Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
are strong preservatives. It's recorded that the body of a young man known as
Fet Mats
(Fat Mats) was found in the mines in 1719; though he'd died 49 years previously in an
accident, his corpse was so well preserved when discovered that his erstwhile fiancée, by
then an old woman, recognized him immediately.
Be sure not to miss peering into the
Great Pit
(Stora Stöten), just nearby, which is
100m deep and 300-400m wide. It suddenly appeared on Midsummer Day in 1687,
when the entire pit caved in - the result of extensive mining and the unsystematic
driving of galleries and shafts.
Dalarnas Museum
Stigaregatan 2-4 • Tues-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat & Sun noon-5pm; Sept-May also Wed until 9pm • Free •
W
dalarnasmuseum.se
Back in Falun's centre, the riverside
Dalarnas Museum
makes for a worthwhile visit.
Containing sections on the province's folk art, the Dala horse, dresses and music, it
includes a reconstruction, on the ground floor, of the dark, heavily wood-panelled
study where the author Selma Lagerlöf (see p.142) worked when she moved to
Villavägen 34 in Falun in 1897, as well as a number of black-and-white photographs of
her and her home; a copy of Lagerlöf 's topics, including her most famous work
Nils
Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige
(“The Wonderful Adventures of Nils”), are
displayed on the bookshelves. Look out, too, for the curious black-and-white
photographs of the bin Laden family, who visited Falun in 1971 on a family holiday to
Sweden when Osama was a teenager.
Carl Larssongården
May-Sept daily 10am-5pm; Oct-April Mon-Fri guided tours at 11am • 120kr •
W
carllarsson.se • Take the hourly #64 from Östra Hamngatan
“It was here I experienced the unspeakably delightful feeling of seclusion from all the world's noise and din”.
Carl Larsson's words on living in Sundborn
8
Ideally placed for an easy day trip from Falun, the village of
SUNDBORN
, just 13km to
the northeast, was once home to artist Carl Larsson. One of Sweden's most visited
tourist attractions, the delightful
Carl Larssongården
was at first the summer dwelling
of Carl and his wife Karin, later becoming their permanent home. The artist's own
murals and portraits of his children form part of the decor, as do the embroidery and
tapestries of his wife. At the start of the twentieth century, when the Larssons had done
the place up, the house represented an entirely new decorative style for Sweden, its
bright, warm interior quite unlike the dark and sober colours used until that time. The
artist is buried in the churchyard just outside.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
FALUN
By train
Falun is easily reached by train from Stockholm,
Arlanda airport and Uppsala, and there are also useful
through services from Gävle and Örebro. The train station is
to the east of the centre.
Destinations
Gävle (2 hourly; 1hr); Stockholm (2 hourly;
2hr 45min); Örebro (2 hourly; 2hr 45min); Uppsala (2
hourly; 2hr).
By bus
The bus station is east of the centre
.
For the #64 bus
to Sundborn, head to the stop on Östra Hamngatan.
INFORMATION
Tourist o
ce
Opposite the
First Grand
hotel at Trotzgatan
10-12 (mid-June to mid-Aug Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat
10am-2pm, Sun 11am-2pm; mid-Aug to mid-June closed
Sun;
T
023 830 50,
W
visitfalunborlange.se). Has free
internet access.
ACCOMMODATION
Clarion Collection
Bergmästaren
Bergskolegränd 7
T
023 70 17 00,
W
choicehotels.se.
For a homely feel with
rooms decorated in soft pastel shades of green and yellow,
try this place near the train station, which has a superb sauna
suite complete with jacuzzi and sunbeds.
870kr/1270kr
Falun
Trotzgatan 16
T
023 291 80,
W
hotelfalun.nu.
Falun's budget hotel has a good central location and offers
double rooms both with and without private facilities. Rooms
