Cruising From Stockholm

Time, unfortunately, is not standing still as it is on the clock above in Gamla Stan, so get ready for a full day of touring at a respectable pace.

You’ll see a lot, but you’ll only skim Stockholm’s surface if you’re visiting for the day on a cruise that calls on the Swedish capital.

You’ll leave wanting more. So while you’re touring, know that you can’t see it all on this trip and plan to come back to cruise from Stockholm, arriving a few days before your cruise so that you can experience all that this wonderful city has to offer.

For now, however, here’s how to spend one perfect day in port, without overwhelming yourself. Continue Reading »

Begin your day as you did yesterday, but on this gorgeous, sunny Stockholm day, you’ll exit the Radisson SAS Strand’s front door and head to your right instead of to your left.

Follow the water and the walkway that curves around the harbor. Take a moment to breathe in the view when you reach Skeppholmsbron (”bron” means “bridge”). Looking across Norrstrom harbor, you’re admiring the Royal Palace (you’re in a kingdom, remember, with a king, queen and princesses). You’re also looking at your next destination, Gamla Stan. Continue Reading »

In a tiny cafe at one end of Gamla Stan’s Stortorget square, a frothy cappuccino serves as the centerpiece for a scene that is quintessentially Stockholm.

In the center of the oversized cup, coffee has been deliberately dripped onto the foamy realms to form a heart, an unintended icon that takes the same shape as Stockholm’s Old Town when seen from the lofty heights of City Hall Tower.

The Old Town, or Gamla Stan as it is known, has been a meeting place since 1252. Today, more than 800 years later, it continues to pulsate as the heart of Stockholm.

As on most days here at the uber-cozy, candlelit and tiny Chokladkoppen, espresso machines hiss as patrons poke their heads through the front door in hopes of finding a vacant table. Those sitting at the tables and those wanting to occupy them are all drawn here by the same primordial urge: the need to fika.

What’s fika? You’ll read about that in a moment. For now, stay with me. You’re about to learn how to spend two days that you’ll never forget in one of the world’s most beautiful — and fascinating — cities.
Continue Reading »