A huge thing that I wanted to do when I visited Stockholm on a layover was to explore Gamla Stan. I only had a few hours there so I feel like I have a lot more to see. I couldn’t really take it all in and tried to fit as I could in the 5 full hours. That was excluding the travel time in my 7 hour layover. I definitely need to take another trip to Stockholm and Sweden and definitely see a lot more of Gamla Stan.

WHAT IS GAMLA STAN?

Gamla Stan is Stockholm’s Old Town, and is one of the largest and best preserved medieval city centers in Europe. This is after all where Stockholm began, all the way back in 1252.

Made up of 4 islands. Stockholm itself means “log island” and as the legend goes. Swedes looking for a new capital that was safe from armed gangs, had filled a log with gold and sent it adrift. When it landed on what is now Gamla Stan, they knew they had found their new capital city.

Gamla Stan is a living museum filled with beautiful churches, narrow winding cobblestone streets, colourful architecture, the finest restaurants, and accommodation to suit all tastes. This is the real Stockholm, and where every Stockholm adventure should begin.

Have a few hours in Stockholm? Why not read my guide to spending 7 hours in the gorgeous city! 

WHAT CAN I DO IN GAMLA STAN?

There is plenty to do in Gamla Stan. If you want to spend a few hours or a couple of days there. There is plenty of cafes, coffee shops and restaurants to eat and drink at. Lots of tourist gift shops, architecture to photograph and take in and plenty of history to enjoy. Below on this map I have marked plenty of things you can see and do in Gamla Stan including some highly rated coffee shops to enjoy Fika (coffee and a danish with friends), some restaurants to enjoy an evening meal at, a hotel to stay at if you want to spend a few days in Gamla Stan and even a museum.

Taking a trip to Sweden and need a quickfire guide of information. Read my travel guide to Sweden!

HOW DO I GET TO GAMLA STAN FROM STOCKHOLM CENTRE? 

It really depends on what you’d class as Stockholm’s centre, I walked from the bus station through the start of a shopping centre with various little streets of different shops before finding an underpass and up the other side to walk towards a little river. My Google Maps told me it would be a 15 minute walk from the bus station.

And the walk took me on a lovely walk through the shopping centre and other different little streets across a bridge and through the arches of Parliament in Gamla Stan. I would highly recommend paying very close attention to all of the road/street names and look out for nearest markers on the map to give you an indication to if you are going the right way.

 

I came across the bridge which had the Stockholm Half Marathon start line on it at the time I was there but there was also the Parliament building as well, then the bridge going across the river. Once you start seeing the brightly coloured buildings, you know you’ve reached Gamla Stan!

There are so many different shops, cafes and restaurants in Gamla Stan for you to enjoy and explore. There are so many gift shops and cute cafes to grab a hot drink and a pastry with a friend (also known as fika). Gamla Stan has so many little lanes and hidden streets to explore and find quirky places.

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Are you interested in visiting Gamla Stan?