Stockholm, Venice of the north

Stockholm is one of Europe’s most memorable cities, and it’s difficult not to fall in love with its insanely good looks at first glance. When you walk the streets of Stockholm, you’ll quickly notice that it’s home to some of the world’s most creative minds. Its welcoming nature has made it a popular destination for expats, many of whom come to work for one of the capital’s many innovative startups. Stockholm has been the breeding ground for some of the world’s most successful artists, too, and we can’t ignore the stunning nature that’s within touching distance of the city centre. Simply put, life in Sweden’s biggest city isn’t too bad. Now that you’re no doubt keen to learn more about what the Swedish capital is known for, let’s jump in. 

Stockholm is known as the Venice of the north for a very good reason. Stockholm is surrounded by water from almost everywhere. Stockholm’s city centre is built across 14 islands; some of the main ones include Gamla Stan, Djurgården, and Skeppsholmen. If you visit, you can take a tour that goes under some of the most important ones — and lets you take in Stockholm’s beauty from an even better position than land. Stockholm has one of Europe’s best metro systems. You can reach several corners of the city via its colour-coded lines, all of which feed into T-Centralen. But beyond its practicalities, Stockholm’s system of underground trains is also a photographer’s dream. Many refer to the Stockholm metro as the world’s longest underground gallery. And if you’re willing to explore, you’ll quickly discover why. The city has several well-decorated stations, all of which you can access with the price of a public transport ticket. 

When it comes to cultural assets, Stockholm is scandalously rich. Take Gamla Stan. The city’s oldest district is the stuff of storybooks. Complete with prerequisite royal palace, gabled buildings and razor-thin cobblestone streets, it’s hands down one of Europe’s most enchanting, impeccably preserved historic centres. Across the city, world-class museums and galleries inform and provoke, harbouring everything from glittering Viking treasures and an ill-fated warship, to Abba props and subversive contemporary art. It’s a stimulating, inspiring mix, where the past, present and future constantly merge, converse and engage.

If you’ve ever typed “Stockholm” into a Google search, you will almost certainly have seen pictures of Gamla Stan before. While Gamla Stan is quite touristy, it’s hard to blame people for wanting to visit. You can easily escape the crowds by taking a detour and wandering off one of the island’s many picturesque side streets. Stockholm’s sense of style is legendary. Here, good design is not a luxury, it’s a right – even the humblest coffee shop is usually design literate, from its lighting right down to its cups, bowls and cutlery. And while industrial design is a theme at several city museums, a fix of retail therapy can be equally enlightening. From cult-status local threads, bags and textiles, to delicate handmade ceramics, local objects reveal much about the Swedish love of understatement, functionality and harmony. If it’s time to redesign your life, this is the city to do it in.

Stockholm is easy in all the right ways. Despite being spread across 14 islands, it’s a relatively compact creature, and walking is often the best way to get around. Bridges connect most of the islands, while ferries and the tunnelbana (metro) link the rest. Public transport is safe, smooth and efficient, covering every corner of the city and its bucolic surrounds. It’s also well adapted to wheelchair travel. Nearly all signs are written in Swedish and English, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a local who doesn’t speak near-perfect English.

Given the bounty of prime ingredients drawn from Stockholm’s surrounding waters, fields and forests, it’s not surprising that food is a serious passion. This is a city with a curious, open-minded palate. Whatever the global culinary trend, Stockholm is on it, from raw food and açai breakfast bowls to sustainable, locavore dining. Old-school, homegrown classics are equally revered. Whether it’s fried herring, succulent meatballs or buttery toast Skagen, traditions are both faithfully adhered to and cleverly tweaked, the latter by Stockholm’s legion of young, ambitious, forward-thinking chefs.