About Sweden

Image: Stockholm Visitors Board

Photo: Wolfgang Greiner

Photo: Håkan Vargas S.

Sweden

With over 200,000 lakes, 27 million hectares of forest, tens of thousands of islands, and 1700 national parks and nature reserves including Europe's largest protected area, Sweden is the perfect choice for an active holiday. Convenient transport connections from the UK mean that this vast and beautiful country is both exotic and accessible.

Nature Travels specialises exclusively in Sweden, working only with small-scale, local providers. We offer a wide range of outdoor ecotourism holidays in Sweden, from canoeing to dog sledding to romantic log cabin breaks, whether you are a solo traveller, family, private group or sports club.

From the warm, endless days of summer to the deep snows of winter, Sweden is an ideal destination for year-round outdoor adventures!

Geography

Sweden covers an area of 173,731 sq. miles, twice the size of Britain. It is the largest country in Scandinavia and the third largest in Western Europe. The country stretches from the Baltic Coast in the south up into the Arctic Circle. Over half the country is covered by forest, with the deciduous forests of the south slowly giving way to ancient pine forest and mountain birch in the north. Sweden contains an incredible 96,000 lakes.

Weather and Climate

While much of Sweden does indeed provide fairytale winter conditions, summer in Sweden is also a glorious experience, with the country having a temperate climate in spite of its northerly location thanks to the Gulf Stream. There is usually less rain and more sunshine during summer than in Britain. Sea temperatures in the summer are slightly higher than the English Channel.

Temperatures in Stockholm can reach the high twenties in summer. In northern Sweden from mid-May to late July it never really gets dark. The table below gives average temperatures, but please note that actual daily temperatures may be very different.

Average Temperature and Approximate Hours of Daylight in Sweden

Avg. temp deg C / Hrs daylight	January	July
Malmö (south)	-0.2 deg / 7 hours	16.8 / 17 hours
Stockholm	-2.8 deg / 6 hours	17.2 deg / 18 hours
Kiruna (north)	-16.0 deg / 0 hours	12.8 deg / 24 hours

To see the latest weather information for Sweden, visit the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute.

Driving in Sweden

As an ecotourism company, we hope that you will choose to take trains and buses whenever possible as you travel around Sweden. However, cars do offer a degree of independence and allow access to certain areas hard to reach by public transport. If you do decide to drive in Sweden, there are some things that you should be aware of, for the sake of safety, ease of travel, and the environment. You may find our FAQs on driving in Sweden of interest.

Population

Sweden has a population of just 8.9 million, of which 3.4 million live in or around the three largest cities: Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö.

Right of Public Access

Sweden is justly famous for its Right of Public Access, "Allemansrätten" or "Every Man's Right", which allows a great deal of freedom of access to the countryside for walking and camping. It can be summarised by the phrase, "Do not disturb, do not destroy." However, it is a right that requires responsibility, consideration and good judgement. For more see our FAQs on Wild Camping and the Swedish Right of Public Access.

Currency

Swedish currency is the Krona. You may well find certain things in Sweden, especially train travel if you take advantage of advance booking discounts, cheaper than in the UK. Food will normally be more expensive. Exchange rates of course vary, but have been around 10 SEK=£1 in recent times. As a rough calculation, 100 Kr=£10 allows a quick price comparison. To check current exchange rates visit www.x-rates.com

Language

Swedes are justly famous for their excellent English, and almost everyone you meet should have no problem communicating in English. However, Swedes will be very happy if you make an effort with the basics and complement you immediately on your excellent Swedish! Here are a few phrases to get started:

Swedish in 30 Seconds

English	Swedish	Pronunciation
Hello	Hej!	hay
Good morning	God morgon!	god-moron
Good night	God natt!	god-natt
Goodbye	Hej då!	hay dor
Thank you	Tack!	tack
Thank you very much	Tack så mycket!	tack sor mickah
How are you? Very well, thanks.	Hur mår du? Jätte bra, tack!	her mor du? yette bra, tack
My name is...	Jag heter...	yaah hetter
Nice to meet you	Trevligt att träffas	trayvlit at treffus

Å, Ä and Ö - the sounds of Swedish: å is pronounced like "or", ä like "air", and ö like "er", all without the "r" sound.

Mosquitoes, Midges and Ticks

Mosquitoes ("myggor") are a very important part of the ecosystem, as they are a source of food for many animals, especially birds. Mosquitoes can be a problem, with numbers normally highest in north, though mosquitoes are found throughout Sweden. The number of mosquitoes varies from year to year depending on the rainfall during spring and early summer, appearing around mid-June and disappearing again towards the end of September with numbers lowest at the beginning and end of the season. Since mosquitoes like water and birch forest they are not often found on the high plains away from the mountain stations. Midges in Sweden are mainly found in the far north of the country.

However, to make your experience more comfortable, we recommend you use a good mosquito repellent and be sure to take long-sleeved tops and trousers as well as a hat for those dusk hours when mosquitoes are most common. If you are particularly bothered by mosquitoes it may be useful to bring a mosquito net for your face.

As in the UK, there are ticks in the forests in Sweden which can carry diseases such as Borrelia. You should check for ticks at the end of a day in the outdoors. If you find a tick, remove it as soon as possible by pulling the tick out straight, carefully and slowly, with the tweezers as close to the skin as possible. Ensure that you do not leave any of the insect's mouth parts attached to your skin. Wash the bite area with soap and water. In the unlikely event that you feel unwell or notice anything unusual around the area of the bite in the coming days, consult your doctor.

In some small localised areas of Sweden (mostly in the Stockholm archipelago), the ticks are known to carry a disease called TBE, or Tick-borne encephalitis, and locals spending extended periods in affected areas do vaccinate themselves. See here for a map of TBE distribution in Europe. For current advice on TBE and inoculations, please consult your doctor or see NaTHNaC.

Please see our blog article for more information on mosquitoes in Sweden.

Misc. Info

Sweden is a member of the EU. UK citizens do not require a visa to visit Sweden, though you should have a valid passport. For general travel advice for Sweden visit "Know Before You Go" and "Travel Advice By Country" at www.fco.gov.uk/travel. Electricity supply is 220V (230V) 50 Hz.

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