We are planning to drive from Malmo up to Stockholm this August. Any suggestions on what to see and do along the way?

We did this drive last fall. Not too much to see other than hundreds of moose crossing signs. Might do a side trip through the 'Kingdom of Crystal' if you're a big fan of Swedish glass and/or crystal. It is a very pretty drive though.....Doing it again in June...

golandfolre: This is a copy of a post I did several months ago. This part of Sweden is beautiful and don't let anyone tell you it isn't.<BR> <BR>You don't say what your interests are, so, this could be way off the mark. Don't spend much time in Malmo. Not much there. <BR>We loved Southern Sweden. We crossed into Sweden via the new bridge from Copenhagen, stopped at the Tourist Center which is almost immediately at the end of the crossing. Got our maps, information and moved on. Our first stop was at Lund, a neat little University Town. There is some &quot;medieval center&quot; and the largest cathedral in Sweden. There are some neat cafes on the main square. Lund is OK.<BR>Next we went to Ystad to see St. Maria Kyrka (sp?), parts of which date back to 1220. Many half timbered houses dating back to medieval times here. We liked Ystad.<BR>From here we drove down to Kaseberg {sp?) to spend the night and to see the Alestones. This is spectacular. The stones are on a bluff overlooking the Baltic Sea and the fifty stones of about five to six feet high are arranged in the shape of a Viking Ship. The views of the sea (we had a fabulously warm, clear day) on the hike up to the stones and then down the other side to the very small old fishing village were, again, spectacular.<BR>The next day we headed for Kalmar with stops at the Lessebo Paper Mill (inland)which processes colorful paper in the same way it did 300 years ago (the plant is 300 years old), the glass works at Kosta which dates back to 1742 and the wonderfully quaint village of Somershamn with its St. Nicolai Kyrka from the 1100s and lane after lane of neat little pastel colored houses. We arrived at Kalmar for the night. I need to point out that the driving in this part of Sweden is easy; good roads, low rolling hills, lots of farmland, some forest and neat villages. <BR>The next day we toured Kalmar Castle which turned out to be one of the most beautiful we have seen in Europe. Great location and, again, fabulous views of the sea. This is not to be missed. That afternoon we took the ferry from Oskarshamn , about an hour up the coast from Kalmr, to Gotland Island (beautiful two and a half hour sail) and the medieval walled village of Visby. Visby was one of the highlights of our Scandinavian trip. It has everything, many medieval buildings and the walls which are in a great state of repair, beautiful views of the sea, great shops and restaurants, inviting cafes, a fun harbor scene, everything. We spent two and a half days at Visby. Biked around the Northern end of the Island one afternoon. Loved Visby. <BR>Then, off to Stockholm by &quot;fast ferry&quot; (one and a half hours) for three days. Stockholm is a fun City with much to see and do.<BR>We spent a day in route (with mentioned stops) to Kaseberg, a day to Kalmar, two and a half days in Visby and three days in Stockholm; eight days. We went on from there, but, this is a neat part of the World which we thoroughly enjoyed. Not much detail here, but if you want more, just ask. Have a great trip.<BR><BR><BR>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------<BR><BR>

Thanks Joegri and all who have answered. Joe - your tips seem great. I enjoy visiting small towns, historic sights, manor houses etc. so the info is useful. Any suggestions on getting places to stay? Did you do that along the way, or did you plan that portion from home. Regards and thanks.<BR>Kevin

Thanks joegri! My husband and I are going to be visiting friends who will be living in Oskarshamn this summer. We are hoping to do a similar route, so any detail you could give us would be great. Did you return the rental car in Oskarshamn, or did you take it with you to Gotland and Stockholm? Where did you rent from? Any recommendations on hotels, etc. would be greatly appreciated!!<BR><BR>Thanks!

