Regions in Brief

Gränna

Gränna boasts great scenery, but it also suffers from some tacky tourist overlay. Because so many Swedish honeymooners have chosen Gränna for their wedding nights, it is even sometimes referred to as a "baby factory." The sugary nature is in keeping with the town, though. This is the place that invented peppermint candy, after all; the red-and-white candy sticks, or Polkagris, were first made here in 1859 by widow Amalia Eriksson.

Gränna was founded in 1652 by Count Per Brahe, one of the first Swedish counts to be governor of Finland. Nowadays it is mainly a summer town with boutiques, arts and crafts stalls, hot-air ballooning sites, and a harbor area with camping, bathing, and restaurants. In addition, it has great pears: Per Brahe encouraged the planting of pear orchards in the environs, and pears from Gränna are ranked as the finest in Scandinavia today.

To reach this lakeside town, head north from Jönköping along E4. After a distance of 40km (25 miles), you reach Gränna, which lies at a point 280km (174 miles) southwest of Stockholm and 230km (143 miles) east of Gothenburg. The town of Tranås lies 40km (25 miles) from Gränna and is on the main rail route between Stockholm and Malmö. From Tranås, several buses make the final run to Gränna.

You should head first for the Gränna-Visingsö Turistbyrå, Brahegatan 48 (tel. 0390/410-10), open June to September daily 10am to 7pm. The rest of the year, hours are Monday to Friday 11am to 4pm. Once you tire of wandering the town's cobbled streets, lined with painted wooden houses, you can take a ferry across Gränna harbor to the island of Visingsö .

Seeing the Sights -- Grännaberger, or Gränna Mountain, can be reached either by car from the road between Gränna and Tranås or by climbing the steps that begin in a couple of places in town. At the top, you'll be rewarded with a fine view. If you're energetic, you can walk along a trail to Skogstornet (Forest Tower), from which you'll get a panoramic view of the area around Lake Vättern.

The Gränna area is a rich repository of Iron Age weapons, tools, menhirs (monoliths), and burial grounds, some 4,000 years old. Gränna was also the birthplace of the North Pole balloonist-explorer Salomon August Andrée, who made an ill-fated attempt in 1897 to cross the pole in the balloon Ornen (Eagle). The remains of the expedition were found in 1930 and can be seen in the Andrée Museum, Brahegatan 48 (tel. 0390/410-15). With funding by Alfred Nobel and King Oscar, the flight north toward the pole lasted only 3 days. The balloon was forced to make a landing on ice. After 6 weeks of trekking, Andrée and his men died, from either the cold or trichinosis, contracted when they ate raw meat from a polar bear they'd speared. Their frozen but well-preserved bodies and their equipment were discovered by a Norwegian sailing ship, and the artifacts of that trip are on display at this museum. Museigården, a part of the museum, houses exhibits illustrating the history of the area. The museum is open from mid-May to mid-September daily 10am to 7pm, from mid-September to mid-May daily 11am to 4pm. Admission is 50SEK ($6.90/£3.50) for adults and 20SEK ($2.75/£1.40) for children.

Nearby Visingsö Island

The heyday of the offshore island of Visingsö, reached by ferry from Gränna Harbor, was in the 12th and 13th centuries. A journey to the island is for us an evocative trip back to the past. It's a chance to glimpse Sweden as it was before it joined the modern world.

This has been an important site since humans first set foot here some 6,000 years ago; large Viking-era graves indicate how busy the area once was. On the southern part of the island are the remains of Sweden's oldest secular building, Nås Castle, built around 1150. According to the Icelandic sagas, it had a large treasury and was an important target in the fighting between the eastern and western parts of southern Sweden in the Middle Ages. The castle burned down in 1319.

The remains of another castle, Visingsborg, are by the harbor. This was the seat of the Brahe family. The most illustrious member of the clan was Per Brahe (1520-1590), Count of Visingsö. Brahe was one of Gustavus Vasa's Privy Councillors. The Brahe family also built the island's parish church in the 1680s, using the walls of the Stroja medieval church as the foundations. The tower and the door of the sacristy are from the old church; the door has old runic writing signifying that it was made in the 11th century. The church is baroque, which is unusual by Swedish standards. You can visit Count Brahe's reconstructed 17th-century garden here, too; there's no admission fee.

At the harbor near Visingsborg is Kumlaby Church, whose oldest parts date from the 12th century, though it also has some well-preserved 15th-century murals. Visitors can climb the tower to a small roof balcony, where they'll get a panoramic view of the island. The church is open only May to August daily from 10:30am to 5pm, charging an admission of 10SEK ($1.40/70p) adults, 5SEK (70¢/35p) children 5 to 16 years old.

