Boat trip Stockholm - Experience Sweden's capital from the boat

Boat tour Stockholm

Experiencing Stockholm on a boat tour is fun. Stockholm in June is pleasantly warm with average temperatures around 20 degrees. Ideal for Baltic Sea locations that are worth a vacation. When the sun is also shining, there is no stopping us - and the Stockholmers -: the water is calling. Stockholm in Sweden borders in the east on the Baltic Sea with many small bays and a collection of almost 24.000 larger and smaller islands. In the west, the water surface continues beyond a sluice with the 120-kilometer-long Mälaren lake. We already had this with ours River cruise on the Göta Canal crossed. The sluice (Slussen) is located in the middle of the city and separates salt water from fresh water.

 

 

The city itself is spread over fourteen islands, which are connected by 58 bridges. The nice thing about it is that the water of Lake Mälaren is so pure that you can even fish for salmon in the city, and the people of Stockholm use its water as drinking water. So it's no wonder that water plays a major role in Stockholm. A Stockholm boat tour is a must.

 

 

How a prince thwarted our plans

Only: on that day in June we hadn't actually planned to see Stockholm on a boat tour. Since we've never been to Stockholm, we wanted to explore it on foot to get an impression of it. We had already made a plan at home about what we wanted to see and were excited about what Stockholm has to offer. From the Väsa Museum to the old town Old Town and the Royal Castle to the city hall, the city hall of Stockholm - we wanted to see everything.

 

The prince wedding

We reacted all the more amazed to the question from the receptionist in our hotel when we said goodbye for the day: “Are you also here for the prince's wedding?” Prince's wedding? Which prince wedding? I knew that the Swedish Queen Sylvia is of German descent, that she is married to King Karl Gustav and that he has three children. But I didn't know more about the Swedish royal family. I don't usually follow the life stories of the royals - maybe with the exception of the British royal family, because they somehow have something to do with Canada, which plays a big role on our blog. I don't usually find out about the Swedish royal family. Nevertheless, the royal family helped us on our Stockholm boat tour.

 

 

Boat trip Stockholm for sightseeing

When the friendly lady in our hotel also told us that the entire city of Stockholm should be closed because of the prince's wedding, I urged Petar to hurry. In a hurry we reached the information center in the Kulturhuset on Sergels Torg Square, where they gave us the same information. Our orientation trip with the Hop on Hop Off Buses through Stockholm * we could forget. The last one had just left. An alternative that was suggested to us was a Stockholm boat tour.

 

 

 

Take a Stockholm boat tour

Our forced march to the port region of Stockholm was already a gauntlet, as more and more barricades were being erected. These were supposed to protect the prince couple from the enthusiastic Swedes during their carriage ride through the city. They had apparently come from all over the country to attend the wedding celebrations. Boat tickets are sold at Stockholm Strömkajen in front of the Grand Hotel. As expected, the next one was Hop on Hop off boat tour * already sold out. Nevertheless, we were lucky: an hour later there was still room for us on the Stockholm boat tour.

 

Like a Swedish prince drove us on the water

In the meantime the barriers were in place and the crossings were checked by friendly Swedish police officers. Since we had no idea how the wedding celebrations were planned in the city, we sat on a bench at the harbor and watched the Swedes eating ice cream, pushing prams and laughing together until the column came along the carriage of the prince couple passed this part of the route. It was a feast day for the whole country! We had the impression that half of Sweden was in Stockholm that day, because the roads were getting more and more crowded. Nevertheless, we were looking forward to our Stockholm boat tour, because the hustle and bustle got bigger and bigger.

 

 

Let's go on the Stockholm boat tour

So we were happy when our Stockholm boat tour began an hour later and we were able to escape the hustle and bustle on land. What started completely unexpectedly turned out to be a stroke of luck that day. Because from the Hop on Hop off boats we saw almost the same sights of Stockholm as we would have seen them from the buses - only from the water. We gave ourselves to get out of the car because the streets were overflowing with people all over the city. According to the tourist information, the museums were closed anyway, so we didn't miss a thing. And so we let us sail through Stockholm on the waterway for almost an hour with a view of the sights of the city. Our photos give an impression of what one encounters while sightseeing in Stockholm by boat.

 

 

 

The prince wedding

After we had left the Gröna Lund amusement park on Djurgarden behind us, our Stockholm boat tour set course again for the Stockholm Strömkajen and with that we approached the end of our sightseeing tour by boat. The crowd on the quay had multiplied by now, and everyone was trying to get a seat at the front of the barricade. Since not much has happened so far and a tour of the city on foot was out of the question, we stood in the back and waited for the things that were to come. And have we seen the prince couple?

Two hours later, there was sudden movement in the police, who had waited in the summer heat without batting an eyelash. Motorcycle patrols passed by. Black limousines with darkened windows passed us - sat in one of them maybe the king and the queen? They were not visible. And then, in the distance, we heard the clatter of horse's hooves on the tar of the road. First the mounted guard passed us, and then suddenly they were there: Prince Carl Philip of Sweden and Sofia Hellqvist, or as she has been called since that day: Princess Sofia of Sweden. Friendly, they waved to the crowd, and after a few minutes their coach disappeared over the Strömbron bridge in the direction of the castle. With a photo of the Prince and Princess, we concluded this extraordinary Day in Stockholm .

 

 

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Travel Arrangements:

Arrival Date

Book yours here Arrival by plane, bus or train*. Lufthansa and SAS will follow Stockholm. You can also visit Stockholm in one Mini cruise on the Baltic Sea plan how Daniel describes it in his blog.

Car Rentals:

Cheap Car Hire - Book Fast and Easy! *

Stockholm sightseeing by boat:

In addition to the Hop on Hop off boat tours, there are others Sightseeing Boat Tours in Stockholm *for which you can also book tickets through Get Your Guide and avoid waiting in Stockholm.

City tours of Stockholm:

If your Stockholm on one City or Theme Tour * want to experience, then there is a large selection of tour options.

Hotels in Stockholm:

Stockholm Hotels * You can book through our partner booking.com at this link. If you Accommodation in or near Gamla Stan * seek, you will find it here. Especially smart and affordable is the night on the AF Chapman *, the three-master in the port of Stockholm. If you stay in hostels, you will find a cheap option here.

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Do you already know:

• Helsinki
• Experience Miami from the boat
• Nile cruise

Source: own research on site. We financed this stay in Stockholm ourselves. We thank Visit Stockholm for their support with the City Card.

Text: © Copyright Monika Fuchs, TravelWorldOnline
Photos: © Copyright Monika Fuchs, TravelWorldOnline