Best order to see Stockholm sights

We are on the Regal Princess and will be in Stockholm on Sept 9. Our wish list includes Vasa Museum, Abba Museum, and Gamla Stan for lunch and a nice walk-around. I have made reservations at the Ice Bar for 12:45. Where do you suggest we start? I was thinking of rushing to the Vasa with everyone else and then doing Abba, Ice Bar and Gamla Stan, but my daughter suggested we do Vasa in the afternoon when the crowds are less. Does it really make a difference? We are planning on taking taxis. Any advice would be greatly appreciated -- I'm not an experienced port planner so this is kinda stressful.

Imo the point of doing vasa first is that there isn't really anything open before 10am and also that you don't have to waste time by going back and forth.

Vasa and Abba should be done together for best time efficiency.

in your case you won't be able to do both Vasa and Abba between 10.00 and 12.15 however it will also be very tight to do it after the Icebar.

Would it be possible to reschedule the icebar to the end of your day, i. e. 15.45 or something like that? Because then you could do Vasa+Abba, Old Town and then the icebar the last thing you do.

If you go by taxi from Nynäshamn to Vasa, you should be able to get there before most of the others from your ship. The only other ship in port is the smaller Empress so I don't think it will be that many tourist in Stockholm that day.

First of all, thank you for all the wonderful information. I think that's a great suggestion and I will change my Icebar reservation to 15.45. Do you think that's enough time for lunch/Gamla Stan after the two museums as well as enough time to get back to the ship by 7?

You should set the reservation to 20-30 minutes before you plan to get back to the ship. If the ship leave at 19.00 you probably need to leave by 16.50-17.00 at the latest probably.

It will take about 45 minutes to drive if there is no traffic but since the 9th is weekday and you will be leaving during rush hour I would assume that it will take longer.

Also please bear in mind the regal may dock directly in Stockholm depending upon weather and ship traffic. This will probably shorten your time in port, but make transportation much easier.

Also please bear in mind the regal may dock directly in Stockholm depending upon weather and ship traffic. This will probably shorten your time in port, but make transportation much easier.

Well I definitely thought that they were supposed to sail into Stockholm two days ago but that did not happen so I wouldn't count on that they will do it at the next times (this year) either...

We are on the Regal Princess and will be in Stockholm on Sept 9. Our wish list includes Vasa Museum, Abba Museum, and Gamla Stan for lunch and a nice walk-around. I have made reservations at the Ice Bar for 12:45. Where do you suggest we start? I was thinking of rushing to the Vasa with everyone else and then doing Abba, Ice Bar and Gamla Stan, but my daughter suggested we do Vasa in the afternoon when the crowds are less. Does it really make a difference? We are planning on taking taxis. Any advice would be greatly appreciated -- I'm not an experienced port planner so this is kinda stressful.

When we visited the Vasa Museum, we also had the idea of 'rushing in' to take a few pix and seeing the ship and leaving. Once we got there and watched the movie (this is a must), we were hooked. The museum, and the Vasa, are fascinating and we were hooked. We stayed about 2 hours and loved every minute of it.

Can't say you will experience the same thing, but take this advice, do not cheat yourself and rush in and out of this extraordinary place. Spend some quality time here, even though there are other things to see. You will not regret it one bit.

Cheers

Len

I liked the Abba Museum more than Vasa. You're touring medieval stuff all cruise. You do not, however, get to tour shrines to foreign music icons all cruise. Even if you have younger adults, they will appreciate the interactive exhibits.

We are on the Regal Princess and will be in Stockholm on Sept 9. Our wish list includes Vasa Museum, Abba Museum, and Gamla Stan for lunch and a nice walk-around. I have made reservations at the Ice Bar for 12:45. Where do you suggest we start? I was thinking of rushing to the Vasa with everyone else and then doing Abba, Ice Bar and Gamla Stan, but my daughter suggested we do Vasa in the afternoon when the crowds are less. Does it really make a difference? We are planning on taking taxis. Any advice would be greatly appreciated -- I'm not an experienced port planner so this is kinda stressful.

