13 Oct 2009
Simply Sweden announces a new Christmas Shopping Holiday for November and December 2009. This new tour is a version of our 3 Cities + 2 tour but with a shopping theme. Malmö (& Copenhagen), Gothenburg and Stockholm (& Uppsala) offer some of the best Christmas shopping in Europe. Sweden and Scandinavia are famous for their design, furnishings and Christmas markets. This tour offers offers all this and more.

During the winter months, when Sweden is famous for being cold & dark, there is this immense warm and light feeling. Candles welcome you into cosy cafes and festive shops, Christmas lights decorate houses, shops, city centre squares and tall Christmas trees. Indulge yourself in the Swedish Christmas spirit. Restaurants serve a traditional Julbord (Christmas table) with a range of cold meats, fish and cheese. Cafes serve warming hot chocolates with traditional Christmas Pepparkakor biscuits.

Shopping highlights include the combined cosmopolitan region of Malmö and Copenhagen, Liseberg Christmas market and the large shopping centres in Gothenburg, department stores, Skansen Christmas Market and Gamla Stan Christmas market are just some of the attractions in Stockholm.

20 July 2009
Karlskrona is located on the South Coast of Sweden and is becoming more accessible to visitors from the UK. Regular flights from several UK airports to Copenhagen and the Öresund bridge make Malmö more accessible than an ever. Malmö is effectively the gateway to southern Sweden and with the new electrified south coast train line, Karlskrona is just 3hrs from Malmö. We look forward to including Karlskrona in our summer program for 2010 as we will be introducing a South Sweden tour featuring Skåne, Karlskrona and the Kosta Boda Art Hotel. For more information about the Kosta Boda Art Hotel and Karlskrona please see our blog entry on 4 April 2009.

Book your holiday to Sweden here!

14 Apr 2009
Over the Easter Weekend I visited the naval city of Karlskrona and the all new Kosta Boda Art Hotel in the heart of The Kingdom of Crystal (Glasriket) in South Sweden.

I visited the Kosta Boda Art Hotel on Thursday 9 April 2009 and received a guided tour from Johan, who will be the bar & restaurant manager when it opens on 27 June 2009. The hotel is almost complete and the finishing touches to this glistening glass hotel are being put in place. The Kosta Boda Art Hotel will have 104 uniquely decorated rooms & suites, a luxury spa, indoor pool, outdoor pool and a cobalt blue glass bar all decorated with glass sculptures and glass art by world famous glass artists from the Kosta region. The indoor pool is decorated with glass tiles and a glass exhibition at the bottom. Feel free to borrow a pair of goggles to have a closer look! The restaurant has been designed by Ulrica Hydman-Vallien. During your meal you will be entertained by the expert glass blowers from Kosta Boda as they blow and sculpt glass on a stage in the restaurant.

This really is a remarkable art / boutique hotel in a fascinating part of Sweden and makes Småland and The Kingdom of Crystal so much more accessible to tourists. Kosta Boda is the oldest glassworks in Sweden and Kosta now features a top class art hotel and a retail village. In the Kingdom of Crystal area you will find around 10 other glassworks, each with their individual character, and many of which have become collectable items within Sweden and beyond. Whether your taste is crystal clear simplicity or a complicated structure of colour and design The Kingdom of Crystal will not disappoint! Here is just a taster :-

Just 1hr south of Kosta is the coastal & naval city of Karlskrona which is a great summer escape. Karlskrona is on the UNESCO World Heritage list as an outstanding example of a 17th Century planned naval city. Ship building, architecture and town planning have attracted international attention since the 18th century and Karlskrona is proud to be one of Sweden's most popular summer destinations. The naval base and ship yard are still in use today and Karlskrona is home to Sweden's naval fleet.

A myriad of beaches and bathing spots are located in the city centre and scattered across the 1,650 or so islands of the Karlskrona Archipelago, which is well served during the summer by boats departing from the city centre harbour. Other activities & attractions include the Marine Museum and The Admiralty Church (Sweden's largest wooden church). If you travel to Sweden with young children Vämöparken has a small range of farm animals, an excellent playground and a maze to negotiate. You will also find 'over-sized' chess and ludo to keep the big child in you entertained!

Simply Sweden recommends a visit to one of the best ice cream shops in Sweden (our opinion!). The shop is located on Stortorget (The Big Square - one of the largest in Europe) close to the tourist office. Do not be put off by the queue. It is always extremely long. It does move quickly and it is well worth it! We also recommend lunch at Nya Skafferiet, Rådhusgatan 9 just off Stortorget. This is an Italian style delicatessen / cafe with an excellent buffet lunch.

Book your holiday to The Kingdom of Crystal, Karlskrona and Sweden here!

9 March 2009
Malmö announces an all new tourism website - www.malmotown.com. Since the completion of the impressive Öresund Bridge, in July 2000, Malmö and Copenhagen (the capital of Denmark) are often talked about in the same breath. They are practically the same location, commonly referred to as the Öresund region. Many Swedes live in Malmö but work in Denmark and vice versa. The Öresund bridge connects Sweden and Denmark by road and rail. Malmö & Copenhagen are just 40mins apart, with Copenhagen International Airport, Kastrup, sandwiched in the middle! Although Malmö has its own international airport, many holiday makers bound for southern Sweden fly into Copenhagen.

In the centre of Malmö Simply Sweden recommends a visit to Lilla Torget (The Small Square) lined with small restaurants & bars, and Möllevågen with colourful market stalls and charming shops. The 54 storey high Turning Torso is Sweden's tallest building standing at 190 meters tall. With offices, cafe's & apartments this architectural masterpiece has become an extremely popular place to live & work in the Western Harbour area of Malmö. The Western Harbour is an award winning ecological residential area with beaches, parks and lovely coastal walks.

If you are looking to do something traditionally Swedish Simply Sweden recommends a visit to Kallbadhuset (The Cold Bath House) at any time of year, at the sandy Ribersborg Beach. Kallbadhuset is open all year round and consists of a warm sauna and a soothing dip in the ocean. Going during the winter months is a little more extreme but the Swedes describe the experience as an all over body massage! During the long sunny days of the summer months you will find the shallow coastal waters around Skåne are warm and relaxing, suitable for the whole family.

Book your holiday to Malmö, Skåne & southern Sweden here.

5 March 2009

Spring has arrived! SMHI (Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute) reports that the southern tip of Sweden, on the west coast of Skåne, close to Malmö, is now officially in Spring. The definition used by SMHI is that average daytime temperatures must average 0 to 10C for 7 days. This is great news for holidays to Sweden as summer is just around the corner with long sunny days and warm lakes to swim in!

By definition: winter is arrives when the average daytime temperature is below 0C. Summer arrives when the average daytime temperature is 10C or higher for 5 days.

Don't worry if you are still planning a late winter holiday to Sweden. Sweden is approx. 2000km long and an average spring arrives in Stockholm on 25 March, in Kiruna (home of ICE HOTEL) on 25 April and high in the mountains on 1 May.