The largest city in Scandenvia, Stockholm is buzzy, has excellent public transport, and far too much to see in the couple of days I had available on this visit in July 2023, but I managed to fit a fair amount in, with another post focusing on museums, and this one on everything else. This was my third visit to Sweden’s capital, it’s a great city.

Stockholm has such a wealthy of beautiful and impressive buildings, almost every street has something of interest to catch the eye.

The metro system has been described as the worlds largest art exhibition, with every station having a bespoke design by various artists. The several I went to were a joy, such a good idea.

A worthwhile half day trip was to visit Drottningholm, the 17th century palace, home to the Swedish Royal Family. It has a beautiful waterfront setting, with extensive grounds out the back.

Inside it was a little underwhelming, with lushly decorated but rather sparse interiors.

I preferred the mid 18th century Kina Slott (Chinese Pavilion), built as a surprise birthday present, which reflected the then height of fashion.

By it was an unusual building, designed to allow the royal family to dine without being overhead by the servants. The table would come out of the ground fully laid for dinner.

The Royal Family used to live in the Royal Palace in the centre of the city, which is now home to a multiple paid museums. Entry into the Royal Chapel is free though, and it is an impressive place.

There are so many impressive churches in Stockholm, many of them lined up to be visible at the end of the main streets. One of my favourites was the 18th century Hedvig Eleonora Church, which I spotted walking toward the Swedish History Museum. It is apparently an understandably popular church for weddings, christenings, and funerals.

The white 18th century protestant Adolf Fredriks Church is quite plain in comparison, but the surrounding graveyard is home to a number of notable people, including the assassinated Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme.

St. Jacobs Church was unfortunately closed when I visited, but was pretty eye catching from the outside.

St. Clara’s Church was an exception in terms of location, being tucked away close to Stockholm Central. It was built in the 16th century but the impressive 116m high tower was added in 1880.

A few other random photos from around the city.

A highlight of Stockholm was leaving it, by ferry to Helsinki. It took four hours to sail through the Stockholm Archipelago to reach open water, passing seemingly endless idyllic islands. There were great views of the city centre at the start.

Before passing islands, small and large, home to endless forest and some lovely waterfront properties.

Even after several hours of sailing there were still a surprising number of houses.

Incredibly there were houses, presumably summer homes, on the edge of the archipelago before barren rocks and lighthouses took over.