Stockholm Old Town and the Vasa Museum, a Small Group Walking Tour.

We talk about the early history of Stockholm and Sweden, from the ice age until the first settlements on the islands. From Riddarholmen (The Knights Island) we have a beautiful view of the lake Mälaren and the City Hall, the famous landmark of Stockholm,

The story continues... Outside the Riddarholmen Church we will meet the presumed founder of Stockholm, Birger Jarl, or at least a statue of him. 1252 is the year when "Stockholm" was first mentioned in a written text that is preserved until today. Birger Jarl signed the paper...

We stop outside Riddarhuset, the House of Nobility, and look at the statue of Gustav Vasa, "the father of Sweden". Since Gustav Vasa 1523 marched into Stockholm, Sweden has been a sovereign state, never occupied by foreign powers. Gustav, after his father and between 80 to 100 other noblemen were killed in “The bloodbath of Stockholm”, organised an uprising against our southern neighbour who had taken control over Sweden. He also changed the religion in Sweden from Catholicism to Lutheran Protestantism

Next stop at the Royal Palace . We will enter the outer courtyard and see the guards, often dressed in elegant uniforms from past days. We will also visit "Slottsbacken" with a beautiful view of the inner harbour of Stockholm.

The smallest and nicest statue in Sweden!

The Nobel Price Museum is situated at Stortorget. The Swedish Royal Academies designate the winners of the most prestigious prices in many important fields of science and art.

Below the statue of Carl XIV Johan we continue the story about Sweden. This king, the first of the Bernadottes, was imported to Sweden from France in the beginning of the 19th century to win back what we lost to the Russians. Instead he put his efforts into diplomacy, building infrastructure and develop education! In 2014 200 years of peace was celebrated in Sweden. The industrial revolution, natural resources and great Swedish inventions created a foundation for a welfare state, and several entrepreneurs continued the development in the 20th and 21th centuries. !

Time for some rest :) (This is a walking tour; in the Old Town we walk about 1 mile, and, after the boat trip, another 0.5 miles to the Vasa Museum. So, in total, about 1.5 miles (about 2.4 km) But we walk at a slow pace, and we stop at different sites, take photos, etc., and we are open to adjustments of pace.)

Entrance to the Vasa museum is included. Our guide will show you the ship and tell you the amazing story about how Vasa capsized and then was salvaged more than 300 years later! This is the end of the guided tour, but you are welcome to stay in the museum after the tour is finished. (If you have time, why not stay on the Djurgården island also in the afternoon, visit the Abba Museum ("walk in, dance out" ), the Viking Museum, the amusement park Gröna Lund, or Skansen. All of these attractions are situated on the beautiful island Djurgården (but not included in this tour)).