Insider tip: Chill out in one of the many attractive cafés around the Stortorget square. Café Gråmunken (located on Västerlånggatan) is


set in a


medieval vault, making it parti- cularly original.


At the Gamla Stan is the


north-eastern end of Royal


Palace – one of the world’s largest, with 608 rooms. In the vicinity you’ll fi nd the Storkyrkan (St Nicholas’ Church), which for centuries was a coronation church and is today Stockholm’s cathedral. The


Royal Palace German


Church, situated at the southern end of the Gamla Stan, was originally used as a guild house for the merchants of the Hanseatic League. Its 96-metre (315 ft) spire is the tallest in the old town.


A WIDE RANGE OF MUSEUMS


Stockholm is home to some of Sweden’s most distinguished museums. The Skansen, inaugurated in 1891, served as a model for many of the world’s open-air museums. The vast grounds display historic buildings from all corners of Sweden. The museum is located on Djurgården Island, and is part of the Royal National City Park. The Vasa Museum is named after the famous warship which sunk on its maiden voyage in 1628, and was not recovered until 1961. The elaborately restored three-masted vessel is now exhibited in a large, purpose-built hall.


Junibacken is a haven for children and the young at


heart. Designed with the help of Astrid Lindgren herself, the “mother” of Pippi Longstocking, it is a place where all the heroes and places featured in her novels come to life.


NCL SHORE EXCURSION: SIGTUNA


After visiting the city centre and the Vasa Museum, this tour heads to Sigtuna – Sweden’s oldest surviving city, founded in AD 980. The ruins of the Romanesque churches, cemetery and the St Mary’s convent church attest to the early Christian settlement of Sigtuna. The main street, Stora Gatan, is today lined with many cafés and restaurants, fashionable boutiques and attractive handicrafts shops.


For more shore excursions and how to book visit: www.ncl.co.uk/excursions 21


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