Tourist Attractions & Monuments Stockholm

Do you dream of adventures in the Scandinavian countries? In the summer, go on a safari to discover the wildlife around Stockholm, opt for a guided tour of the city by Segway or bicycle, or put on your swimsuit for a canoe trip. In winter, put on your skates and hike on the many frozen lakes surrounding the capital! Here, you can enjoy a wide variety of outdoor activities all year round that are out of the ordinary. The service is impeccable and the price is almost always all-inclusive.

The non-profit Association of Licensed Guides in Stockholm (FSAG) was founded in 1953. Its aim is to promote the tourist industry in Stockholm through a number of possible tour formats in about 30 different languages, including sign language. The association offers customers the possibility to contact the guides through their website or by means of a catalogue that is distributed to tourist offices every year.

The Stockholm City Hall is one of the most emblematic monuments of the city. Created by the architect Ragnar Östberg, the Stockholm City Hall was inaugurated in 1923 after 12 years of work. Beautifully located on the shores of Lake Mälaren, this building of a new architectural style, the national romanticism, immediately became the symbol of the city. It almost symbolically illustrates the marriage between the cityscape and the surrounding water. Today, the city hall houses the rooms of the city council, the central commission, the committee of aldermen as well as the offices of the central administration of the city and the ceremonial rooms.

It is possible to visit Stockholm City Hall by taking a guided tour that lasts 45 minutes (purchase tickets on site). Guided tours are given daily but may be cancelled due to events taking place at the venue. It is also possible to book a private tour, which offers more flexibility on the language spoken during the tour (book online). The city hall also has a souvenir store with some very nice items! Good plan for a last minute gift.

The Tower(open only from May to September). At the corner of the building, the tower stands 106 m high and is topped by three crowns, a national and monarchical symbol. You can access its different levels through a narrow spiral staircase that has 365 steps. From the top, one has a complete and impressive view of the city, making the city hall a major tourist attraction. The tickets (only 30 issued each hour) are accompanied by a schedule. So you have to book them as soon as possible, on the spot.

The Blue Hall (Blå Hallen). This immense sheltered courtyard hosts the great Nobel Prize award dinner every year. Largely inspired by the Italian Baroque, with its balconnets and arcades, it does not live up to its name because there is not a single trace of blue here. The reason is simple: the architect changed his mind about the color of the room several months after naming it. Thus, the name remained... Here you will see an organ with 10,000 pipes, which must surely be the largest instrument in Sweden.

The Council Chamber (Rådsalen). The 101 elected members meet here two Mondays a month. The roof structure is fully visible, a reference to the Vikings, who once held their councils under the hulls of their overturned ships. A corner of blue sky appears on the ceiling between the rafters through a trompe-l'oeil painted bay. Again, the builder wanted to recall the dwellings of the Swedish ancestors whose roofs were slit with an opening to evacuate the smoke. The red color - common in Sweden - of the beams, textiles and leather emphasizes the solemn character of the room.

The Ovalen. The antechamber of the ceremonial rooms serves as a lounge for civil weddings on Saturdays from 2 to 6 pm. This room is also called "French" because of the tapestries from the royal manufacture of Beauvais around which the room is designed.

The Prince's Gallery (Prinsens Galleri). It is a 47 m long party room. It is illuminated by seven French windows overlooking the park, Lake Mälaren and the shores of Stockholm. In front of the windows, this vast panorama is reflected in frescoes painted by Prince Eugene. Three carved and gilded oak chandeliers hang from the ceiling of the Three Crowns Room (Salen Tre Kronor). One of the most representative paintings of the Gustavian period is Stockholm from Mosebacke by Elias Martin. It depicts the old city which, for two centuries, has remained as it is. The Prince's Gallery is closed on Saturdays, often reserved for wedding ceremonies!

The Golden Hall (Gyllene Salen). Work of the master Einar Forseth, this banqueting hall was realized in only two years and is undoubtedly the highlight of the visit. The place is as original as sumptuous: the walls are entirely covered with gold and glass mosaics that represent the history of Swedish kings (including the scenes of the "bloodbath" of Gamla Stan in 1520 and the accession of Gustav Vasa three years later) and, on the back wall, the East and the West paying tribute to Stockholm, depicted in the guise of a strange deity known as the Queen of Lake Mälaren. It is in this sumptuous hall that the annual Nobel Prize Ball is held and broadcast on radio and television.

