Stockholm harbour tour

The Stockholm Maritime Tour is a showcase of the maritime history of Stockholm, focusing on the inner harbor and its buildings and museum ships.

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Destinations

• 1 M/S Patricia, Söder Mälarstrand. Launched in 1938 as a British representation ship, in service both for the 1940 Dunkirk evacuation and the 1944 landing in Normandy (see D-Day beaches). One of Stockholm's oldest gay nightclubs, still having gay Sunday nights (onto Monday mornings) with a more mainstream crowd on Fridays and Saturdays.  
• 1 Kogghamn (Medieval Stockholm harbour). By the 13th century, the land had risen between Södermalm and Gamla stan, transforming Mälaren to a freshwater lake. A canal was dug from the lake to the sea; but as the lake was a few decimeters above sea level, the boats had to be pulled up by ropes. Stockholm had two harbours: Kornhamn (corn/grain harbor) was for the small boats of Mälaren, and Kogghamn for the cogs (merchant ships) of the Baltic Sea, which was near today's street level. Many of the cogs belonged to the Hanseatic League (Hansa), which dominated trade on the Baltic Sea during the Middle Ages. As the coastline retracted, the quays expanded outwards into the sea. The 1790 customs house (Tullhuset) was built at the earlier docks. The customs houses on the waterfront were built in 1939, and host restaurants and cafés today.  
• 2 Victoriaslussen. Slussen ("the sluice") is a lock opened in 1642, to allow seagoing ships into Mälaren. Over the centuries, four different locks have succeeded each other, with new bridges for trains, bicycles and public transport. A 1935 concrete structure sank down the mud. Due to expected global warming and need to regulate lake Mälaren, Stockholm has built the fifth lock, named in honour to Crown Princess Victoria.  
• 1 HMS af Chapman. A full-rigged ship launched in 1888 under the name Dunboyne, later G.D. Kennedy. She ran freight between Gothenburg and Australia. From 1915 to 1934 she was a training ship, and since 1949 she is used as a hostel.  
• 2 Kastellet. A citadel from the 17th century, which flies the naval flag, and is used for gun salutes. The building exploded in 1845 and was rebuilt in 1848.  
• 3 Vasa shipyard. The Swedish Empire reached the height of its power in the 17th century, nearly encircling the Baltic Sea, creating the need for a strong navy, not least since King Gustav II Adolf (also known as Gustavus Adolphus) drew Sweden into the Thirty Years War. Stockholm's shipyards launched many warships; the least successful of them accidentally became the most famous today: the Vasa. She was built on Blasieholmen (across the water, where Nationalmuseum is now) and towed to Tre Kronor Castle to get loaded with ballast and artillery. The 48 bronze cannons made Vasa one of Sweden's heaviest ships, the Empire's Death Star... though very unstable. Her maiden voyage in 1628 was intended to be a moment of pride; but she could only sail a mile before catching wind, capsizing and sinking between Beckholmen and Södermalm, drowning at least 30 people. Most of the expensive cannons were salvaged in 1664, but the ship herself fell into obscurity, and was not discovered again until 1956. 
• 4 Vasa Museum (Vasamuseet). The Vasa mentioned earlier was found in 1956, as the world's only preserved 17th century warship. The lengthy salvaging process was completed in 1961, and she was towed into a temporary museum. Since 1990, she is on display in the Vasa Museum on Djurgården (with ornamental masts on the roof), Sweden's most visited tourist attraction. The artifacts and human body remnants in the ship are an accidental time capsule from nearly 400 years ago.  
• 3 Museum ships. An icebreaker, a lighthouse ship, and some other museum ships. 
• 4 Vrak – Museum of Wrecks. Virtual reality and other modern technologies present the shipwrecks of the Baltic Sea, of which many remain on the seafloor.  
• 5 The Viking Museum, Djurgårdsvägen 48 (Liljevalchs/Gröna Lund  7 ). A Viking museum opened in 2017. The main attraction is Ragnfrids saga, an 11-minute ride through dioramas depicting a Viking adventure. The ride is a bit scary; children should be at least 7 years old, and accompanied by an adult. There is also an exhibition with replicas of Viking objects. Good for visitors who want a short introduction to the Vikings and are not bothered by the cover charge or the absence of genuine artifacts. See Vikings and the Old Norse for more real-life Viking experiences. 
• 6 Galärvarvskyrkogården (Galley Shipyard Cemetery) (Nordiska museet/Vasamuseet  7 ). Contains the memorial of the M/S Estonia (a Baltic Sea cruise ferry lost in 1994), as well as graves of prominent Swedes such as Stikkan Anderson (co-founder of ABBA, and founder of the Polar Music Award). 
• 7 Maritime Museum (Sjöhistoriska museet), Djurgårdsbrunnsvägen 24. Exhibits Sweden's long history as a seafaring nation. Remnants of the Amphion, an 18th-century Royal yacht, and a broad collection of scale models.