Tours

Historic tour of Gothenburg

This walking tour takes you to some of the historic buildings in central Gothenburg. We begin at Centralen, next to Drottningtorget. Most buses and trams stop by Drottningtorget. Centralen is Sweden's oldest train station with indoor platforms. The station was opened in the 19th century. Today, buses and trains depart for just about every corner of Sweden from Centralen. The station also has kiosks, cafes, restaurants, a record store and a bookstore.

Our walk takes us towards Brunnsparken and Gustav Adolfs torg along Södra Hamngatan. You will pass a hamburger restaurant and a large shopping centre. Brunnsparken is a local transportation hub for trams and most buses. We have now reached Gustav Adolfs Torg. The square is the administrative and political centre of Gothenburg. You will find both the old and new City Hall, the Town Hall, and the Exchange situated around the square. A statue of king Gustav Adolf II, founder of Gothenburg, stands in the middle of the square. Until the 1850's, the square functioned as a large market place. In those days, the square named Stora Torget (The Main Square). The market was re-located under great public protest to Kungstorget (The King's Square) behind Kungportsplatsen. A fish market opened just below Gustav Adolfs Torg, but it was moved to Rosenlundskanalen in the same decade.

Walk across the square towards City Hall, and turn right on Torggatan. Walk until you reach Kronhusgatan. Engelska nationens stenhus (The English Nation's stone house) was located at Kronhusgatan 11, now an office complex. During the 1700's and 1800's, British tradesmen such as Carnegie, Barclay and Hall established themselves in Gothenburg. The two largest business in Gothenburg at this time were those of John and Benjamin Hall and George Carnegie.

Continue on to Kronhusgatan 1, where you will find Kronhuset and Kronhusbodarna. Kronhuset is Gothenburg's oldest preserved building. It was built over a ten year period and was completed in 1653. Even during its construction, this big storage facility for the Crown came to be known as Kronhuset. Parliament held their sessions on the ground floor of the building in 1660. Since 1929, Kronhuset has been in the ownership of the municipality of Gothenburg. Kronhusbodarna (the Kronhus sheds) are from the 18th century, and today they consist of an old-fashioned country store and a cafe. Why not enjoy a nice cup of coffee and a pastry before we continue our walk?

Leave through the exit at Postgatan and walk down the street until you come to Smedjegatan, and walk down Smedjegatan to Norra Hamngatan. Walk down Norra Hamngatan towards Packhuskajen, and cross the bridge Stora Bommens bro. Go to Södra Hamngatan 1 to see The Residence. It was constructed during the period of 1648-1650, commissioned by Field Marshal Lennart Torstensson. He was also the General Governor of the counties of Västergötland, Dal, Värmland and Halland until 1654. The crown purchased the building in 1657. The Swedish king Karl Gustav X died here on February 13, 1660, during the parliamentary session. Today, The Residence functions as office space and reception rooms for the County Governor of Västergötland. There is a plaque on the building commemorating the death of Karl Gustav X.

Next, walk to Lilla torget (The Small Square), the last stop on the historic tour. Lilla Torget is an old market place. Wooden furniture was sold here in the mid-19th century, so the colloquial name for the square was "Trätorget" (The Wood Market). Lilla Torget is located southwest of the harbour canal, and many customers used the waterway to reach the market in those days. There is a statue at Lilla Torget of Johan Alströmer (1685-1761), the man who introduced the potato to Sweden in 1724. Today, the square is used as a bus stop. It is only a few minutes' walk from Brunnsparken.

Tour of Annedal

This short walk will take you from Linneplatsen via Annedal Carlsson's & Starck's corset factory on Kastellgatan 1, just above Skanstorget. We begin the tour at Linneplatsen, which you can reach by bus number 51 or tram lines 1 and 2. We walk to Övre Husargatan, passing a video store and Gray's American Food Store. Why not buy an American soft drink to refresh yourself with during the walk? Head towards the traffic lights, and cross to Seminarieträdgården on the other side of the street. Here, you will find a herbal garden and an exhibit of modern art.

Walk along Seminariegatan, turn left at Västergatan, which passes by a tram lane and through a residential area. Follow Västergatan until you reach a footbridge and the Saron church. Turn right and walk past a food store and a retirement home. You should now find yourself on Carl Grimbergsgatan. Annedal was built in the 1870's by Arbetarbostadsaktiebolaget (The Workers' Residence Shareholding Society), financed by a donation from Oscar Ekman. The two-storey houses located on Carl Grimbergsgatan were seen as ideal prototype residences for Gothenburg's working-class. Compared to Haga and Landala, districts which had a rather bad reputation, Annedal was quite posh and the elite of Gothenburg's working-class lived here. Arbetarnas Byggnadsförening (The Workers' Building Association) constructed 24 co-operatives on Carl Grimbergsgatan during the period of 1876-1881. There are a few red brick buildings left to this day which date back to that era.

