Last Updated on June 23, 2025
This past May, for my birthday weekend, I decided to book us tickets to Stockholm, Sweden. Why Stockholm? First, I found cheap direct flights from Berlin(435 EUR for the 4 of us). Second, we had been wanting to discover more of Scandinavia for some time now, and Stockholm was top of the list. Stockholm is also an easy 1.5 hour flight from Berlin. And finally, while Stockholm is usually pricey for accommodation, I found us 4 nights in a 2-bedroom apartment for less than 200 EUR (total!) using the home swapping app Kindred. Read more for our Stockholm itinerary and how to spend 72 hours in Stockholm with kids.
Use Home Swapping Instead of a Hotel or Airbnb to Save Money
Scandinavia is known for being incredibly expensive, and for that reason, we always thought Stockholm was unapproachable for us. Even with cheap flights, if you spend 1000 EUR on an Airbnb for the weekend, it’s not worth it. That’s when I discovered Kindred. It’s a home swapping platform that makes travel really affordable. As soon as you sign up, you get 5 credits towards up to 5 nights at another members’ home. You don’t have to do a direct swap. For example, we stayed at a member’s home in Stockholm, but they did not stay at our place. When you host others you earn credits that you can then use to stay at any member’s home. All homes are worth the same number of credits, no matter how big or small they are. It was great for our family, because we stayed in a home of a young family with 2 kids of similar ages to ours. So there were high chairs, the house was baby proofed and there were lots of toys and books to entertain our 2 children. I would highly recommend giving Kindred a try! You can use my invite code to get 5 free credits.
Our 4-night Stockholm Itinerary
Day 1: Fly into Stockholm. We flew with Eurowings. One great thing about flying with Eurowings with kids is that they give you a 23kg checked bag for free! The fastest way to get into Stockholm city center from the airport is with Arlanda Express. It is cheaper if you buy round trip tickets (and also cheaper if you buy multiple tickets in one transaction). The price ended up being 84,60 EUR total (kids under 7 are free). We checked into our Kindred and then proceeded to get dinner nearby at Restaurang Göteborg, which was walking distance from our apartment. It was a great spot to watch the sunset over the canal, plus they had some really great seafood!
Day 2: Take the ferry to Gröna Lund amusement park and spend the day there. My advice for navigating the ferries is to download the SL app and use their navigation tools as well as buy your tickets there. If you buy tickets be sure to use the ‘Group’ tickets if you are 2 or more as they offer heavy discounts. Make sure to check the ferry before you board! Not all ferries are part of the SL network; therefore, if you buy an SL ticket, it will be wasted on other ferries and you’ll need to buy another ticket. Check your route carefully and double check the ferry providers!
Day 3: Visit the ABBA musuem. We had a blast! Our almost 5 year old loved it as well! It’s very interactive and if you love ABBA music (or at least the soundtrack to Mamma Mia) you are sure to have a great time. After the ABBA museum we took the ferry to Gamla Stan, the historic center. To be honest, I was very underwhelmed by Gamla Stan and found it overly touristic and not incredibly charming. I would say to limit your time there or skip it altogether.
Day 4: Take the ferry or bus to Vaxholm island. We ended up taking the bus, but this was because all the ferries operating were not part of the SL network and we had already bought the 72 hour SL tickets and didn’t want to spend additionally on another ferry provider. Again, plan your route and your tickets carefully. It was still a scenic drive by bus to the island but I am sure it would have been a more beautiful ferry ride. It took us a little over an hour to get to Vaxholm from Henriksdal, where we were staying. We had dinner at Florentine Italian Restaurant in Södermalm, which was fun and very family friendly.
Day 5: Take the bus back to Stockholm Central station and from there take the Arlanda express back to the airport. Have one last fika at the airport. Say goodbye to Stockholm!
How to Spend 72-hours in Stockholm with kids? Take them to Gröna Lund Amusement Park
When researching things to do in Stockholm with our 4 year old and 1 year old, an amusement park was one of the first things to make the list. Gröna Lund is a Tivoli amusement park: the same that we had visited in Copenhagen some 5 years ago. In addition to an amusement park, they also have concerts there. You can check out their website to see upcoming events, purchase tickets and plan your visit. We bought the ‘Ticket to Ride’ for all of us (our 1 year old was free), which includes admission and unlimited rides. If you don’t think you’ll go on that many rides, you can also buy individual rides once in the park. We were lucky in some way; the weather was really bad the day we went, so we never waited more than 10 minutes for any ride. One plus for visiting on a rainy day! Included in the Ticket to Ride pass are 2 fast passes, but we never even needed to use them. One side of the park is specifically geared towards younger children with a carousel, kids coaster, etc. Isabella, our then 4 year old, easily did all of the rides there. Some of the rides our 1 year old could do, but not many, to be honest. I think 3 or 4 years is the minimum age to really enjoy the rides. Keep in mind, also, that many rides require an adult companion, so one adult will also need to have a Ride pass.
