One of the things that I’ve always wanted to see in life is a day with no real night. And if you’re in Stockholm close to the summer solstice like I was, you’ll see just that. Stockholm is in the eastern part of the Central European Time zone so it’s official sunset isn’t insanely late (around 10:20pm at summer solstice), but if you’re looking to the north this is the light you’ll see from around 11:30pm-2:30am. At around 2:30am it starts getting lighter because sunrise was around 3:30am when we were there (July 2nd-4th).

Stockholm is around the same latitude as Anchorage, Alaska so if you’re bothered by light at night, make sure there are good drapes where you are staying! On the boat we stayed on there was only one small window but for god knows what reason, the curtain was just a white flimsy thing. So I took a black t-shirt of mine and hung it over the worthless curtain, which helped immensely.

Seeing light around the clock is a pretty surreal experience and if you get the chance, I highly recommend checking it out, somewhere in the world. Like most cool things, the pictures don’t it justice, but here are some shots from around 1am in Stockholm.

photo credit: me

Post from: Sirened

Those aren’t my words, nor is it technically truth, but it’s the claim you’ll find immediately upon arrival in Sweden’s capital. Stockholm boasts itself as the capital of Scandinavia because of it’s elegant beauty, cleanliness, fine cuisine (and we did have 2 fantastic meals in the city) and the fact that the Nobel Prizes are awarded in this grandiose city built on several islands.

Swedes are obviously proud of their culture and heritage and once you pass a totally pointless customs at Arlanda airport, you’ll find pictures commemorating famous Swedes. People such as golf great Annika Sorrenstam and tennis relic Bjorn Borg (who retired like 20 years ago) are featured. The tribute is in a fitting spot since it’s in a tiny hallway with lots of traffic heading out to Arlanda’s main concourse. It’s a great place for tourists to stop and admire while they get in the way of annoyed locals who just want to go the hell home.

From Arlanda to Stockholm’s central station, the way to go is the Arlanda Express. A spiffy high speed train that goes non-stop from the distant airport to the heart of the city in just 20 minutes (don’t worry, you’ll be reminded of the time a lot, which is why my wife wanted to whack me upside the head when I kept asking her how long the train will take). You can also take the bus, but that takes about 40 minutes and only costs a few dollars less. The train is really nice, has 4-6 departures per hour and is very convenient. It’s not cheap but neither is the bus, Stockholm is one of the most expensive cities in Europe in getting from the airport to the city. Even the bus will run you about $16 ($20 on the train), whereas in Amsterdam the train from Schipol airport to central station only costs about $5 (which also runs very frequently and because the airport is closer, can take as little as 15 minutes).

So immediately upon arrival in Sweden, you are whacked upside the head with a hefty cost! But it’s nice that they let you know what to expect in their very pricey city. Anything less and you might be led to believe that you could get a good deal on accommodation, dinner or drinks. There are some good values, by Stockholm standards, but the term value is much more applicable when discussing euros, not dollars.

photo credit: me

Post from: Sirened

The only downside to the trip was how expensive Scandinavia is. While Sweden and Denmark are part of the European Union, they do not use the euro as their currency. Instead they use kroners, same name for both countries except the Danish kroner is a little stronger than the Swedish kroner.

This is partly why Copenhagen is currently ranked as the 3rd most expensive city in the world. And it’s damn pricey! It’s pretty standard that enjoying a beer out in Copenhagen will run you around $10 (pretty common in Stockholm too). My wife and I sat down for coffee in a cafe in Copenhagen and paid the equivalent of over $6 each for the coffees. And I’m not talking about Starbucks equivalent venti latte’s here, just a small coffee. Ouch!

Luckily we were traveling mostly on euros so this eased the cost of these very expensive countries. In the coming weeks look forward to several posts on Sweden and Denmark such as: Where to eat Swedish meatballs in Stockholm; Where not to eat Reindeer in Stockholm; Why is Red Bull illegal in Denmark?; Ways to cut back on costs; Couch surfing in Copenhagen; and of course, jackass pictures of the week…Sweden and Denmark style!

It’s summer, so why not talk a little less politics and a little more travel!

photo credit: my camera

Post from: Sirened

Sterling is a Scandinavian based airline and from Amsterdam they fly to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo and Bergen, Norway. Of course, if you’re flying from a major Scandinavian city there are many more European destination options.

Obviously with any good deal you have to be somewhat flexible in the dates you can fly. But when we booked our plane tickets on Sterling about a month ago we got a fantastic deal. A one-way flight from Amsterdam to Stockholm and then another one-way from Copenhagen to Amsterdam cost a total of 125 euros including all taxes and fees. Even with the poor US exchange rate that is only $190 per person.

This is an especially good deal for traveling to Scandinavia in summer, the only time the weather is actually decent. These weren’t even the cheapest flights for this time of year, but they were on the cheaper end and of course you can pay much more with Sterling.

Sterling makes extra money if you want to pick your seats ahead of time-15 euros. And if you want an emergency exit seat that’ll run you 25 euros. Hey, remember when those seats were for oh, for emergencies! Anyways, the cool thing is that they only charge 3 euros per checked bag, which is much cheaper than the $15 fees that the US airlines are starting to charge now.

So even with US dollars, in expensive Scandinavian countries, budget traveling isn’t totally dead. Look for a review on Sterling when I return!
image: flickr

Post from: Sirened