Like neighbouring Finland and Norway, Sweden experiences extreme cold in the winter, particularly in arctic regions, and gentle heat in the summer with temperatures hitting highs of around 30°C (86°F) in the south. The bitter cold and long hours of winter darkness make travelling difficult; particularly if you’re planning outdoor activities, although one of the big upsides of the freezing weather is the myriad opportunities for getting involved in winter sports.
Sweden’s cities, too, are great fun during winter, with glögg (mulled wine) sellers on every corner, while in the arctic north the winter months go hand in hand with the chance to see the Northern Lights. Coastal areas enjoy a gentler climate thanks to the temporising effects of the Gulf Stream, but winters can still be unpleasantly cold and significantly rainier than in the north.
The flipside is that southern summers are correspondingly hotter, which gives visitors the chance to really make the most of the wonderful beaches. Like Norway and Finland, summer days tend to be long in the extreme, with the midnight sun shining during northern summers. During winter, daylight hours are few, with total darkness reigning during the long arctic winter.
Required clothing:During the winter, thick layers are needed, with wind chill proving particularly problematic. If you’re caught short during a winter visit, make the most of Swedish expertise in knitwear and pick up a decent Fair Isle knit to keep the cold at bay. In the summer, lighter clothing is needed along with a lightweight waterproof coat.
With a land mass totalling around 449,964 sq km (173,732 sq miles), Sweden is the fifth largest country in Europe and the largest of the Scandinavian bloc. Sharing land borders with Norway to the west and Finland to the northeast, the country also has 3,218km (2,000 miles) of coastline, much of it on the Baltic Sea. What remains faces the Gulf of Bothnia – a chilly stretch of sea, shared with Finland. To the south, Denmark is another near neighbour and is directly linked to the southern Swedish port of Malmö via the Öresund Bridge. Along with Denmark, Sweden has maritime borders with Germany, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
With a population of just over 9 million, most of whom inhabit the cities and the south, the vast majority (78%) of Sweden’s enormous tracts of land are forested, while another 8% is covered in water. The largest lake is Vänern, with an area of 5,655 sq km (2,140 sq miles) and the highest peak is Kebnekaise, which stands 2,104m (6,903ft) above sea level and is part of the Scandinavian mountain chain on the Norwegian border. In the far north, Sweden’s portion of Lapland extends well into the Arctic Circle, with the northernmost outpost of Swedish civilisation to be found in the tiny Lappish town of Treriksröset on the three way border between Finland, Norway and Sweden. The country’s southernmost point is the small fishing village of Smygehuk on the Baltic coast, close to the tiny city of Trelleborg in Skåne County.
