Öland is a province in the Götaland region in Sweden. It consists of Sweden's second largest island (after Gotland) on the south-east coast.
Understand
Öland is rather sparsely populated, with most of the land consisting of farm land or in the north woods, so transportation is limited. There is no railway on Öland and the bus routes and bus departures are relatively few, even though the situation gets a lot better during the tourist season (from the beginning of June to the middle of August). Taking the bus, however, remains the most convenient way to get around on the island, since they cover most of the island and can get you within biking distance of interesting sights and beautiful beaches. Bringing a bike is recommendable, and convenient, as passengers are allowed to bring bikes on the buses. It's also the best way to experience the unique landscape of Öland. There are very nice biking trails along the long coast of Öland.
Cities
Borgholm
Färjestaden
Mörbylånga
Getting there
You get in by car or bus from Kalmar over the Ölandsbron bridge.
Traveling around
Buses are extremely few and far between, and do not even go near many interesting locations. Öland is however very bike-friendly with many smaller roads well suited for biking and no hills to speak of.
See
Borgholm Castle (Borgholms slott) (or rather its ruin, as it burnt down in the 19th Century). It is not open all year round, but you can always admire it from a distance.
The southern agricultural landscape (Alvaret)of Öland is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is a unique landscape with rare species and evidence of human settlements from prehistoric times. This place is often listed as one of the must-sees in Sweden by Swedish, as well as international, travel magazines.
The villas in Borgholm have a lot of character, and it is rather entertaining to walk around and look at them.
Solliden the Royal summer residence with its beautiful garden
Vida Museum showing the works of among others Bertil and Ulrika Wallien and Ulf Trotzig
Eketorp an old fortification stemming from the middle ages with activities for children
Böda Sand a beautiful sandy beach on the very north of the island. To get there you walk through a mesmerizing forest called the Trolls' forest (Trollskogen).
The rock formations, called raukar, on the beautiful Byerum beach. These formations have been created by natural erasion over thousands of year. If you're interested in seeing more of these 'raukar' they are in fact even more plentiful on Sweden's largest island, Gotland.
The Northern tip of the island, with its lighthouse (Långe Jan), natural preserve and Neptune's fields (Neptuni ängar)
The Southern tip of the island, with its lighthouse (Långe Erik) and bird sanctuary (Ottenby Fågelstation).
The only lake on Öland, Hornsjön
Things to do
Spend a day at one of Öland's many beaches
Bike along the Öland trail (Ölandsleden), or the shorter Sweden trail (the part that runs on Öland, that is)
Spend a day or two in the beautiful town of Borgholm with it's charming villas and cosy cafés. Close tot he town are also the Borgholm castle and the Solliden (royal residence), which are both well worth a visit. The massive castle situated on a hill with a stunning view of the town of Borgholm and the sea and Solliden with it's beautiful architecture as well as it's gardens.
Eat
Kroppkaka is a Småland/Öland specialty.
Smoked fish is another one.
Berries are usually abundant throughout the summer and early autumn. Mushrooms are plentiful in autumn.
Drink
The island don't have much to offer in the nightlife department but if you head into the larger towns, e.g. Borgholm (in particular), Färjestaden and Mörbylånga you will see a few nice restaurants and bars.
Talk
While English is widely known by most Swedes, the level of English spoken at the country side (including Öland) is noticeably lower than, for example, the level of English spoken in Stockholm.
Observe that most tourist information signs will be in Swedish, English, German and in rare cases Dutch and/or French.
Contact & location
Be the first one to add a review
The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
Some photos courtesy of:
. The photos provided by Flickr are under the copyright of their owners.
