Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Lying far out in the Baltic towards Finland, Svartlöga and Rödlöga (4hr from
Stockholm by boat) have untouched nature in plenty.
Svartlöga
is the only island in
the archipelago whose forest is totally deciduous, and was one of the few to escape
Russian incursions in 1719 during the Great Northern War. There are several good
rocky beaches on which to relax after the long journey here. Neighbouring
Rödlöga
is a
much tinier red-granite affair, with no roads - just leafy paths, overgrown hedgerows
thick with wild roses and wonderful secluded beaches.
2
Sandhamn
2hr from Stockholm by boat
With its fine harbour, the island of
Sandhamn
has been a destination for seafarers since
the eighteenth century and remains so today, attracting yachts of all shapes and sizes.
The main village is a haven of narrow alleyways, winding streets and overgrown
verandas. If you fancy staying overnight there are a couple of options (see opposite).
Utö
3hr 30min from Stockholm by boat
Far out in the southern reaches of the archipelago,
Utö
is flat and thus ideal for cycling;
it's not bad for bathing and picnics either. There are excellent views from the island's
windmill on Kvarnbacken hill, ten minutes' walk southwest of the jetty. There's also a
youth hostel (see opposite).
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
THE ARCHIPELAGO
By boat
Getting to the islands is easy, with
Waxholmsbolaget (
T
08 679 58 30,
W
waxholmsbolaget
.se) operating the majority of the passenger-only sailings
into the archipelago; its boats leave daily from Strömkajen
in front of the Grand Hotel and the National Museum.
Tickets
Tickets are reasonable: Grinda, for example, is 90kr
one-way, whereas Finnhamn, one of the furthest islands, is
130kr; pay on the boat. If you're planning to visit several
islands, it might be worth buying the Båtluffarkort
(Archipelago Card; 420kr, plus a 40kr refundable deposit on
return of the card), which gives five days' unlimited travel
on all Waxholmbolaget lines. If there's no direct boat to
your destination, connections can often be made on the
island of Vaxholm.
INFORMATION
Tourist of
ce
For timetables and ideas of where to go, drop
into the Visit Skärgården information office (
T
08 10 02 22,
W
visitskargarden.se; June-Aug Mon-Fri 9am-4.30pm, Sat &
Sun 10am-4pm; Sept-May Mon-Fri 10am-4pm) on
Strandvägen at Kajplats 18, where staff can also help with
accommodation and eating options.
ACCOMMODATION
There are few
hotels
in the archipelago but it does have plenty of well-equipped and comfortable
youth hostels
, all of
which are open in the summer (May-Sept). It's also possible to rent
summer cottages
on the islands for 3000-6000kr
DON'T MISS THE BOAT
If you're waiting for the boat out in the archipelago, you must
raise the semaphore flag
on
the jetty to indicate that you want to be picked up; torches are kept in the huts on the jetties
for the same purpose at night.
In some parts of the archipelago, it's possible to visit a couple of islands on the same trip by
taking the ferry to your first port of call, then
rowing across
to a neighbouring island, from
where you return to Stockholm by the ferry again - we've detailed these options in the text.
For this purpose, there'll be a row-boat either side of the water separating you from your
destination. When you use the boats, you have to ensure there's always one left on either side
- this entails rowing across, attaching the other boat to yours, rowing back to your starting
point, where you leave one boat behind, and then rowing across one last time.
