Canoe Tours on Svartälven (Sweden)

"The whole trip was astonishingly worthwhile and the weather meant that the scenery was stunning. If I were to pick out favourites, then one would be after a day on the water, we worked so well as a team to pitch our camp, set a fire and cook a delicious evening meal. There were no screens to distract from our goals. It all felt so natural to work together to make the evenings so enjoyable. The final highlight came on the morning of the last day at our small island 'camp'. Some families go for a swim in their accommodation, but we swam around ours! That feeling of floating in that cool, smooth, black water will live with me forever." Jim

"I was very impressed with the service and responsiveness pre-departure. We absolutely loved the holiday. Unbelievable scenery, great family adventure, on-hand support from the team - would definitely recommend." Hugo

"We got engaged! Night three, private island, successful fishing, beautiful sunset... how could it not have been special?" Ruth

"The best part was having a camp fire and eating a good dinner on an island to ourselves and swimming in the lake." Colin

"You were extremely responsive and helpful. The landscape and physical challenge were the highlights." Rupert

"Very comprehensive information. Seeing a beaver and wild camping on an island were definitely highlights!" Peter

"Had a wonderful time, thank you very much! Beautiful surroundings, good camping infrastructure, lovely local staff." Matt

"Amazing communication, thank you. Thank you so much for your services! We loved all of it! Especially being able to choose where to camp each night. [We chose Nature Travels because] well reviewed/recommended company with large range of activities." Kate

"Just the sort of adventure holiday I was looking for. The feeling of being in the wilderness, the canoe trip was fantastic, lovely camping areas, beautiful scenery." Christina

"I had a great time. Everything ran very smoothly, and as we travelled just before high season, we had a very peaceful 7 days! I have travelled with you before, and think your service is excellent." Will

"We have been delighted with your service, had an amazing time and have left a review on Google to say so :)" Simon

"Everything was very detailed and well explained. It was all excellent. Thank you so much." Will

"Thanks for a great holiday. Plenty of excellent lakeside places empty and available to pitch a tent and enjoy the space. The variety each day was fantastic." Dominic

"An excellent, informative website, very prompt replies to questions, very helpful advice and a very personal service. Magical scenery as we canoed the rivers and a great mixture of rivers and lake systems. The wildlife was varied from birds of prey taking fish out of the lakes in front of us to beavers in the tributaries and bird song everywhere. Finding campsites on islands, beaches and rocky outcrops every night was great, making campfires and watching the sun go down. We had scorching sunshine, apocalyptic rain storms, hail, then sun again which was fun to deal with. The solitude and peace was priceless. Overall a wonderful week." Serena

"My son and I had a wonderful time on our Svartälven trip. Thank you for all your help with the arrangements. Everything went smoothly. Thanks to all the pre-trip information you sent us, we were well prepared for our expedition." Simon

"The best part of the trip was being in nature and the quality time spent with family. Gave us the opportunity to experience a trip in nature that was well-organised." Stephen

"We absolutely loved our canoeing holiday. We felt the information given was excellent. The distance was just right as it allowed plenty of time for stopping and enjoying being in nature. The canoe centre in Sweden were brilliant and the equipment and supplies provided were first class. We couldn't have asked for a better experience!" Beth

"We have just got back from our trip and all have had an absolutely fantastic time! All agree that it is one of the best holidays they have ever been on and you will definitely be hearing from us again in the future. A big thank you from all of us for making this trip a great success." Thomas

"Total peace and tranquility. Thank you so much for providing everything we needed for what turned out to be a fantastic and memorable holiday." David and Vicki

"The canoeing was fantastic, the route varied and wonderfully peaceful. We really loved being able to camp anywhere. You were so helpful and prompt with all our questions beforehand - so thank you so much for that. I would definitely love to go to Sweden again. We also found all the Swedish people we spoke to very kind and helpful, with better English than our own. Thank you again for helping to make a memorable trip!" Victoria

"You provided the best info, especially for a family. That's why we chose your service. Great views and I love the adventure of self-guided trips." Michael

"We were very happy with the service, it feels very good value for money and you guys provide great info and a very nice pre-booking experience. Would recommend and book again." Josh

"[The best parts were] camping on small islands; the sense of a real journey; undistracted time with my son." Magnus

"It was all fantastic. We loved paddling through remote areas, especially the rivers, away from everything. Wild camping, often in our own island, was amazing. Seeing beavers was just the icing on the cake. The arrangements were excellent. We had all the help we needed in advance of the trip. At a reasonable price too." Hannah

"Just returned from our holiday. Can't thank you enough. Such an amazing time. Sweden is beautiful beyond words. The staff were great especially Frieda, whose enthusiasm was contagious!! The food provided was perfect and great value too. I will definitely, definitely be highly recommending Nature Travels to all my friends." John

