Two weeks in Sweden/Scandinavia in early August... general advice/recs sought

My wife (doper Araminty) and I are planning a trip to Sweden (and likely surrounding areas) in early August. We’re looking for both specific recommendations of places to go, and general advice on how to best enjoy the trip.

We’re definitely interested in nature, scenery, good food, historical sites, and general local color. We’re moderately interested in museums, archtecture and art. We’re totally uninterested in nightlife, dancing, clubbing, etc. We have a moderate budget… enough that we don’t need to stay in youth hostels, but we certainly can’t just do anything damn the cost.

(We’re coming from the US, she’s been doing a little online learn-Swedish app for a few months, but for the most part we speak only English.)
Any input welcome, thanks!

I stayed in Uppsala for 2 months in 2001. It’s nice, though it was getting a bit boring by the end of my stay.

If you plan on going to Finland, too, I definitely recommend Helsinki which I absolutely loved. It’s difficult to explain why. It sure isn’t one of the most beautiful cities in Europe but within a couple of hours after arriving, I felt at home, something which I’ve only experienced in two other cities : London and Venice.

  1. You don’t need to know any Swedish. Everyone speaks English to some degree. Anyone you’ll encounter in the service industry will know enough so you don’t have to bother.
  2. Don’t exchange any money. We’re quickly becoming a cash free society. Many restaurants will not accept cash. Check with your bank so you don’t get stiffed.
    Look for signs at restaurants that say “Endast Kort” (Only Cards) or “Kontantfritt” (No cash).
  3. Taxi rides are totally deregulated. Before hopping into a cab, negotiate the price. Every summer there are stories about tourists being charge a hundred bucks for a half mile ride. Uber is in the big cities, but not as ubiquitous as in the U.S.
  4. What city will you fly into? That’ll determine what more recommendations I can give you.

Not only does everyone in Sweden speak English, they probably speak it better than you. Somehow they’ve managed to learn the language very well without picking up any bad grammar habits. I’ve only ever been to Gothenburg a handful of times, so maybe it’s a little different in more rural areas.

I recommend the Dalarna area in Sweden for charm. Uppsala is also worth a few days. Both are historical up the kazoo. Stockholm – at least see the Vasa (boat). We all enjoyed Skansen (historic reinactment village) a lot.

Something I wanted to do but didn’t get to was to visit/stay at one of the zillion tiny vacation islands outside Stockholm.

Do not neglect yogurt drinks in Sweden. They are the best.

Thanks everyone, we booked tickets on the overnight flight from Oakland to Stockholm, well, it arrives just after midnight. My main goals for the trip include at least one boat ride/trip, some birding, and fika. Would love to hear any further suggestions. (Yogurt drinks noted. Not something I would have ordered on my own, thank you!)

Hey, you might be able to catch the Medieval Week* in Visby (a UN heritage site) between the 5:th and 12:th of August! Can’t get much more historical, and would involve a boat trip… though I guess hotel prices might be fairly high. Also, you might have to get tickets for some of the events in advance.

(*Linked site seems to be somewhat defunct; will probably get better soon!)

Dining can be pretty pricey in Stockholm (and Sweden generally). Check out the dagansratt (sp?) for lunch specials that are more affordable. The modern art museum in Stockholm has an awesome lunch that is comparatively cheap – it’s about a 15 minute walk from Gamlastan.

Dagens rätt. Though it’s usually pretty horrible: sweet herring or pork with beans in syrup. I really prefer our national dish, the kebab pizza! :slight_smile:

Kebab pizza also on the list!

Any opinions of Färnebofjärden National Park? How about the west coast, the Koster islands? Is the Göta canal fun to visit?

The Vasa Museum in Stockholm is among the most interesting anywhere in the world.

I’ve been reading some pretty horrific stories about Malmö. Allegedly crime and uncontrolled immigration has turned it completely to shit.

A pity. 2 decades ago we took a hover boat over from Copenhagen and had a nice time there. Had been considering going back sometime. Now I’m not so sure.

OK, our plans are starting to come together. Currently they’re looking something like this:

3 days in Stockholm (and surroundings) (definitely seeing the Vasa museum and many other of the well-known stuff)
1-2 days up to farnebofjarden national park
2 days over to kosterhaven national park (stopping somewhere in the middle), a full day there
1 day up to Oslo
2 days in Oslo
Then the “Norway in a Nutshell” train/boat fjord tour up to Bergen and back
Fly back to Stockholm, and home

With a few extra days stuck in here or there to bring it up to two weeks.

So if people are willing to give us some more help, a few questions:
(1) Is there any reasonable way to do a trip like this without renting a car? Are there sufficient busses/trains/etc to really get around to all the national parks, etc? Or would we just be way too constrained?
(2) Anything else that we’ll be going near that’s a must-see?
thanks a bunch! And thanks for everyone’s input.

Sounds like a great trip. We’ve been to Sweden and Norway before. Stockholm is great - definitely recommend the Vasa and the hop on/off boats are not a bad deal as they get you to many interesting places, including city hall and some of the museums with historical collections. We also enjoyed Skansen (“largest open air folk museum”) and spent almost a full day there.

Norway is also great - Oslo is a nice clean city but we ran out of stuff to do in about two days. There’s a cool fort with historical WWII stuff, and Vigeland park is definitely worth a visit. You definitely want to get to fjord country and the Rick Steve’s “in a nutshell” guide is pretty good. Plan for jet boat tours on the fjords or bike riding between towns along them. I loved the hike/tour on the Nigardsbreen glacier and the “nutshell” tour takes you on some beautiful high mountain roads (some a little scary!). Bergen is also great, but try to book the funicular tickets to the top of town in advance otherwise you’ll get stuck in a very long line. If you like the seafood, the market down by the pier is awesome (but pricey…all food in Norway is pricey…the equivalent of a Tombstone pizza from the supermarket is something like $17 US, and eating out is crazy (we’re the ugly Americans who ate at the McDonalds in Bergen because it was affordable). I think I had a McNeilson.

Not sure how else to get around in Norway other than driving…which is a pain. Speed limits are low (80 KM/hr max) and strictly enforced, with radar cameras about every 250 meters - you just can’t go fast even on uncongested roads.