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SWIMMING

The absolute best spots for a swim in Stockholm

Outdoor swimming is one of the best parts of any Swedish summer, and in Stockholm you can do that close to the city centre.

Published: 31 May 2018 12:48 CEST
Updated: 12 July 2019 07:19 CEST
The absolute best spots for a swim in Stockholm
What about an evening swim? Photo: Viktor Gårdsäter/Folio/imagebank.sweden.se

Here are ten of the best spots for a dip, in no particular order. Don't forget your towel!

1. Vinterviken

In Vinterviken, you can find two swimming spots: Örnbergsbadet and Trekantsbadet. Örnbergsbadet is located by the cliffs near Hägerstenshamnen and next to a marina. Trekantsbadet is on Lake Trekanten in Liljeholmen. The lake is close to roads and apartment blocks, but feels like an oasis of nature.

How to get there: The closest tunnelbana is Örnsberg on the red line, or Liljeholmen if you want to go Lake Trekanten.

Photo: Helena Landstedt/TT

2. Långholmsbadet

Långholmens strandbad is located on the northern part of Långholmen near the Långholm prison museum. It offers sand and lawn areas for sunbathing, as well as several public toilets and a café, an ice cream shop and restaurant. This beach offers stunning views of the Västerbron bridge and Kungsholmen across the water.

How to get there: The closest tunnelbana station is Hornstull, then cross the bridge to Långholmen


Photo: Niklas Larsson/TT

3. Blå Lagunen 

The Swedish Blue Lagoon in Ekerö is an old quarry that has been filled with water. The colour of the water earned the spot its nickname, and it's a tranquil area surrounded by trees and woods with a large and sloping sandy beach on one side. But you've been warned: the water is usually quite cold here!
 
How to get there: Take the bus from Brommaplan (which can be reached on the tunnelbana's green line)
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

A post shared by Kerstin Eklund (@starchaser22) on Jul 3, 2019 at 7:40am PDT

 
 
4. Hellasgården
 
This nature reserve in Nacka offers beautiful scenery and good facilities as well as some spots to get food. There are hikes to take around the water, or you can try out the sauna, work out in the outdoor gym or even join a yoga class. Because the lake is small, it gets warm earlier in the year.
 
How to get there: Bus 401 from Slussen
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

A post shared by Susan Thom (@exploresomemore__) on May 28, 2018 at 12:16pm PDT

 
5. Oxhålsbadet

Located on the residential island of Stora Essingen, Oxhålsbadet is a calm place surrounded by nature. You'll find three large piers with bathing ladders and seating. There are also grassy areas and a  barbecue area.

How to get there: Take a bus to Flottbrovägen

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

A post shared by Karl-Johan Månsson (@manssonkarljohan) on Aug 8, 2018 at 1:20pm PDT

6. Brunnsviksbadet

Facing Hagaparken north of the city centre, this rocky beach has four small grassy areas. There, you'll find a small fixed platform with ladders to ease yourself into the water.

How to get there: The closest tunnelbana station is Universitetet on the red line

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

A post shared by ♥︎ E L E N O R E ♥︎ (@elenoree) on Mar 30, 2014 at 9:42am PDT

 
7. Fredhällsbadet
 
On the western shore of Kungsholmen you'll find Fredhällsbadet. It's a rocky bathing spot with a small lawn and a wooden deck. During the summer season, you can visit the café by the swimming area.
 
How to get there: The closest tunnelbana station is Kristineberg
 

Photo: Claudio Bresciani/TT
 
8. Solviksbadet
 
Solviksbadet is a large swimming area adjacent to Alviksvägen in Bromma. There is a sandy beach, a lawn area and lots of facilities such as changing cabins, showers and toilets. 
 
How to get there: Take the tunnelbana Alvik and then the tram to Smedslätten
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

A post shared by Audrey Leclercq (@audreylec01) on Aug 17, 2018 at 3:57am PDT

 
9. Tanto strandbad
 
This beach spot is extremely close to the city centre, at the south end of Drakenberg park in Södermalm. It's the perfect place to go for a dip during lunch breaks although it gets crowded easily due to the prime location and small size of the beach. There are plenty of cafes and bars nearby for after your swim.
 
How to get there: The closest tunnelbana station is Hornstull
 

Photo: Jessica Gow/TT
 
10. Ängbybadet
 
Finally, this spot offers a large swimming area with two sandy beaches and large lawns. The bathing area is accessible to disabled people with two concrete ramps allowing wheelchair users to easily reach the water.
 
How to get there: The closest tunnelbana station is Ängbyplan
 

Photo: Tomas Oneborg/TT
 
This article was first published in May 2018 and updated in July 2019

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HOUSING

Moving to Gothenburg? The best areas and neighbourhoods to live in

Whether you're moving to Sweden’s second biggest city for the first time or are looking for another neighbourhood, The Local talks you through some of your best options.