"All in all we loved it. I particularly liked the 'do-it-yourself' aspect as opposed to guides and the such like. That for me was paramount. I don't think it was any singular thing. More the experience as a whole. The scenery, solitude and peace was the big thing for me and experiencing it whilst drifting slowly in a canoe was wonderful." Gavin

"[The best part was] wild camping on an island in the middle of a huge lake." Elizabeth

"You were absolutely amazing - can't thank you enough." Tom

"Just wanted to say thank you for such a wonderful trip. Was such a great experience." Lucy

"We checked out some other websites, but yours was clear and your trip seemed to give the best quality for its money. [The highlight was] paddling in the middle of nature!" Sofie

"Could not have been better. From the moment I opened the Nature Travels website everything was so easy and when communicating with members of the team via email and telephone everyone was really helpful. An exceptional all-round fantastic service." Carl

"[The best part was] being away from it all in such beautiful countryside. Thanks for being so helpful with our questions before the trip - much appreciated." Deborah

"You did a perfect job. The canoe trip itself was terrific! We had a very good time!" Thijs

"Pre-departure service was excellent. The river was beautiful - truly stunning! We got a mix of weather, canoeing under blue skies, through evening mists (and during downpours!) and it was fantastic scenery! My two favourite bits were canoeing at dusk on the Svartälven surrounded by mist and fog and bird noises - magical! - and camping on our own island in Bredreven lake - fantastic!" Name not supplied

"I thought your service was great and I thought the set-up in Sweden was brilliant. They got it just right - really well-organised (I mean REALLY WELL!) while still being relaxed, laid-back and very friendly." Peter

"Very helpful and flexible. Very pleased. Thank you. [The best part was] taking a group there to experience the beauty of the Swedish lakes, rivers and forests. Camping in nature." Nigel, group tour

"All very comprehensive, without being an unwieldy amount of info. [We really enjoyed] the wilder areas of the river where there was no obvious evidence of other people, finding amazing camp spots on tiny islands, and finally fantastic wildlife. Great bird sightings. Sadly no elk or beaver but signs of both so that will have to do. A really good itinerary. I was very pleased with the whole thing, from the initial correspondence with you right down to the staff on the ground and the kit. All very good stuff." Steve

"On the last night of the trip I managed to find a place to set up my mini portable hammock. After 3 days of canoeing it was very nice to have somewhere that wasn't my tent to relax in. The weather was great that evening and the sky was clear of clouds. I remember laying there staring up at the stars with a small fire burning close by and thinking that I didn't really want to be anywhere else in the world." Tim

"Our experience was fantastic. Thank you very much for all your help." Kathy

"Your organisation did us proud and we had a great time. The large numbers of black-throated divers and a great grey owl and two elk were highlights." Mark and Sarah

"My girlfriend and I have just returned from our canoe tour and would just like to let you know we had an absolutely fantastic trip! The support and information provided before the trip were very good. Please can you also pass on our thanks to the staff at the canoe centre who were both helpful and accommodating. We are already considering another canoe adventure for next summer." Thomas

"[Service before the tour was] perfect - I received all information really fast and got always answers to all my questions. Great Job! Sunshine!!! Wonderful trip - great nature experience. We enjoyed a wonderful trip - thanks!" Daniella

"[I really enjoyed] sitting by the camp fire looking out across the lake in the evening sunshine, with only the noise of birds and the wind." Ruth

"My queries were answered in a quick and friendly way and all the information sent out was useful and well-presented. Really enjoyed being able to camp anywhere and swimming in the lakes. Enjoyed doing something I'd never done before which even though it was physical activity was also really relaxing!" Morwenna

"We had a great holiday. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Great scenery." Lindsay

"We can truly recommend Nature Travels. The staff were super helpful (they even helped plan our trip to Stockholm afterwards), the equipment was good and the route fantastic." Roberto and Elena.

"The weather was great, the nature was lovely and [the hightlight was] to experience the calmness. Clear information, great trips, good quality." Anna

"Wonderful landscape, quiet, beavers observation, fires - great experience! Real contact with the nature! Everything was more than fine! Great experience!! I want to thank you a lot for this!" David

"All correspondence was prompt, helpful and informative - excellent. Camping wild, eating berries, having fires and being almost alone for 2 weeks. Very relaxing." Chris

"The website was the most comprehensive and the subsequent advice I received over the phone was excellent. Thanks for all your help and advice. I can safely say it was one of the best holidays I have been on." Oliver

"Paddling down some of the narrower stretches of water within the route were particularly lovely and being able to camp anywhere we felt like was fantastic. It was a great experience and it was a real eye opener as to what we could do when back home with a canoe!" Mairi

