Stockholm / City of Islands

Recently, record-breaking temperatures have been plaguing southern Europe in the summer months. People have been advised not to leave their homes during the hottest hours.

When interviewed by journalists, people arriving in Scandinavia from Italy and Spain talked about the relief they felt when feeling the fresh air and moderate temperatures.

Sweden is one of the largest countries in Europe. Growing up in southern Sweden, in what today is called “the greater Copenhagen area”, Stockholm was more or less just a distant, northern place I knew little about. Today, it’s my home. Its geographical location might appear odd, far away from Europe’s financial area (Germany) or its political centre (Belgium), and also in the other end of the continent from holiday destinations like Italy and Greece.

But from a historical viewpoint, the location makes perfect sense. Southern Sweden was for hundreds of years part of Denmark, while Finland – today an independent country– was an integrated part of Sweden. This placed Stockholm in the middle of what Sweden looked like then.

In addition, cultural and financial exchange with Russia’s St. Petersburg was essential for Swedish economy and cultural development, which further explains the capital’s location.

Stockholm is a city divided into many different parts, most of them actually being small islands, interconnected with each other through a series of bridges and subway tunnels.

All of them have different identities and characteristics. This guide follows the geography of the city, and is thus divided into different sections, one for each main island or neighbourhood.

Behnaz Aram’s Mini-Guide to Stockholm

Behnaz Aram is one of Sweden’s most successful and celebrated fashion designers. For many years, she was creative director of & Other Stories. She has collaborated with the Royal Opera as a costume designer, and has consulted for a number of fashion brands.

We met her for drinks at Stockholm’s Soho House and asked for her best inside tips to Stockholm. When asked about her favourite hotel, she says, without hesitation, “Ett hem, because it truly feels like coming home (“hem” means “home” in Swedish). It’s also very secluded. If that is outside your budget, NOFO Hotel & Wine Bar is a great option. And remember, in just a few months, the crew behind Café Nizza will open their first hotel – I would really like to stay there for a weekend.”

For restaurants and bars, she (of course) suggests Soho House, which only opened quite recently in Stockholm (and she is herself one of the founding members). She’s a regular at PA & Co, a small restaurant frequented by people in fashion, marketing and PR, but also likes more traditional places like Sturehof, Restaurang Prinsen and Konstnärsbaren (colloquially referred to as KB). These places all have been around for more than a century, and serve traditional Swedish food. For a more contemporary alternative, the ones that are most interesting at the moment are Gazza – famous for their pasta, Spanish Racamaca – so authentic that many Spaniards wonder how it’s even possible outside of Spain – and Bar Ninja, a neighbourhood wine bar in Södermalm. A few blocks from Ninja, you will find Alba Vinbar, a great spot for natural wines.

For shopping, Behnaz Aram has only one tip: Susan Szatsmáry, a luxury bag brand that combines a sustainable approach with the world’s best quality in leather. All bags are produced in Florence.

Södermalm: the Slower Side of Stockholm

Many Stockholm guides claim that the most interesting neighbourhood to visit is Södermalm, supposedly the equivalent of Le Marais in Paris or Shoreditch in London (I’m not sure about these comparisons). Historically Södermalm was not part of the central city, but a more remote place for lower income-households. This made it popular among writers and artists, who enjoyed the island’s lower costs of living.

In the 90s, Södermalm was considered a Scandinavian hotspot, regularly featured in Wallpaper* and similar magazines, but today, local creatives have either moved further south, outside of the city, or to other more central areas of Stockholm.

Perhaps paradoxically, this means that the large island is more enjoyable to visit today than during its heydays, as it’s not as pretentious as it used to be. I remember once wearing a white shirt and tie and going to a bar there, when someone asked me what I was doing in Södermalm.

They couldn’t fathom that someone who would sport a tie could also be doing something even remotely creative for work, or for that matter, that people who weren’t artists would want to come to Södermalm for drinks. That kind of attitude is thankfully long gone.

The best place to go in Södermalm is Café Nizza, together with Cave Nizza, on Åsögatan 171. Famous for their excellent cacio e pepe, together with their dedicated focus on natural and biodynamic wines, Café Nizza is a stronghold among those who (like Behnaz Aram) work in fashion, art, and tech, and is one of the restaurants that you really will want to visit while in Stockholm, both for its food and for its friendly atmosphere.