This travel guide also includes text from Wikitravel articles, all available at View full credits
Wikitravel is a project to create a free, complete, up-to-date, and reliable worldwide travel guide. So far we have 23,660 destination guides and other articles written and edited by Wikitravellers from around the globe. Check out the Help page to see how you can edit any page right now, or the Project page for more information about Wikitravel and getting involved. Africa Asia Oceania Europe Middle East North America South America Central America & Caribbean Other destinations Travel topics & PhrasebooksDestination of the monthFigueres is a small city in Catalonia, famous as the home of Salvador Dalí and the last major town before the Spanish/French border. It has a well preserved history and many interesting small museums, plus the very popular Dalí museum. (more...)Off the beaten pathSakhalin is Russia's largest island, just off its far eastern shores, with spectacular nature, Japanese heritage and the indigenous Nivkh peoples. It's also a little known alternative route to Japan after a trans-Siberian trip; the Russia to Japan via Sakhalin itinerary has the details. (more...)Discover For lovers of Hollywood and horticulture the Celebrity Tree Park in Kununurra offers the opportunity to enjoy both at once as it is a grove of trees planted by famous people. The Basilica in Cartago is said to be built on the grounds where a stone depicting the Virgin Mary mysteriously continued to return after being repeatedly taken away and even locked up. The only remaining wild white rhino population in the world is located in Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Travel alertsUPDATE: Thailand curfew extended to 31st May. FCO eases travel warning for Bangkok (26 May 2010 - 31 May 2010)Riots in Athens (4 May 2010 - Ongoing)General Strike in Nepal (1 May 2010)Eyjafjallajökull eruption closes airspace in Northern & Central Europe (16 April 2010)Violent Coup Ousts Kyrgyzstan President (7 April 2010)Sudan Begins First General Elections Since 1986 (5 April 2010)Current and upcoming eventsContinental-United merger OK'd (2 May 2010)World Expo Begins in Shanghai (1 May 2010 - 30 October 2010)Shroud of Turin on Display (10 April - 23 May 2010)Hands Off Our Tuna! Tokyo's Tsukiji Market Bans Tourists Again (7 April 2010)Senegal Inaugurates Massive, Controversial Statue (3 April 2010)Featured ArticlesNew "Star" ArticlesWalt Disney World/Downtown DisneySan FranciscoUbudNusa LembonganChicago/Southwest SideLondon/HampsteadWe're collaborating to improve Bangkok / ThailandBooks from Wikitravel PressWashington D.C., Hiroshima, San Francisco, moreMore on Wikitravel Extrablogs, forum, photosOther languagesMore than 1000 articles: Deutsch,Español,Français,Italiano,日本語,Nederlands,Português,Русский,Suomi,SvenskaBubbling under: العربيةCatalà,Esperanto, עברית,हिन्दी,Magyar, 한국어,Polski,Română,中文— Start a new version!
This travel guide also includes text from Wikipedia articles, all available at View full credits
Öland is a province in the Götaland region in Sweden. It consists of Sweden's second largest island (after Gotland) on the south-east coast.
Understand
Öland is rather sparsely populated, with most of the land consisting of farm land or in the north woods, so transportation is limited. There is no railway on Öland and the bus routes and bus departures are relatively few, even though the situation gets a lot better during the tourist season (from the beginning of June to the middle of August). Taking the bus, however, remains the most convenient way to get around on the island, since they cover most of the island and can get you within biking distance of interesting sights and beautiful beaches. Bringing a bike is recommendable, and convenient, as passengers are allowed to bring bikes on the buses. It's also the best way to experience the unique landscape of Öland. There are very nice biking trails along the long coast of Öland.
Cities
Borgholm
Färjestaden
Mörbylånga
Getting there
You get in by car or bus from Kalmar over the Ölandsbron bridge.
Traveling around
Buses are extremely few and far between, and do not even go near many interesting locations. Öland is however very bike-friendly with many smaller roads well suited for biking and no hills to speak of.
See
Borgholm Castle (Borgholms slott) (or rather its ruin, as it burnt down in the 19th Century). It is not open all year round, but you can always admire it from a distance.
The southern agricultural landscape (Alvaret)of Öland is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is a unique landscape with rare species and evidence of human settlements from prehistoric times. This place is often listed as one of the must-sees in Sweden by Swedish, as well as international, travel magazines.
The villas in Borgholm have a lot of character, and it is rather entertaining to walk around and look at them.
Solliden the Royal summer residence with its beautiful garden
Vida Museum showing the works of among others Bertil and Ulrika Wallien and Ulf Trotzig
Eketorp an old fortification stemming from the middle ages with activities for children
Böda Sand a beautiful sandy beach on the very north of the island. To get there you walk through a mesmerizing forest called the Trolls' forest (Trollskogen).
The rock formations, called raukar, on the beautiful Byerum beach. These formations have been created by natural erasion over thousands of year. If you're interested in seeing more of these 'raukar' they are in fact even more plentiful on Sweden's largest island, Gotland.
The Northern tip of the island, with its lighthouse (Långe Jan), natural preserve and Neptune's fields (Neptuni ängar)
The Southern tip of the island, with its lighthouse (Långe Erik) and bird sanctuary (Ottenby Fågelstation).