Where will your ship dock? We docked at berth 160 in Stadsgarden, where we did not expect to dock. Not knowing the route to get to VASA from this surprise pier, we asked a taxi driver for the price to the VASA museum and were told it would be $45. We looked at one another and said, "Plan C." Not at $45.

Where will your ship dock? We docked at berth 160 in Stadsgarden, where we did not expect to dock. Not knowing the route to get to VASA from this surprise pier, we asked a taxi driver for the price to the VASA museum and were told it would be $45. We looked at one another and said, "Plan C." Not at $45.

They will likel berth in Nynäshamn or , if they are lucky, at Stadsgården S167

They will likel berth in Nynäshamn or , if they are lucky, at Stadsgården S167

OP, if you get the "luckier" pier, just know that Stadsgarden 167 is somewhat further, perhaps 200 yards. Nevertheless, the price I've shared is a good yardstick for you to use when deciding if approximately $45 is what you want to spend to get to the VASA museum.

Here's a link to an earlier thread I started after our trip to Stockholm. It really emphasizes how you need to research all the ways to get to VASA because pier assignments do change at the last minute. There may be a time when $45 looks like a wonderfully stress free option!

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?p=47140707

Due to terrible weather, we had a change of itinerary and there was no room for our ship at the normal docking space. We had to dock about 50 minutes from the city with a small tender ride as well. We had originally planned on taking the hoho bus first thing in the morning as it goes directly to Vasa and we would be there at the opening. This didn't happen but we made the best of it by taking the ship shuttle into town and getting on the hoho bus from the Royal Palace. We went straigt to Vasa. It had a long line but not terrible yet. Make sure you have a credit card with pin so you can use the machine to purchase tickets and not have to wait in an even longer line. When we left late morning it was beyond pouring and the line was in the hundreds. We walked over to the ABBA museum and waited in line in the rain for about 40 minutes. It was a good thing to do in the rain. It was fun but the VASA was amazing. We then got back onto the hoho boat and over to the Palace to walk to the City Hall. This is a spectacular building where the Nobel Peace Prize dinner takes place and it was lovely to see with a wonderful guided tour. There is also a tower to go up and view Stockholm. I heard that the taxis are absurdly expensive and some will rip you off big time. You need to make sure that the rates are posted on the window. Rick Steves discusses this in his Northern Cruise ports book if interested.

I heard that the taxis are absurdly expensive and some will rip you off big time. You need to make sure that the rates are posted on the window. Rick Steves discusses this in his Northern Cruise ports book if interested.

That was our experience in Gothenburg, Sweden. I actually told the driver to let us off early, once I figured out what was going on. No tip. No apologies for not tipping, either. We found another way to our destination.

Edit: come to think of it, I did have an experience with a Stockholm taxi driver. This guy was asking if I needed a ride. He was pushy, and started ridiculing my weak attempt at speaking Swedish. I didn't need a ride, but I remember thinking even if I did, it wouldn't be with him.

The public transportation in Stockholm is excellent. We went to the information desk of each attraction we visited (Skansen, Vasa, the History Museum, the armory) and asked them how to get to our next destination. The helpfully told us which bus/tram/subway to take, and we didn't have any problems.

Initially, we took the HOHO boat, which you can find by following a painted line from Stadsgarden 167. Stromma sells very affordable one stop tickets directly to Vasa prior to 10 am, and later when everything else opens and they start running their full schedule.

The last time we were in Stockholm (2006), we tried to take the water taxi from near Gamla Stan (the ship was docked nearby). We didn't have Krona and they didn't take USD or a credit card (there were no ATMs nearby). Does anyone know if they will now take a credit card (10 years is a long time in our techie world). What about the city buses (I've seen that taxis take CC, but that looks like a pricey option).

Which water taxi do you mean? The harbour ferry (Djurgårdsfärjan)? In that case they will accept cc, both in the manned ticket kiosks as well as the ticket machines.

We ordered a taxi by email to meet us at the ship when we debarked. While everyone else was getting their bearings, getting on the bus, etc., our group of 6 found the taxi. The driver was holding a sign with my name. We were one of the first to leave the pier and one of the first to enter Vasa. By the time, we were finished, the museum was very crowded.

FYI -- On the Vasa website, you can download the audio tour. We brought earphones and after entering the museum, we were ready to go.