I usually find that I can cover most of the top museums in a city with just one day. Stockholm was different. Even though I crammed a lot into one day (four museums to be exact), I still didn’t get to visit everything I wanted to in Stockholm. That’s what inspired this list, where I’ll cover the best museums in Stockholm, Sweden.
The Best Museums in Stockholm
This is not an exhaustive list of every museum in Stockholm. That list would go on for much longer and would require a lot of time in Stockholm to complete. Instead, I’m going to focus on eight of the most popular museums for tourists. Unless you are spending several days strictly exploring Stockholm, you won’t need much beyond this list.
City Hall
I’m not sure if City Hall counts as a museum, but I’m including it on this list anyway. Like with so many other cities in Scandinavia, City Hall is the most important building in the city. And it’s important not just for Stockholm, but for the entire world. The Nobel Prize Banquet is held in Stockholm’s City Hall every year (though the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo).
While some cities allow you to tour City Hall (or at least parts of it) on your own, Stockholm requires you to visit with a tour. While I found it a little annoying to have to visit with a tour (as I’d much prefer a self explore of any museum), I will say that the tour provided some great insights. Your tour guide will talk about the history and significance of what you’re seeing. Admittedly that’s their job, but it can be nice to listen to it versus reading it.
On your tour, you’ll see the Main Hall as well as the Blue Hall, Council Chambers, and the beautiful Golden Hall.
Tours last 45 minutes and cost 150 SEK. I visited during the off season so I had no problem walking up and purchasing my ticket ten minutes before the tour started, but if you’re visiting in summer or any other busy travel times, I’d consider booking your tour online in advance. Tickets are released one week prior.
To make the most efficient use of your time today, I recommend booking the earliest tour for the day, which will likely be at 10:00 am.
Confirm the opening hours and purchase your ticket at the Stockholm City Hall Website.
Vasa Museum (Vasamuseet)
The Vasa Museum is dedicated to telling the story of the Vasa warship and its one of the best museums in Stockholm. This 16th century warship was built to be one of the best ever seen, but it sank on its maiden voyage. That sentence doesn’t really do justice to just how soon it sank. The Vasa warship was less than 1000 meters into its maiden voyage when it sank to the bottom of the sea.
Inside the museum, you’ll find the actual Vasa warship, which was raised from its resting spot on the sea floor. Plus you’ll find other exhibits dedicated to telling the story of this ship, from its construction to its fateful end to its resurrection.
Entry into the Vasa Museum is 190 SEK. This includes the main exhibit, an audio guide (which can be accessed through your phone by scanning a QR code), a film, and a guided tour. It’s up to you which parts you try to take part in, but I highly recommend watching the film. It runs every 20 minutes, but every showing has a different language. That said, don’t freak out if you don’t see an English option — all showings have English subtitles (I ended up catching the French showing).
Learn more at the Vasa Museum Website.
National Museum (Nationalmuseet)
The National Museum has a focus on art and history and it’s here that you’ll find works by some of the best painters in Sweden, including Anders Zorn, Ernst Josephson, and Carl Larsson. Beyond the Swedish history, you’ll find a handful of other popular artists too including Remembrandt and some impressionist pieces as well.
For those who love art, this will likely be the best museum in Stockholm for you.
Entrance to the National Museum costs 160 SEK, although the ground floor is free.
Learn more at the National Museum Website.
Hallwyll Museum
The Hallwyll Museum was not on my original radar when I started planning a trip to Stockholm. It just never came up while I was researching, but then I got some advice from a friend of a friend who lives in Stockholm and they recommended this museum. I took a quick look, decided that it sounded interesting, and added it to my itinerary.
The Hallwyll Museum is a home from the 1900s that’s richly decorated in a rococo style. American travelers might compare the style to the Gilded Age in the United States. Inside the museum, you’ll tour a handful of the rooms (the living areas, dining areas, and a bedroom) and take in the amazing decor in this home. While it seems that more Swedes visit this house than English speaking tourists, all of the information (written on sheets and stored in each individual room) are in both Swedish and English.
Entrance to the Hallwyll Museum costs 120 SEK.
Learn more at the Hallwyll Museum Website.
Nobel Prize Museum
The Nobel Prize Museum is focused on telling stories from Nobel Prize Winners. You’ll learn a bit about the founder of the Nobel Prize, Alfred Nobel, and then will continue on to learn more about some of the winners. A film plays near the exhibit on Alfred Nobel that goes into more details about some of the recipients, giving a five minute overview to each recipient that they cover.
Beyond that, you’ll reach the main part of the museum which focuses on items donated by Nobel Prize recipients. The museum has asked recipients for items they deemed significant to their research. Items include scientific journals and utensils as well as bicycles, suitcases, beer bottles, and more. The included audio guide (accessible through your smartphone) helps to put the items into more context.
While this museum was interesting and worth a visit, there were other museums in Stockholm that I liked just a little bit better.
Entrance to the Nobel Prize Museum is 140 SEK.
Learn more at the Nobel Prize Museum Website.
ABBA: The Museum
ABBA: The Museum may have one of my favorite slogans for a museum ever. “Walk in, Dance Out” is the museum’s motto and with a slogan like that, it makes you feel like you’re going to have an excellent time. For some visitors, this will be the best museum in Stockholm.
Unsurprisingly, ABBA: The Museum tells the story of the famed music group. After winning the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with their hit “Waterloo” the group was catapulted into stardom. Now, at the museum, you’ll find rooms decorated like the rooms where the group did their composing, outfits, plenty of videos, and more.
