Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Plane -- Nine flights on SAS connect Stockholm and Karlstad daily, the "jump" taking 45 minutes. The Karlstad Flyggplas (Airport) lies 10km (6 1/4 miles) NW from the town center. Airport buses haul passengers from the airport to the town center, but it's best to call tel. 020/32-32-01 after the touchdown of your plane to summon one. The Flygbuss costs 60SEK ($8.30/£4) per person each way. Taxis (there's a taxi phone on-site) also have to be summoned, and they charge 200SEK ($28/£14) each way. For flight information, call tel. 054/455-50-10.

By Train -- Six trains per day run between Gothenburg and Karlstad, 10 trains per day arrive from Stockholm, and 3 trains per day come from Oslo. Each takes about 3 hours. For rail information, call tel. 711/75-75-75.

By Bus -- Three buses per day arrive from Gothenburg, taking 4 hours; four arrive weekly from Stockholm, taking 4 1/2 hours; and two arrive weekly from Oslo, taking 4 1/2 hours. Check locally for bus schedules, which change from month to month. Note that both the train and the bus stations lie in the center of town. For general information, call tel. 0200/21-82-18 (within Sweden).

By Car -- From Stockholm, take E18 west all the way, and from Gothenburg head north along the E6 expressway, turning northeast at the junction of Route 45, which runs all the way to Karlstad.

Visitor Information

Karlstad and most of the region around it are represented by the Värmlands Tourist Office, in the city's conference center, Västra Torggatan 26 (tel. 054/29-84-00; www.varmland.org). It's open Monday to Thursday 9am to 6pm, Friday 9am to 5pm, and Saturday 11am to 3pm.