Stockholm Old Town and the Vasa Museum, a small group tour.

Stockholm Old Town and the Vasa Museum, a small group tour.

The two "must see" attractions in Stockholm are the Old Town (Gamla Stan) and the Vasa museum. Few tourists leave Stockholm without visiting these two attractions!

This new tour, which starts at Gamla Stan metro station, combine these two major attractions! During the walk we will tell you the story of Stockholm and Sweden. This includes the time when Sweden was one of the greatest powers in Europe and the Vasa ship was built.

We will start our walk at Riddarholmen with a beautiful view of the lake Mälaren and the City Hall. We will pass the House of Nobility, the Parliament building, the Royal Palace and Stortorget in Old Town.

Then we will take the ferry "Djurgårdsfärjan", a 10 minute trip to Djurgården, where the Vasa Museum is situated. In the museum we will tell you the astonishing story about how one of the worlds most modern war ship capsized after only 1300 meters of sailing!

After the trip you can continue with some of the other museums or activities on Djurgården!

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Riddarholmen Historical Marker, Norra Riddarholmshamnen 3-1, 111 28 Stockholm, Sweden

We start the tour at Gamla Stan Metro station, inside/under ground, in front of the Pressbyrån kiosk. We talk about the early history of Stockholm and Sweden, from the ice age until the first settlements on the islands. From Riddarholmen (The Knights Island) we have a beautiful view of the lake Mälaren and the City Hall, the famous landmark of Stockholm,

Duration: 15 minutes

Stop At: Riddarholm Church (Riddarholmskyrkan), Kungliga Slottet, Stockholm 107 70 Sweden

The story continues... Outside the Riddarholmen Church we will meet the presumed founder of Stockholm, Birger Jarl, or at least a statue of him. 1252 is the year when "Stockholm" was first mentioned in a written text that is preserved until today. Birger Jarl signed the paper...

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Riddarhuset, Riddarhustorget 10, Stockholm Sweden

We stop outside Riddarhuset, the House of Nobility, and look at the statue of Gustav Vasa, "the father of Sweden". Since Gustav Vasa 1523 marched into Stockholm, Sweden has been a sovereign state, never occupied by foreign powers. Gustav, after his father and between 80 to 100 other noblemen were killed in “The bloodbath of Stockholm”, organised an uprising against our southern neighbour who had taken control over Sweden. He also changed the religion in Sweden from Catholicism to Lutheran Protestantism

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Vasabron Bridge, Vasabron, 111 28 Stockholm, Sweden

Then we continue to the other side of Riddarhuset and talk about the heirs and heiresses of Gustav Vasa. The grandson of Gustav Vasa, Gustav II Adolf, was the "greatest" of our warrior kings. During his time as king the Baltic sea became almost an inland sea, surrounded by Swedish possessions. It was when Gustav II Adolf was king of Sweden the Vasa ship was built!

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Parliament Building (Riksdagshuset), Sveriges riksdag, Stockholm 100 12 Sweden

The predecessor of the parliament (riksdagen) was the “Riksdag of the Estates” (Ståndsriksdagen) where Nobility, Clergy, Burghers, Peasants met separately for discussions before meeting the King in the palace. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the King. In 1866 a parliament with two chambers was introduced, but still without equal voting rights for all citizens. The first elections with general suffrage was held in 1921. This was after a long political struggle led by liberals and socialists.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Royal Palace, Slottsbacken 1, Old Town, Stockholm 111 30 Sweden

Next stop at "Lejonbacken" on the north side of the Royal Palace. . Peter the Great of Russia put an end to the Swedish dreams of being a great power in Northern Europe. Karl XII, the last of our warrior kings is still pointing to the east (i.e. the statue is pointing), where he and his army, the Caroleans, first had some great victories, but in the end were defeated by Peter the Great in Poltava 1709.

The age of enlightenment, with growing interest in arts and science, influenced Sweden. Gustav III, an enlightened despot with great interest in theatre, made several contributions in these fields.


Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Jarnpojken, Slottsbacken 2 B-C, Stockholm 111 30 Sweden

The smallest and nicest statue in Sweden!

Duration: 5 minutes

Stop At: Stortorget, Gamla Stan, Stockholm Sweden

The Nobel Price Museum is situated at Stortorget. The Swedish Royal Academies designate the winners of the most prestigious prices in many important fields of science and art.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Stockholm Old Town, Stockholm Sweden

Below the statue of Carl XIV Johan we continue the story about Sweden. This king, the first of the Bernadottes, was imported to Sweden from France in the beginning of the 19th century to win back what we lost to the Russians. Instead he put his efforts into diplomacy, building infrastructure and develop education! In 2014 200 years of peace was celebrated in Sweden. The industrial revolution, natural resources and great Swedish inventions created a foundation for a welfare state, and several entrepreneurs continued the development in the 20th and 21th centuries. !

Duration: 20 minutes

Stop At: Skeppsbron 26, 111 30 Stockholm, Sweden

From Skeppsbron we will take the ferry "Djurgårdsfärjan" to Djurgården.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Vasa Museum, Galarvarvsvagen 14, Stockholm 115 21 Sweden

Entrance to the Vasa museum is included. Our guide will show you the ship and tell you the amazing story about how Vasa capsized and then was salvaged more than 300 years later!
This is the end of the guided tour, but you are welcome to stay in the museum after the tour is finished.
(If you have time, why not stay on the Djurgården island also in the afternoon, visit the Abba Museum ("walk in, dance out" ), the Viking Museum, the amusement park Gröna Lund, or Skansen. All of these attractions are situated on the beautiful island Djurgården (but not included in this tour)).


Duration: 30 minutes