I asked a similar question about 9 months ago. Here's the response.<BR><BR><BR>Message: Steve: You don't say what your interests are, so, this could be way off the mark. Also, I have no idea what the weather is like in November. However, we loved Southern Sweden. We crossed into Sweden via the new bridge from Copenhagen, stopped at the Tourist Center which is almost immediately at the end of the crossing. Got our maps, information and moved on. Our first stop was at Lund, a neat little University Town. There is some &quot;medieval center&quot; and the largest cathedral in Sweden. There are some neat cafes on the main square. Lund is OK.<BR>Next we went to Ystad to see St. Maria Kyrka (sp?), parts of which date back to 1220. Many half timbered houses dating back to medieval times here. We liked Ystad.<BR>From here we drove down to Kaseberg {sp?) to spend the night and to see the Alestones. This is spectacular. The stones are on a bluff overlooking the Baltic Sea and the fifty stones of about five to six feet high are arranged in the shape of a Viking Ship. The views of the sea (we had a fabulously warm, clear day) on the hike up to the stones and then down the other side to the very small old fishing village were, again, spectacular.<BR>The next day we headed for Kalmar with stops at the Lessebo Paper Mill (inland)which processes colorful paper in the same way it did 300 years ago (the plant is 300 years old), the glass works at Kosta which dates back to 1742 and the wonderfully quaint village of Somershamn with its St. Nicolai Kyrka from the 1100s and lane after lane of neat little pastel colored houses. We arrived at Kalmar for the night. I need to point out that the driving in this part of Sweden is easy; good roads, low rolling hills, lots of farmland, some forest and neat villages. <BR>The next day we toured Kalmar Castle which turned out to be one of the most beautiful we have seen in Europe. Great location and, again, fabulous views of the sea. This is not to be missed. That afternoon we took the ferry from Oskarshamn , about an hour up the coast from Kalmr, to Gotland Island (beautiful two and a half hour sail) and the medieval walled village of Visby. Visby was one of the highlights of our Scandinavian trip. It has everything, many medieval buildings and the walls which are in a great state of repair, beautiful views of the sea, great shops and restaurants, inviting cafes, a fun harbor scene, everything. We spent two and a half days at Visby. Biked around the Northern end of the Island one afternoon. Loved Visby. <BR>Then, off to Stockholm by &quot;fast ferry&quot; (one and a half hours) for three days. Stockholm is a fun City with much to see and do.<BR>We spent a day in route (with mentioned stops) to Kaseberg, a day to Kalmar, two and a half days in Visby and three days in Stockholm; eight days. If neccessary, do two days in Stockholm and you would make your seven days. Neat part of the World which we thoroughly enjoyed. Not much detail here, but if you want more, just ask. Have a great trip.<BR><BR>

golandfolre, Buster: Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. I don't get back here every day.<BR>We arranged for our car well before our trip, through auotoeurope.com. While we check around for pricing, we almost always use them since I can seldom beat their all inclusive rates and their service is excellent. We picked it up in Copenhagen at the end of our stay there. The rental agency was two blocks from the Hotel Danmark (where we stayed), near Tivoli Gardens.<BR>We make advance reservations in the more tourist intensive places like Copenhagen and Stockholm and wing it in the more remote places. <BR>We went to Kaseberg without reservations and after looking all over this little fishing village, settled on a funky little B&amp;B right in the village. Sparten rooms, great veranda (where a good breakfast was served), quiet, very friendly &quot;lady of the house&quot; owner. The room was one of three built around a very large center common area with TV, games, small library, etc. Door to bathroom was right outside our bedroom door. We found the place fun. Others might find it inadequate.<BR>We went to dinner at a resort style hotel (great restaurant) about four miles from our B&amp;B and called Louderbadstrom Resort Hotel; newish, suites with view to sea, very family oriented. Might have stayed here if we had known about it. Dinner was excelent.<BR><BR>If you are so inclined, the tours of the 300 year old paper mill (Lessebo) and the glass factory are very worth while. There are three glass factories in the area and we chose the one (Kosta)that we had read had the best tour. These are easy detours from the main northerly route to Kalmar.<BR>I have described Somershamn (really quaint) above. The castle at Kalmar is fantastic. IMHO, second only to Berg Elz on the Moselle in Gremany. The location on a bluff overlooking the Sea, the ramparts, the rooms; just beautiful.<BR>We stayed at a restored Victorian Manor called Slottshotellot. Our early reservation got us a garden suite in the annex with private entrance, a glass enclosed lounging TV room, a private patio with a neat little garden. Beautiful! We had dinner in the hotel restaurant out in a garden area at dusk. Very good and did I say, beautiful?<BR>Now I am lobbying. If you do nothing else, take the ferry for a couple day stay at the Medieval walled village of Visby. It is on Gotland Island and you get to it by ferry from Oskarshamn, about 45 minutes North of Kalmar. Visby really was one of the highlights of our Scandinavian Vacation. In very good repair, the walls, buildings, churches, etc. are fantastic with views to the sea from everywhere and great shops, cafes, restaurants, a fun harbor scene, I can't say enough. You will love it. If you go, try to get one of the fast ferries (hour and a half instead of two and a half hours). Our ferry left at 12:10 and we had advance email reservations because of the car. We stayed in a pleasant, well located hotel, The Strand. It is a best Western, although not promoted as such. The rooms were nice with a view out onto a garden. Not special, but, again, pleasant and, also again, well located right in the center of things. You can probably do better with a little work. We were there three days and had some great dinners. The restaurants are very good. We biked part of the Island on the third day. Found some great photo ops. <BR>Our &quot;fast ferry&quot; to Stockholm took two and a half hours (as opposed to four hours for the regular ferry. Stockholm was great fun, but that is another story. Again, have a great trip.

Topping for golandfolre and Buster.

Topping once again for golandfolre and Buster.

Thanks so much for the reply joegri! We are still trying to get our initial planning done, but Visby sounds like a must-do. Information on Scandinavia, particularly on rail and ferry times and prices seems tough to find, so your information has been helpful. Any other recommendations on things you used to help plan your trip would be greatly appreciated.<BR><BR>Thanks again!