New Year's Eve in Stockholm 2012

Christmas is finally over... and New Years is just around the corner! If you are visiting the city this coming weekend, then I hope you have already finalized your New Year's Eve plans because it's getting down to the wire. Here are some things you should be aware of when making your plans:

• Restaurants- Many restaurants are closed on the 31st. The ones that are open generally serve a traditional multiple course menu called nyårssupé and nothing else. It can be anywhere between 3 and 9 courses and cost anywhere between 500 and 1200 SEK, depending on the restaurant. This means that going out for a simple dinner or quick bite will probably be problematic unless you are looking at pubs or fast food establishments. These dinners are quite popular and the restaurants tend to fill up, so don't leave it to the last minute! Most of these restaurants have two seatings during the evening... an early (5-8:30pm) and a late (8:30pm-12am). There are a select few that serve both the nyårssupé alongside a regular menu. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, contact me as soon as possible to make arrangements!
• Nightclubs- Here it is important to plan ahead as well. Tickets to the parties at the nightclubs can be pre-purchased in advance. If you don't pre-purchase a ticket, you can end up standing in long lines in subzero temperatures! Here are some of the larger nightclub parties this year: Stureplansgruppen (an umbrella group that runs several nightclubs), Café Opera, Södra Teatern and Berns. These are the more posh nightclub venues... there are, of course, many smaller parties going on at different venues.
• Taxis- These are notoriously hard to catch on New Year's Eve... especially after 11pm. This is because of the huge demand. Most taxi companies don't accept prebookings because they don't want their cars tied up waiting for people who don't show up. You don't have to worry about being stranded though... the subways will be running all night long. If nighttime subways aren't your thing, just make sure that you are within walking distance of your hotel. Stockholm isn't that big so this isn't that hard to accomplish.
• Fireworks- Locals will be setting off their own fireworks throughout the city, especially in the parks & squares and at midnight. The official fireworks will be shot off above the harbor (eastern side of Gamla Stan). The best places to see the fireworks are along the waterfront, by the City Hall, on Fjällgatan or Monteliusvägen. Some places will be quite crowded, especially the Slussen area which will be cordoned off from car traffic, but you will still be able to see the fireworks!
• Skansen- Once again, this is the center of Swedish holiday tradition. This is the spectacle that is televised and shown around all of Sweden... kind of like the Swedish version of the ball dropping at Times Square. There will be music and speeches and the official countdown. Skansen is also a great place to see the official fireworks! To be honest, I'm not sure how much someone who doesn't speak Swedish will get out of the event as most of the program is in Swedish... but it is an option. The program starts at 11:10pm and ends at 00:10am.

The Rival Hotel- our restaurant is already fully booked! However our bars are open until 2am and there is no entrance fee (rare on this evening). There will be a DJ playing and the square in front of the hotel is a popular place for the locals to light their fireworks.

Church Services During the Holidays 2012/13

There are many churches offering services in several languages during the holiday season. The main denominations are Church of Sweden (Lutheran) and Catholicism. Here are the mass times that can be of interest:

Storkyrkan (Lutheran)- located in Gamla Stan.
-December 24th: Christmas music & prayer at 4:30pm. Midnight mass at 11:00pm. Both in Swedish.
-December 25th: High mass at 11am in Swedish.
-January 1st: High mass at 11am in Swedish.

St Jacob's Church (Lutheran)- located next to Kungsträdgården.
-December 24th: Christmas pageant and music at 11am.
-December 25th: Worship in English at 6pm (also every Sunday at 6pm).

Katolska Domkyrkan (Catholic)- located on Södermalm. Main Catholic Church in Sweden.
-December 24th: Christmas service in Italian at 9pm, Croatian at 10pm and midnight mass (Latin?).
-December 25th: Italian at 8:45am, High Mass at 11am (Latin?), Spanish at 2pm, Polish at 5pm and Swedish at 6:30pm.
-December 31st: Thanksgiving mass with "Te Deum" at 5pm.
-January 1st: High Mass at 11am (Latin?), Croatian at 12:30pm, Spanish at 2pm and Swedish at 6:30pm.