A 20-minute ferry trip will take you from Gränna to the island of Visingsö, 6.5km (4 miles) across the water, for 50SEK ($6.90/£3.50) adults, 25SEK ($3.45/£1.75) children round-trip. Ferryboats leave every 20 minutes during the day in summer and eight times per day in winter. Boats depart from the central harbor at Gränna; for information, call tel. 0390/410-25. There's a tourist office (open during odd summer hours) near the point where the ferryboat docks.

The island can be traversed by car in 5 minutes, as it's long but very narrow. There are no road names or street numbers. In summer, some of the island residents meet arriving ferries with horse-drawn carriages for an excursion past the architectural highlights of the island. The cost is 80SEK ($11/£5.60) per adult, 45SEK ($6.20/£3.15) for children 6 to 16, for a 90-minute tour. There is no phone to call for information -- it's all very casual.

Vadstena

In this hometown of St. Birgitta (1303-73), patron saint of Sweden, the Middle Ages never died. Though the world has long passed by this sleepy pilgrimage center of the Middle Ages, that's precisely why we love it. An evocative town, filled with narrow streets and medieval buildings, Vadstena enjoys a lakeside setting on the eastern shore of Lake Vättern. It's the most nostalgic stop along the Göta Canal -- far less touristy than Gränna.

St. Birgitta's convent and church were once known far and wide, and pilgrims thronged to see the saint's relics. King Gustav Vasa was a regular visitor in the 16th century and built the famous Vadstena castle. In fact, there was a royal palace in Vadstena as early as the 13th century, when Birgitta was a lady-in-waiting before she went on to found the convent. Today there are still Sisters of St. Birgitta at Vadstena Convent. Vadstena is also known all over Sweden for its handmade lace -- to see samples of this delicate product, walk along Stora Gatan, the main street.

Vadstena lies 256km (159 miles) southwest of Stockholm, 260km (162 miles) northeast of Gothenburg, and 60km (37 miles) north of Gränna. From the last stopover at Gränna, continue north along E4 until you reach the junction with Route 50, at which point you veer off the main highway and continue along 50 until you reach Vadstena. Bus no. 840 runs daily from Jönköping, and bus no. 855 departs from the Central Station in Stockholm, but only on Friday and Sunday. If you're driving here from Stockholm, take E4 southwest; at the junction of Route 206, head northwest.

The tourist bureau, Vadstena Turistbyrå, is located in Vadstena Castle, S-592 80 Vadstena (tel. 0143/315-70; www.vadstena.se). It's open June daily 10am to 6pm; July daily 10am to 7pm; August 1 to August 13 daily 10am to 6pm; August 14 to August 31 daily 10am to 5pm; September 1 to September 12 Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm, and Saturday and Sunday 11am to 3pm; September 13 to April 30 Monday to Friday 11am to 2pm; and May daily 11am to 4pm.

Motala

Before reaching Stockholm, Göta Canal cruises go to Motala. And before reaching the canal, waters of the lake go to a flight of five locks, a dramatic sight that makes Motala one of the highlights of the Göta Canal cruises. Motala was designed by Baltzar von Platen, one of the waterway's creators, and he remains a popular local hero. His grave and statue lie side by side on the canal sidewalk.

On the eastern shore of Lake Vättern, a stone's throw from the Göta Canal, Motala is called the "bicycle town," as it contains 50km (31 miles) of designated bicycle paths, which many local residents use year-round. Every June sees the running of the world's largest bicycle exercise race around Lake Vättern. The town lies 210km (130 miles) southwest of Stockholm, 472km (293 miles) northeast of Helsingborg, and 263km (163 miles) northeast of Gothenburg.

From Vadstena, continue north along Route 8, with Lake Vättern on your right, and you'll come to Motala after a drive of 13km (8 miles). If you're not driving, you can take bus no. 16, which runs along the eastern side of Lake Vättern.

For information about Motala and the surrounding area, call the Motala Turistbyrå, Hamnen (tel. 0141/22-52-54; www.motala.se), open June to August Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am to 5pm. Off-season hours are Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

Seeing the Sights -- Motala is rather bland but makes an excellent center for exploring nearby attractions. It also boasts outdoorsy options, the best of which is cycling. Bikes can be rented at the tourist office kiosk down by the harbor from June to mid-August daily from 9am to noon and 4 to 8pm, for 100SEK ($14/£7) per day.

Another good bet is the boat trip along the canal to Borensberg, 20km (12 miles) east of Motala. In summer, these 5-hour boat trips leave Motala at 10:30am and cost 250SEK ($35/£18) round-trip, 180SEK ($25/£13) one-way.

