Getting there & Getting around

Getting there

The main international airport is Arlanda, half an hour's bus ride north of Stockholm. There are daily services to and from most European capitals. Most flights from North American and Asian centres fly through Copenhagen, where you may have to change planes. The airport departure tax is included in ticket prices. Buses and trains link up with ferries to provide services to and from Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Germany, Poland, Estonia and the UK. Swedish ports of entry include Gothenburg, Helsingborg, Malmö and Stockholm, although ferries from northwest Finland head straight for Umeå and Skellefteå in northern Sweden and services to Germany leave from Trelleborg.

Getting around

Daily domestic flights crisscross the country, but Sweden's extensive bus and train systems render flying unnecessary unless you're really pressed for time. Trains are the basis of Swedish transport outside cities, serving regional centres more quickly than buses. Buses are often the only option once you get off the beaten track. Swedish roads are of a high standard, marred only by their popularity with moose, reindeer and elk around dawn and dusk. You need only a recognised full licence to drive in Sweden: an international licence is unnecessary. Women should ask for discounts (tjejtaxi) in Stockholm taxis at night.

The motorways are not open to cyclists but the long, specially designed and scenic cycle routes are better anyway. Archipelago boats sail around Stockholm and Gothenburg, and steamers on lakes such as Vättern, Siljan and Torneträsk in Lapland make popular summer cruises and handy links if you are cycling or walking. Skippering your own boat can be perilous, given the dramatic changes in water level. Expect to encounter difficulties upon the slightest divergence from marked channels.

Visa information

Stays of up to 90 days (unlimited for Nordic citizens) are usually visa free, but South Africans, Hong Kong residents with Chinese passports and residents of many African, Asian, South American and some Eastern European countries should check requirements with Swedish embassies.