St Eugenia (Catholic)- located next to Kungsträdgården. Mass in English every Sunday at 6pm.
-December 24th: Christmas prayer at 7:30pm, midnight mass in Swedish at 10pm and in English at 11:59pm.
-December 25th: High mass at 11am (Latin?), mass in English at 6pm.
-January 1st: High mass at 11am (Latin?), mass in English at 6pm.

These churches do have more services than I have listed and there are, of course, many more churches in Stockholm! If you are staying at the Rival Hotel and interested in other churches or dates, contact me directly. Looking for temple services (Judaism)? Click here for information in English for the Jewish Congregation in Stockholm, or click here for an earlier blog entry about the Great Synagogue, Jewish Museum and more.

Shopping During the Holidays 2012/13

NK, photo by Jeppe Wikström, Stockholms Visitors Board

I just posted a list for which days major museums close during the holidays. Another popular activity during this period is shopping! Stores, of course, do close on certain days during the holidays. A good rule of thumb for Christmas is that stores tend to be open on the 24th, closing early, and closed on the 25th. Basically the same applies for New Years... closing early on the 31st and closed on the 1st. They all generally have extended opening hours in the mad rush up until Christmas. Smaller shops can be closed on the 24th and 31st as well. Here are the opening hours for the major shopping centers and department stores in Stockholm:

• NK Department Store: 10am to 2pm on Dec 24th, closed on Dec 25th, 10am to 5pm on Dec 31st and closed on Jan 1st.
• Åhlens Department Store: 10am to 2pm on Dec 24th, closed on Dec 25th, 10am to 6pm on Dec 31st and closed on Jan 1st.
• Mood Shopping Center: 10am to 2pm on Dec 24th, closed on Dec 25th, 10am to 5pm on Dec 31st and closed on Jan 1st. 
• Gallerian Shopping Center: 10am to 2pm on Dec 24th, closed on Dec 25th, 11am to 5pm on Dec 31st and closed on Jan 1st. 
• Sturegallerian Shopping Center: 10am to 2pm on Dec 24th, closed on Dec 25th, 10am to 2pm on Dec 31st and closed on Jan 1st.

Liquor stores, called Systembolaget, are all closed on the 23rd through 26th of December. They are also closed on the 30th and close at 2pm on the 31st of December. So you better plan your beer, wine, champagne & liquor purchases accordingly!

Photo by Henrik Trygg, Stockholms Visitors Board

The week between Christmas and New Years (called mellandagarna, literally "the middle days") is the biggest shopping week of the year in Sweden with some incredible sales. Just keep your eyes open for signs saying REA ("sale") or MELLANDAGSREA ("middle day sale"). If you are staying at the Rival Hotel and need information on the opening hours for specific smaller shops, drop me a line or stop by and talk to me. If you are wondering about restaurant opening hours... those are way too varied to write a list here on my blog, but you can check an earlier blog entry about restaurants to get a general idea of what to expect!

Museums During the Holidays 2012/13

If you are coming to Stockholm during the holidays and want to get a little cultural, you don't have to worry... there is always at least one museum open each day! While there are about 80 museums in Stockholm, I thought I would list which days the larger museums are open/closed to help you plan your trip.

• Skansen- open every day!
• Vasa Museum- closed the 23rd, 24th, 25th of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Fotografiska (photography)- closed on December 24th.
• Moderna (modern art)- closed December 24th, 25th & 31st and January 1st.
• National (classic art)- closed December 24th, 25th and 31st.
• Nordiska (nordic culture)- closed December 24th, 25th and 31st.
• Historiska (history)- closed December 24th, 25th and 31st.
• Nobel- closed December 24th, 25th & 31st and January 1st.
• Medeltidsmuseum (medieval history)- closed December 24th, 25th & 31st and January 1st.
• Naturhistoriska (natural history)- closed December 23rd and 24th.
• Kungliga Slottet (royal palace incl. museums)- closed December 24th, 25th & 31st and January 1st.

