2 days in Stockholm – Venice of the North

Stockholm is often called Venice of the north because it is built on 14 islands. The city has increased its popularity and it is more visited each year. You can see most of Stockholm in 2 days. The capital of Sweden with countless museums and sights is definitely interesting to visit. I spend 2 days in Stockholm in autumn and even though I probably missed some things, I was still happy with my visit.

2 days in Stockholm itinerary

1. day

Gamla stan

The colorful building in the middle of the Stockholm in the historic center

Gamla Stan is the old town of Stockholm and probably core of the city. Also one of the most photogenic streets. Similarly to Copenhagens Nyhavn, you can also find here a lot of old but very colorful buildings from 17th and 18th centuries. The island Gamla Stan is where the meddieval cathedral Storkyrkan is located and you can also find here Royal Palace. So what to see here?

Stortorget

Stortorget is the oldest square in Stockholm, with a fountain the in middle. The square is full of colorful buildings. You can also find here a lot of side streets that looks like they are full of mystery. There is also one of the important museums there. And that is a Nobel museum. You will get to see here all about Nobel himself but also a lot about people who get Nobel price. It is closed on monday but all the other days it is open. If you have a spare hours, you can go in.

Västerlånggatan

One of the oldest streets in Stockholm and since this is just for walking anyway, you shouldn’t miss this place in your 2 days in Stockholm. Västerlånggatan is a street that directly copy a place where used to be a city’s defencive walls. The street leads from Mynttorget to Järntorget.

Royal Palace

This place is a must even if you should see it just from the outside. Royal palace in Sweden is a home of swedish royal family. The outside of the building is stunning. The palace is perhaps one of the biggest one in Northern Europe.

Outside you can see a baroque architecture and inside you can see exhibition about Swedish royal family and their development from vikings to nation leaders through the centrury.

So the good news is that you can actually go in. If you do, it is better to book the tickets ahead. You can visit this place from 10 am till 4 am. The visits are mainly done by guided tours and takes about 45 minutes.

Riksdag

This palace is a neighbor to the royal palace and it is a place where you can meet Swedish parlament. Parlament building is not as old as it’s royal neighbor, the buidling is in neoclasical style and the construction of it started at 1897, so actually not so long ago. Riksdag is also open for guided tours and public hearing – which I would not recommend it you are just a tourist.

But anyway, if you decide to take a guided tour here, make sure to be there about 10 minutes before the tour will start. Mainly because you will need to go through a security and you shouldn’t miss the beginning of it.

Storkyrkan

On the last part of the day I would try to have a look on one of the oldest building in Stockholm. Storkyrkan is a cathedral in Gamlestan that opened 1306. It is in gothic style and keep in mind that you don’t necessary have to go in, you can also see it’s beauty from outside. Most of people do anyway. it is definitely a building to notice.

2. day

Skansen

Stockholm is great city for long walks, especially because there is always some view around

I asked a lot of people before I went to Stockholm. And most of them recommended to visit Skansen. Skansen is truly a must in Stockholm. It is a place to go if you are interested in history but also in culture. And this museum is also something special for the kids as well, because here is also a zoo filled with animals from Scandinavia.

The exhibiton is very authentic. You can see here a glass crafts men making a piece of art right before your eyes. Georgeous! They will also tell you about their technique and how are they doing all sorts of things. And believe me there is a lot of things like this from glass art pieces to wooden craft or even a black smith. You can also see here some very old buidlings to ilustrate how life in Sweden looked like in past centuries.

Don’t forget to visit the zoo here. After all the culture and history, your brain deserve some relaxing animals to look at. At the same time, the zoo is on top of the hill where Skansen is located and from here you can see really nice view on Stockholm itself. We were there in autumn and it was really nice. Just Stockholm filled with colors of leaves.

Skansen is opened all year around but the opening times differ so you should have a look at it on their website and plan your vist. However, the price for ticket stays the same and that is 160 swedish kronar all year around.

Vasa museum

Vaasa – the museum of the great Swedish failure brought back to live in air lock museum

Let’s get to a part of museum that is way more different but very well made. And that is Vaasa. The museum is dedicated to one of the biggest ships that Sweden built in meddieval time. Unfortunatelly, the ship was too big and not well made and it drown just one kiloter from harbor.

It stayed under water until 20th century, when they decided to find the ship and make a museum about this unsuccesfull warship. Despite being under water for a couple of centuries, Vaasa persist and you can see it now, when going through airlock where it is located.

In the museum you will get to hear the whole story about the ship, why it sink and stories of people on board. That is something that amazed me perhaps the most, because I didn’t thought that we can know that much about regular people serving on boat so long after they died.

The museum has also some interactional parts, where you can try to be a captain and lead the ship. Generally, great for kids.

