Christmas in Stockholm: a winter wonderland

Stockholm sees snow fall from October to March which makes the likelihood of a white Christmas high. When there is a layer of snow covering the city at Christmas time, Stockholm really is a magical winter wonderland. But even when there is no snow, Stockholm is full of fun Christmas activities and traditions for you to explore. These are some of our favourites.

The Christmas market on Stortorget, the central square of Gamla Stan, opens on 23 November and is open every day until 23 December. The Christmas market on Gamla Stan is the oldest in all of Sweden. It has its origins in the medieval markets of Stockholm, and today’s market has made a yearly appearance (with a few breaks) since 1837.

This year the market will have 41 stalls, where you can find all sorts of great presents for your loved ones. You can get warm with some mulled wine under the Christmas tree and explore the stalls filled with local products, candies, art forging, sausages and venison, handicrafts, cotton candy, ceramics, and more.

At any time of year, Skansen is the place to go to explore Swedish traditions, this is especially true at Christmas time. The historical houses and farms in Skansen will show everything from traditional tree decorations to Christmas tables as they were in the 19^th-century. The Skansen fiddlers will perform carols, you can make your own Christmas decorations and crafts at Bragehallen, learn how to make candles at the Bredablick tower and listen to Yuletide fairy tales in the cottage of Matt on the Hill.

Between 29 November and 22 December, Skansen opens its historic Christmas market. Here, the stands offer lots of treats for you Christmas table as well as presents. If you get cold, be sure to join in the dancing around the Christmas tree!

For over twenty years now, Stockholm at Christmas time has hosted the Marzipan Boat. The boat docks on Strandvägskajen 18 at the end of November and stays until just before Christmas. The Marzipan Boat from Kutterkonfekt, a family bakery from Trosa, is a feast for chocolate lovers and marzipan fans, and many of the products are vegan.

Among the treats you’ll find high-end, hand-made chocolate- and marzipan sweets as well as crackers, mint kisses and nougats. As a special treat, you can have a taste of their special flavoured marzipan for free. The treats are made specially for the season, which means that when the treats are sold out, they won’t be back until the next year.

From the autumn holidays there are several ice rink you can visit in Stockholm. The most popular and famous is the ice rink in Kungsträdgården, the park in the heart of the city. You can hop on the ice for free if you bring your own skates but you can also rent a pair or skates for a small fee.

The rink is set up on a massive fountain in the park. Christmas lights and music create a festive atmosphere at any time of day. While the ice here is artificially frozen, whether or not you can skate here is still weather dependent.

The City of Stockholm knows how to decorate the city for Christmas! From 16 November over 40 streets will be illuminated with beautiful Christmas lights throughout Norrmalm. The lights stay up until 12 January, so even if you visit in the New Year, this experience should be on your list of things to do in Stockholm.

The best way to explore the beautiful decorations in Stockholm is on foot. This will allow you to really take a look around and of course take some great pictures to share. Stockholmsjul have even created a light map with all the locations of the Christmas light so that you can create your own Christmas lights tour through the city.