How to Spend 3 Days in Stockholm
With three days in Stockholm, you have time to soak in the city’s atmosphere, see its most famous sights, and even head out of town for a history- or nature-filled day trip into the surrounding countryside.
Kungsholmen
Stockholm’s island of Kungsholmen is primarily residential and offers a laid-back escape from the tourist path and a chance to mix with locals. Here you’ll find lots of great restaurants, bars, and cafés, as well as opportunities for long strolls along the waterfront. Kungsholmen is home to Stockholm’s most prominent building: City Hall.
Kungsholmen, Stockholm
The Basics
Kungsholmen’s star attraction, Stadshuset (City Hall) hosts the Nobel Prize banquet on December 10 every year. If you didn’t get an invite, you can still tour the building, though only with one of the daily guided tours. During the summer you can also take in the views from the City Hall’s 348-foot- (106-meter-) tall bell tower. Other highlights around Kungsholmen include the scenic waterfront promenade of Norr Mälarstand, which stretches all the way to Rålambshovs Park; the central Scheelegatan, crammed with bars and restaurants, and the harbor by City Hall, from where boat cruises head out to explore the islands of the Stockholm archipelago.
Stockholm is a cycle-friendly city so a bicycle tour is a great way to cover a lot of ground in a short time—and access places tour buses can’t reach. Multiple tour operators provide biking trips around the city, typically traveling through the districts of Kungsholmen, Södermalm, and Gamla Stan (Old Town).
Things to Know Before You Go
- City Hall guided tours are held daily in Swedish and English at certain hours: check before arriving.
- Tours of City Hall can be canceled with short notice due to events.
- It is possible to walk along the waterfront 5.5 miles (8.9 kilometers) all the way around the island: wear good walking shoes.
How to Get There
From the Old Town it is around a 20-minute walk west to Kungsholmen. You can also take the Stockholm Metro’s Line 10 from Kungsträdgården in Norrmalm two stops to Rådhuset in Kungsholmen.
Trip ideas
When to Get There
Summer is the best time to visit Kungsholmen. The long daylight hours of northern Europe offer the chance to linger at waterside restaurants, many of which host live musicians in summer; lounge in a park, or take a refreshing dip in a lake.
Outdoor Swimming
In the summertime you can join the locals by taking an open-air swim. Rålambshov Park is one of the city’s favorite playgrounds and features a small beach and wooded trails, as well as a lake suitable for swimming. On the western side of the island, Fredhällsbadet is another popular bathing spot—but only for experienced swimmers as you reach the deep water directly via stairs from the rocks. The area has a large wooden deck for sunbathing as well as a small summer café.
- Stockholm City Hall (Stadshuset)
- Stockholm Concert Hall (Konserthuset)
- Stockholm National Museum
- Riddarholm Church (Riddarholmskyrkan)
- Stockholm Parliament House (Riksdagshuset)
- Royal Swedish Opera (Kungliga Operan)
- Kungsträdgarden (Kungsan)
- Museum of Medieval Stockholm (Medeltidsmuseet)
- Nobel Prize Museum
- Stockholm Old Town (Gamla Stan)
- Stockholm Royal Palace (Kungliga Slottet)
- Stockholm Archipelago (Stockholms Skärgard)
- Sodermalm
- Skeppsholmen
- Junibacken Children’s Museum