Published: 18 May 2021 17:10 CEST
Updated: 25 May 2021 12:27 CEST
Moving to Gothenburg? The best areas and neighbourhoods to live in
Which neighbourhood of Sweden's second city is right for you? Photo: Per Pixel Petersson/imagebank.sweden.se

First of all: where to look? The city of Gothenburg suggests on its website that sublets, houses and townhouses to rent all across West Sweden can be found on Blocket, a popular digital marketplace (in Swedish).

Other alternatives for rentals include the sites Bostaddirekt, Residensportalen and Findroommate, as well as Swedish websites like Hyresbostad and Andrahand. Note that some of the housing sites charge a subscription or membership fee. There are also Facebook groups where accommodation is advertised. An example in English is Find accommodation in Goteborg!.

If you’re buying, most apartments and houses for sale in Gothenburg and West Sweden can be seen on the websites Hemnet and Booli. Local newspapers often have property listings. Real estate agents (mäklare) can also help you find a place.

Majorna on a hot summer’s day. Photo: Björn Larsson Rosvall/TT

Majorna

Majorna is a residential area in Gothenburg that has transformed from being a classic working-class district to becoming a hip and restaurant-dense cultural hub in Gothenburg. The buildings typical for Majorna are three storey buildings with the first storey built in stone and the topmost two built with wood — the houses traditionally called Landshövdingehus. This neighbourhood just west of the city center, beautifully positioned between the river Göta älv and the park Slottsskogen, is hugely popular with young families.

Majorna was traditionally populated with industrial workers and dockers. The area is still supposed to have a strong working-class identity, with many people living in Majorna seeing themselves as radical, politically aware, and having an ‘alternative lifestyle’.

This doesn’t mean, however, that one can live in Majorna on a shoestring. The average price per square meter here is approximately 55,000 kronor as of May 2021, according to Hemnet.

Eriksberg on Hisingen. Photo: Erik Abel/TT

Hisingen

From the centre of Gothenburg it’s only a short bus or tram ride across the river to Hisingen. It’s Sweden’s fifth largest island – after Gotland, Öland, Södertörn and Orust – and the second most populous. Hisingen is surrounded by the Göta älv river in the south and east, the Nordra älv in the north and the Kattegat in the west.

The first city carrying the name Gothenburg was founded on Hisingen in 1603. The town here, however, was burned down by the Danes in 1611 during the so-called Kalmar War and the only remnant is the foundation of the church that stood in the city centre.

Hisingen housed some of the world’s largest shipyards until the shipyard crisis of the 1970s. Over the last 20 years, the northern bank of the Göta älv has undergone major expansion. Residential areas, university buildings and several industries (including Volvo) have largely replaced the former shipyards.

Hisingen comprises many different neighbourhoods — Kvillebäcken, Backa and Biskopsgården are only some examples. At Jubileumsparken in Frihamnen, an area bordering the Göta älv, there is a public open-air pool and a spectacular sauna. Further inland you’ll find the beautiful Hisingsparken, the largest park in Gothenburg.

Apartment prices are still relatively low in certain parts of Hisingen, while the housing market in other neighbourhoods is booming. The average metre-squared price on Hisingen lies around 41,000 kronor.

Gamlestaden

Gamlestaden or the Old Town was founded as early as 1473, 200 years before Gothenburg’s current city centre was built. You can take a seven-minute tram ride towards the northeast to this upcoming district (popularly known as ‘Gamlestan’) which, like Majorna, is characterised by the original Landshövdingehus in combination with an international atmosphere.

What was once an industrial centre, mostly the factory of bearing manufacturer SKF, is now rapidly turning into something new, as restaurants and vintage shops move into the old red-brick factory buildings.

The multicultural neighbourhood is also close to the famous Kviberg’s marknad (market) and Bellevue marknad, where you can buy everything from exotic fruits and vegetables to second-hand clothes, electronics and curiosa.

The Gamlestaden district is developing and should become a densely populated and attractive district with new housing, city shopping and services. In the future, twice as many inhabitants will live here compared to today, according to Stadsutveckling Göteborg (City development Gothenburg). Around 3,000 new apartments should be built here in the coming years. The current price per metre squared in Gamlestaden is 46,000 kronor.

Södra Skärgården. Photo: Roger Lundsten/TT

Skärgården

It might not be the most practical, but it probably will be the most idyllic place you’ll ever live in: Gothenburg’s northern or southern archipelago (skärgården). With a public bus or tram you can get from the city centre to the sea and from there, you hop on a ferry taking you to one of many picturesque islands just off the coast of Gothenburg.

There are car ferries from Hisingen to the northern archipelago. Some of the islands here are also connected by bridges. The southern archipelago can be reached by ferries leaving from the harbour of Saltholmen.

Gothenburg’s southern archipelago has around 5,000 permanent and another 6,000 summer residents. The archipelago is completely car free and transportation is carried out mostly by means of cycles, delivery mopeds and electrical golf carts.

Most residences here are outstanding — wooden houses and cottages, big gardens — and always close to both nature and sea. Finding somewhere to live, however, is not necessarily easy. Some people rent out their summer houses during the other three seasons. When buying a house here (the average price being 5.5 million kronor) you have to be aware that living in a wooden house on an exposed island often comes with a lot of renovating and painting.

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