Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Luleå (1 daily; 18hr); Malmö (hourly; 3hr); Örebro (7 daily;
2hr 45min); Stockholm (hourly; 3hr by X2000, 5hr
InterCity); Oslo (3 daily; 4hr); Östersund (1 daily; 12hr);
Umeå (1 daily; 13hr 30min); Västerås (7 daily; 3hr 45min).
By bus
Long-distance buses use Nils Ericsons Terminalen,
beside the train station, which can be reached by an
undercover walkway.
Destinations
Copenhagen via Kastrup airport (10 daily;
4hr); Falun (1 daily; 8hr); Karlstad (6 daily; 4hr); Malmö (16
daily; 3hr); Oslo (10 daily; 4hr); Stockholm (8 daily; 6hr).
By ferry
Stena Line (
T
031 704 00 00,
W
stenaline.se)
operates ferries from Fredrikshavn in Denmark, which dock
just a 20min walk from the city centre, close to the
Masthuggstorget tram stop on lines #3, #9 and #11; its
services from Kiel in Germany put in close to the arching
Älvsborgsbron bridge, a couple of kilometres west of the
centre - take lines #3 or #9 into town from
Jægerdorffsplatsen.
Destinations
Frederikshavn (4-8 daily; 2hr by catamaran,
3hr 15min by ferry); Kiel (1 daily; 14hr).
INFORMATION
Tourist o
ces
The one handiest for those arriving by
train or bus is in Nordstan, the indoor shopping centre near
Centralstation (Mon-Fri 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun
noon-5pm). The main office, however, is on the canal front
at Kungsportsplatsen 2 (May Mon-Fri 9.30am-6pm, Sat &
Sun 10am-2pm; June & mid- to late Aug daily
9.30am-6pm; July to mid-Aug daily 9.30am-8pm; Sept-
April Mon-Fri 9.30am-5pm, Sat 10am-2pm;
T
031 368
42 00,
W
goteborg.com). Both offices provide information,
a room-booking service and the useful
Göteborgsguiden
detailing events, music and nightspots in town.
Listings information
Pick up the Saturday edition of the
Göteborgs-Posten
newspaper, whose weekend supplement,
Två Dagar
, has the latest listings of bars, concerts and clubs.
Gay information
RFSL Stora Badhusgatan 6
T
031 13 83
00,
W
rfsl.se/goteborg. This friendly office has the latest
information on the city's limited gay scene and will know of
any special events taking place, too.
3
GETTING AROUND
It's easy to walk to almost anywhere of interest in Gothenburg. The streets are wide and pedestrian-friendly, and the canals
and the grid system of avenues make orientation simple.
Tidpunkten travel information offices at Brunnsparken,
Drottningtorget and Nils Ericsonsplatsen, or from Pressbyrån
newsagents or 7-Eleven supermarkets. It is no longer possible
to buy individual tickets with cash onboard buses and trams.
BY TRAM AND BUS
Both are operated by Västtrafik (
T
0771 41 43 00,
W
vasttraik.se/en). A free transport map is available at
both tourist offices.
By tram
The most convenient form of public transport: a
colour-coded system of tram lines serves the city and its
outskirts - you can tell at a glance which line a tram is on,
as the route colour will appear on the front. Trams run daily
every few minutes from 5am to midnight, with a reduced
service running after midnight on Fri and Sat nights.
By bus
Gothenburg has a fairly extensive bus network, but
pedestrianization in the city centre can lead to some odd
and lengthy detours. You shouldn't need to use buses much
in the centre, but useful routes are detailed in the text
where necessary.
Tickets
The best-value tickets to buy are travelpasses; these
give unlimited travel for 24hr (65kr) or 72hr (130kr) on trams,
buses and ferries within the city. Buy them from the
BY BIKE AND CAR
The city is one of the best in Europe for cycling: most main
roads have cycle lanes, and motorists really do seem to give
way to those on two wheels. The tourist offices can provide
you with the excellent
cykelkarta
, which clearly shows all the
cycle routes throughout the city, and out to the archipelago.
Bike rental
You can rent a bike from Cykelkungen at
Chalmersgatan 19 (
T
031 18 43 00,
W
cykelkungen.se;
150kr/day)
or,
alternatively,
the
Slottskogens
and
Stigbergssliden
hostels (see p.121).
By taxi
Taxis can be summoned by calling Taxi Göteborg
on
T
031 65 00 00 or Taxi Kurir on
T
031 27 27 27; you can
also pick one up at the rank at Centralstation.
THE GOTHENBURG CITY CARD
The Gothenburg City Card
provides unlimited bus and tram travel within the city; free entry
to all the city museums and the Liseberg Amusement Park; free boat trips to the Elfsborg
fortress; and a fifty-percent reduction on day-trips to Fredrikshavn in Denmark with Stena Line.
It also provides free parking in roadside spaces (but not at privately run or multistorey car
parks). Buy the card from the tourist o
ces or online at
W
goteborg.com (285kr for 24hr, 395kr
for 48hr; 565kr for 72hr).