Stadshusparken is a small park along the city hall and the shores of Lake Mälaren. There are several sculptures here, among them the artists August Strindberg and Gustaf Fröding. The park is large and spacious, offering a very pleasant view of the whole city.

Café Ragnars Skafferi. Located in the city hall, this cozy café is named after the building's architect, Ragnar Östberg. You can go there for lunch, they offer homemade dishes and all ingredients are organic! The menu is fixed, and changes every day of the week. You can find out more on their website: www.ragnarsskafferi.se/. Vegetarian friendly menu, and everything is served as a buffet. Your choice!

ABBA The Museum is a museum dedicated to the famous Swedish pop group, from its creation in 1970 to its split in 1983, and its comeback in 2021. Since its opening in 2013, it is a hit, with nearly 300,000 visitors per year! You can discover costumes, instruments, golden records and other objects that belonged to the group, but also exact replicas of the places where ABBA lived and worked to take you closer to the life of the quartet. More than a simple museum, the place has been designed to offer a true immersive and interactive experience. The multiple devices available to visitors are regularly renewed to remain at the cutting edge of technology. During your visit, these devices will allow you to virtually try on the band's costumes, sing songs, create music, play quizzes and even slip into the skin of a fifth member of the band by performing on stage alongside the avatars of Björn, Agnetha, Benny and Frida. Finally, a new space takes you behind the scenes of the quartet's latest project: ABBA Voyage, a series of futuristic concerts in the form of holograms. For an even more interactive experience, rent an audio guide and let the band members tell you their stories!

Good to know: reservations on the site are highly recommended and only credit cards are accepted in the entire museum (including the store and restaurant).

It is a paradise for naval history and model ship enthusiasts. Here are exhibited reproductions of magnificent three-masted ships from the 19th century, merchant sailing ships and other warships, modern submarines, cruisers from the beginning of the 20th century... Photos, navigation objects of all kinds and paintings retrace the history of Swedish and international navigation through the ages. Few explanations in English (none in French).

On Lake Mälaren, 49 km from Stockholm. Take the E 4 direction Arlanda and Uppsala, then in Märsta, take Route 263 Tourist Office: Stora Gatan 33 Tel (0) 8 592 806 50 - www.sigtuna.se

Sigtuna is one of Sweden's oldest cities. It was founded around the year 980 by King Eric Segersäll and his son Olof Eriksson Stötkonung, who created the first currency in Sweden in 995. It is a very pleasant excursion, with its charming streets lined with wooden house. Some Viking archaeological remains are exposed in the pretty Sigtuna Museum, located in Stora Gatan 55 and open daily from 12 to 16 h (entrance 20 Sek, 15 Sek for students). There is the famous "Viking of Sigtuna", a Viking head of a few centimetres, remarkably sculpted in an elk horn whose origin and function remains mysterious, as well as the coins of that time. It is also in Sigtuna that the greatest concentration of unfortunately stones is found in the world. You can rent boats (canoes, boats…) at Våffelbruket café in the port (Tel 592 508 00). For a coffee, stop at the Tant Bruns, Laurentiigränd 3.

It is a temple of cultures and traditions, of peoples and their rites of the 19th and 20th centuries. You will discover the ways of life through instruments, weapons, clothes, means of transport and other usual and ritual objects. You will see Indonesian masks, Chinese carnival costumes, an Inuit child's kayak, arrows and headdresses from Indian tribes, Beninese engravings... The sound and visual atmosphere allows you to immerse yourself in the different contexts.

A very beautiful museum, located in the bowels of Helgeandsholmen, under the old bridge (Norrbro), which will fascinate adults and children alike because it takes a playful look at history, from the ^13th century - when the city was founded on Stadsholmen - to the beginning of the ^16th century and Gustav Vasa's accession to the throne in 1523. A must for urban history buffs but also for those who want to discover the secrets of the Swedish capital's past.