Sandviken

Sandviken is a town, and a municipality, in Gävleborg County, in the Gästrikland province, 20 km west of Gävle, the county seat.

Understand

One of the most industrialized cities in Sweden, Sandviken is dominated by the huge steel processing factory Sandvik, which employs almost 7,000 of the town's population of just under 40,000. This explains why there are a lot of international guests dining in town.

Get in

Regional trains run hourly from Gävle on the coast to Sandviken (16 min), Storvik, Hofors, Falun and Borlänge. Some continue to Kopparberg and Örebro.

• 1 Sandviken resecentrum (Just south of city centre). Hub for regional trains and buses. (updated Aug 2020)
• 2 Storvik railway station. (updated Aug 2020)

See

• 1 Rosenlöfs Tryckerimuseum, Korsikavägen 23, Kungsgården, ☏ +46 290-37618. Small working museum dedicated to printing. (updated Feb 2018)
• 2 Forsbacka ironworks are east just over the county boundary, see Gävle.
• 3 Årsjögård (at the lakeside village of Årsunda). An open-air museum centered around a reconstructed Viking farm in the midst of a historic region known as Järnriket (The Iron Realm). Experimental archaeology and occasional role plays, re-enactments, feasts, music and crafts. Learn more about the cultural history of this area, in particular the Viking Age. The Sörby gravefields with 90 burial mounds and stone settings are nearby, as are the popular lakeside bathing site of Strandbaden at the lake of Storsjön, locally known as "Gästriklands riviera". At Strandbaden you will find a camping site and restaurant.  

Do

• 1 Högbo Bruk, Hans Hiertas väg 6, ☏ +46 26-242100. A recreation area situated at countryside just outside Sandviken. The area includes manors, blacksmith cottages, a mill, stables, a hotel, an exhibition of carriages and sleighs, as well as the fragrance center Björk & Berries. Free. 
• 2 Kungsberget Ski Resort, Kungsbergsvägen 51, Järbo. (updated Aug 2020)
• 3 Färnebofjärden National Park. A massive national park along the Dal river (Dalälven). (updated Jan 2021)

Eat

• 1 Kanalkiosken, Barrsätragatan 36, ☏ +46 26-252526. (updated Oct 2016)
• 2 The Church, Hyttgatan 28, ☏ +46 26-218065. Gastropub in the town's old Baptist church. (updated Oct 2016)

Drink

• 1 LillPuben, Storgatan 21, ☏ +46 26-254950. Small and cozy pub serving typical bar food like burgers with a friendly atmosphere. (updated Feb 2018)
• 2 Mulligans Pub, Hyttgatan 15, ☏ +46 26-275151. Irish-themed bar. Largest selection of beer in town. (updated Feb 2018)
• 3 Sportbaren, Smedsgatan 19, ☏ +46 26-250500. Sports bar in the same building as Stadshotellet Princess. (updated Feb 2018)

Sleep

• 1 Stadshotellet Princess, Smedsgatan 19, ☏ +46 26-254050, fax: +46 26-274942, info@hotellprincess.se. (updated Feb 2018)
• 2 Hotell Hedåsen, Årsundavägen 100, ☏ +46 26-251200. (updated Feb 2018)
• 3 Högbo Brukshotell, Hans Hiertas väg 5, ☏ +46 26 245200. High-end hotel at Högbo bruk. (updated Jan 2021)