Varamon Beach lies just 3km (1 3/4 miles) east of town. The beach offers a kilometer (2/3 mile) of golden sand, making it one of Scandinavia's largest inland bathing beaches. It has the warmest waters in Lake Vättern (which isn't saying much), and the sand is often thick with milk-white bodies soaking up the summer sun. It's also a venue for windsurfing. Locals like to call Varamon their "Riviera of Lake Vättern."

Motala has some museums, but all are of only minor interest. The best is the Motala Motor Museum (tel. 0141/588-88; www.motala-motormuseum.se), lying at the edge of the harbor. Cars of various eras are intriguingly exhibited here -- for example, parked outside an Esso Station. All the vintage cars displayed in the showrooms are kept in mint condition. Admission is 50SEK ($6.90/£3.50) adults, 40SEK ($5.50/£2.80) students, 30SEK ($4.15/£2.10) children 7 to 15. Hours are May to September daily 10am to 6pm; from October to April Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm, Saturday and Sunday 11am to 5pm.

Örebro

Örebro is a bit of a wallflower town when compared to more popular destinations in the area like Vadstena. But there are rewards here for those willing to seek them out. The town lies 60km (38 miles) north of Lake Vättern and is strategically located on the main route from southwest Sweden to the capital city of Stockholm. Sweden's sixth-most-populous city, it borders the shores of Lake Hjälmaren, the fourth-largest lake in the country.

Its castle is one of the most famous in Sweden, and it also lies at the River Svartån, which is studded with waterlilies in summer. To the immediate west of the center is Lake Tysslingen, which is best reached by bike. Many birders come here to view the lake in the spring when thousands upon thousands of whooper swans temporarily settle on the way to Finland from their winter retreats.

Motorists departing from our last stopover at Motala can continue north along Route 50 until they reach the junction with E3, an express highway that will carry them north into the center of Örebro.

You can also visit Örebro directly on a main east-west train from Stockholm (trip time: 2 hr.). For information about the town, contact Destination Örebro, Slottet (in the castle; tel. 019/21-21-21). It is open June to August Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am to 4pm. Off-season hours are Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 2pm.

Exploring the Area -- We suggest you take a bike ride out to Lake Tysslingen; you can rent a bike at Servicecentralen, Hamnplan (tel. 019/21-19-09), for 50SEK ($6.90/£3.50) per day, 250SEK ($35/£18) weekly. The tourist office can provide information about boat tours of Lake Hjälmaren on either M/S Linna or M/S Gustav Lagerfbjelke. A 3-hour boat cruise costs 250SEK ($35/£18) round-trip.

The town's major attraction is Örebro Slott (tel. 019/21-21-21; www.orebro.se/slottet), a castle that for more than 700 years has kept a watchful eye on everyone crossing the bridge over the River Svartån. (The castle lies on an island in the Svartån and dominates the town.) The oldest part of the castle, a defensive tower, was erected in the latter half of the 13th century. The tower was expanded in the 14th century to make an even larger stronghold. Over the years, the castle has been restored, and restored again. Today it has a grand, romantic exterior, although not much remains inside. There is no original furniture, and much of the interior is used for county offices. Nevertheless, tour guides valiantly struggle to re-create the romance and lore of the slott (castle). The beamed Rikssalen, or Parliament Hall, remodeled in 1927, has several portraits, notably that of Karl XI and his family; if you're wondering why their eyes are bulging, that's because of the arsenic used to whiten their faces. The newly organized Slottsmuseet functions as a county museum, displaying the saga of the county since the days of the Stone Age. From May to September only, guided tours in English are conducted daily at 2pm, costing 50SEK ($6.90/£3.50) per person.

Beautifully situated on the banks of the Svartån in the center of Örebro is the little, wooden, open-air village of Wadköping (tel. 019/21-62-20). The village consists of a collection of ancient buildings from Örebro and the surrounding countryside. Opened in 1965, it contains 18th-century timbered structures in traditional barn red, and lovely, bright 19th-century wooden houses that have all been moved to this site in the city park, Stadsparfken. Nowadays, Wadköping is a thriving community with a cafe, craftspeople at work, shops, some minor museums, exhibitions, a theater, and puppet shows. The entire area can be visited May to August Tuesday to Sunday from 11am to 5pm, September to April Tuesday to Sunday from 11am to 4pm. Admission is free.

The major church in town is St. Nicolai Kyrka, Stortorget (tel. 019/12-40-25), dating from 1260 and standing on the main square of Örebro. It was extensively restored in the 1860s, so little of its former medieval character remains. The church is a frequent venue for temporary art exhibitions. It was here in 1810 that Jean Baptiste Bernadotte, Napoleon's marshal, was elected successor to the Swedish throne.