"[The best parts were] seeing a beaver and catching lots of fish!!" Rob

"The experience was great, the staff were helpful and friendly. We were very pleased with all aspects of the booking, trip, etc. It was all very simple to organise and plan, and the support for logistics was excellent. Thanks very much from Sharnbrook Upper School." James

"It's hard to pick one moment, since everything was great. We did have a lot of fun when camping on the island of Bosjöheden though, which was one of the most beautiful sites I've ever been to." Gert-Jan

"We had a great time. Thanks for your service!" Marek

"We had a lovely holiday thank you. We were extremely lucky with the weather - no rain at all and the last 2 days were very sunny with temperatures in the mid 20's. All in all a very enriching experience - the wildness was just what we were looking for without being too extreme - thank you." Antony

"Thank you for such a fantastic service and brilliant experience overall. Rapid and thorough responses to any email queries were much appreciated!.An excellent service and experience, already being recommended to friends." Mark

"I just want to say a big thank you to all the local staff - they were friendly, helpful and contributed to a very relaxing holiday. Also a big thank you to Bob who answered all my questions so efficiently before departure. We enjoyed the peace and quiet of the Swedish wilderness, spotting the wildlife and all the general camp activities but most of all we enjoyed not having a timetable - we got up when we wanted, ate when we were hungry and paddled as little or as much as we felt like each day." Debbie

"Thanks for providing a fantastic wilderness experience, it outlived all my expectations. The scenery was just amazing, the weather red hot, everything went great and the staff at the centre were great people who couldn't do enough for you, and yes, I will be booking again next year." Paul and Tina

"We started the trip on 27 July and had opted for a two-week journey rather than one-week. Eight days of glorious sunshine in shorts from 8am to 10pm, followed by four days of mixed sun, cooler with the odd shower and a two-day downpour. Swimming in warm water lakes, exploring side rivers full of wildlife, fishing for pike, perch and dace, many of which ended up as the evening meal. And the birdlife; ospreys fishing beside us, great northern and red throated diver, firecrests, black woodpecker, a sea eagle, ravens raiding the camp, widgeon with young. At times we paddled through clouds of metallic glittering dragonflies, swallowtail butterflies, saw a metre-long grass snake swim across our bow, moose footprints the size of plates on the river bank and the sounds of beaver tails slapping the water like a gunshot at dusk. On one unforgettable night the gods paid a visit. A thunderstorm which lasted for hours, lightning crashing through the forest above our heads, torrential rains lashing the camp site, fabulous raw elements with us snug in the superb tents that had been supplied. A fabulous holiday, quite hard work on the portages, quiet, gentle paddling on mirror calm waters, deafening silences when the birds stopped singing, sunsets that lasted to midnight, and for the majority of the time we had it all to ourselves." Mark

"Catching huge pike, plus the birdlife and scenery. Been with you before and excellent service. Great camping and fishing shops in Karlstad. Sweden much cheaper than UK press lets you think - much same price as UK apart from wines and spirits." Jane

"Sweden was awesome, lived up to our expectations. We saw a beaver, which we didn't think in a million years we would, but there he or she was, right next to the canoe almost touching distance." Will

"Excellent response to all my questions in a timely manner.Beautiful camping places away from everyone.I was very impressed with the efficiency and helpfulness of staff at the centre. The trip was reasonably priced, there were good facilities at the centre (considering I wasn't expecting anything), all staff - UK and Sweden - were very helpful. Would highly recommend to others. Thanks." Rachel

"[The highlight was] just floating in absolute silence in the canoe." Michael

"We would wholeheartedly recommend your company.to anyone who fancies doing something different in beautiful surroundings." Joseph

"The highlight was being in such a peaceful place with family, far away from everyday life. We all loved the canoeing even if it was hard work at times." Jo

"It was a great trip. Exhausting at times but I think we all had a lot of fun. I will also say you have been very helpful in answering our questions before we left. I would recommend anyone to do it and probably might even do another trip next year." Andy

"We thoroughly enjoyed our canoeing experience in Sweden and would definitely do another another trip in the future". Orina and Nigel

"Very happy I organised the trip through you, would not hesitate to recommend you to others, and will probably book some of my own holidays through you in the future. Thank you!" Aled, St David's College Wales

"We had a brilliant time - definitely the highlight of 2007 for us, and we'd definitely consider another Nature Travels holiday.all in all, it was brilliant, and I'll never forget the camping." Richard

"Although 'a little rain' is the understatement of the year it had little impact on one of the most enjoyable and well organized trips I've taken! I'm not a great fan of forms but I would like to express our complete satisfaction with Nature Travels and their staff and I am already thinking about the raft trip for the whole family next year. Many many thanks." Julian

"I would.have no hesitation in recommending both Nature Travels and this area of Sweden to anybody considering a similar holiday in the future. Many thanks for your help and an excellent holiday." Peter