If you want to stay in Södermalm, the obvious choice would be Hotel Frantz, a small boutique hotel with reasonable prices in the part of Södermalm facing the Old Town, and closer to the city centre. From here it’s a short walk to Woodstockholm, a small restaurant at beautiful Mosebacke torg.

Vasastan: Art & Architecture

In some ways Vasastan is the epitome of Stockholm – most of it was built at around the turn of the last century, following a very traditional 19th century type of city plan. Its main boulevard, Odengatan, cuts right through. In one end of Odengatan, you will find Loyal Gallery, and in the same area, Babette and Bistro Mirabelle. Babette is a pizzeria, considered one of the best in the city, while Mirabelle serves traditional French cuisine. Both belong to the same group of restaurants that also include Södermalm’s Nizza, so expect to see the same kind of creative types at these places, sharing food and drinking natural wine. One of the owners is an avid art collector, and when he ran out of walls at home, he began decorating his restaurants with art. So don’t forget to look at the walls!

If you are only looking to have a drink, try Savant Bar, a small but popular wine bar. If you continue further down Odengatan, past the City Library (designed by Gunnar Asplund and a must for those interested in architecture), you will soon reach Vasaparken, home to the art centre Sven-Harrys. Don’t miss the permanent exhibition on the rooftop, or the new restaurant.

For shopping in Vasastan, go to Acne Archive. The Swedish fashion brand has a small boutique where they sell limited products, samples, old stock, and other unique items. A similar approach is applied by Our Legacy at their shop Workshop, just a few blocks from Acne Archive. Here, they give old garments new life by creating new versions of old collections, and selling one-offs from their archives.

Östermalm & Djurgården: the Posh End

One of the most written-about hotels in Stockholm is Ett hem, but I would also recommend Hotel Diplomat on Strandvägen, which has a slightly more central location (but still in the same bourgeois area). At Diplomat, you will be right next to Svenskt tenn, the best interior design shop in Scandinavia (complete with a high-quality restaurant). Very close to the hotel is also Schmaltz, a traditional Jewish-inspired delicatessen, as well as Tyge & Sessil, one of Stockholm’s best wine bars (though a bit noisy in the evenings). If you’re in the mood for a treat, visit Betsy Sandberg in Östermalmshallen, for seriously delicious locally produced chocolate.

On weekends, many people like to go for a walk around the small island of Djurgården. Once you cross the bridge, make a right through the large blue iron gate, and just follow the path for some people-spotting.

On your way across the island, you will pass several art museums, including Liljevalchs, Thielska Galleriet and Prins Eugens Waldemarsudde. The latter was home to a royal prince who was also a prominent artist, and the museum includes both his former home and artist studio. It has been awarded Sweden’s most beautiful museum. Don’t miss its terraced sculpture garden.

Norrmalm & Skeppsholmen: Downtown

To be honest, the city centre is the least pleasant area in Stockholm. Most of it was torn down in the 1960s, when a completely new city plan was drawn up. The new version is more urban than the former 17th century version, but also with less character. In recent years, attempts have been made to amend the injuries by opening new bars and restaurants, so that people will actually want to spend time here. One of them is Röda Huset, a nice, small restaurant and wine bar, with a pleasant view of the brutalist Sergels torg. Another is Misshumasshu, housed in the beautiful Birger Jarlspassagen.

For those interested in architecture, the Stockholm Concert Hall, designed by Gunnar Asplund in the style of Swedish Grace, and with sculptures by Carl Milles, is not to be missed.

The downtown area is also where most shops are. One of Sweden’s most interesting fashion brands is Asket, with a (somewhat paradoxical) mission to inspire their customers to buy less. Their garments are made to last, and through quality in material and design, they hope to inspire people to not define themselves through mindless over-consumption. Let’s hope they succeed.

If you continue past the Nationalmuseum (museum of national art and design) and its Ai Wei Wei-sculpture in front, and over the narrow bridge, you will reach the small island of Skeppsholmen, home to Moderna Museet (museum of modern art). Don’t miss the sculptures by Picasso, Alexander Calder, and Niki de Saint Phalle in the park outside. This is also the home of one of the most secluded and private hotels in Stockholm, Hotel Skeppsholmen.  