Be aware that some of the museums have shorter opening hours on certain days. Double check with their websites (linked above) for opening hours. The changing of the guards at the Royal Palace takes place every day at 12:15pm except on Sundays as well as December 25th & 26th and Janurary 1st when it takes place at 1:15pm. Strömma's sightseeing basic bus and boat tours run pretty much as normal, double check their calendar on the website for specific tour information. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, stop by and talk to me for more detailed opening hours as well as information regarding smaller museums.

New Year's Eve in Stockholm

(EDIT: This was an older post from 2011, to read the post regarding New Year's Eve 2012, click here!)

Shops During the Holidays

(EDIT: This is a blog post from 2011, for information regarding 2012- click here!) One of the most popular questions I get from people planning their vacation in Stockholm during the holiday season is how the stores are open. Generally speaking, stores tend to be open on the 24th (though they close early) and closed on the 25th. Smaller stores will often be closed on the 24th as well and maybe even on the 26th. The really big shopping days in Sweden are between Christmas and New Years during what we call mellandagarna (literally "the middle days"). You will see signs all through the city advertising their sales (rea or mellandagsrea) and you can really get some good deals if you don't mind the crowds. Last year I wrote a little more in depth about these sales and you can read about them here.

Shopping crowds in front of NK

I can't give you the opening hours for every store, but here are the special hours for the larger stores and shopping centers in the city:

• NK Department Store- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Åhlens City Department Store- Dec 24th 9am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Gallerian Shopping Center- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 11am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Sturegallerian Shopping Center- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 2pm and closed Jan 1st.

As I said, these are just the large stores and shopping centers, though the opening hours can be a guide for how other stores will be open. All are located in the downtown area... about a 25-30 minute walk from the Rival Hotel, otherwise 3-4 subway stops. Subways & buses run all through the holidays! If you are staying at the hotel and are interested in a specific store's opening hours... contact me directly by e-mail.

Museums During the Holidays- 2011/2012

Skansen! Open every day. Photo: Marie Andersson

(EDIT: this is info for 2011/12, for current info... click here!) As you can expect, museums in Stockholm are closed on certain days during the Christmas and New Year holidays... some more than others. To help you plan your holiday vacation in Stockholm, I have made a list of the top museums and which days they are closed during this period.

• Vasa Museum- Closed 23rd, 24th and 25th of December as well as the 1st of January.
• History Museum- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th and 31st of December.
• National Museum- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th & 31st of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Nobel Museum- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th & 31st of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Fotografiska (photography museum)-  Closed on December 24th.
• Moderna (modern art museum)- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th & 31st of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Medieval Museum- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th & 31st of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Nordic Museum- Closed on the 24th, 25th and 31st of December.
• Museum of Natural History- Closed on Mondays and the 23rd and 24th of December.
• Royal Palace- Closed on Mondays, the 24th, 25th, 26th & 31st of December and 1st of January.
• Stockholm City Museum- Closed on Mondays and the 24th, 25th & 31st of December as well as the 1st of January.
• Drottningholm Palace- Closed December 12th through the 30th. Open daily December 30th to January 8th.

There is one museum that is open 365 days a year... Skansen! This is the outdoor cultural museum, the zoo as well as a park! It is also the best place to go to see traditional Swedish ways to celebrate the holidays. Museums may have shorter opening hours on certain days. Check their websites (linked above) for their hours. If you are staying at the Rival Hotel, contact me directly for the opening hours of other museums.

What to do on New Years Weekend?

What to do this New years weekend? Plenty to do... be aware that some museums are open one day and closed the other. Almost all stores are closed on New years Day... and many restaurants.


