Holiday apartment in Blekinge: Archipelago, nature and culture

Blekinge is Sweden’s southernmost archipelago region. The archipelago comprises around 2,875 islands; coastal towns, archipelago islands, beech forests and nature experiences are all close to one another. Between the coast, lakes and wooded landscapes, nature trails combine with maritime and cultural-historical features.

Landscape and nature

Almö Nature Reserve has more than ten kilometres of trails close to the sea. It also provides a habitat for the stag beetle, considered Europe’s largest insect. The Mörrumsåns övre dalgång Nature Reserve presents a different landscape: along an old railway embankment, visitors can experience the river, its low-lying banks and the wooded slopes strewn with boulders. The old railway embankment is now a popular hiking and cycling trail.

The Halen recreation area covers around 809 hectares around Blekinge’s largest lake and includes valuable deciduous forests as well as nature and recreational areas. There are hiking and horse-riding trails, picnic areas, campsites and service stations.

Trails and water

Blekingeleden is a 270-kilometre trail divided into 15 stages. It leads through forests, past lakes and nature reserves, as well as through villages and cultural landscapes. The approximately 12-kilometre Eriksbergsleden runs as a coastal hiking trail between Eriksberg Outdoor and Björnahemmet. Along the Mörrumsån, Laxaleden is a 30-kilometre hiking trail with natural and cultural-historical features.

Banvallen is a completely car-free, paved 28-kilometre cycling route that is particularly suitable for families. ARK56 connects parts of Blekinge’s coast and archipelago through routes for hiking, cycling, kayaking and boating. The ARK56 hubs often bring together parking, public transport, accommodation, restaurants, information and several activities in one place.

Tjärö offers hiking trails, rock pools and opportunities to explore the archipelago by kayak. The island has been a meeting place between people and the sea for around 3,000 years. Långören is also part of the living cultural heritage: visitors can stroll among the historic buildings and experience one of Blekinge’s best-preserved pilotage environments.

Culture and history

Karlskrona was founded in 1680 to meet the need for a naval base in southern Sweden. Karlskrona’s naval port is considered the best-preserved and most complete of the surviving European naval cities. On 3 December 1998, Karlskrona was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Galjonshallen at the Naval Museum displays thirteen large figureheads from ships of the Swedish Navy. After an introduction to the submarine Neptun, visitors can go aboard the submarine independently. The Nordic clinker boat traditions were added to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2021 and remain a living cultural heritage in Karlskrona.

The Blekinge Museum visitor site in Karlskrona includes the museum, a farmyard, a Baroque garden and the Grevagrundet playground. Saxemara båtvarv, Blekinge’s only still-active wooden boatyard, is located in the protected Saxemaraviken bay. Traditional boatbuilding has been part of the site’s history there since 1927; wooden boats are still built, restored and maintained using inherited craftsmanship.

Parks and museums

Ronneby Brunnspark is an award-winning historic park in Ronneby, Blekinge, which has been named Sweden’s most beautiful park several times. It includes 18th-century villas, tranquil ponds and flowering gardens. The historic Ronneby Brunnspark is also home to Naturum Blekinge, a visitor centre for nature experiences, leisure activities and environmental knowledge.

Laxens Hus in Mörrum has an exhibition about the life of the salmon and the history of fishing, including the history of recreational fishing on the Mörrumsån.

More places in Blekinge

For further exploration of the nearby towns and subregions, the following pages lead to Karlshamn, Karlskrona, Trensum, Ronneby, Sölvesborg and Olofström.

For the higher-level travel overview: Sweden.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

Dalarna County, Gävleborg.