Stockholm is Sweden’s largest city and its capital. It’s strange, but hiking in Stockholm is a popular thing to do. There are many walks in and around the city. Since the end of the last ice age, about 8,000 years ago, people have lived in the Oslo area. I learned that you can drink any water in Sweden on my first trip there. Even the water in Stockholm. Just hearing that shocked me! Even though we’re in Sweden’s biggest city, the water is clean. Wow!
As I took in the beauty of my new country, I saw a lot of bicycles riding on the roads. The beauty here still makes me fall in love after three years of living here. Swedish people are known for being very busy, which you’ll learn as you travel around the country. They love being outside and do a lot of things that are good for the earth. Everyone who lives in Stockholm likes to go hiking!
After 5 years or so living in Sweden, I’m filled with such gratitude to have an abundance of nature surrounding me! So, if you’re a nature lover like me, then Sweden is the place to visit! It even works out in the city Stockholm to see nature! In this article, I explain some of the great spots to go hiking in Stockholm!
Fun Facts about Stockholm
- 30% of the city is made of waterways. Another 30% is nature, parks, and spaces to get away from the city life.
- Stockholm is home to about 22% of the Swedish population.
- This capital is one of the cleanest in the world. It’s Europe’s first “Green Capital”, which makes sense why you would enjoy hiking Stockholm.
- Stockholm is on 14 islands and has 57 bridges that connect them.
- In the city the water is clean enough to drink, swim, or fish in it.
- This city has the world’s first National city park.
Hiking Stockholm’s National Parks
They have a national urban park called Kungliga Nationalstaden parken because they care about the earth. Plus, they have three nature areas named Kyrksjoloten, Judarskogen, and Grimstaskogen. There are also two National Parks near Stockholm. So anyone from the busy city can go and enjoy the nature to the fullest since it’s so close! They’re Ängsö National Park and Tyresta National Park that are near and Tyresta is just a 30 minute train ride away from Stockholm!
Since the people who live in big cities can still get away to outdoors, that could be why they’re not stressed out at work as much. If you want to learn more about Hiking in Sweden, then check out my page that’s dedicated to that.
While you travel through Sweden, it’s best to prepare with the bus and or train. Book now, so traveling can be easier.
Hiking Stockholm’s Tyresta National Park
Difficulty: Easy-difficult – Distance: 1-50 km (.6 – 31 mi.) – Duration: Approx. .30 minutes – 5 days- Coordinates: 59.1690° N, 18,2367° E – Address: Svartbäckens by 361, 136 59, Vendelsö – Transport: Bus, or Rent a car (Map of Trail)
Tyresta National Park is easy to get to because it’s only 20 km (12.4 mi.) from the middle of Stockholm. This National Park has a lot of different tracks, and many of them connect to one another. Plus, if one of them looks too crowded, you can easily switch to a different path . Something that I really loved learning was that they have a trail just for families and people pushing strollers! So this trail is pretty wide and mostly flat. People can take a tour at the park or enjoy some of the activities that are offered during certain times of the year.
My husband, our dog, and I went to the trails and ended up doing about four of them while moving in between them. Since we found this place, I was amazed at all the wildlife and how close it is to the big city.
You can start hiking in Stockholm County and follow my own footsteps through this lovely national park. For me, we didn’t walkj on the family path for long since there were too many families. Plus, we ventured here before I had my little kiddo. However, the trails that we chose instead took us further into the woods and left society and the other people far behind us. A heads up, the trees are marked with the color of the trail, and there’s usually people walking on many of the paths much of the time, making it not hard to find. With each step, the air felt clean and friendly. My inner child was jumping with joy as we wandered down the trails. What a lovely place to walk around!
How to get there by Bus
As soon as you get to Gullmarsplan, switch to bus 807 or 809 to get to Svartbacken. After that, you need to switch lanes at Soderbyleden or Brandbergen centrum and take the 834 to Tyresta. Another way to get there is to take the Pendeltåg 43 to Handen station and then change to bus 834 at Haninge centrum.
Learn more about Tyresta National Park here. This gives you a lot more information on the National Park and its trails.
Vandrarleden
Difficulty: Moderate- Distance: 3 km (1.9 mi.) – Duration: Approx. 1 hour- Coordinates: 59.5719° N, 17.5508° E, (Outside of Bålsta) Address: Björkbackavägen 2, 746 51, Bålsta, Sweden- Transport: Rent a car to get to it
We saw that most of the people who came to this trail had their dogs with them, just like us. In this small town called Bålsta, it looks like people take their dogs for walks on this trail. It’s a nice secret spot that’s not far from E18. If you drive, it takes about 30 minutes to get there from Stockholm. So this is a great place to get away from the busy streets of Stockholm.
