Stockholm Sweden - Getting Out of Your Hotel Guide

The city was founded over seven centuries ago, however it did not become the official capital of Sweden until about the mid-17th century. It is the headquarters of the parliament and the national Swedish government as well as the official residence of the Swedish monarch. Stockholm is a metropolitan area with about 1.9 million inhabitants.

The first part of Stockholm's name, stock means log or fortification. The second part Holm refers to an islet. It is considered that the name refers to the islet of Helge and Sholmen in central most Stockholm.

There were influential economic and strategic factors at work making the city of Stockholm essential to the Danish Kings of the Kalmar Union and the national independence movement in the 15th century. Sweden excelled as a influential European power in the 17th century. This is reflected in the development of the city. There were trading rules established which provided Stockholm a crucial monopoly over trading between the foreign merchants as well as with other Scandinavian and Swedish territories. Today, Sweden is one of leaders of modern functionalism and architecture worldwide.

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Midsummers Eve

Mid summer eve , is a national holiday celebrated around the country. In Stockholm thousands enjoy the festivities laid on at the Skansen open-air museum, which centre around the raising of a garlanded maypole. Dancing and singing around the maypole is spurred on by the consumption of plenty of schnapps and beer.

Polar Music Prize Days

Each year the world's most prestigious music award is made in Stockholm, live performances, workshops, seminars, film shows and exhibitions at various locations around the city.

Nobel Prize Day

Nobel Prize Day in Stockholm has the eyes of the world on this northern city ,highly prestigious awards for medicine, literature, physics, chemistry and economics are presented each year by the King at the Stockholm Concert Hall,The Nobel Prize is the legacy of Alfred Nobel, a Swedish chemist and the inventor of dynamite, who left his huge fortune as a prize-fund to reward those who improve human life through contributions to science or humanitarianism. The award winners are announced in October and the presentation takes place on the anniversary of Nobel’s death.

Skansen Christmas Market

The ideal place to do your Christmas shopping, Scandinavian Christmas spirit is the huge Skansen Christmas market, which draws about 25,000 visitors every weekend. The historic houses and homesteads that make up the outdoor museum radiate music and warmth Shops and stores are packed with gift ideas, ornaments, tempting sweets and Christmas fare.

Stockholm Jazz Festival

After more than 20 years the Stockholm Jazz Festival has earned a reputation for becoming one of the biggest and best events of its kind in Europe. Top international and local jazz, blues, soul, funk and Latin stars perform over the five-day festival on the island of Skeppsholmen.

Stockholm Pride

The largest Pride celebration in Scandinavia is the week-long rainbow carnival that turns Stockholm into a free zone for the gay and lesbian community.Highlight of the festival week is the spectacular, colourful parade through the city starting at 3pm on the Saturday.

Birka

Birka is a UNESCO World Heritage Site just 20km outside Stockholm. A fortified town and former home of Viking Kings, the settlement is now unveiling its secrets to archaeologists and visitors.Founded in the 8th century and abandoned before the end of the 10th, the site was once home to Pagans and Christians as well. Take a guided and dramatised tour, or check out the museum, which features miniature models, archaeological finds and reconstructions to help visitors get a feel for the Viking way of life.

Stockholm Food & Beverage Show

Calling all foodies! Stockholm's International Fairs & Congress Center offers flavours from Scandinavia and beyond during the annual Food & Beverage Show. The exhibition ranges from raw products to ready-made food and drinks, kitchen equipment, literature and food exporting information. Last year 121 participating companies presented their products to some 24,000 hungry visitors.

Bull Run

Although the name of this event conjures images of Spanish-style machismo, there are actually no bulls present. The 10km (5.5 mile) endurance race in Stockholm is so-called because competitors require bull-like strength to complete the course.The TjurRuset (as it is locally known) is a rather strange Swedish tradition. Set up in response to its female counterpart (all-women races outside of Stockholm are well known). Those brave enough or fit enough to finish are rewarded with a medal.

Bakfickan

"The Hip Pocket" (its English name) is, at least for now, a secret address that mainly local foodies know about and want to keep to themselves. French oysters with a vinaigrette sauce and black bread. That was followed with a plate of assorted North Sea herring combined with herring from the Baltic. It was a good choice, though we looked longingly at the grilled roast rib of beef with béarnaise sauce being served at the next table. moist and delectable French chocolate cake with freshly whipped cream for dessert, and no longer felt left out. 

