Sweden - Becky Ohlsen [206]
STF Vandrarhem Sunne (107 88; www.sunnevandrarhem.se; Hembygdsvägen 7; dm Skr170) Part of a little homestead museum just north of town, this well-equipped hostel has beds in sunny wooden cabins. There’s a futuristic kitchen, antique dining room and outside tables and chairs for alfresco meals. Breakfast is available (Skr50) and bikes can be rented (Skr50 per day).
Länsmansgården (140 10; info@lansman.com; Ulfsby; s/d from Skr895/1190) This historic ‘sheriff’s house’ also features in Lagerlöf’s Gösta Berling’s Saga. It’s a picturesque place for a fine lunch or restful evening in one of the romantic bedrooms, named after the books’ characters. The restaurant (dagens lunch Skr85; evening buffet Skr150) specialises in Swedish cuisine, made using fresh local ingredients including pike, salmon, beef, reindeer and lamb. The mansion is 4km north of Sunne centre, by Rd 45 (toward Torsby).
Saffran & Vitlök (120 09; Storgatan 27; lunch Skr35-70; 11am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-3pm Sat) A haven of calm beside a busy intersection, this cafe serves giant bowls of hefty salads to take away or dine in, as well as excellent coffee, sandwiches, pastries and hot dishes. It lives up to the name (vitlök is garlic), so just follow your nose and you’ll find it.
Strandcaféet (104 88; Strandpromenaden; mains Skr80-130; summer) In the park is this appealing beach cafe, with outdoor seating over the water and live music on some summer evenings.
Getting There & Around
Bus 302 runs to Torsby (Skr56, 45 minutes, one to three daily) and Karlstad (Skr79, 1¼ hours, one to five daily). Regional trains to Torsby and Karlstad (one to three daily) are faster than the bus, but cost the same.
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TORSBY
0560 / pop 13,085
Sleepy Torsby, deep in the forests of Värmland, is only 38km from Norway. It’s the home town of Sven-Göran Eriksson, the former manager of England’s national football team. The area’s history and sights are linked to emigrants from Finland, who settled in western parts of Sweden in the mid-16th century and built their own distinctive farms and villages in the forests.
The tourist office (105 50; www.torsby.se, in Swedish; Gräsmarksvägen 12; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-3pm Sat & Sun mid-Jun–Aug; 9am-4pm Mon-Fri Sep–mid-Jun) is in the large Torsby Infocenter a couple of kilometres west of town, on Rd 45.
Sights
Torsby Finnkulturcentrum (162 93; www.finnkulturcentrum.com; Rd 45; admission Skr20; 11am-5pm mid-Jun–mid-Aug; 10am-4pm Tue-Fri, 10am-2pm Sat mid-Aug–mid-Jun) is just beyond the Infocenter towards town, and has displays describing the 17th-century Finnish settlement of the area, covering smoke-houses, hunting, music and witchcraft. There’s also a terrace cafe, with seats overlooking a lulling lake.
Next door, the Fordonsmuseum (712 10; Gräsmarksvägen 8; adult/under 15yr Skr40/free; noon-5pm daily mid-May–Aug, weekdays only in Sep) will appeal to gearheads, with its collection of vintage cars, motorcycles and fire engines.
Hembygdsgården Kollsberg (718 61; Levgrens-vägen 36; adult/child Skr20/free, guided tours Skr40; noon-5pm Jun-Aug), down beside Fryken lake, is a dinky homestead museum with several old houses, including a Finnish cabin. A cafe serves coffee and waffles (Skr40) and the traditional local dish motti med fläsk (oat porridge with pork, Skr80).
Known for its characteristic smokehouse, Ritamäki Finngård (501 76; admission free; 11am-6pm Jun-Aug), 25km west of Torsby and 5km from Lekvattnet, is one of the best-preserved Finnish homesteads in the area. It was probably built in the late 17th century and was inhabited until 1964, making it the last permanently inhabited Finnish homestead in Sweden. It’s surrounded by a nature reserve. Bus 310 goes to Lekvattnet but there is no public transport to Ritamäki.
Activities
There are a number of summer activities and tours in the area, including fishing, canoeing, white-water rafting, rock climbing, mountain biking, and beaver and elk safaris. Contact the tourist office for information.
Finnskogleden is an easy and well-marked long-distance path that roughly