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Göteborg begs to be explored by foot. A small, neat package of a city, it can be divided up into three main areas, all of which are closely interlinked. If your feet need a rest, though, there is an excellent streetcar network that runs to all parts of town. The main artery of Göteborg is Kungsportsavenyn (more commonly referred to as Avenyn, "the Avenue"), a 60-foot-wide tree-lined boulevard that bisects the city along a northwest–southeast axis. Avenyn starts at Göteborg's cultural heart, Götaplatsen, home to the city's oldest cultural institutions, where ornate carved-stone buildings keep watch over the shady boulevards of the Vasastan neighborhood, which are lined with exclusive restaurants and bars. Follow Avenyn north and you'll find the main commercial area, now dominated by the modern Nordstan shopping center. Beyond is the waterfront, busy with all the traffic of the port, as well as some of Göteborg's newer cultural developments, in particular its magnificent opera house.
To the west of the city are the Haga and Linné districts. Once home to the city's dockyard, shipping, and factory workers, these areas are now chic and alive with arts-and-crafts galleries, antiques shops, boutiques selling clothes and household goods, and street cafés and restaurants.
The main tourist office is Göteborg's Turistbyrå in Kungsportsplatsen. There are also offices at the Nordstan shopping center and in front of the central train station at Drottningtorget.
A free English-language newspaper with listings called Metro is available in summer; you can pick it up at tourist offices, shopping centers, and some restaurants, as well as on streetcars.
Göteborg's Turistbyrå's website has a good events calendar.
The Göteborg City Card, available from the Göteborg tourist office, and via its website, offers discounts and savings for sights, restaurants, hotels, and other services around the city.
Beautiful open green spaces, manicured gardens, and tree-lined paths are the perfect place to escape for some peace and rest. Rose fanciers can head for the magnificent rose garden, where there are 5,000 roses of 2,500 varieties. Also worth a visit is the Palm House, whose late-19th-century design echoes that of London's Crystal Palace.
With 1,200 plant species, this is Sweden's largest botanical garden. Herb gardens, bamboo groves, a Japanese valley, forest plants, and tropical greenhouses are all on display. Once you've captured some inspiration, you can pick up all you need to create your own botanical garden from the on-site shop.
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