Canoeing in Sweden

Canoeing in Sweden - a paddler's paradise (part 2)

Our shortest canoeing holidays, Canoe on Rottnan and Canoe on Röjdån, are suitable for all ages and levels of experience. Even if you have never been canoeing before, these tours are accessible to anyone with a reasonable level of fitness and give you an opportunity to experience the tranquility and adventure of a paddling holiday in Sweden!

Canoe on Röjdån is a four-day canoe tour which runs in a cultural landscape. Starting from the small town of Torsby, the route takes you to the beautiful lake of Kläggen. The canoe tour starts at Torsby and after canoeing to lake Kläggen you return to Torsby again. 45km of relaxing canoeing and two short land transports in each direction. There are limited places to shop on this tour, so we recommend you bring all your food with you. A fishing license can be bought for the whole length of the canoe tour to allow you to fish for your supper along the way, and a map is included in the price. Canoe on Röjdån is a canoeing holiday suitable for the whole family and is ideal for younger children.

Canoe on Rottnan is also a four-day canoeing holiday, this time in a wilderness setting, taking you through a lovely area of forests and lakes. Opportunities to shop along the canoe tour route are limited and it is recommended that you bring all your food with you. It is also possible to buy a fishing license for the tour. This wilderness canoe route involves no land transports and includes a map in the price. The Canoe on Rottnan tour makes an ideal canoeing holiday for those who want to experience the beauty and silence of the Swedish wilderness but have limited time, or for those not used to wilderness camping. Total distance covered is around 35km. This is also a family canoe tour suitable for children of any age and is also an ideal canoeing holiday for those looking for wilderness paddling without the commitment of a 7 or 14-day tour. It also offers very flexible dates, with start days any day by arrangement between May and September. This added flexibility means that Canoe on Rottnan is a particularly popular wilderness canoe tour for groups of friends and Duke of Edinburgh Award groups.

Photo: VTR

Photo: Staffan Widstrand

If you have a little more time to spend on your canoeing holiday in Sweden, there are a number of possibilities for longer canoe tours in the Värmland area.

Canoe on Klarälven is another family-friendly canoeing holiday available in 4 or 7 day variations, covering a distance of between 50 and 100km. This canoe tour takes you through an attractive rural landscape along the wide, slow-flowing waters of the Klarälven river. The Klarälven area is also the location for our popular timber rafting experiences. Canoeing on Klarälven is a sociable experience, and you may well make friends and share stories with other canoeists and timber raft adventurers along the canoe tour route. Along the way there are small villages and cultural attractions and opportunities to stop and shop. Wild camping is possible all along the canoe route, or you may choose to spend a night or two at some of the designated campsites along the river bank. Fishing is possible along the way, and a map is included in the price.

Our two extended canoeing holiday experiences are Canoe on Svartälven and Canoe in Bergslagen, both available in 7 or 14 day variations. Whether you choose the shorter or longer versions of these canoe tours, the basic distance is the same. However, choosing the 14-day route gives you greater freedom to explore the many tributaries along the route or take detours into some of the dozens of small lakes in the region. You may also wish to leave your canoe behind for a day or two and take a hiking trip into the surrounding forests.

Canoe in Bergslagen is a true wilderness canoeing holiday which takes you through a network of lakes. There are a number of land transports along the route, the longest of which is between 4 and 9km. The number of land transports required and the distances involved vary according to the water level, and it may often be possible simply to step out of the canoe and tow it alongside you for a while as you move between the many lakes along the way. Canoe in Bergslagen is an ideal canoe tour for those seeking a real wilderness canoeing holiday experience, covering a distance of 85-105km. There are no shops in the area and it is necessary to bring all the food you will need with you. The Bergslagen canoe tour is not possible without maps, which you can order through Nature Travels if you wish.

Because of the many land transports involved, Canoe in Bergslagen may not be a suitable canoeing holiday for younger children, as transporting the canoe can be physically demanding, and we do not recommend the tour for children under 10 years of age. But if you are an active person who enjoys the outdoors and the challenge of wild camping, you will find Canoe in Bergslagen a perfect choice for your canoeing holiday in Sweden, and the possibility to fish along some sections of the route allows you to supplement your provisions with delicious Swedish freshwater fish straight from the line!

Photo: Staffan Widstrand

Photo: VTR

Finally, Canoe on Svartälven is also an excellent choice for a wilderness canoeing holiday. This canoe tour offers extending river canoeing, with the last section of the route leading through a series of lakes. The canoe tour involves 10 land crossings and 1 lift, the longest crossing being 2km. Though not as demanding a canoeing holiday as the Bergslagen tour, Canoe on Svartälven can also be challenging for children under 10 years of age. There are limited places to shop while you are out canoeing on this tour, although provisions are available at a small village approximately two-thirds of the way along. Once again, a fishing license can be purchased to cover parts of the canoe tour route. As with Canoe in Bergslagen, maps are necessary in order to do this tour. Total distance covered on this canoe tour is around 70km, though this can easily be extended if you wish by planning extensions to the basic route.

Canoeing is a marvellous way to experience Sweden's truly wild places. Whatever your level of experience, your age, or the composition and size of your group, Sweden offers wonderful opportunities for true nature experiences by canoe.