Stockholm Archipelago Trail Voyage Tips and guide

The Stockholm Archipelago Trail is a network of hiking trails on the major islands of Stockholm archipelago, connected by ferries (see Public transport in Stockholm County).

The Stockholm Archipelago trail is a network of twenty trails throughout islands in Stockholm's archipelago (Swedish: Stockholms skärgård). The trails are mostly around 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) long, but some outliers can be as short as a single kilometre (0.6 mi) or as long as 34.1 kilometres (21.2 mi). The hiking trail network was opened in 2024 and has gained international recognition quickly, being recommended as one of National Geographic's world's 25 best destinations for 2025.

The trails serve to protect the archipelago's fragile ecosystem and promotes sustainable tourism. The trail network also highlights the archipelago's cultural heritage. Hikers can customise their trails of choice by using dedicated campsites and hotels on the islands and along the trails. Availability of restaurants however, vary based on the time of year. Ferry schedules also change throughout the year based on tourism-induced demand. Accessibility of the islands therefore becomes one of the more limiting factors of the trail.

The trail sections have a difficulty classification, where the easy ones follow hard-top or gravel roads in easy terrain, the intermediate ones have roots and rocks, and may have somewhat steeper parts, and the difficult ones may follow steep narrow paths with roots and slippery rocks – have shoes with a sole that does not slip, perhaps proper hiking boots. Some sections are accessible to strollers and terrain-capable wheel chairs.

Water is essential when travelling along the Stockholm Archipelago Trail. Depending on whether you are doing day trips or planning to travel for several days, you will need to ensure access to drinking water. Especially during the low season, there may be nothing open on the islands, so you must carry your own water or confirm in advance that there are water sources available.

Your transport may have sparse schedules. If using your own boat, you need to get charts and check whether there are any issues with the fairways you need to use, such as tricky navigation or risk of rough seas. For getting a boat or kayak locally, you probably should make a reservation in time.

Being located on islands, most of the trails are access by ferry, though some sections are accessible by bus as well. As ferry services fluctuate between the islands over the span of the year based on demand, influenced mostly by tourism, planning the hike might be difficult. If ferries are particularly difficult, you could consider to rent a boat instead. For boats less than 12 metres (39 ft) long and 4 metres (13 ft) wide, no skippers' license is required, unless the boat is fast (30 knots) – although some experience or a lot of common sense is needed.

Most ferry stops are accessible by car as well as by public transit. It's not uncommon however, to have a bus line from a larger town or city take over an hour to reach the ferry stop. Considering the limited service patterns, it could be worth considering renting a car during your stay in Sweden, to afford for more flexibility when accessing the islands. Mainland ferry stops tend to have a decent amount of parking spaces available, so using a private car would forego the need to rely on public transit.

Ferries are operated by Waxholmsbolaget. Transport information and operation patterns are well-documented in third-party services such as Google Maps, which includes all the ferry stations and their schedules. Waxholmsbolaget also provides its own route planner. A full ferry network map can be found here. Line 40, the North-South line (Swedish: Nord/Sydlinjen), is particularly useful when hiking multiple islands. The line operates between 23 June and 17 August 2025.

Many ferry stops are operated based on request. To request a ferry to stop and pick you up, use the semaphore at the bridge, putting it in an upright position. In some cases, semaphores may not be provided, and in other cases a ferry pick-up should be arranged by phone or through Waxholmsbolaget's app even if there is a semaphore. Whether this is the case is generally indicated in the timetable with a letter listed alongside the timetabled departure time. This should be done two hours (indicated with "b") or prior to 19:00 the day before departure (indicated with "C"), to arrange for a ferry to make a stop at the request pier.

When arriving at a pier, be sure to check the departure times for your return journey so as to not run into issues with it. Ferries might change piers or use a different boat than initially conveyed, and it is generally useful to know when your last chance to leave the island that day will be.

