Last year in late summer, I used a sunny day to visit Sandhamn, an island in Stockholm’s archipelago that is a bit further out to the open sea. This means, it takes some time by boat to go there. From Slussen, you can take a 50-minute bus that brings you to the harbour of Stavnäs where you can hop onto the ferry and enjoy the approx. 1-hour journey ⛴️ Especially when sitting outside or at the very front of the ferry indoors, you have a great view over the archipelago.
When arriving at Sandhamn you directly step onto the little promenade that offers some small shops if you’re into shopping. But Sandhamn, is actually more your place to be, if you look out for a day in nature 🌳 This is why I had already looked up on the internet, where you can go on a walk. It turned out, that Sandhamn is perfectly made for doing a round walk of about 7.5 km. First, you pass by the stores at the waterfront and wander through some streets with super pretty, and of course red, houses. Did you know that the island was used as a toll station back in the days?
Further on, you’ll come into the forest and you’re able to make all the way to the opposite of the island where you’ll find pure nature and an infinite view to the sea. Maybe you’re lucky and the weather is great? Then this is probably the best place to go for a swim! 🌊 Moving on, you’ll be able to walk quite some time at the beach before you’ll turn back into the forest. Soon, you’ll see some houses again which look in my opinion a bit fancier and seemed to be huge summer houses. Coming back from the tour, you’ll probably be hungry or thirsty. There are some restaurants at the waterfront. During summer, due to covid, not all of them were open, but you’ll still be able to get a coffee or a hot chocolate. I used the remaining time until the ferry arrived to stroll through the few stores.
For me, Sandhamn is a tiny paradise, just outside of the big city and I think everyone should have been there at least once when being in Stockholm! Once the weather is getting better, I’m sure that I’ll go there again. If you’re looking more for a place to shop, you should check out my blogpost about Vaxholm.
Stay safe everyone!
// Maria