | +4686114959
Mon – Fri 11:30 – 03:00, Sat – Sun 17:00 – 03:00

Stureplan is meant to be very posh, and Riche is supposed to be in the middle of it but this spot still manages to stand out of the pack. It has a restaurant, a bar next to it and Lilla baren. The first two are usually inhabited by business people that drop by Riche for dinner and/or an after work drink.

Lilla baren typically hosts the alternative crowd. In fact, there are quite frequently art exhibitions that take place at Lilla Baren. The DJ’s usually play alternative music accompanied by visual effects or even the image of a movie.

The space on itself gives the feeling of being inside a Parisian bistro with lots of mirrors and white romantic details and at the bar one can get superb drinks and very interesting food. The best days to go to this spot are probably between Tuesday and Thursday as it usually gets way too crowded on Fridays and Saturdays.

Overall Riche is a sophisticated place that I love going to because of the combination of interesting and easy to talk people.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Riche | Art & culture, Bars, Music | Beer SEK 62.00
Birger Jarlsgatan 4 | Östermalm | +46854503560
Mon 11:30 – 00:00, Tue – Fri 11:30 – 02:00, Sat 12:00 – 02:00

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.

Details about this spot (Show on map)
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

Still my favorite bar in Stockholm. Still very much a ‘mullet’ as it’s business in the front and party in the back. You get to Obaren by making your way through the very swanky, the very fancy and the very upscale Sturehof restaurant. Pass by the oysters, the stilton, the bubbly and the lobsters, walk straight to the back and what do you find? If you’re there on a Thursday night (22:00) onwards you will be greeted by some old school hiphop! Yes, while Stockholm’s elite are slurpin’ down oysters at the front, you be slurpin’ on your beer in the back. Life is good!

Obaren is all about music, soul, funk, hip hop etc.. rappin’ it different nights of the week. If that’s not your thing, make sure you check out their website and perhaps you may be lucky enough to catch a live local act play at their venue.

Definitely a hole in the wall kinda place. A fun, cool, hip bar tucked away in secret in the back of a posh restaurant. What more could you want?

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Obaren | Bars, Music
Stureplan 2 | Östermalm | +4684405730
Sat – Thu 19:00 – 02:00, Fri 17:00 – 02:00

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!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Nybroviken | Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Shopping
Strandvägen, Kajplats 18 | Östermalm
Mon – Fri 10:00 -17:00, Sat – Sun 10:00 – 16:00

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!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Beckholmen | Art & culture, Relaxing
Beckholmen | Östermalm
24 hours daily

If your Stockholm weekend is already scheduled but you still can’t get rid of that feeling that you have not experienced it all. Well I have a option for you. As the entire city is built on 13 islands that are all connected with bridges there is one island with restaurants, cafes and shopping. To get there you’ll have to take a boat and in summertime the boats departs every hour. The boat trip takes no longer then 30 minutes and once you’re on the island named Fjäderholmarna you can hang around, sunbathe and watch the busy harbor and all the boat traffic in the surrounding waters. On the island there are also many different arts and handcraft shops if you’re into that.

If your time is short, just go there and calm down after a warm and crowded day in the city. When I’m there, I almost compulsively follow the same routine. I step off the boat, buy a toast with our traditional pickled herring and a beer. After finishing that I take a walk across the island to the other side. Here the wind is more fresh and I find myself in a secluded place where I just hang for a while, watching the sea, all the boats and activity. As its starts to become late in the afternoon it’s perfect to take the next boat back to mainland. After that you can head home, take a shower and then you are totally ready to hit the town again!

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Fjäderholmarna | Art & culture, Bars, Relaxing, Snacks
Fjäderholmarna | Östermalm
April 28 2012