Scandinavian Travel Checklist: Designing a Bespoke Tour Across Northern Europe

Scandinavia is an astonishing part of the world, with cities and landscapes across Denmark, Sweden and Norway that range from vast open wildernesses to eclectic towns, tiny villages and islands perched in the ocean to sophisticated spa hotels and luxury wellness centres.

If you’re keen to travel to Scandinavia and want to see as much as possible, a tour package is the perfect option. We offer a range of Scandinavian holidays, from winter wonderland trips to relaxing summer adventures and self-guided fly/drive packages.

Let us share some of the best places to go and the most popular things to do in the region, alongside recommendations for activities and excursions you will love.

Creating a Customised Tour of the Scandinavian Countries

One of the brilliant aspects of travelling around Scandinavia is the contrast between the seasons – the region transforms throughout the year with the changing weather, and even if you’ve visited countless times there is always something new to see.

We’d recommend beginning with a checklist of your must-see places or the type of holiday you’d most love to experience – for example:

• Would you prefer to travel in the warmest summer months, during the snowy winter, or during spring and autumn when most cities are quieter?
• Are there activities you’ve always wanted to try? Perhaps you’d like to hike up a mountain, relax in an authentic outdoor spa, snowmobile across a glacier, or camp in a rural area overnight to watch the Northern Lights.
• Do you have a particular type of accommodation in mind? We offer a huge selection, including treehouses, ice hotels, glass igloos, rustic summer cabins, ultra-modern hotels and lodges.

Organising a tour means you don’t need to make any compromises – you can incorporate all of your bucket list items into one trip, often starting in one of the major capital cities to soak up some culture and entertainment before you head further out.

Exploring Scandinavia’s Capital Cities

The architecture and history of Scandinavian cities are a big draw for guests. There is a variety of experiences to pick and choose from, such as fine dining, visiting world-famous palaces and museums, walking tours and self-guided tours where you can see the sites via bike or book a boat trip around the local harbour.

Oslo is Norway’s capital, with an urban, contemporary feel, yet surrounded by mountains and greenery. The nightlife is lively and welcoming, and we recommend a stop at one of the superb museums, including the Munch Museum and the Kon-Tiki Museum.

Our next stop is Stockholm, Sweden – a captivating and beautiful city characterised by cobbled streets winding through Gamla Stan, the 13th-century old town, with attractions like the Royal Palace and Nobel Museum.

If your Scandinavian tour includes a visit to Copenhagen, you’ll see colourful houses lining the harbour and canals. You can also visit the stunning Amalienborg Palace, home of the Danish royal family, and the world’s second-oldest amusement park at Tivoli Gardens.

Booking a Winter Tour of Scandinavia

Several Scandinavia tour packages are designed around festive themes, including the Polar Express Train Journey, which takes you on an incredible tour through the Arctic Circle, crossing Norwegian and Swedish Lapland. The eco-friendly transport runs from Kiruna in Sweden to Narvik in western Norway, with opportunities to try a dog sledding safari in the snow and visit the Abisko National Park.

Another great option for a Scandinavian tour holiday in the winter is our Swedish Ice Hotel Adventure. It begins in Stockholm, which is made up of fourteen islands that form the archipelago. Once you’ve finished exploring the city, you’ll head to Swedish Lapland and dive into a truly magical experience.

Scandinavian Travel During the Summer

If your ideal holiday is a summer visit, we can suggest an equally broad array of options, tours and packages. The Castles and Jutland package is a popular fly-drive holiday where you can explore Denmark at your leisure and stay as long as you wish at each landmark or city.

This holiday is suited to visitors of all ages and takes you through the Danish countryside. You will learn about the Viking heritage of this fascinating country, visit pristine beaches along the wild coastline, sample Nordic cuisine, and see historic ruins and museums at each stop.

Highlights include a stop-off at the original Legoland in Billund, which opened in 1968 and is adjacent to the Lego factory, and a visit to the beaches in Skagen – Skagen Sønderstrand and Gammel Skagen Strand are both great places to visit.

Recommended Places to Visit During Scandinavia Tours

Scandinavia offers such diversity that it’s impossible to curate a list of everything we’d recommend. Still, below, we’ve highlighted some amazing views and structures you’ll not see anywhere else in the world.

Denmark and Sweden: Oresund Bridge

This bridge connects Sweden and Denmark and sweeps for five miles above the Oresund Strait. There is an underwater tunnel, an above-ground bridge and even an artificial island called Peberholmen. As a feat of engineering, the bridge is the longest road or railway in the world and can be seen from the air as you land in Copenhagen.

Norway: Preikestolen Cliffs

At 2,000 feet high, these cliffs are far above the Lysefjord below. They are a granite plateau accessible via a short, steep hiking path that takes roughly three hours to climb. This is another unique Scandinavian landscape that keen hikers should never miss—the view is breathtaking.

Sweden: The Stockholm Archipelago By Boat

We’ve mentioned Stockholm, but a tour of the archipelago by boat is a great day out in itself. There are numerous islands to explore, with the chance to stop off and cycle along the nature trails or see the ancient Viking graves, with seabirds, eagles and seals often spotted along the cliffs and coastlines.

Booking Travel and Transport Throughout a Scandinavian Holiday

Travel is part of the excitement of Scandinavian tours, where you can experience an overnight train ride across borders, hire a car for a once-in-a-lifetime road trip, or navigate the Norwegian fjords aboard a ferry – spotting rare wildlife and even the Aurora Borealis in the right winter weather conditions.

There are plenty of sustainable, eco-friendly travel options throughout the region, especially in Norway – examples include emissions-free public transport networks across Oslo and electric ferries and trams.

Please review our comprehensive range of tours and packages online. You’ll find full itineraries, flight details, and lists of the attractions, excursions, and accommodations included.

If you need any assistance tailoring your Scandinavian tour or can’t find what you’re looking for, please feel free to contact the expert travel consultants at the Baltic Travel Company.