Friday, December 31th

Museums- Skansen is open from 10am to midnight. A very popular place with Swedes to ring in the New Year... with the hour before midnight filled with music and entertainment. Besides Skansen, the other museums open today are the Vasa Museum and the East Asian Antiquities Museum (Terracotta Warrior exhibit).
The changing of the guards at the Royal Palace in the Old Town: 12:15pm
Tours- Strömma offers the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour, Panorama bus tour as well as the Winter boat tour and Little Archipelago boat tour everyday all weekend.
Other activities- The midnight firework display will take place over the water on the eastern side of Stockholm (ocean side). This can easily be viewed anywhere on the waterfront or a place with a good view.
Ice skating at Kungsträdgården from 11am to 8pm. Hammarbybacken is open for skiing 9am to 4pm. 
Restaurants- Many restaurants closed and the ones that are open serve the traditional nyårsspé dinner. Hope you have a reservation... it's very hard to get one last minute!
Stores- many open, with shorter hours. NK Department store open 10am to 5pm. Gallerian shopping center open 11am to 5pm. Skrapan shopping center open 10am to 4pm.

Saturday, January 1st

Museums- Skansen, Fotografiska, The History Museum and the East Asian Antiquities Museum (where you can see the Terracotta Warrior Exhibition) are all open.
The changing of the guards at the Royal Palace in the Old Town: 1:15pm
Tours- Strömma offers the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour, Panorama bus tour as well as the Winter boat tour and Little Archipelago boat tour  everyday all weekend.
Other activities- Ice skating at Kungsträdgården from 11am to 8pm. Hammarbybacken is open for skiing 11am to 6pm.
Restaurants- Many restaurants are closed (hungover staff?)... there are restaurants open in the Stureplan district as well as hotel restaurants. Rival Bistro is open.
Stores- Most are closed, including NK, Gallerian and Skrapan.

Sunday, January 2nd

Museums- all major museums, including the Vasa Museum, are open for business.
The changing of the guards at the Royal Palace in the Old Town: 1:15pm
Tours- Strömma offers the Hop-on Hop-off bus tour, Panorama bus tour as well as the Winter boat tour and Little Archipelago boat tour everyday all weekend.
Other activities- Ice skating at Kungsträdgården from 11am to 8pm. Hammarbybacken is open for skiing 9am to 6pm.
Restaurants- many more restaurants are open for business, but it is a Sunday... so restaurants that are generally closed on Sundays will be closed today!
Stores- Open for business again! NK Department store open 12pm to 5pm. Gallerian shopping center open 11am to 5pm. Skrapan shopping center open 11am to 6pm.

The weather this weekend? Temperatures around -5 Celsius and snowfall expected late on New Year's Eve and in the morning on New Year's Day.

Happy New Years!
.

Museums During the Christmas Holidays 2010/11

(EDIT: this is infor for 2010/11, for current info... click here!) Museums and other tourist sites have pretty generous opening hours during the holiday season. There is no day where eveything is closed! Here is a short list of the most popular museums and the days they are closed, which will make it easier for you to plan your stay in Stockholm!

Vasa Museum- closed December 23rd, 24th, 25th and January 1st.
Skansen- open 365 days a year!
National Museum- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th and 31st as well as January 1st.
History Museum- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th and 31st.
Fotografiska- closed December 24th and 31st.
Nordic Museum-  closed December 24th, 25th and 31st.
Nobel Museum- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st.
Mideaval Museum- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st.
East Asian Antiquities Museum(Terracotta Army exhibit)- closed December 24th
Stockholm City Museum- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st. They are still offering the Stieg Larsson Millenium tour on Christmas Day and New Years Day, but be aware that you need to buy tickets ahead of time as the museum is closed.
Royal Palace(and adjacent museums)- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st.
Millesgården- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th and January 1st.
Modern Art (Moderna)- closed Mondays, December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st.

So, in short... you have Skansen open everyday including the 24th, East Asian Antiquities and Fotografiska on the 25th, Vasa on the 31st and History on the 1st. So you always have at least two museums to choose from everyday (except the 24th)!

