« Sweden
 | Hotels | | Map | | Stockholm; good to know | |
 | | |  |
Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, and consequently the site of its Government and Parliament as well as the residence of the Swedish head of state, King Carl XVI Gustaf. It is also the largest city in the Nordic countries. Stockholm has been Sweden's political ... more »
Save time & money with Hotels
View all hotels in Stockholm...
Hotels 
Airports Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, and consequently the site of its Government and Parliament as well as the residence of the Swedish head of state, King Carl XVI Gustaf. It is also the largest city in the Nordic countries.
Stockholm has been Sweden's political and economic center since the 13th century and is currently the largest city, with a population of 776,000 within the borders of the Stockholm Municipality. The populations of the Stockholm urban area and Metropolitan Stockholm are roughly 1.2 and 1.7 million, respectively.
Stockholm is located on Sweden's east coast, where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea. The central parts of the city consists of fourteen islands, all part of the archipelago. The geographical city centre is virtually situated on the water, in the bay Riddarfjärden.
The vast majority of Stockholmians work in the service industry, which accounts for roughly 85% of the jobs in Stockholm. The almost total absence of heavy industry makes Stockholm one of the world's cleanest metropols.
The last decade has seen a significant number of jobs created in high technology companies. Large employers include IBM, Ericsson and Electrolux. Arguably one of the world's leading IT-centres is located in Kista, in northern Stockholm.
The city´s oldest part is “Gamla Stan” (Old Town), on the small islands of the city´s early development. It still mainly featuring its original medieval street net. The oldest building in Stockholm is the Riddarholmskyrkan from the late 13th century. After the castle fire in 1697 when the medieval castle was destroyed, today´s Stockholm Palace was erected in baroque style. Storkyrkan Cathedral, the episcopal seat of the Bishop of Stockholm stands next to the castle. It was founded in the 13th century but is featuring baroque exteriors from the 18th century.
Already in the 15th century, the city expanded outside of its original borders. Some pre-industrial, small-scale buildings from this era can still be found in Södermalm. During the 19th century and the industrialization, the city rapidly grew with planning and architecture inspired by the large cities of the continent such as Berlin and Vienna. Notable works of this includes public buildings as the Royal Swedish Opera and private developments such as the luxury housing developments on Strandvägen.
In the 20th century, the nationalistic thrives spurred a new architectural style, inspired by medieval as well as renaissance ancestry and current influences of Jugend / Art Noveau style. The maybe most well-known landmark of Stockholm, the Stockholm City Hall, was erected 1911-1923 by architect Ragnar Östberg. Other notable architectural works of those times are the Stockholm Public Library and the Forest Cemetery, Skogskyrkogården
Public Transport
Stockholm has an extensive public transport system. It consists of the Stockholm Metro (Tunnelbanan); three regional/suburban rail systems: commuter rail (pendeltåg), Roslagsbanan, and Saltsjöbanan; three light rail systems: Nockebybanan, Lidingöbanan, and Tvärbanan; and a large amount of bus lines.
All the land-based public transport in Stockholm County, except the airport buses/trains, is organised by Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (SL), with the operation and maintenance of the public transport services delegated to several contractors, such as Connex who operate the metro and regional/suburban railways except for the commuter rail. The archipelago boat traffic is handled by Waxholmsbolaget.
The SL has a common ticket system in the entire Stockholm County, which allows for easy travel between different modes of transport. The tickets are of two main types, single ticket and travel cards, both allowing for unlimited travel with SL in the entire Stockholm County for the duration of the ticket validity. A single ticket costs 20 SEK (2.17 EUR; 2.75 USD) and is valid for one hour. The duration of the travel card validity depends on the exact type, they are available from 24 hours up to a year. A 30-day card costs 600 SEK (65 EUR; 82 USD). Tickets of both types are available with reduced price for persons under 20 and over 65 years old.
Roads
Stockholm is at the junction of the European routes E4, E18 and E20.
Stockholm city has had a trial period with electronic toll collection. This trial was between January 3rd 2006 and July 31st 2006
Remaining toll and penalty fees due to overdue payments can be paid at "Pressbyrån" and 7-Eleven in the whole country until December 31st 2006. It is also possible to pay at a bank, internet bank or with card on the net.
During the trial period the following was valid: The City Centre is within the Stockholm congestion tax zone. All the entrances and exists of this area have unmanned electronic toll collection stations operating with cameras reading the registration plates, alternatively a transponder. All vehicles entering or exiting the congestion tax affected area, with a few exceptions, are to pay up to 20 SEK (2.17 EUR; 2.80 USD) per passage, depending on the time of the day. The maximum tax amount per vehicle per day is 60 SEK (6.50 EUR; 8.40 USD).
A general election will be held September 17th 2006 where the citizens will vote for or against the electronic toll collection.
