See Norrland with TravelSweden.com - Hiking & Wilderness

Tour the beautiful Swedish city of Norrland with TravelSweden.com. On our travelling site you'll find free tourist information cover this Nordic city's top tourist attractions and can book flights, cars and hotels for the best prices.

Top Ten Things to Do in Norrland

1. Ice Hotel
2. Visiting the magnificent National Parks (for example: Sarek)
3. Hiking, rafting, picking berries, camping and engaging in any sort of outdoor activity
4. Watching Aurora Borealis
5. Admiring the breathtaking scenery of the High Coast
6. Cross Country skiing between the islands in the High Coast
7. Boating and visiting the islands in the High Coast
8. Skiing
9. Dog-sledding, riding snow-mobile, and driving a car on the ice of Botnia's Bay
10. Going to a "fermented herring" party

Norrland is the thinly populated, northern part of Sweden (about two-thirds of the total area), with nine provinces. The area has an abundance of wilderness, forests, lakes, big rivers, enormous marshes and high mountains along the border with Norway. The main cities are: Gavle, Sundsvall, Umea and Lulea.

Only two hours north of Stockholm, Gavle is the main city of Gastrickland and is the doorway to the North. The town is characterized by shipping and commerce. Gävle is a central part of the province of Gastrikland and is the seat of the County Council and the County Administration Board.

Up north at Halsingland, you are welcome to admire the striking blue mountains and the large amount of lakes. The town of Soderhamn has heaps of interesting museums and buildings. You can take a bike to the charming fishing village of Skarska, with its picturesque red-painted buildings. Make sure to not miss the Halsingehambo dance festival in Jarvso.

Continue north to Sundsvall, the chief town of the north. Sundsvall is the location of many summer carnivals, festivals and outdoor concerts. The Höga Kusten, or simply the High Coast is making a striking area of lakes, fjords and magnificent seashore which is on the shortlist to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Don't miss the Ornskoldsviks Museum at Ornsköldsvik, which is presenting a fascinating exhibition on local history and the history of the Sami (Laplanders).

You can also have a look at some rock figures, going back to the Iron Age. Stop by at Vindeln and engage in rafting, riding and canoeing. Pitea in Norbotten is the major beach resort in northern Sweden and attracts hundreds of visitors. Do not miss the UNESCO World Heritage listed Gammelstad, formerly the medieval center of northern Sweden.

Head inland and enter into totally different scenery of thick forest, mountains, rivers, waterfalls and even the odd nomadic reindeer. Continue north into Lapland - the land of the Midnight Sun and the Sami.

You can also go mid-summer skiing at Riksgransen. If you are visiting there in winter hire a snow scooter, try dog sledding, or just go skiing. Take a trip to Arvidsjaur, an old Sami market town and the Lappstaden museum village. Yet again, if you're there in wintertime, do not miss the opportunity of staying a least a night in the unbelievable Ice Hotel at Jukkasjarvi.