Summer is up and cities across Europe have planted palm trees and trucked in tons of sand to urban riverfronts to create the feeling of a lazy day at the shore. Urban beaches are a hit and Momondo guides you to our favourites.
Stockholm
My fiance claims that Scandinavia has the highest per capita ownership of convertibles in world. While I find that extremely hard to believe, he explains that since Swedish summers aren’t that hot and humid, there are actually more opportunities here to drive around, well, topless. I’m still not convinced he’s correct about the cars, but he does have a point that Swedish summers are relatively cool and pleasant. So it may surprise you that even here in the Great North, we’ve got actual beaches throughout our fair city for taking advantage of our extremely long sunshine days.
Långholmen
The most popular and best-known of the inner-city beaches is the main beach on the island of Långholmen, just north of the former prison (now a hotel and conference center). It gets pretty crowded on warm weekends, with families setting up picnics on the grass and rowdy teens taking over the swimming platform. It’s the perfect place to relax and bask in the sun—and you can cool down easily enough at the nearby ice cream vendor.
Kungsholmen
Another great option is within view of the Långholmen beach—just across the water, at Rålambshovparken on the island of Kungsholmen. The kayak club is nearby, and historic steamboats still travel this way to get out into Lake Mälaren, so the waterway presents a constantly changing scenic tableau.
Stockholm City Hall
Photo: Maggie Osterberg
There are less conventional 'beaches' throughout the city, too, like the waterfront courtyard of Stockholm City Hall (Stadshuset) that can attract swimmers on hot days.
Thai Boat
Photo: Anna_t
There’s also the sand-covered pontoon 'beach' at Skanstull’s Thai Boat, where the tiki bar is only steps away from the reclining sun chairs. You can also relax with scrumptious drinks on couches at the more chic Mälarpaviljongen bar on Norrmälarstrand, which extends out into Riddarfjärden with fantastic views of Södermalm and Riddarholmen.
Kornhamnstorg
But perhaps the most spontaneous and enjoyable of Stockholm 'beaches' is the waterfront dock at Kornhamnstorg, just at Slussen. If the sun is shining, you’re guaranteed to find people sitting along the water, legs dangling off the dock, watching boats gather and wait for their turn to go through the lock.
Go Further:
Beach Life in New York
Beach Life in Madrid
Beach Life in Prague
Beach life in Berlin
Beach life in Paris
Beach Life in Amsterdam
Beachlife in London
Beach Life in Copenhagen