Ferries
Stockholm has regular ferry lines to Helsinki in Finland (commonly called "Finlandsfärjan"); Saint Petersburg, Russia; Tallinn, Estonia; Riga, Latvia; and to the Åland islands.
The large Stockholm archipelago is served by the Waxholmsbolaget archipelago boats.
Airports
* International and Domestic: o Stockholm-Arlanda Airport o Stockholm-Bromma Airport * Only international o Stockholm-Skavsta Airport o Stockholm-Västerås Airport
Flygbussarna bus lines run to and from central Stockholm from all the airports and a train-to-the-plane service — the Arlanda Express — runs between Arlanda Airport and Stockholm.
Your vacation. A time to lose yourself. And sometimes your luggage, too. Need Travel Insurance? Why not try Travel Guard (external source)
The earliest mention of Stockholm in writing dates from 1252, when it was an important post in the iron trade from the mines in Bergslagen. The first part of the name (stock) means log, while the second (holm) means islet, and refers to the islet Stadsholmen in central Stockholm which for centuries consistituted the main part of Stockholm.
The city is said to have been founded by Birger Jarl in order to protect Sweden from invasion from the sea by foreign navies, and to stop pillage of the cities such as Sigtuna on Lake Mälaren.
The strategic and economic importance of the city made Stockholm an important factor in relations between the Danish Kings of the Kalmar Union and the national independence movement in the 15th century. The Danish King Christian II was able to enter the city in 1520. On November 8, 1520, massive executions of opposition figures, called the Stockholm Bloodbath, took place. This massacre set off further uprisings, which eventually led to the break-up of the Kalmar Union.
With the accession of Gustav Vasa in 1523 and the founding of a royal power, the population of Stockholm began to grow, reaching ten thousand by 1600.
The 17th century saw Sweden rise into a major European power, which was reflected in the development of the city. From 1610 to 1680 the population multiplied sixfold. In 1634 Stockholm became the official capital of the Swedish empire. Trading rules were also created that gave Stockholm an essential monopoly over trade between foreign merchants and other Swedish and Scandinavian territories.
Between 1713–1714, Stockholm suffered from the Black Death. After the end of the Great Northern War and the destruction of several areas of the city in 1721, the city stagnated. Population growth halted, and economic growth slowed. However, Stockholm maintained its role as the political centre of Sweden and continued to develop culturally under Gustav III. The royal opera is a good architectural expression of this era.
By the second half of the 19th century, Stockholm had regained its leading economic role. New industries emerged, and Stockholm transformed into an important trade and service centre, as well as a key gateway point within Sweden. The population also grew radically during this time, mainly through immigration. At the end of the century, less than 40% of the residents were Stockholm-born. Settlement began to expand outside of the city limits. Stockholm also became a cultural and educational center. In the 19th century, a number of scientific institutes opened in Stockholm, for example the Karolinska Institute.
In the late 20th century, Stockholm became a modern, technologically-advanced and ethnically diverse city. Many historical buildings were torn down, the whole historical district Klara was demolished, and replaced with modern architecture. Throughout the century, many industries shifted away from work-intensive activities into more high-technology and service-industry knowledge-based areas.
The city continued to expand and new districts were created, for example Rinkeby, Tensta, and Sollentuna, some with high proportions of immigrants.
Apart from being a large city with an active cultural life, Stockholm, being the capital, houses many national culture institutions. Most notable, there are two UNESCO World Heritage sites in the Stockholm area: the Royal Palace Drottningholm (within Ekerö Municipality) and the Forest Cemetery Skogskyrkogården.
The oldest part of Stockholm is the Stockholm Old Town, Gamla stan, with its main part on the islet Stadsholmen. It features the medieval street system, where two main streets (Österlånggatan and Västerlånggatan) cross it, and several small alleys diverging towards the water. Some notable buildings of the Gamla Stan are the large German Church (Tyska kyrkan), several mansions and palaces: the Riddarhuset (the House of Nobles), the Bonde Palace, the Tessin Palace and the Oxenstierna Palace.
During 1998 Stockholm was selected European City of Culture.
Due to the city's high northern latitude, the climate of Stockholm is extremely varied with distinct seasons. At the Winter Solstice in late December, the day lasts about six hours, whereas at the Summer solstice in late June, Stockholm's daylight period extends beyond eighteen hours. As a result, Stockholm is exposed to cold winters and warm, mild summers. The highest temperature ever recorded in Stockholm was +38°C; the lowest was -32°C. While unevenly distrubuted during the year, the number of annual sun hours usually amounts to over 1800.
Temperature - Yearly Average
Lonely Planet Maps (external source)
Lonely Planet Language Guides (external source)
Distances are calculated as the crow flies, and are provided as an aid in planning only.
* This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Source wikipedia.
