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WHAT'S ON IN SWEDEN

EASTER

Five egg-cellent events in Sweden over Easter

From raving in Stockholm to relaxing Gothenburg's most beautiful gardens, here's our pick of activities to try during the Easter weekend as well as our regular interactive listings.

Published: 23 March 2016 15:30 CET
Updated: 24 March 2016 07:44 CET
Five egg-cellent events in Sweden over Easter
A gardener at Gothenburg's Botanical Garden where flowers are blooming this week. Photo: Adam Ihse/TT
1. Go art hunting in southern Sweden
 
Forget scavenging for Easter eggs, how about searching out some incredible art work? In Sweden's southernmost region, Skåne, artists are opening their galleries, studios and workshops for a ten-day extravaganza starting on March 25th. The annual spring event typically attracts around 10,000 people. Click here for a summary of some of the biggest events, in English. 
 

Art lovers exploring Malmö in southern Sweden. Photo: Miriam Preis/Image Bank Sweden
 
2. Seek out a date in the capital's oldest club
 
Fed up of trawling bars or apps to score a date? The Matchmakers, the people behind this weekend's Singles Easter Party are promising new ways to break the ice, from dating games to a free welcome drink. The event takes place inside the impressive nineteenth century building Berns in Stockholm's exclusive Östermalm district. Tickets cost 299 kronor on Billetto.
 

Berns nightclub in Stockholm. Photo: Janerik Henriksson/TT
 
3. Walk into wild spring in Gothenburg
 
Spring bulbs are blossoming in west Sweden's largest botanical garden, with over 200,000 flowers set to spring into action by April, both outside and in the complex of greenhouses on site. Over Easter weekend, children are invited to get a taste for gardening, by attending workshops for just 20 kronor. For general information in English click here.
 

The botanical gardens in Gothenburg. Photo: Nicho Södling/TT
 
4. Chase light in a Stockholm gallery
 
Award-winning Nigerian-American travel photographer Lola Akinmade Åkerström, based in Stockholm, is currently hosting her first solo exhibition in the Swedish capital. Having visited more than 60 destinations, Åkerström says that Chasing Light brings together her favourite “quiet light moments, the in-betweens. Not the flashy display of nature’s light but those subtle glances she throws every now and then that forces you to stop and truly appreciate her natural light”. The exhibition is hosted in collaboration with Galleri Duerr and Scandinavian Photo in Hötorget, central Stockholm.
 

One of Lola Akinmade Åkerström's photos of the Northern Lights. Photo: Lola Akinmade Åkerström/Image Bank Sweden
 
5. Tap up some dance classes in the suburbs
 
The Stockholm Tap Festival takes place in the chilled out suburb of Bagarmossen this week, offering everything from workshops for beginners to master classes geared toward tap dancing addicts, some of whom are flying in from around the world. Thursday night's Tap Jam looks set to be a highlight, while on Friday there's a free taster class followed by improvisation with a live band. Or, sit back and watch the experts in action at the Professional Showcase Gala on Easter Sunday. Prices vary, click here for the full schedule.
 

A tap dancer. Photo: Domenico Stinellis/TT
 

Check out the interactive table below for other fun events across the country this week

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TRAVEL NEWS

Traffic jams and sold-out trains: the latest on Easter travel in Sweden

Easter is probably the busiest time of the year for travel within Sweden. Here's the latest on how to travel safely and where you might face delayed trains or ugly traffic jams.

Published: 7 April 2022 16:30 CEST
Updated: 14 April 2022 13:54 CEST
Traffic jams and sold-out trains: the latest on Easter travel in Sweden

Travelling by rail

If you haven’t already booked your ticket, you may find it difficult to get a seat on some popular routes. 

“Some routes are already fully booked. This is particularly the case between the major cities,” Anders Edgren, a press officer for the national train company SJ, told state broadcaster SVT.

A screenshot of SJ’s booking site for Good Friday shows most morning trains between Malmö and Stockholm are already sold out.
 
Edgren said on Thursday morning that there were still a few seats left between Stockholm and Gothenburg and Stockholm and Sundsvall but that they were selling out fast. 
 
 
“What we’re trying to do is to double-up trains, which is to stick together two trains, and if we manage to do that we might be able to release some more tickets.” 

Sweden’s national rail company SJ often schedules engineering work for national holidays, as fewer people are travelling to work, and this easter there will be engineering work at around 20 sites across the country, meaning more than 1,000 trains will be partly or totally replaced with buses during the Easter break. 

The worst areas are on the routes between Gothenburg and Malmö, between Västerås and Stockholm, and between Karlstad and Växjö. Work on the new Västkustbanan will mean replacement buses between Helsingborg and Gothenburg throughout the Easter holidays. 

SJ has made a map showing all the routes where you can expect interruptions: 

Traffic interruptions over Easter: 

Karlstad C to Kristinehamn: 10pm April 14th to 5am April 19th 

Gothenburg going north and south: 10.35pm April 14th to 2pm April 18th

Varberg to Heberg: 2pm April 14th to 2pm April 19th 14

Ängelholm Helsingborg: 12am April 4th to April 25th 4.15am 

Frövi to Kumla: 10pm April 14th to 5am April 19th 

Skymossen to Motala: 12am April 14th to 5am April 19th

Stockholm Central platforms 3 to 7: 10pm April 14th to 10pm April 21st 

Huvudsta – Barkarby: 1.10am April 14th to 4.30am April 19th 

Travelling by car 

In its guide to travelling by car over Easter, the Swedish Transport Agency warns that weather conditions at this time of year can vary enormously as you drive north.  You may find, for instance, that you need winter snow tyres by the time you reach your destination, even seemed almost summery when you set out. You should also make sure you have clothing for all seasons. 

Here is the agency’s maps of roads which it expects to see heavy Easter traffic. 

A map showing which roads are expected to be busy over the Easter period. Photo: Swedish Transport Agency
These include: 

The E22 between Kalmar and Norrköping, the E4 between Norrköping and Stockholm, and then from Stockholm all the way up to Sundsvall.  The roads leading towards the ski areas around Sälen and Östersund also tend to get crowded. None of the roads in Skåne are expected to see heavy traffic. 

The Swedish Transport Agency has imposed a ban on overtaking on the E4 between Gävle och Tönnebro, on the 14th and 14th of April for travel in a northerly direction, and on the 17th and 18th of April travelling south. 

The agency also recommends choosing roads with central reservations and speed cameras, as these are safer, even if this might mean a slower journey. Here is the agency’s map of roads with central reservations.

Flights

If you’re coming to Sweden by air, you should be aware that companies have been cancelling a high number of flights in recent days, because many of their staff have Covid.

EasyJet and British Airways cancelled more than 80 scheduled flights on Thursday, blaming staff sickness. 

Airports

If your flight is running as scheduled, be aware of issues at several UK airports.

Airports including Heathrow, Manchester and Birmingham have been hit by disruption because of staff shortages caused by Covid, affecting everything from airport security to luggage handlers. Passengers risked missing their flights because of lengthy delays, according to reports in the UK press. 

Passport queues at Heathrow Terminal 2, from where SAS flies to Stockholm, were ‘stretching to 90 minutes’ on Maundy Thursday, The Independent reported. 

Passengers have been advised to make sure they are at the airport as early as possible to allow for delays, and unions have warned that the disruption could last for some time.

In the case of Manchester, the advice last week was to arrive three hours early.

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