Lysegårdens Waterfall

During vacation and summer holidays it’s nice to have something to do. So the family went on a small trip to see a waterfall north of Kungälv, just roughly a half hours drive from Gothenburg. It was a little bit tricky to find it since you had to park at the local golf club and then walk about 1 kilometer over the golf course to get there.

The waterfall is almost 40 meters high, so quite impressive. Afterwards we took a hike in the local national park Svartedalen around the small forest lake Korsvattnet.

Stjernsund castle

A stop during a roadtrip in Västra and Östra Götalands län. Not so sure about the history of the place, but a nice stroll for an hour or two, plus the café made for a nice refreshment too.

Varnhem abbey

Yet another place of historic significance. We’ve passed by this place many times on our way to/from Karlsborg but never stopped to visit before. Doing so with a small child who rather do other tings than looking at an old church/ruin could have been easier, but we managed.

Övralid

Övralid was the home of one of Swedens great poets, Verner von Heidenstam (1859-1940). A wonderful location to visit, sadly not very well promoted. We stopped by here during a road trip in Västra/Östra Götaland 2019.

Karlsborg (again)

This time around we spent more time in town, walking around looking at the harbor for example. We also visited the famous café, Nymans Bed & Breakfastwhere they exhibit art that you can buy. We also went to the beach and we also tried our luck at gold panning in Granvik.

Gunnebo castle

Gunnebo castle is just a stones throw away from central Gothenburg. We’ve never been inside the castle but me and Sofia has visited a couple of times. It’s always a nice place for a stroll and the café serves refreshments if needed. There’s also a small store that sells handcrafted stuff and some candy/bread that’s been produced at the castle.

Visingsö

We visited Visingsö one week after the season had ended, which turned out to be a bad decision. More or less everything was closed except for what would categorize as “open air”. Some notable places we visited was Näs borgruin, Visingsborgs slottsruin, Sverkerseken (where king Karl Sverkersson  was slain in 1167) and Brahekyrkan. We also made a stop in Gränna and visited one of the peppermint candy rock factories.

Ryaskogen

This small forest crammed in between the bustling city life of Gothenburg and the heavy industrialized port of Gothenburg is a hidden treasure. The forest is almost magical, specially in the spring. I’ve been hare many times, but only a few times with a camera and this time I managed to catch some of the magic on pictures.

Karlsborg

Over the years I’ve come to visit this small Swedish town couple of times per year. But never really explored it much. One day we decided to go to the garrison/fortress and check it out. We took a guided tour and the we could free roam for a while before we decided to visit the café.

Varberg

We went to Varberg to visit Varbers Kurort, one of two famous spa’s in the town. On our way home we also visited the old fortress that was built in 1287-1300 by Count Jacob Nielsen to protect against the Danish. It has changed hands multiple times but has remained as Swedish since the Treaty of Brömsebro in 1645. It was in use up until 1931 when it served as a prison.

Anten – Gräfsnäs (open air rail museum)

This open air railway museum I’ve visited as a child, but did not remember much from it. So we went there again. It’s a short train ride between Anten and Gräfsnäs and while you wait for the train to turn around you can take a walk in the area and visit the castle ruin, which according to legend is cursed, and that’s why it has burned down.

Läckö Castle

The drive north to Läckö castle from central Lidköping took about 30 minutes. We took the guided tour, walked around the surroundings, saw the viking ship Sigrid Storråda and almost stepped on a viper.

Tjolöholms castle

If I’m ever getting married it’s going to be in a castle! On Sofia’s birthday I took her to Tjolöholm slott to scout out the possibility to have our wedding there. Somehow she missed the signs on the way to the castle and she was very surprised when she finally realized where we were. The castle area is very nice for walks, and for weddings. <3

Pre 2000 / Other

My travel experience before 2000 (or other almost not notable event) I would say consist of travelling with my family (father, mother and brothers) and that would be the following destinations, in alphabetical order:

Austria On our way to Italy. Did stop for a while in Innsbruck I think.

Belgium Went there on family vacation, went to places like Gent and the castle Gravensteen, Brussels and caverns around Namur.

Denmark I think Legoland and Skagen was the main attractions in Denmark as a child. Also been a transit country on the way to the continent. A couple of trips with Stena Line from Gothenburg to Fredrikshavn also.

Finland A cruise from Stockholm to Helsinki, I think I spent about 2-3 hours in Helsinki before the cruise vessel departed again. At least I can say that I’ve been there.

France Paris of course, with the Louvre, Notre Dame, Sacré-Cœur, the Eiffel Tower and Champs Elysés. Also went to a place called Berck and then also Bretagne. Also more to the east, area around Strasbourg.

Germany as a transit country. Although, I remember spending some time at a place called Heide Park (amusement park).

Italy I don’t remember the particular order, but Lake Garda, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Moneglia and Albenga being places we went to and stayed at.

Monaco A day trip from the campsite in Italy. Did see the casino and the marina.

Netherlands Amsterdam is what I can remember. Might have visited the place where Anne Frank hid. Probably went on a boat in the channels.

Norway At some point, does not remember much except for fjords and stave churches.

Åland A cruise from Stockholm to Åland. Hardly counts since I never went of the ship. I honestly don’t remember when but I think 2002.

Sweden Since it’s my country of residence and place of birth, we’ve been doing a fair bit of vacationing around in Sweden too. (Logs from Sweden are separated from the Europe tags.)