Edsbacka Krog 

Chances are you'll fall for the cuisine of our good Chef . At least that is your temptation. A dedicated chef, he uses top local ingredients in original ways, and his market-fresh cuisine is designed to please. Try such starters as thinly sliced scallops with an orange consomme, or else the sweet Swedish lobster with a terrine of vegetables and a lobster vinaigrette. The warm souffle of sea buckthorn with a rye ice cream is better than anything served you. In a historic, thick-walled building from 1626, this was the first licensed inn in Stockholm. Ten minutes by taxi from the town center, you'll find dining rooms with an upscale country atmosphere.

Garlic & Shots

We once said we could go for garlic in anything but ice cream, only to be proven wrong by a dessert served here. This theme restaurant follows two strong, overriding ideas: Everyone needs a shot of garlic every day, and everything tastes better if it's doctored with a dose of the Mediterranean's most potent ingredient. such main courses as beefsteak covered with fried minced garlic and Transylvania-style vampire steak, garlic sauce. And then there's the garlic ice cream, which tastes a hell of a lot better than it sounds: the garlic is mixed in with honey ice cream and sweetened with green peppercorn strawberries and chocolate-dipped garlic cloves.

Prinsen

Seating is on two levels, and in summer tables are placed outside. The cuisine remains fresh and flavorful, a mostly Swedish repertoire with some French inspiration. and the staff continues to serve old-fashioned favorites such as veal patties with homemade lingonberry preserves. , the cooks serve such grandmotherly favorites as a herring platter or else biff rydberg (beef with fried potatoes and an egg). If you come later in the evening, you'll see that Prinsen morphs into a sort of local drinking club.

Vassa Eggen

This fashionable eatery lies in the center of the city, but gastronomic influences from all over the world are revealed in the light, airy dining room, accented by a beautiful glass dome. The melon soup with Serrano ham immediately won us over, as did the fried herring with a potato purée. A duck terrine with a truffle polenta flavored with sherry showed a masterful touch, as did the main course of char in a creamy lobster juice. A perfectly prepared brill was cooked in brown butter and flavored with horseradish. The desserts are also worthy, especially the succulent chocolate truffle dish and the raspberry sorbet.

Villa Kallhagen

This place is best in summer, when you'll feel like you're dining in the Swedish countryside, although it lies only a 5-minute ride from the heart of the city. and precede dinner with a stroll along the nearby park's canal, At least you'll work up an appetite, and you'll want one for the crowd-pleasing fare, which is both market fresh and well prepared. The chef's culinary technique never fails him, and his inventiveness and precision with local ingredients always impresses you.The most traditional dish on the menu, You'll also enjoy the oven-baked chicken with port-wine sauce or the lemon-fried veal (moist and tender) with mashed potatoes and a Parmesan terrine (a delightful accompaniment).

Spring

The key is not only the excellent chef skill in the kitchen, but a carefully chosen list of ingredients that is fresh and of high quality. During meal, dishes such as steamed chicken dumplings appeared, all in delicate hues and brimming with flavor such Japanese eel . There was more to come, including an amazing poached cod in ginger bouillon with shiitake mushrooms For dessert, we found nothing more soothing than the crème brulee.,decor here is livened up by the colors of Asia -- blond ash wood from northern Sweden is combined with bold furniture from Asia. 

Paul & Norbert 

In a patrician residence dating from 1873, adjacent to the Hotell Diplomat, this is the finest and most innovative restaurant in Stockholm. Seating only 30 people, it has a vaguely Art Deco decor, beamed ceilings, and dark paneling. Perfectly prepared main dishes include sauteed medallion of fjord salmon, scallops, and scampi in lobster sauce; crisp breast of duck with caramelized orange sauce; and juniper-stuffed noisettes of reindeer immersed in caraway sauce with portabella.

Divino 

Many local food critics hail Divino as Stockholm's finest Italian restaurant, and we have to agree. The chefs work overtime here to come up with unusual variations of the classics, including sweetbreads flavored with lemon and fresh thyme, or a tantalizing foie gras with almond foam and figs. Monkfish and lobster are served on one platter and flavored with vanilla bean along with fresh fennel. Among the meat and poultry courses, we highly endorse the guinea fowl with morels, duck liver, The restaurant's elegant decor,white-clothed formal table settings to antiques scattered and mammoth wine cellar,seal the deal.

Vasamuseet (Royal Warship Vasa) 

Housed near the main entrance to Skansen within a cement-sided museum that was specifically constructed for its display, the Vasa is the world's oldest complete and identified ship. Onboard were more than 4,000 coins, carpenters' tools, sailors' pants (in a color known as Lubeck gray), fish bones, and other items of archaeological interest. Best of all, 97% of the ship's 700 original decorative sculptures were found.A full-scale model of half of the Vasa's upper gun deck has been built, together with the admiral's cabin and the steering compartment. Several carved wooden figures represent the crew. Free tours are conducted at widely varying schedules depending on the season. During the most visited months, June to August, tours in English are conducted every half-hour from 9:30am to 5:30pm. 

