Stockholm, Sweden
Shore Excursion and Port Information

efschlenk

Stockholm is a great city but the visit on Star Princess is cut short because it anchors at Nynashamn an hour south of the city (by train or cruise bus) and one must wait for tender passes – which leaves little more than half a day in the city even if one starts out early. Tender passes are nominally available at 0700, and independent travelers are supposed to be able to tender ashore easily between 0700 and 0730 when the tour groups are supposed to leave, but the tender arrangements for independents were disorganized and disappointing. We were ready at 0645 but barely made the 0805 train to Stockholm. Hopefully Princess will do a better job in the future.

Once ashore, it is a 15 minute walk to the left (south) to the small Nynashamn train station. Tickets are available for 95 Swedish Krona ($14) at the small kiosk just before the station (which takes credit cards). Tickets for seniors are 45 SK ($8). These tickets are good for the entire day, including all public transport in the city. The train takes an hour each way (it is a suburban commuter line with many stops) and runs every hour (0735, 0805, 0905, etc. northbound; 1250, 1350, 1450 southbound; beware, the latter is the last train which will get you back to the ship in time; verify schedules in case of changes!).

The train arrives at Stockholm’s central station, where you can pick up a transport map. Near the station to the northeast is bus #47, which will take you to the famous Vasa ship museum (opens at 1000), the Nordic museum, and Skansen (the open air folk museum). If you have not seen it before, I recommend the Vasa followed by Skansen (good weather) or Nordic museum (bad weather). The same bus #47 will take you back to the city center for a walk through historic Gamla Stan (old town) and a visit to the Royal Palace (the interior does not compare with Russian Palaces, although the armory museum is famous for those inclined). There is a musical/military changing of the palace guard at mid-day, but time is so limited that I would rate this a skip since it can be seen elsewhere. The one other sight of interest is the famous city hall, where the Nobel prizes are awarded. For architecture buffs, the one-hour tour (1000 or 1200) is worthwhile. Although most museums and the city hall charge $10-$15 entrance, the Stockholm card is probably not worth it since you already bought a transport card and shore time is limited.

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