A Note on Navigating the ferries while in Stockholm
Before purchasing public transport tickets, I consulted with ChatGPT and was advised to buy the SL 72 hour ticket. The SL network includes buses, trams, metro and ferries. You will most likely use all these methods of transport while in Stockholm. The one thing that got us a bit confused were the ferries. While traveling to Gröna Lund, for example, we took the Ressels Rederi ferry, which we later found out was not part of the SL network. The ferries that are part of the SL network going to Gröna Lund include the 80 and 82 ferries. If you don’t want to pay extra and already bought your SL ticket, pay careful attention to which ferry you are taking! The other mistake we made is that I purchased two 72 hour tickets on the SL app. I should have gone to the ‘Group’ ticket section and made my purchase there. It would have saved me 20 EUR! Oh well, listen learned.
How to Spend 72-hours in Stockholm with kids? Visit the ABBA Museum
On our second full day in Stockholm, we took the ferry once again, this time to the ABBA museum. The ABBA museum is located almost next door to the Gröna Lund amusement park. We purchased our tickets ahead of time on Get Your Guide. JC and I are familiar with ABBA’s music mainly from Mamma Mia! (the musical and movie). The museum is fantastic! We learned a lot about the history of the music group, but the museum was also very interactive. You could put on headphones and listen to interviews and performances. There were also karaoke booths to sing along to ABBA music. We also did an experience where you could design your own pop star avatar. The highlight, though, was getting on stage with digital projections of the members of ABBA and singing Mamma Mia!. I did it with Isabella and she had a blast holding the microphone and dancing along. After the museum visit Isabella would not stop singing Mamma Mia! and as soon as we got home we were searching for how to watch the movie (it’s available for purchase on Apple TV).
How to Spend 72-hours in Stockholm with kids? Visit Vaxholm Island
Stockholm is an archipelago (i.e. an extensive group of islands). For my birthday we finally had nice sunny weather, so we decided to make a trip to Vaxholm island. We had originally wanted to take the ferry there, but since none of the SL ferries seemed to be operating, we took the 670 bus instead. The entire trip took a little over one hour from Henriksdal, where we were staying. Vaxholm island is very quiet and picturesque. Since it was only mid-May when we went, not everything was open yet. For example, we had wanted to go to Vaxholms Hembygdsgårds Café but it wasn’t open yet for the season. So we went to Camilles Trädgård & Café instead. After the cafe, we walked around, saw the fortress from afar, and proceeded for ice cream at Glass på Hörnet, which was delicious! For lunch, we went to Bistro Magasinet which has a great terrace with view of the water. JC and I both had the seafood stew, which was quite good. We walked the main street of Vaxholm afterwards, played some rounds of corn hole in the square (they also had a huge chess board) and then proceeded to catch the bus home. Overall, it was a very relaxing outing and good to spend a few leisurely hours. But do not expect to find a ton of activities, museums, etc on Vaxholm.
Dining out in Stockholm with Kids
Overall, we had a very pleasant time dining out with kids in Stockholm. For my birthday dinner, we went to Florentine Italian Restaurant and it was very kid friendly. They had high chairs, gave Isabella crayons and paper to color with. Plus the food (pizza and pasta) is super appetizing for kids. For other nights after long days out at the amusement park, for example, we were happy to get takeout and bring back to the apartment. We ordered Indian takeaway twice from Indian Street Food & Co and it was delicious. If you are near one (it seems they have multiple restaurants), I would highly recommend it.
And what about Swedish Fika?
Coming to Stockholm, we were definitely curious about Swedish fika. We had heard lots about it and were very excited to experience it ourselves. Quite simply, fika is a moment during the day to take a break with friends or family. This usually happens with a cup of coffee and a very Swedish cinnamon bun. We were sure to fika (can you use it as a verb?) at least once per day. You can have fika all across the city, so no need to plan so much in advance, just take a moment out of your day, whether in the morning or afternoon, to take a break, have a sweet, and enjoy the moment.
And that’s how we spent 72 hours in Stockholm with kids! Do you have any recommendations of top spots to visit in Stockholm with kids? Or recommendations of where we should be sure to visit next in Europe with kids? Let us know in the comments below.