Skansen 

This was the first open-air museum to open in the world, back in 1891 -- and it's still going strong. this open-air museum features more than 150 reconstructed dwellings scattered over some 30 hectares (74 acres) of parkland. Most date from the 18th and 19th centuries, and each has benefited from the lavish attentions of scores of scholars, librarians, and craftspersons. The exhibits include windmills, manor houses, blacksmith shops -- even a complete town quarter that was meticulously rebuilt in an optimum setting. On-site is a small zoo with 70 different animals, most of which are Swedish fauna, including wild animals from the cold north such as reindeer, seal, lynx, brown bear, and wolverine. Most impressive is the elk, the largest mammal in Sweden; the greatest predator is the fierce brown bear, considered the best "salmon fisherman" in the north. 

Millesgarden 

This former villa and sculpture garden of Carl Milles (1875-1955). After all, we are among the foremost groupies of Sweden's greatest sculptor. After emigrating to Michigan in the U.S. in 1931, Milles became a professor of art, and he created nearly 75 sculptures, many of which are on display around the United States today. Some of the artist's major works are on view here, including his monumental and much-reproduced sculpture Hands of God. Sculptures sit atop columns on terraces in this garden, set high above the harbor and the city landscape. These are copies of his most famous works; the originals are found all over Sweden and also in the United States. 

Nordiska Museet (Nordic Museum) 

know that a million such objects are preserved in this showcase of Swedish cultural life, inside a massive building from 1907. Prosperous Swedes must have emptied their attics to fill this mammoth repository.The first object you encounter when entering The Great Hall is a mammoth pink-tinted statue of Gustav Vasa, the work of Carl Milles, Sweden's foremost sculptor.It's easy to experience museum fatigue here, so pace yourself. The halls are laid out like museums in pre-World War I Europe before user-friendly museums were ever heard of. You know what to expect: 16th-century dining tables, period costumes, dollhouses, photographs of that mad genius August Strindberg, textiles (some from the 17th c.), and even an extensive exhibit of tools of the Swedish fish trade, including relics of the nomadic Laps or Sami in the north.

Riddarholm Skyrkam

The second-oldest church in Stockholm is located on the tiny island of Riddarholmen, next to Gamla Stan. It was founded in the 13th century as a Franciscan monastery, but today is a virtual pantheon of Swedish kings. As you walk across the ancient floor, you'll in essence be walking on the tombstones of royalty and nobility. Although the church is relatively devoid of art, it does contain a trio of royal chapels. You always make some little discovery every time you visit. On our last trip, we learned that many Swedish soldiers from the Thirty Years' War were also buried here.

Prince Eugens Waldemarsudde

Prince Eugen (1865-1947) was more interested in becoming an artist than in inheriting the throne. Turns out he was no Sunday painter; he became one of the great landscape artists of his day, referred to as the "The Painting Prince" by Swedes. Today, his former home and studio, one of the most visited museums in Sweden, serves as an art gallery and a memorial to his talents.You can see the prince's paintings upstairs and in the gallery adjoining. The prince was not only a painter, but a collector, acquiring works by such great Scandinavian artists as Edvard Munch, Carl Larsson, and Anders Zorn. The prince's studio is on the top floor and is used for temporary exhibitions.Allow time to wander through the gardens to take in its centuries-old trees, and panoramic views of Stockholm harbor.The park is filled with sculptures by some of the greatest masters in Europe

Kungliga Slottet (Royal Palace) & Museums

Sweden has been a monarchy for 1,000 years, and this is your best chance to go inside to observe official court life. Kungliga Slottet is one of the few official residences of a European monarch that's open to the public. Although the King and Queen prefer to live at Drottningholm, this massive 608-room showcase remains their official address.Decorated in the 1690s by French artists, they have the oldest interiors in the palace. you can take in Queen Christina's silver throne on which she sat during her ill-fated reign. This is a rare piece of silver furniture, and it was created for the queen's coronation in 1650. The museum traces the development of the palace from the original defensive fort to the splendid Renaissance palace of today. To wrap up your visit, you can call at the Royal Gift Shop with its unique gifts and souvenirs for the King or Queen in your life. Much of the merchandise here is produced in limited editions, including textiles based on designs from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Drottningholm Palace and Theater 

No palace in the north of Europe is as grand and spectacular as this regal complex of stately buildings sitting on an island in Lake Mälaren. The royal family still lives here, but don't expect to discover the king walking the corridors in his underwear. The royal apartments are guarded and screened off. The palace is dubbed the "Versailles of Sweden," and so it is. In fact, work began on this masterpiece in 1662 about the same time as Versailles. Nicodemus Tessin the Elder (1615-81), one of the most celebrated architects of the 17th century, was the master builder. 

Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Drottningholm needs about 3 hours of your time to visit it. Must stops include the palace itself, the theater, the magnificent gardens, and the Chinese Pavilion. One highlight of any tour is the State Apartments, with a spectacular staircase decorated by Giovanni Carove, the Italian master. The apartments dazzle with opulent furniture and art from the 17th to the 19th century. You'll be awed as we are by the painted ceilings, the precious Chinese vases, and the ornate gold chandeliers, as well as Hedvig Eleonora's state bedroom designed by Tessin the Elder and completed in 1663. 

The Golden Age of Drottningholm came under the reign of Queen Lovisa Ulrika and her son, King Gustav III, who entertained lavishly. Lovisa married Crown Prince Adolf Fredrik in 1744 and demanded more rococo adornments, even going so far as to add another floor. A great patron of the arts, she was also responsible for ordering the building of the theater . Her library is a work of grand beauty, an excellent example of the Gustavian style by Jean Eric Rehn. 

After checking out the grand interior, you should retreat to the Kina Slott or Chinese Pavilion. Built during the European craze for the exotic architecture of Asia, the pavilion was constructed in Stockholm in 1753. Later it was floated downriver to surprise Lovisa on her 33rd birthday. The pavilion, lying in the southeast corner of the park, is like an exotic silhouette of the Grand Trianon at Versailles. It was a favorite rendezvous place for Gustav III, who loved to pass summer days here with his court. 

Allow as much time as you can to stroll through Drottningholm Gardens, the wonderful creation of Tessin the Younger in 1681. The baroque garden is flanked by an avenue of lime trees. The Hercules Fountain here is a famous bronze work, created by Adriaan de Vries, but brought by Swedish soldiers from Prague in 1648. Other features of the park include English-style bridges, ornamental pools, canals, and a "water garden" with nearly a dozen water jets.

Drottningholm Court theater is the grandest such theater in all of Scandinavia. If we could grant five stars instead of the mandated three, they would go to this gem of baroque architecture designed by Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz for arts-oriented Lovisa. A previous theater on this site was destroyed by fire. The first performance was presented here back in 1766, and the theater reached its apogee under Gustav III. Even more so than Lovisa, Gustav (1742-92) was a patron of the arts, founding the Royal Music Academy and the Royal Opera, which presented performances here. The theater retains its original backdrops and props today. Even the same 18th-century ballets and operas are performed here, the productions authentic down to the original costumes. Between June and July, some two dozen performances are staged; seating only 450, the theater offers one of the most unusual entertainment experiences in Sweden. Many performances sell out far in advance to season ticket holders. The theater can be visited only as part of a guided tour, which focuses on the original sets and stage mechanisms. But theater buffs can visit the Theatre Museum, the setting for exhibits tracing the history of European theater since the 1700s, including displays of costumes, stage models, drawings, and paintings. 

Ostasiatiskamuseet (Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities)

A small island in the middle of central Stockholm, you're really making a trip to the Far East. The collection of archaeological objects, fine arts, and handicrafts from China, Japan, Korea, and India form one of the finest and most extensive museums of its kind outside Asia.You might see Chinese glass, Buddhist sculpture, Chinese painting and calligraphy, Tang tomb pottery figurines, Sung classical stoneware (such as celadon and temmoku), Ming blue-and-white wares, and Ching porcelain made for the Chinese and European markets. The building was erected from 1699 to 1700 as stables for Charles (Karl) XII's bodyguard.

Thielska Galleriet (Thiel Gallery)

Thiel was once a wealthy banker and art collector who commissioned the mansion, drawing upon architectural influences from both the Italian Renaissance and the Far East. Over the years Thiel began to fill his palatial rooms with great art. However, in the wake of World War I, he went bankrupt and the state took over his property in 1924, eventually opening it as a museum.we can't see all of Thiel's masterpieces today. In a robbery that made headlines around the world in 2002, many of the finest works were stolen. Perhaps some rich private collector is enjoying all this great art himself today. The remaining highlights include Gustav Fjaestad's furniture; a portrait of Nietzsche, whom Thiel greatly admired; and works by Manet, Rodin, Toulouse-Lautrec, Edvard Munch, and Anders Zorn (for his nude In Dreams).Thiel is buried on the grounds beneath Rodin's statue Shadow.