This trail isn’t very well known, which makes it even more worthwhile to hike it. I wasn’t sure at first since before we got to the path, we went through a small industrial area that’s also close to a busy road. But while we were hiking this 3 km (1.9 mi.) loop, I was amazed by how green everything was. Moss has grown over the rocks and spread out across the land. Besides that, the path looked great because and it was well marked with orange paint. At the top, there’s a sign-in book plus a beautiful view.
Upplandsleden – Etapp 1 – Barkarby Kallhäll
Difficulty: Moderate- Distance: 11 km- Duration: Approx. 6 hours – Address: Reavägen, 175 69 Järfälla- Transport: Take a bus, train, or Rent a car (Map of Trail)
From Barkarby järnvägstation. you can start the trail. Between Ravsta and Forsbyån is a spot where one of the paths ends. Orange lines show where the road is. There is a shorter 11 km trail that you can take instead of the longer 450 km trail. It would take you about 22 days to walk the whole trail.
You can rent a car or take the bus from Stockholm Central Station to get to Barkarby or the starting point at Dag Hammarskjölds Väg 279, 756 52 Uppsala. There is no turn on this trail; it only goes in one direction.
Sörmlandsleden
Difficulty: Easy-Moderate- Distance: 10 km (6.2 mi.) – Duration: Approx. 6 hours- Coordinates: N 59°10.079′ E 018°14.256′, (Outside of Stockholm)- Address: Svartbäckens by 361, 136 59, Vendelsö – Transport: Bus, train, or Rent a car
This trail leads to many other trails, and at over 1,000 kilometers (621.4 mi.) long, it is Sweden’s largest trail. This path goes through Tyresta National Park and you can find it marked within this park. If you want to try some of this trail, follow the same steps you would take to get to Tyresta National Park. Sörmlandsleden links up with the looping family trail in Tyresta National Park. Plus, there are signs for this trail, and there is a shop near the beginning of this trail in Tyresta National park where you can buy a map if you need one. If not, you can just take a picture of the map that is on the information board outside.
Roslagsleden
Difficulty: Moderate- Distance: 9 – 25 km (5.6 – 15.5 mi.) – Duration: Approx. 4 hours – 2.5 days – Transport: Bus, train, or Rent a car (Map of Trail)
This path is around 190 km (118.1 mi.) in total and is broken up in sections. If you’re interested in this trail, check out roslagsleden website (only in Swedish) to learn more about each trail. Several of these trails are in the city which makes it easy for you to begin hiking Stockholm on this path. While you’re on this trail, you’ll get to see old ruins, rune stones, and beautiful clear lakes. Besides that, you will get to see farmlands, goats, and cows up close. Plus, there are castles along with more nature and the magical seaside.
Learn more: Roslagen.se
You can buy the book where the photo came from with the map. But they have it only in Swedish.
Hiking Stockholm’s Brunnsviken
Difficulty: Easy-Moderate- Distance: 12 km (7.5 mi.) – Duration: Approx. 6 hours – Transport: Bus, train, or Rent a car (Map of Trail)
This lovely lake is in Stockholm to walk around it can take 12 km. Having a vacation here is something that’s great any time of the year. Plus, this trail has many benches along the route if you want to rest a little. The parks around this lake were built in the 1780s and add to the beauty of the lake. Additionally, there is a botanical garden and the Swedish Museum of Natural History. Something that’s common to see in this area is that the visitors like to swim, have picnics, and just relax here after a busy day in the city.
Nacka Nature Reserve
Difficulty: Easy-Difficult – Distance: 2 – 5 km (1.2 – 3.1 mi.) – Duration: Approx. 30 min.- 4 hours – Coordinates: 59.2849° N, 18.1469° E – Address: 128 48 Nacka Transport: Bus, train, or Rent a car
Nacka Nature Reserve has a plethora of parks, lakes, and pine trees which can be seen on this trail. Through some parts of this path, you can see a golf field and places to sleep. This area offers a variety of trails with different difficulties and lengths. I hope that you enjoy your hike in Nacka Nature Reserve. Besides that, there are other activities that happen here as well.
Hiking in Sweden
If you love hiking like I do and you’re in Sweden, then check out my page, Hiking in Sweden. Here, you can learn more about some of the best places to hike and more about the culture when it comes to outdoor activities. Don’t forget that, “There’s no bad weather, only bad clothing.” This is one of my favorite Swedish sayings!
Plus, check out my article about Stockholm’s nature at, The Outstanding Places to Enjoy Stockholm Nature!
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