Nordic and Scandic Travel

Feeling adventurous?, fancy something completely different,
then why not visit Stocholm, Swedens capital, to experience a snowy (quite possibly!) Christmas market for that authentic christmas experience….

December is the month that many Christmas markets magically
appear in Stockhholm, with the main one occupying the main city square in the Gamla Stan (Old Town) between 25 November and 22 December.
Stockholms city centre is quite compact, allowing travellers to walk through the city centre within 1/2 an hour, making it
an ideal location for shoppers and people watchers.
Stockholm has an efficient and reliable bus and underground rail network, for tourists
seeking that little bit extra of  Swedish life. (such as the "Tivoli Grona" funfair, amusement park and xmas market at Djurgarden).
After having sampled or bought the traditional market offerings like spicy gingerbread, colourful wooden toys and tasty slabs of marzipan, why not try the
"Jubord" (Christmas plate) which typically consists of cured fish washed down with schnapps, swedish meatballs and stewed cabbage,
and a dessert fest of cinnamon spiced rice pudding. Finally, having sampled
some fine food at some of the highly regarded restaurants, and having visited some of the best museums (Vasa and Skansen), then why not
end the day with Swedens answer to mulled wine, “Glogg” which contains red wine, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, ginger and peel of orange.
Ho, Ho, Ho…

Hotels in Stockholm

Flights to Stockholm :
Flysas

Arlanda Airport to Stockholm City Rail Link :
Arlanda Express

Fed up with the gloom and doom, bank imploding, footsie flailing, doom mongering, then try a complete change of scenery, refresh your brain, take a different view on life…..Escape to Oslo, the capital city of Norway, thinks, “why didn’t I think of that”. It offers a great fijord port location, a buzzy waterfront atmosphere (Aker Brygge) many arty, sculptural, attractions and a great shopping fix ( department stores, shopping centres, flea markets, and boutiques- Karl Johan area ),

Bizzarely, for brits, Oslo-ites can ski in the city or even go dog sledging! albeit just outside the city. Just check the weather, as due to its geographical properties, the weather in Oslo and Norway in General varies greatly depending on the season.
And once you are skied/shopped out, what better way to indulge yourself more than eating at one of Oslo’s wide range of restaurants, (five appear in the Michelin Guide). Many of Norway’s leading chefs work in Oslo, and tend to use fresh local ingredients such as exquisite fish and wild game.
So forget the Doom’n'Gloomers and get a fresh approach to life, visit somewhere completely different…..

Accomodation in Oslo from 54Euros

Where is Sweden, how big is it?, is it always dark?, is it always cold, does it always snow?….
Some of the questions that travellers tend to think about before visiting Sweden.
First, some quick facts, Sweden has a population of 9,000,000 and its capital is Stockholm. Sweden is a long and thin country roughly 700 miles North to South, with a width of about 150 miles. It is sandwiched between Norway to its west (left) side, and the Gulf of Bothnia to its east (Finland).

Map courtesy of www.travelblog.org

Being a “long” country, weather conditions can vary considerably, for instance 15% of northern, mountainous Sweden is within the arctic circle, so winters tend to be longer (more than 7 months) with the sun never setting during part of the summer aka “The Midnight Sun”, and part of the winter aka “The Polar Nights” .
The southern part of Sweden, which includes the cities Gothenburg and Malmo, has a warmer and milder climate, influenced by the North sea, with its winter lasting about 2 months and its summer about 4 months.
Temperatures for Sweden can vary from -40C, yikes (northern arctic circle), in February to about +21 in July.
The central part of the country is low lying and boasts numerous beautiful lakes, some of which freeze over, enabling the locals to enjoy ice skating which is a hugely popular pastime for all ages in Sweden, further opportunities also exist when the the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea (Gulf of Bothnia) regularly freeze over. Because the Gulf often freezes during the winter, this side of Sweden is much colder than its western border.
Hours of daylight can vary considerably depending on the time of year, as an example, in the depths of winter, the Stockholm area only has only around five and a half daylight hours.
Surprising as it may sound, summers in the Stockholm area have similar temperatures to the south of England, but more days of sunshine.
Happy Travelling!
Hotels in Sweden

Not your typical tourist destination, Finland’s capital Helsinki has a reputation by those in the know for being a modern, forward looking city, featuring interesting items of cutting edge architecture.
Steeped in history, as an important port located next to the Baltic sea, travellers can choose from a wide range of attractions and activities, helped by the efficient and reliable transport system. Travellers wishing to use the bus, ferry or metro can purchase “The Helsinki Card” which allows unlimited travel, or one can do as the locals do and use the “quaint” tram.
Popular attractions include the National museum of Finland, Suomenlinna Castle (an island fortress reached by ferry), the historic village of Seurasaari, tour Helsinki harbour, chill at the market square, take a sauna at Katiharju, or just rest and people watch at Esplanade park.

Sophisticated travellers may wish to take in the Kiasma, the museum of contemporary art, or visit ye olde “Glass Palace”, a preserved building that in the modern day houses restaurants and cinemas.
For those running out of interesting cities to visit, why not try Helsinki, with its welcoming atmoshere and icy/snowy/sunny seasonal changes.
Hotels in Helsinki

For those that have not “discovered” Copenhagen, it is the capital of Denmark, which is located in northern Europe between the North Sea and Baltic Sea’s.

For the sophisticated traveller Copenhagen offers a variety of stimulii! It is a city steeped in history, it has areas devoid of cars (Christianshavn & Christiania) , where one can travel by canal boat, bicycle or walk .
Alternatively, for the serious shopper, refuge is found in the Strøget, a 3.2km long pedestrianised street covering pretty much any product you may wish to purchase!

Museum lovers will definitely need to visit the Nationalmuseet, which chronicles the history of Copenhagen and Denmark, spanning the last few thousand years.
Of course even if you don’t a little drink now and again, if you visit Denmark you have to sample at least one locally produced ale from one of the many alehouses.

Travellers arriving by airline are well served by Copenhagens Metro which is linked by a 20min ride to the airport.

Hotels in Copenhagen