Holiday apartment in Linköping – Culture, Nature and Canals

Linköping offers a view stretching far beyond the present: the permanent exhibition “Vägen hit” at the Östergötlands Museum takes visitors back 11,000 years from the present day to the melting of the inland ice sheet.

Culture

In Gamla Linköping, around one hundred wooden houses stand alongside approximately 25 different museum environments and exhibitions. There are also small shops, cafés and restaurants, theatre stages and a dance floor. Another cultural highlight is Linköping Cathedral, considered Sweden’s best-preserved medieval cathedral. It is open all year round and offers opportunities for personal prayer, intercession and participation in numerous services and concerts. At Linköping Castle and Cathedral Museum, you can see unique cathedral treasures and the hidden 13th-century Bishop’s Tower.

Vreta Kloster Church is surrounded by monastery ruins. The former granary of the nuns has been renovated and is now part of the visitor centre in the church village. The church is also located at the entrance to the area of Berg’s locks and the Göta Canal. The Air Force Museum adds a modern museum of technology and cultural history: it explores the role of aviation in Sweden and in the Swedish Armed Forces and houses a unique collection of military aircraft, as well as other objects relating to the 100-year history of aviation.

At Fenomenmagasinet, children and adults can explore science and technology through play and experiments. The facility includes an animal section with corals, reptiles and small animals. The Canal Museum in Brokind displays tools, equipment, drawings, sketches and photographs from the construction of the Kinda Canal. In the Öna cultural reserve lies a forest farm on Lake Stensjön; the reserve comprises four small farm units near the lake.

Nature and Trails

Tinnerö is an oak landscape with pastureland, forests, wetlands rich in birds and high biodiversity. At the Smedstad dammar, Frökärret and Rosenkällasjön wetlands in Tinnerö, there are car parks, picnic tables, barbecue areas and opportunities for birdwatching. Several hiking trails run through the entire Tinnerö nature reserve.

Within Linköping Municipality, 115 kilometres of the Östgötaleden trail run through the area. The section of the trail in the municipality passes through plains, canals, oak landscapes, pastureland and hilly forests. Several stages of the Östgötaleden in Linköping are easily accessible for people with disabilities. Stjärnorpsravinen is an approximately 2-kilometre hiking trail through moderately challenging terrain that begins below the ruins of Stjärnorp. It is one of the places with the highest concentration of bats in Östergötland.

The Birgittaleden also connects notable points in the city: the hiking route can begin at Linköping Cathedral and covers 81 kilometres.

Water and Canals

The Kinda Canal has 15 manually operated locks and is 80 kilometres long. It extends from Linköping in the north to the towns of Horn and Hycklinge in the south. The Kinda Canal and its lake system offer good waters for paddling for much of the year. There are canoe pontoons at all the locks, where canoes can be carried around the locks.

The flight of locks at Berg’s locks consists of seven interconnected locks. Boats are raised or lowered by 18.8 metres between Roxen and Berg’s guest harbour. Day trips, evening trips and shorter cruises by passenger ship are offered on the Kinda Canal.

Getting Around Linköping

The Göta Canal Cycle Route passes through Linköping and can be started at Berg’s locks. Bicycles can be rented through Kaffeteriet at the tourist information office at Berg’s locks.

Linköping’s location on the main railway line between Stockholm and Malmö enables frequent train connections, including services operated by SJ, Mälartåg, Snälltåget and Krösatåg. Buses and commuter trains operated by Östgötatrafiken also run within Linköping.

You can access further local pages via Bestorp, Ljungsbro, Linghem, Vikingstad, Vårdnäs, Sturefors, Brokind, Linköping, Roxenbaden, Ulrika, Stjärnorp, Bergsslussar, Nykil, Berg and Kögenäs.

For the overarching travel overview: Östergötland.