The city

Have some extra time to explore the city of Gothenburg? While the weather in November can be a bit unreliable, there are still plenty of things to explore!

Eating

Swedes love to have “fika”, sitting down for a cup of coffee (or other beverage) and preferably something sweet on the side. King of fika pastries in Sweden is the cinnamon bun, and the king of cinnamon buns you will find at Café Husaren in the picturesque Haga district. No worries if cinnamon is not your thing, they also do outrageously large (and tasty!) versions of other baked goods. If the weather is on your side, we would recommend you also take the chance to walk the car-free cobblestone streets and explore the many small niche shops in this area of town.

Museums

Gothenburg is home to many museums that are well worth exploring. Many of them revolve around maritime topics, such as the Maritime Museum & Aquarium or the explorative Maritiman. If art is more your thing, then the Gothenburg Museum of Art is well worth a visit, and you may also be interested in its next-door neighbor Göteborgs Konsthall. If you’re bringing family or just want to explore the world like a kid again, Universeum is the place to go to for walks through rainforest, Swedish mountains and doing hands-on experiments without leaving the city center. Next-door you’ll find the Museum of World Culture which show-cases exhibitions from all over the world.

And of course you can’t miss the Gothenburg City Museum, showcasing local history from the last 12,000 years. Housed in the building that was once home to the remarkably successful Swedish East India Company and home to Sweden’s only Viking ship on exhibition it is quite a remarkable place.

Shopping

There’s plenty of shopping all around Gothenburg of course, but if you want to escape the November chill for a bit Nordstan indoor shopping center is the easiest place to go to. It’s right next to the central station and also has a big parking garage.

Nearby you can also find the picturesque Kronhusbodarna area where mainly cafés and artisanal stores are hosted in buildings from the 1700s.

See the sights

If you’re up for some walking (or tram-riding), see if you can get to all the iconic landmarks in Gothenburg:

• Poseidon – Gothenburg’s iconic statue at the end (or start?) of Gothenburg’s main avenue aptly called Avenyn (“The Avenue”).
• Kopparmärra (“The Copper Mare”) – a statue of king Karl IX, the official first founder of Gothenburg, on a stallion. (Yes, the stallion is indeed called a mare, because Gothenburg loves a catchy name.) What is a first founder, you wonder? Well, Karl IX founded Gothenburg in 1603, but the Danes burnt it to the ground in 1611. It was then founded again in 1621 by king Gustavus Adolphus. A fun addition to this statue is the statue “Nike’s Gothenburg” found just across the street. Portraying a young girl atop a fantastical creature, this one invites us to think twice about the ideals of history.
• Skansen Kronan and Skansen Lejonet (“The Crown Sconce” and “The Lion Sconce”) – a twin set of small hill fortresses erected in the 17th century to protect Gothenburg from the feared Danes. Since then, we’ve made friends with the Danes but the hills still offer a good view of the city. Skansen Kronan, near Haga, is now a party and conference venue, and houses a cafeteria in the summer months.
• Sjömanshustrun (“The seafarer’s wife”) – a memorial monument to the sailors lost at sea during WWI. A sad monument, but the artist wanted his statue to also serve as a loving reminder to sailors that there were people waiting and praying for them at home.
• Feskekôrka (“The fish church”) – the fish market hall that was never a church, but kind of looks like one. Built in the 1870s to tidy up the city’s fish market, and still the place to go for fish and seafood. Now houses both a fish market and several restaurants.
• Läppstiftet (“The Lipstick”) – the local nickname for a red and white building at Lilla Bommen, with the “Gothenburg Lookout” on its top floor. Probably the best view you can get of the harbour.
• Gothenburg Cathedral – the current cathedral is actually the third on the same spot, previous cathedrals burned in 1721 and 1802. The current one was inaugurated in 1815. A calm spot among the main shopping streets of the city, its grounds are estimated to be the burial ground of approximately 20,000 people.