Öland, Sweden 2017 🇸🇪

Travelled: 246 kilometres from Vimmerby to Grönhögen on the island of Öland, Sweden

Visited: Borgholms Castle SEK90pp, Solliden Slott SEK100pp and Grönhögen

Stayed: Grönhögen marina stellplatz SEK150, all services including washing machine and dryer. N56.26635, E16.39670

Budget: 69 days @ €89 per day

All was good in Astrid’s stellplatz last night, just us and a hundred vacant motorhome spots all around us. Some company would have been nice, but the fact it was a free night was more comforting. We have a quite a few kilometres to do today so we have a coffee and go over to the service point and do the usual business.

Driving south-east down the 34 there is little traffic and we spend most of our time looking out for speed cameras. Sweden is not a drivers paradise, so its 80-90 kph passing pine forests lakes and more pine forest. At Kalmar we turn off for Öland.

Sweden

Crossing from Kalmar to Öland along the 12 kilometre long bridge. The views are amazing up and down the Kalmar Straights. Öland sits in the Baltic Sea, being 137 kilometres long and 16 kilometres wide, surprisingly it has a population of 25,000 people.

Once on Öland we turn north for Borgholm Castle. Looks interesting.

We pay our entry fee and go to the castle entrance to start exploring. We download the App and listen to the commentary as we walk around. It started off a little corny, but once we got past the start it was very interesting.

Borgholm was built in the 12th century, but extended several time in the Middle Ages. Having been the site of several battles and sieges against the German and Danes. It’s use as a castle discontinued in 1772. A fire in 1806 burnt through the castle, leaving it in ruins.

Tessin’s Gate is one of the view pieces of facade left from the 1650 baroque renovation by KIng Karl Gustav X.

Now here is an interesting fact. Good old King Karl was so concerned about the peasant farmers poaching his game he decreed that only 3 legged dogs where allowed on Öland. Understandably this caused some consternation amongs the dogs 🐶!

A view from the parapets across the Kalmar Straights.

387 92 Borgholm, Sweden

We have lunch in the castle car-park before driving the short distance to Solliden Slott. Solliden is the Royal Families summer house. Built by Sweden’s Queen Victoria in 1906, it is still in regular use. The garden is open to visitors.

Solliden Slott with the Italian Garden in the foreground. The term Slott implies palace, but its construction is in the Italian Villa style. There are many marble statues in the classic Roman style throughout the gardens.

We are constantly amazed by the huge hydrangeas they grow here.

The gardens have several small retreats like this one.

The Rose Garden, being autumn its passed its best, but still lovely.

I could post another 20 photos of the garden’s of Solliden, but you have probably seen enough. We head off again this time travelling south down the west coast of the Öland. Its a slow but very pretty drive, the road following the ridge line allows for the occasional sweeping view.

Sweden

We arrive at the marina in Grönhögen in the late afternoon. Grönhögen Is the most southern village before the King’s Estate and Nature Reserves on the very tip. We could stay up the road in a picnic area for free, but the bathrooms are immaculate, there is free use of the washing machine and dryer. Pam is sold.

Michael and Pam

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