Best youth hostels in Stockholms archipelago

When you arrive to Stockholm, Sweden, there is a fantastic youth hostel on board a white big ship in the middle of the city. You have access to all the busses and subways from here.

And only on walking distance from af Chapman, are all the white lovely boats that takes you out into the archepelago. Every day, year around and on schedule.

I have been on many of these youth hostels so I can surely recommend them to you!

Here is the link to a webcam pointing towards af Champan!

The very special youth hostel af Chapman is a steel full-rigged ship moored on the western shore of Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm, Sweden. This beautiful white ship was built in the UK in 1888 and originally known as Dunboyne.

After a major renovation the beautiful ship is back in Stockholm. Here is Restaurant and Coffee shop with a wonderful view over Stockholm. On land just next to the ship is another youth hostel in a wonderful old mansion.

Adress: Flaggmansvägen 8, 111 49 Stockholm

E-mail: chapman@stfturist.se

As in all Youth Hostels in Sweden you can bring your own sheets and towels and do your own cleaning up. If you want to pay for these things you usually can but not always.

The archipelago foundation

To come out in the archipelago there are lots of boats and wharfs along the way. If you are staying at one of the youth’s hostels, the boat takes you there. They all leave with start in front of the Grand Hotel central Stockholm. Then they stop here and there to pick up of let off passengers.

Here is information about the boats, the schedule and the routs

The youth hostels are often located in wonderful nature and easy accessed areas. They are for all kinds of people. Often when you book your room or cabin, they will tell you what you have to bring. It could be beddings and towels. They also sometimes rent it to you for a small fee. The youth hostels are expecting you to clean the place after you and leave it the way you found it. Cleaning equipment is provided.

If you want to keep the cost down, you can rent a room with more than one bed. We did that a couple of times but nobody else showed up so we had the room to ourselves. The one kitchen in the house is for everybody to use. There you find fridge, cutlery and plates. Pots and pans and the common stuff you need to cook your own food. If you rent a cabin it can be either that you have to go to a kitchen and/or landry in another house or there is a small pantry in your house.

The youth hostels are often located in wonderful nature and easy accessed areas. They are for all kinds of people. Often when you book your room or cabin, they will tell you what you have to bring. It could be beddings and towels. They also sometimes rent it to you for a small fee. The youth hostels are expecting you to clean the place after you and leave it the way you found it. Cleaning equipment is provided.

If you want to keep the cost down, you can rent a room with more than one bed. We did that a couple of times but nobody else showed up so we had the room to ourselves. The one kitchen in the house is for everybody to use. There you find fridge, cutlery and plates. Pots and pans and the common stuff you need to cook your own food. If you rent a cabin it can be either that you have to go to a kitchen and/or laundry in another house or there is a small pantry in your house.

The hostels in Stockholm’s archipelago are many and comfortable. The hosts really take good care of us guests and there is a set standard they keep. May be some of the houses are old but they are always well kept. The hostels are often located at the most beautiful places with paths and beaches near by. If you want to have privacy it is easy. My husband and I loved to take out our chairs on the cliff nearby (see photo) and read a book in the sun. Then in the afternoon, we took a couple of mugs and went picking blueberries!

The owners of the hostels do not always have a shop but that has opened by some other service minded person. We have been able to buy all the necessary groceries and fresh milk,fresh bread or ice cream in all places we have stayed. And this often at walking distance too. When people arrive on the boats they carry back packs with the nessecary private belongings. The rest is so easy if you can buy it in the local shop. Every day, when the boat arrives, there are fresh fruit, milk and groceries delivered to the shops.

The Right of Public Access

In Sweden, we have a special law called All men's right. This law has existed for many centuries only as a customary law. But since 1994 it is part of the Swedish constitution. So our Swedish right to roam comes with an equal emphasis being placed upon the responsibility to look after the countryside; the maxim is "Do not disturb, do not destroy". During most of the summer months the Eagle is protected when it nests. You are not allowed to come near the islands where they are. Some such areas are next to the youth hostels, so you can quite often see these majestic animals from where you stay.

This special law gives a person the right to access, walk, cycle, ride, ski, and camp on any land - with the exception of private gardens, the immediate vicinity of a dwelling house and land under cultivation, and with restrictions for nature reserves and other protected areas. It also gives the right to pick wildflowers, mushrooms and berries provided one knows they are not legally protected, as well as the right to visit beaches, to swim in any lake and put an unpowered boat on any water. Exception if the beach belongs to a private garden. Permission to build a private house is usually not given so close to the beach that this right is obstructed.

So this is for you who don’t want to stay in a hostel all the time. Freedom of choice is good!

The public right of access more explained

I tell you all this because you can rent a boat and go out in the archepelago yourself. Stay where you like (almost) and swim around in the Baltic sea.