Admittedly, I ran out of time and didn’t make it to ABBA: The Museum, but it’s a popular enough museum that I had to include it on this list. If you’re a big ABBA fan, or just music fan in general, you should really consider adding this to your list.
Entrance to the Abba Museum starts at 239 SEK.
Learn more at the ABBA: The Museum Website.
Photography Museum (Fotografiska)
For those with an interest in photography, consider a visit to the Photography Museum. With a focus on modern and international photography, you’ll see plenty of unique photography. And since the exhibits are constantly rotating and changing, the museum is kept fresh.
Entrance to the Photography Museum is start at 179 SEK.
Learn more at the Photography Museum Website.
Royal Palace (Kungliga Slott)
Does a Royal Palace count as a museum? That’s debatable, but I’m including it on this list anyway.
While you could head out of the city on a day trip to Drottningholm Slott, the current palace of the Swedish Royal Family, some may not want to day trip, so consider a visit to the Royal Palace if you’re interested.
The Royal Palace consists of a handful of distinct museums, which I’ve listed below.
Royal Apartments – These are the stately rooms that entertained and housed guests to the Palace.
Royal Treasury – Here is where you’ll see the Crown Jewels.
Museum of the Three Crowns – This area focuses on the palace before a fire in 1697 destroyed much of the palace. Learn what the area used to be.
Royal Chapel – This area is free, so if you don’t want to tour the entire palace, you consider popping into the chapel which is ornately decorated.
Gustav III’s Museum of Antiquities – Gustav III loved to travel and this part of the palace shows off the treasures from those travels from the 1700s.
Entrance to the Royal Palace start at 200 SEK.
Learn more at the official website.
Which Stockholm Museums Should You Visit?
At the end of the day, the choice is yours and you should pick the museums in Stockholm that interest you the most. That said, I can say that at a minimum, I’d recommend touring City Hall and the Vasa Museum. I think those are the best museums in Stockholm.
Beyond that, it’s your choice. I choice the Hallwyll Museum and the Nobel Prize Museum and have no regrets with my choices. For people who love art, add the National Museum to your itinerary. For those who love music and want something a little fun, add ABBA: The Museum to your itinerary.
How Long Do You Need in Stockholm
How long you need really depends on how much you want to see. At a minimum, you’ll want one full day to explore Stockholm. This will be a busy day, but I’ve written a guide for how to spend it. However, I think if you have two days, you’ll be able to cover more ground and explore at a more relaxed pace.
I spent three nights in Stockholm. My first day was a very short day since I didn’t get in until the late afternoon and then the weather prevented me from exploring much. That left me with two full days. I spent one of those days visiting museums across Stockholm and the other on a day trip. This worked out well for me, but I will admit that I had to leave without seeing all of the museums that interested me.
One extra day in Stockholm would have been awesome, but I instead chose to spend time in other destinations in Sweden instead.
Getting Around Stockholm
Admittedly, I walked almost everywhere in Stockholm and skipped the use of buses, trams, and metros. All three options exist and can be used, but I found Stockholm to have some of the most expensive public transportation I’ve seen. A single journey costs 42 SEK. Which is expensive, but for long distances can be worth it.
Normally, I find that three trips on public transportation will justify a 24 hour public transportation pass. Stockholm was different. A 24 hour pass is 175 SEK, which works out to 5 trips on public transportation.
This is not to deter you from choosing public transportation, but rather, a reminder to do some math before you buy your tickets. Scandinavia is expensive so it pays to look be savvy with your transportation purchases.
When to Visit Stockholm
Winters have the fewest visitors and therefore you may be able to save a little money. However, winters have the worst weather (expect it to be cold) and have limited daylight. For example, in Stockholm, the sun rises around 8:30 am and sets at about 3:30 pm in January.
Summers have long days with the sun not setting until 9:00 or 10:00 pm. You’ll also have the best weather. However, crowds are at their highest.
Typically, shoulder season can offer the best mix between daylight hours, weather, and tourist crowds. But I personally would recommend traveling very late spring to very early summer or very late summer into very early fall. Basically, try to catch that cut over between spring and summer or summer and fall.
I traveled in mid April and it was a bit chilly, especially if I wasn’t in direct sunlight. I did ok, but I definitely would have preferred it to be just a little bit warmer. Plus some sights still had limited hours. If I were to do this trip again, I’d aim for mid to late May.
Final Thoughts
I was amazed at how many interesting museums I was able to find in Stockholm. I also appreciated the variety, which helps to avoid boredom and burnout. Rather than all art museums or all history museums, you have your choice of several options throughout the city. No matter what your interest is, there’s sure to be a museum in Stockholm that piques your interest.
Continue Your Adventure
More in Sweden: Start your trip planning with my guide to one day in Stockholm. Take a day trip from Stockholm to places such like the city of Uppsala or the royal palace at Drottningholm Slott. Further south is Gothenburg, Sweden’s second largest city. Find even more in my Sweden Travel Guide.
Scandinavia: Start planning your trip to Scandinavia with this 10 Day Itinerary or this 7 Day Itinerary, featuring stops in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway. Check out my Scandinavia Budget for a realistic look at travel costs and budgeting tips. Plus, here’s my top tips for traveling Scandinavia.
Denmark: No visit to Denmark would be complete without spending at least one day in Copenhagen, where you can tour several churches and have some fun at Tivoli Gardens. Plus, learn more in my Denmark Travel Guide.
Norway: While so much of Norway’s beauty is found outside its cities, add a quick stop in its capital city of Oslo. Plus, check out my Norway Travel Guide.