county (län) in Sweden
Europe > Nordic countries > Sweden > Norrland > Västerbotten County

Västerbotten County, Västerbottens län, in Norrland in Sweden consists of the coastal province Västerbotten and southern Lappland.

Municipalities

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Map
Map of Västerbotten County

Västerbotten County.

Västerbotten

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Southern Lappland

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  • 10 Åsele Åsele on Wikipedia (Southern Sámi: Sjeltie), historically administrative centre, huge annual market.
  • 11 Lycksele (Southern Sámi: Liksjovvene/Liksjoene, Ume Sámi: Lïkssjuo), the first and still largest inland town.
  • 12 Malå Malå on Wikipedia (Ume Sámi: Máláge, South Sámi: Maalege)
  • 13 Dorotea Dorotea on Wikipedia (South Sámi: Kraapohke)
  • 14 Vilhelmina Vilhelmina on Wikipedia (South Sámi: Vualtjere)
  • 15 Storuman (South Sámi: Luspie, Ume Sámi: Lusspie)
  • 16 Sorsele Sorsele on Wikipedia(Ume Sámi: Suarssá, South Sámi: Suarsa)

Other destinations

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  • 1 Hemavan, a secluded ski resort by the largest nature reserve in Sweden, with botanic garden of alpine plants; trailhead to the famous Kungsleden hiking trail
  • 2 Tärnaby Tärnaby on Wikipedia, a ski resort which has fostered several ski champions

Understand

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While the coastal Västerbotten province has culturally been part of Sweden since the Middle Ages, Lappland is a traditional homeland of the Sami people. Many settlers from middle Sweden arrived during the early 20th century. Its population is decreasing, except for that of the bustling city of Umeå.

Talk

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While Sámi language and bondska (archaic Swedish dialects) are spoken by some, everybody speaks Swedish.

Get in

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Resrobot is a search engine for all public transport in Sweden.

By plane

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Airports are

By train

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SJ has trains from Stockholm to Umeå.

By bus

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By boat

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Wasa Line runs ferries between Umeå and Vaasa, Finland across the Gulf of Bothnia.

By car

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  • From Stockholm or Malmö to Umeå/Skellefteå: road E4.
  • From Stockholm or Malmö to Vilhelmina/Storuman/Tärnaby: road E4 to Sundsvall, then road 331.
  • From Finland: road E4 from Tornio

Get around

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By bus

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By taxi

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  • Smartphone apps: Uber

The county will be of interest primarily to nature lovers, and hikers will here find quite some wilderness. But the mines of Kiruna or the ice hotel are other points of interest.

City-life is primarily found in Umeå. This sparsely populated region is great for outdoor life; especially hiking along Kungsleden, and winter sport (see winter in the Nordic countries).

See also: Nordic cuisine

Västerbottensost is a local cheese made in Burträsk near Skellefteå.

While Umeå has a lively community of vegans and vegetarians, fishing and hunting are pastimes in the countryside.

Drink

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Nightlife can mainly be found in Umeå, and at the ski resorts.

Stay safe

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See cold weather. Bears roam the region.

Go next

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This region travel guide to Västerbotten County is an outline and may need more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. If there are Cities and Other destinations listed, they may not all be at usable status or there may not be a valid regional structure and a "Get in" section describing all of the typical ways to get here. Please plunge forward and help it grow!