The Vasa museum is opened daily from 10 am to 5 pm and the entry fee is 150 swedish kronar.

ABBA museum

Visiting ABBA museum in Stockholm

Let’s continue with another museum that for once has nothing to do with Swedish meddieval history. ABBA museum is a place where you get to know everything about Swedish pop band called ABBA. You may know their hits like Dancing Queen, Money money money or anything from the famous movie that was made with their songs.

The very first part is dedicated to a famous guitars, so you can find here guitars that were used by most famous musical artist in the world. Including Jimmy Henrix and more. But right after that room full of rock and pop history, you will get to a core of ABBA museum. And here you will get to know their story of how they get together, what is behind their songs and who made their costumes.

The second part is more about what happened that the band fall apart and their individual carreers afterwards. In both places you can really enjoy your self by listening funny music from 80’s and in record studio, even record your own version of the famous song. The entry fee to the museum cost 250 SEK, and the opening hours differs, depending on which time of the year are you comming.

When should you spend 2 days in Stockholm?

Nordiska is one of the most beautiful, hogwards looking building in Stockholm.

So that is so much for 2 days in Stockholm. There is a lot of more places that are certainly worth to visit. Some of them you will definitely see, when you will pass the places that I wrote about. For me, those were the places that are really a must in Stockholm.

And now the question is when to visit the capital of Sweden. Here is a couple of options. In summer it is the main season and the streets are generally filled with tourists. But it is also a time, when the weather in Stockholm is nice and even warm. Most of the places have a longer opening hours because the sun is setting very late, so perhaps that can be a great time to see most of Stockholm.

Spring and autumn can be quite rainy and even dark. But it is the shoulder season and because Stockholm has a lot of trees, it can be interesting to either watching them bloom or see how they color during autumn.

In the winter, Stockholm can be really nice but also very dark. A lot of places are not open for too long. But I believe that winter in Stockholm can be really magical thing to see, especially if the water between islands freezes.

Where to find hotels in Stockholm?

As a capital and relatively big city, Stockholm has a lot of option for accomodation. Both very cheap for backpackers or some luxury one for high class traveler. If you are planning to spend 2 days in Stockholm, perhaps it is better idea to find a hotel or hostel somewhere in city center. Mainly because you will need everything to be closer to you and spending even a half an hour in public transport can be uncomfortable with the time presure.

So try to choose some acomodation either in Gamla stan, Katarina Sofia neighborhood, Östermalm or Albergert. That should get you closer to the places that I have mentioned and you will be able to get to the main sights just by walking.

When we visited Stockholm, we choose a hotel that was on a boat. It was truly amazing, the prices were actually really cheap and there were some very nice staff. From the room on the boat you could see the main sights of Stockholm from water view.

Getting around Stockholm

Stockholm in the mist

Stockholm is a big city that is located on 14 islands. It might seem amusing but the truth is, that it is something that can complicate the transport around Stockholm.

If you live in center, there is always a possibility to walk around and it is perhaps the most comfortable way. Also it is great to see the city like this because during your 2 days in Stockholm, you will get to see most of interesting building here.

Another option is to rent a bike. Stockholm also has a special line on the road for cyclist and there is a plenty of people who are using bike to move around the city. But you need to be prepared that in case of strong wind it is not the most comfortable way of going around.

And lastly there is always subway and buses. Both of it comes regurarly and it is marked on google maps, so getting to one place to another can be really easy. One way ticket cost 43 SEK, which can be rather expensive, but if you are there only for 2 days, it is not that big of a problem. If you are using subway, make sure you will see some of the most famous stations in Stockholm. One line of Stockholm subway is filled with amazing art pieces and it is really magnificent to watch it. Stations where you can see the art are Solna centrum, Stadon metro station, T-centralen, Radhuset and more!

Getting to airport and back

If you have came to Stockholm by train, it is easy to get to the city center mainly because the central station is also subway station. But if you came here by airplane, it is whole another thing.

Perhaps the best way of getting to the airport and back is by a bus. There are 2 main options for getting to city center with a bus. One of them is flixbus. And that is also perhaps the most easy way of getting to the city center. It depart every 10 minutes from all terminals on Stockholm airport. And it goes directly to a city center. The tickets are of course cheaper if you buy them ahead. Which you can do it by Flix bus website or app. Alternatively you can also buy them in 7/11 shops in the airport.

Another but that comes from Arlanda airport in Stockholm is called Flygbussarna. That one is perhaps cheaper but it goes every 40 minutes. To reserve a ticket you should also visit their website or buy it in 7/11 in the airport.

It takes about 40 minutes to get to the city center and buses sometimes have a different stops on the way. All the buses end on Bus centralen, close to train station, where is also a subway station. From there you can get to your hotel.

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