Beyond the Beaten Track

A few minutes north (by foot) of Vasastan, you will find Hagaparken, where the crown princess lives with her family in a small castle, On your way there, stop by Carl Eldhs Ateljémuseum, where the artist studio of sculptor Carl Elder has been turned into a museum, complete with its own minuscule café.

Brunnsviken, next to Hagaparken, is a lovely lake with nice walking trails on the opposite side from the park. One of the trails will take you to the botanical garden Bergianska trädgården, complete with greenhouses, cafés and even a nice restaurant.

East of Stockholm, connected by a bridge and a tram, is the island Lidingö, and the art museum Millesgården, formerly home to the artist and sculptor Carl Milles and his wife Olga.

If you instead go south of Stockholm, don’t miss the cometary Skogskyrkogården, a UNESCO world heritage site, designed by architects Gunnar Asplund and Sigurd Lewerentz. It’s one of the most special places in Stockholm and should not be missed.

It could sound strange to recommend visiting a cemetery while on holiday, but this truly is a modernist masterpiece, and a very emotional type of landscape. After, go to Solen, the new and very charming restaurant only a few metro stops away.

On your way, make sure to check out the metro stations that you pass, as almost all the stops have been designed by Swedish artists, making the Stockholm metro “the longest art installation in the world”. Currently there are only three metro lines – red, green, and blue – in Stockholm.

The green line was the first one built, and therefore doesn’t have as many artistic decorations as the other two. The red one was inaugurated a few years after the green, and many of these metro stations exhibit artworks from the mid-twentieth century.

The blue line is the newest addition to the metro, and is full of bold, post-modern expressions (such as Kungsträdgården station, perhaps the most spectacular of them all).

Links

Where to Stay

Ett hem – One of the world’s finest luxury hotels.

NOFO Hotel & Wine Bar – Personal and budget-friendly option in Södermalm.

Hotel Skeppsholmen – Like staying in the countryside while being the centre of the city.

Hotel Frantz – Cozy and homely hotel in the Södermalm area.

Hotel Diplomat – One of the most traditional hotels in Stockholm, with an excellent location.

Where to Eat and Drink

Café Nizza – Italian restaurant known for their Cacio e pepe.

Alba vinbar – The trendiest natural wine bar in Stockholm at the moment.

Bar Ninja – Relaxed wine bar at Södermalm

Racamaca – The best Spanish food in Stockholm.

Konstnärsbaren (KB) – One of Stockholm’s most classicrestaurants and bars

Restaurang Prinsen – For traditional Swedish food (and French wine)

Sturehof – One of the most historic restaurants in Stockholm

Woodstockholm – Fine dining in a hipster-ish venue.

Babette – Stockholm’s best pizza, with excellent natural wine.

Bistro Mirabelle – Fashionable small French bistro

Misshumasshu – Great Asian food in beautiful settings

Röda Huset – Great wine bar in the city centre

Savant Bar – Popular wine bar with seasonal food in Vasastan

Bar & Delicatessen Schmaltz – Jewish-inspired food and meeting place for creative minds

Solen – Wonderful space and great food just outside the city

Tyge & Sessil – Wine bar in Östermalm

Betsy Sandberg / Östermalmshallen – local chocolate (and ice cream) store

What to Shop

Acne Archive – sample collections and unsold pieces from old collections at a reduced price.

ASKET – Slow fashion at its best

Susan Szatsmáry – Handmade luxury bags

Svenskt tenn – Scandinavia’s leading interior design shop

Workshop / Our Legacy – Our Legacy-garments redesigned in a local, small-scale way

What to See

Bergianska trädgården – Botanical garden just outside the city

Carl Eldhs Ateljémuseum – An unusual type of museum, set in the former artist studio of Carl Eldh

Millesgården – Spectacular sculpture garden

Moderna Museet – Sweden’s museum of modern art

Nationalmuseum – Museum of primarily 19th century art

Liljevalchs – Swedish Grace-styled art museum in Djurgården

Prins Eugens Waldemarsudde – Named one of the most beautiful museums in Sweden, this art museum used to be the private home of a royal prince.

Skogskyrkogården – A cemetery that is also an UNESO world heritage site.

Stockholm Concert Hall – Designed by Gunnar Asplund in the Swedish Grace-style.

Sven-Harrys – New art centre with great restaurxant (and shop)

Thielska Galleriet – Former private villa turned art museum