Go the intersection of Carl Grimbergsgatan and Brunnsgatan. Walk down Brunnsgatan until you get to Övre Husargatan at the corner of Risåsgatan. You should have passed by an antique store and an ATM. Cross at the traffic lights and go towards a small supermarket. There, you will see a red brick building which was part of Asklunds bageri (bakery). The industrial bakery era peaked during the 1870's in Gothenburg. The population increased and the demand for bread with it. Asklunds bageri was originally located on Albogatan in Annedal, but moved to larger facilities on Övre Husargatan in 1901. They had more than 150 people on staff in 1914.

Walk up Risåsgatan and turn left at Kastellgatan. Carlsson's & Starck's corset factory, now shut down, had its facilities here from the 1920's. Prior to World War II, it was common practice for industries to be located in residential areas. The old corset factory is a beautiful old industrial building and is worth seeing. This is the last stop on this walk. Go back to Brunnsgatan, and take tram line 2 back into town.

The water tour

This tour starts at Lilla Bommen and ends at the bridge Älvsborgsbron. Take tram line 5 or bus number 40,41 or 85 to Lilla Bommen. Lilla Bommen used to be an inlet for many of the canals in Gothenburg. Both large and small freighters arrived here. The larger ships couldn't reach Lilla Bommen, because the canal was too shallow. Therefore, the cargo was reloaded onto smaller ships, 'hemförarbåtar'. The area was closed at night and a boom extended across the canal to prevent unauthorized visits. Hence the name, Lilla Bommen (The Small Boom). Today, it is a guest harbour and a docking point for sightseeing boats. The old sailing ship Barken Viking and Götheborgs Utkiken in the Skanska skyscraper are also located here.

We begin the tour by visiting GötheborgsUtkiken in the Skanska skyscraper, 86 metres above sea level. At the very top of the building, one has a nice view of the town and its harbour, along with the two bridges that link the island Hisingen with the mainland, Göta Älvbron and Älvsborgsbron. When we have had our fill of the view, we walk down to the harbour and the sightseeing boats. We take the ferry Älv-snabben to the cultural heritage centre Klippan, by way of Eriksberg.

Eriksberg is an old shipyard which has been converted into a modern neighbourhood. The former machinery buildings have been restored and converted into a hotel with conference facilities, Blå Hallen and Eriksbergshallen. Eriksberg's orange gantry crane stands 84 metres above sea level, and you have a great view of the harbour. For the more daring, bungy jumps from the crane are a popular attraction.

We walk back to the ferry-stop at Eriksberg and take Älv-Snabben to the cultural heritage centre Klippan, which is situated just below the bridge Älvsborgsbron. In the 16th century, the community at Klippan was a precursor of the subsequent city of Gothenburg. The cultural heritage centre sports a cafe, a hotel and a restaurant. Älv-Snabben puts into port just next to the cafe Konstkafeet, where you can enjoy a sandwich and a cup of coffe before embarking on the final stage of the tour.

Next, walk up to Älvsborgsbron, which offers a grand view of Gothenburg and the harbour entrance, the fortress Älvsborgs nya fästning and the island of Vinga. Walk back to Klippan and take Älv-Snabben back to Lilla Bommen, where the tour began. You pass Göteborgs Maritima Centrum, a floating maritime and naval museum featuring the submarine Nordkaparen. On the city side, you pass Stena Line's Denmark terminal, the Maritime Museum with its outlook tower Sjömanstornet, and the Gothenburg Opera House.

From Vasastan to Järntorget

This tour takes you from Vasastaden to Järntorget, by way of Vasagatan and Haga. During the late 1800's, the bourgeois residential area of Vasastaden was constructed. The tall, beautiful stone buildings are renowned for their achitectural merits. The tour begins at Valand, at the beginning of Vasagatan. We walk down the pedestrian lane in the middle of the street. We pass The University of Gothenburg's magnificent main building, just above Vasaplatsen. The walk continues along Vasagatan, to the traffic lights at the intersection of Sprängkullsgatan and Vasagatan and continue on to Haga Nygata.

Haga is the oldest suburb in Gothenburg, dating back to 1640's. Until the 1980's, Haga was a run-down area, but it has since been renovated. The older houses are now offset by new buildings constructed in an older architectural style. If you are interested in antiques and arts and crafts, you should definitely visit Haga. On and around the main street, Haga Nygata, you will find several antique dealers, antiquarian bookstores and arts and crafts shops. Plus many other shops as well, of course, catering to all ages and interests.

Walk along Haga Nygata, turn left at Landsvägsgatan and go to Järntorget (The Iron Square). Iron used to be an important export product, and it was weighed at Järntorget (The Iron Square), hence the name. The middle of the square boasts a statue depicting five female figures symbolising the five continents. There are a few restaurants, shops, a community theatre (Folkteatern) and a community centre (Folkets Hus) located around the square. Why not enjoy a cup of coffee here at Järntorget, as a nice break?

From Järntorget, we walk down the 1 kilometer long Linnegatan to Linneplatsen. It is packed with boutiques, cafes, pubs and restaurants. It is perfect for a pubcrawl, or just try the nice cafes along the street. Or enjoy a nice meal at Karlson's Garage & Bar, situated near Linneplatsen, to mark the completion of this tour, which ends at Linneplatsen.