The only lake on Öland, Hornsjön
Things to do
Spend a day at one of Öland's many beaches
Bike along the Öland trail (Ölandsleden), or the shorter Sweden trail (the part that runs on Öland, that is)
Spend a day or two in the beautiful town of Borgholm with it's charming villas and cosy cafés. Close tot he town are also the Borgholm castle and the Solliden (royal residence), which are both well worth a visit. The massive castle situated on a hill with a stunning view of the town of Borgholm and the sea and Solliden with it's beautiful architecture as well as it's gardens.
Eat
Kroppkaka is a Småland/Öland specialty. Smoked fish is another one. Berries are usually abundant throughout the summer and early autumn. Mushrooms are plentiful in autumn.
Drink
The island don't have much to offer in the nightlife department but if you head into the larger towns, e.g. Borgholm (in particular), Färjestaden and Mörbylånga you will see a few nice restaurants and bars.
Talk
While English is widely known by most Swedes, the level of English spoken at the country side (including Öland) is noticeably lower than, for example, the level of English spoken in Stockholm.
Observe that most tourist information signs will be in Swedish, English, German and in rare cases Dutch and/or French.
Contact & location
Be the first one to add a review
The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
Stefan Sundkvist, Mats Hagwall, Carles Tomás Martí, Guillaume
Some photos courtesy of:
. The photos provided by Flickr are under the copyright of their owners.
This travel guide also includes text from Wikitravel articles, all available at
View full credits
Wikitravel is a project to create a free, complete, up-to-date, and reliable worldwide travel guide. So far we have 23,660 destination guides and other articles written and edited by Wikitravellers from around the globe. Check out the Help page to see how you can edit any page right now, or the Project page for more information about Wikitravel and getting involved. Africa Asia Oceania Europe Middle East North America South America Central America & Caribbean Other destinations Travel topics & PhrasebooksDestination of the monthFigueres is a small city in Catalonia, famous as the home of Salvador Dalí and the last major town before the Spanish/French border. It has a well preserved history and many interesting small museums, plus the very popular Dalí museum. (more...)Off the beaten pathSakhalin is Russia's largest island, just off its far eastern shores, with spectacular nature, Japanese heritage and the indigenous Nivkh peoples. It's also a little known alternative route to Japan after a trans-Siberian trip; the Russia to Japan via Sakhalin itinerary has the details. (more...)Discover For lovers of Hollywood and horticulture the Celebrity Tree Park in Kununurra offers the opportunity to enjoy both at once as it is a grove of trees planted by famous people. The Basilica in Cartago is said to be built on the grounds where a stone depicting the Virgin Mary mysteriously continued to return after being repeatedly taken away and even locked up. The only remaining wild white rhino population in the world is located in Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Travel alertsUPDATE: Thailand curfew extended to 31st May. FCO eases travel warning for Bangkok (26 May 2010 - 31 May 2010)Riots in Athens (4 May 2010 - Ongoing)General Strike in Nepal (1 May 2010)Eyjafjallajökull eruption closes airspace in Northern & Central Europe (16 April 2010)Violent Coup Ousts Kyrgyzstan President (7 April 2010)Sudan Begins First General Elections Since 1986 (5 April 2010)Current and upcoming eventsContinental-United merger OK'd (2 May 2010)World Expo Begins in Shanghai (1 May 2010 - 30 October 2010)Shroud of Turin on Display (10 April - 23 May 2010)Hands Off Our Tuna! Tokyo's Tsukiji Market Bans Tourists Again (7 April 2010)Senegal Inaugurates Massive, Controversial Statue (3 April 2010)Featured ArticlesNew "Star" ArticlesWalt Disney World/Downtown DisneySan FranciscoUbudNusa LembonganChicago/Southwest SideLondon/HampsteadWe're collaborating to improve Bangkok / ThailandBooks from Wikitravel PressWashington D.C., Hiroshima, San Francisco, moreMore on Wikitravel Extrablogs, forum, photosOther languagesMore than 1000 articles: Deutsch,Español,Français,Italiano,日本語,Nederlands,Português,Русский,Suomi,SvenskaBubbling under: العربيةCatalà,Esperanto, עברית,हिन्दी,Magyar, 한국어,Polski,Română,中文— Start a new version!
This travel guide also includes text from Wikipedia articles, all available at
View full credits