Stockholm vs Berlin, for a "city break"?

Around 17-19th December.

Will Christmas markets be open at both? Will "touristy" places be open? Any recommendations?

Stockholm!

Why?

I just don't really love Berlin the way everyone else seems to, I thought it was too big and inhuman, but Stockholm is really romantic and charming and old world and I remember these strips with cool little bars underneath bridges and I can only imagine what it would be like with the snow. Also, great sushi. Like I remember Berlin was freezing in april and you just had to walk so far all the time, though public transport is actually amazing. I'm just biased for whatever reason, I realise I don't "get" Berlin, but Stockholm is just so easy to get, its so relaxed and cool although it is expensive unlike Berlin which is dirt cheap.

for western europe, obv

Stockholm any time.

never been to berlin but stockholm is an amazing city that everyone should visit at least once

I should add at this point that I'm a bit of a scandophile

I was a tourist in Stockholm last December and Berlin last February and while the people in Stockholm were super rad and it was very pretty, the whole '4 hours of light a day' thing made it difficult to really do much. Also, there really isn't *that* much to do as a tourist there. Berlin, on the other hand, can compete with any city in Europe and is really cheap - but all the coolest places seem to be tucked away, so it's better if you know people.

if youre going to party stockholm can be great but it can also be kind of weird, if its just you and your chick looking to go to some museums, eat some good food, and spend time in a beautiful city its basically the perfect place

Thanks all.

what max said. i spent xmas in stockholm a few yrs ago and it was pretty quiet.

do not ever underestimate just how horrible the daily phenomenon of the german toilet is, btw

thread is convincing me to go to stockholm

Stockholm booked, so itinary ideas welcome ...

Berlin got unfairly shafted here.

Vasa museum is pretty cool in Stockholm. I stayed in the hotel that used to be a prison, which is fun and wasn't too expensive.

http://www.skansen.se/

there's a zoo there too
http://www.skansen.se/images/images/Lappuggla_AY385.jpg

Skansen zoo's pretty cool but obv. loads of animals sleep in the winter. I say obv., but I forgot and was disappointed not to see any bears last December. Those owls are pretty freaky. Didn't really notice the short days, and we had beautiful sunsets. You may or may not be interested in taking a train up to Gavle to see a massive straw goat http://merjuligavle.se/English/VISIT-GAVLE/THE-CHRISTMAS-GOAT/ which might get burnt down. If you do this don't plan on spending more than a couple of hours there as there's not much else to do in Gavle except look at a big goat, and that gets boring quite quickly. Sorry small-town Sweden.

Eat at the Gondolen restaurant as well for a great view over the old town.

Stockholm is nice all year round, but you haven't really experienced the city unless you've been here during summer. It's the best place in the world at that time. Really.

Berlin should be great right now... I bet there is some communist era Xmo market taking place in Alexanderplatz. Awesome.

The Modern Art Museum in Stockholm is superb and well worth a few hours. It's a wonderful city full of the best looking people in the world.

I should add at this point that I'm a bit of a scandophile

Sounds like someone addicted to gossip columns!

Berlin ftw however, fantastic city!

I haven't been to Stockholm, have recently been to Malmo and Copenhagen. Nice and interesting architecture. How much bigger is Stockholm than either of those?

wiki says copenhagen/malmo -- 3.7 million, stockholm metro -- 2 million

you can hostel on a number of boats in stockholm, tho not sure about the winter

where hostel = stay

you mean Copenhagen + Malmo TOGETHER are 3.7 m?

Malmo didn't feel terribly big to me. Copenhagen maybe felt bigger.

copenhagen is def bigger. malmo seemed really small when i was there, but i only stayed an afternoon, didn't see much.

How much bigger is Stockholm than either of those?

Stockholm is bigger, whether you count the metropolitian areas of the cities or just within the city limits. Malmö is just a tiny city in comparison to both.

The Modern Art Museum is a great tip, also don't hesitate to do the touristy thing of visiting the Old Town between the City and Södermalm, it's really worth it, you'll also find the Royal Palace there but it's not really that impressive. The Nationalmuseum is also worth a visit. You mentioned Christmas Markets, check out Skansen and Stortorget in the Old Town for those.

Anything else you're interested in?

< Anything else you're interested in? >

boat trips? the coast? cakes? coffee?

keep bumping this thread to remind me to save up enough $$$ before next summer to go to stockholm

i dont remember the names of anything i went to while i was there but i assure you you can find the following things in stockholm if you check in most city guides:

- an excellent, cheap-for-stockholm italian-style pizza place
- a good chinese restaurant
- a quite good, also fairly cheap indian joint

btw i might move to gothenburg next fall so any ilxors planning on going to sweden should hold off till then so we can kick it scando style

Gothenburg is lovely, good choice. One of my friends moved there last year, and fell in love with it straight away. I went for a weekend, and would go back any time I could.

only real drawback to Stockholm is the cost of beer

(see also Gothenburg, though happy hour mid-afternoon beers aren't too bank-breaking)

boat trips?

http://www.stromma.se/en/Sightseeing/Stockholm/Boat-tours/Stockholm-winter-tour/

cakes?

NK on Hamngatan(street namne)

coffee?

Dunno, I don't do cafés or drink coffe.

name*

stockholm was lovely, by the way. thanks for the pointers.

I am going to Stockholm by train next year - London - Brussels - Cologne - sleeper train via Denmark - Stockholm - should take two days!

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! No! it’s a… Hostel?!

http://www.inhabitat.com/2009/02/11/reclaimed-jumbo-jet-hotel-in-stockholm/

http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-content/uploads/jumbohostel1.jpg

http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-content/uploads/jumbohostel2.jpg

Is it like the mile high club for vertigo sufferers?

I like Berlin more, but in Stockholm is more manageable for a shorter vacation. In Berlin you have to look harder to find all the cool stuff, whereas in Stockholm the cool places seemed easier to find. Don't know if I'd enjoyed Berlin quite as much if I hadn't had local friends to show me around.

Tonight a new night train is entering service: the SJ EuroNight between Stockholm 🇸🇪 and Hamburg 🇩🇪. For months hundreds of people have been working to get it going, and I was among them. The inaugural train has left Stockholm, and I'm going on the one leaving Hamburg! pic.twitter.com/DBIeDVe6gv

— rail guide europe (@CapotrenoEd) September 1, 2022

I really wanted to book us onto this, but couldn't spare the extra time for our upcoming weekender (I'm happy to rough it in a seat - I've done 14 hours overnight Amtrak FL->DC with kids, I'm up for anything on rails - my partner less so). I've done Cologne-Copenhagen sleeper in the past too, and this more or less restores that service. But next year for sure.

Had my first trip to Stockholm, want to go from there to Berlin if possible next year.

Has anyone taken the Chunnel, Euro Tunnel, etc.? If you have trouble going through a car wash, would you have difficulty making it through the Chunnel? Are Europasses still popular after the pandemic?