Restaurants During the Christmas & New Year Holidays




Photo by: Henrik Trygg, Stockholms Visitors Board

  I have already written about this once, but it is time for a friendly reminder...
As a tourist coming to Stockholm, you should be aware that many restaurants close during the holiday season. Some close just for the main holiday dates (Christmas Eve, New Years Eve, etc;), others close for a few more extra days while others actually close for a couple of weeks. When it comes to Christmas Eve, you should plan on eating in a hotel restaurant. They are the only restaurants of real quality open on that date. Many of the major hotels are open to general public, so you do have a choice! The Rival's Bistro is open to all guests (whether you are staying at the hotel or not) during the entire holiday season and there you can enjoy a menu filled with both Swedish Classics and international favorites. We will not be serving a Christmas smörgåsbord this year. To make a reservation, contact the bistro at bistro@rival.se . On Christmas Day a few more restaurants open in the city for business again and on Boxing Day a few more... so you don't have to only eat at hotels during your stay. As many restaurants do close, the ones that are open do tend to fill up so reserving a table on the same day can be difficult in some cases. I would recommend, if you are staying at The Rival Hotel, to contact me at concierge@rival.se and I will help you with recommendations of restaurants that are open as well as with eventual table reservations. If you are not staying at the Rival then I suggest you contact your hotel for help.


Photo by: Henrik Trygg, Stockholms Visitors Board

 Regarding the New Year's weekend, it is New Year's Eve that is the tricky day. While some restaurants are closed, the majority will be open and will be serving a traditional multi-course New Years supper (nyårssupé). This is quite popular and last minute reservations are a near impossibilty... so make sure you have your dinner plans arranged before coming to Stockholm! The Rival's Bistro will be serving a traditional nyårssupé starting at 7:30pm. After dinner there will be a DJ playing in the Cocktail Bar, which is open until 2am. Local fireworks can be viewed from the Bistro's balcony, otherwise it is only a 10 minute walk down to the waterfront where the official firework display can be seen at midnight. For more information about the Rival's New year's Eve dinner and celebration click here. Many restaurants will be closed on New Years Day and the next (mainly due to staff hangovers one can assume!). Once again, if you are staying at the hotel, contact me for recommendations and reservations...

Christmas & New Years in Stockholm

I know. You are thinking "Isn't it a little early to be talking about the holidays?". Not really. The Rival Hotel is starting to receive a lot of room reservations for the holiday season... so it is a good time to come out and explain a little about Swedish holiday traditions and what to expect, so people can plan their trips a little in advance.

Many restaurants close during the holidays. Some close for a few days here and there while others will be closed for up to 3 weeks. Christmas Eve (the big Swedish family time- it is when Santa visits!) is especially tough, followed by Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day. The restaurants that are open tend to fill up early, so last minute reservations are sometimes hard to fix. This means that it is prudent to make at least a couple of restaurant reservations before coming to Stockholm. I am in the process of compiling a list of restaurant opening hours during the season. It probably won't be absolutely complete until the end of November, but I already have a fair idea of when many restaurants will be closed. So, if you are staying at the hotel during the holiday season, contact me at concierge@rival.se before arriving and I will give you recommendations for restaurants that are open and then, of course, help you with table reservations. If you are coming in early to middle December, be aware that many restaurants will be only serving a traditional Christmas smörgåsbord, called julbord (also good to prebook). The Rival's Bistro will be open every day of the week, so you don't ever have to worry about going hungry! We will not be serving julbord.

New Year's Eve is another matter. Many restaurants will be open this evening, but here it is good to be aware that all restaurants serve a traditional New Years supper and nothing else. The traditional supper (nyårssupé) is a 3 to 7 course set meal where the diner has a choice between meat & fish for the main course (costs can run anywhere from 400 SEK and up). Vegetarian and allergy options are usually provided. The tradition is that people arrive around 7-8pm and eat a long, leisurely dinner ending in time to view the fireworks. Click here to see The Rival Bistro's New Years Menu as well as other information. Whether eating at the hotel or going out, prebooking a table is an absolute must as restaurants are usually fully booked a few weeks in advance. Once again, contact me at concierge@rival.se for help. Kids of all ages will be setting off fireworks around midnight. The square in front of the hotel is one popular place. Otherwise the official fireworks will take place over the harbour and can easily be seen from anywhere along the waterfront.