• 59.8506919.111961 Arholma is a medium-difficulty, 12.7 kilometres (7.9 mi) trail at the north-most extent of the archipelago. It is served by 59.85122619.107531 Arholma ferry stop or 59.83630919.0887752 Granö ferry stop (winter only).
• 59.77008919.0791492 Lidö is a medium-difficulty, 11.9 kilometres (7.4 mi) trail accessible via 59.77008919.0791493 Lidö ferry stop.
• 59.66628118.9188613 Furusund is an easy trail of 7.2 kilometres (4.5 mi) reached via 59.65805118.916624 Furusund ferry stop. Note that the trail here is not physically marked.
• 59.5874718.801964 Yxlan is a medium trail of 24 kilometres (15 mi), making it the second-longest on the archipelago. It uses 59.63218318.8638635 Yxlö ferry stop, and the route is not physically marked.
• 59.4518.6833335 Svartsö is the longest easy difficulty trail at 17.9 kilometres (11.1 mi). Access is via 59.43794618.6571126 Alsvik, 59.45885618.6767357 Norra Svartsö, 59.44392518.6806978 Skälvik, or 59.45547318.7398319 Söderboudd ferry stops.
• 59.4703218.76926 Ingmarsö is a medium-length, easy difficulty trail of 10.6 kilometres (6.6 mi). It is served by 59.47710718.74901510 Norra Ingmarsö and 59.46536918.75095711 Södra Ingmarsö, and connects to Finnhamn via the Båtluffarleden (1 km rowing).
• 59.46838118.7343027 Brottö is an easy trail and the shortest in the network at 1 kilometre (0.62 mi), reached through 59.46565818.72761812 Brottö ferry stop.
• 59.4785818.819198 Finnhamn is a 10.1 kilometres (6.3 mi) trail of medium difficulty, accessed via 59.48283718.82675213 Finnhamn ferry stop or by rowboat from Ingmarsö.
• 59.421918.882419 Möja is a 10.4 kilometres (6.5 mi) trail of easy difficulty. It has stops at 59.44233918.92083314 Långvik, 59.42374618.90968915 Ramsmora, 59.40611218.88876516 Berg, and 59.40418.87472417 Möjaström. A bus connects the stops between Möjaström and Långvik.
• 59.410118.563210 Grinda is the shortest medium-difficulty trail at just under 10 kilometres (6.2 mi), using 59.40744418.55315818 Grinda södra ferry stop.
• 59.2827818.9138711 Sandhamn is an easy trail of 8.1 kilometres (5.0 mi), reached via 59.28845318.91558119 Sandhamn ferry stop.
• 59.28333318.76666712 Runmarö is the third-longest medium difficulty trail at 18.5 kilometres (11.5 mi). Access is via ferry stops at 59.28019718.73146120 Styrsvik, 59.29446118.75645821 Gatan, and 59.29639918.77191722 Långvik.
• 59.1963118.6941813 Nämdö is a 13.1 kilometres (8.1 mi) trail of medium difficulty accessible via 59.18462318.70040323 Solvik, 59.18232818.69314724 Sand, 59.19746818.73983125 Östanvik, and 59.20875618.74005426 Nämdöböte.
• 59.0408718.5232514 Fjärdlång is a medium difficulty trail of 11.7 kilometres (7.3 mi) reached via 59.03553718.5105127 Fjärdlång ferry stop.
• 59.0720918.4219315 Ornö is the longest trail overall and the longest medium-difficulty route at 34.1 kilometres (21.2 mi). It is served by 59.08915518.4154128 Hasselmara, 59.05211118.43325129 Ornö kyrka, 59.11183618.48382530 Ornöboda, and 59.04479618.36520331 Lättinge. A bus connects Hasselmara and Ornö kyrka.
• 58.9623418.3316316 Utö is the longest difficult trail, coming in at 16.7 kilometres (10.4 mi). It uses 58.97041918.32508232 Utö Gruvbryggan and 58.95752218.29447833 Utö Spränga.
• 58.9161918.2119817 Ålö is a difficult trail with a route of 12.4 kilometres (7.7 mi), accessed via 58.91999718.19175834 Ålö ferry stop. It connects to Utö via a 10 km walk or bike ride.
• 58.927918.1782118 Rånö is the second-longest easy difficulty trail at 12 kilometres (7.5 mi), using 58.91929918.17802935 Rånö ferry stop.
• 58.8763918.1223819 Nåttarö is the shortest difficult trail at 10.3 kilometres (6.4 mi), served by 58.88176818.10981936 Nåttarö ferry stop.
• 58.73987517.86687520 Landsort is a medium-difficulty, medium-length trail of 13.8 kilometres (8.6 mi). Access is via 58.76883417.8583937 Landsort north, 58.74454217.86456938 Landsort west, and 58.74378217.86827439 Landsort east. Landing depends on weather; a bus is available if docking at the north stop.

Boats can be rented from several marinas in the archipelago, for example Dyvik near Åkersberga. Third-party offers can be found through Ship O´Hoi, Click&Boat and Skipperi. Unfortunately, these websites are largely Swedish-only as they cater to Swedes primarily. Costs of rentals tend to be priced around 8000 kr per week. Using your own boat in some cases also allows you to use starting points that differ from the recommended directions, and gives you more flexibility in combining different hiking trails around the archipelago as you're not dependent on the operating schedules of Waxholmsbolaget. Without a license, you may operate boats no more than 12 metres (39 ft) in length and 4 metres (13 ft) in width. Experience with operating a boat is recommended, however. Proper rental agencies may offer a brief crash course on operating the boat along with your rental.

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Map of Stockholm Archipelago Trail

All of the twenty sections of the trail are independent of one another. This means that you're free to choose which trails you want to hike, and in which order you wish to hike them.

To hike the entire trail, start at either Landsort or Arholma. The easiest time to do this is midsummer when the North-South Line ferries operate. This ferry service runs from the week before Midsummer until mid-August. To minimise impact on the islands, it is recommended to hike before Midsummer or after August 5.

Beware of ticks, cold weather and slippery rocks.