Sweden - Becky Ohlsen [40]
Left Luggage
There are three sizes of left-luggage boxes (per 24hr Skr40-90) at Centralstationen. Similar facilities exist at the neighbouring bus station and at major ferry terminals.
If you have a lost-property inquiry, ask for tillvaratagna effekter.
Libraries
Kulturhuset (Map; 50 83 15 08; www.kul turhuset.stockholm.se; Sergels Torg; Tue-Sun) Has a reading room with international periodicals, newspapers and books, as well as internet access.
Stadsbiblioteket (Map; 50 83 10 60; Sveavägen 73; 9am-9pm Mon-Thu, 9am-7pm Fri, noon-4pm Sat & Sun, shorter hours in summer) The main city library is just north of the city centre. Designed by luminary architect Erik Gunnar Asplund and sporting a curvaceous, technicolour reading room, it’s the finest example of Stockholm’s 1920s neoclassicist style.
Media
The best overall guide for visitors is the monthly What’s On Stockholm, available free from tourist offices and online at www.stockholmtown.com.
Tourist offices also carry two separate accommodation guides in English – one for camping, the other for hotels and hostels – and both are free. If you can manage to navigate event listings in Swedish, look for På Stan, the excellent weekly arts and culture supplement to the daily Dagens Nyheter newspaper.
Similarly, the free monthly newspaper Nöjes-guiden has listings in Swedish, focusing on youth culture, live music and nightclubbing.
Medical Services
Apoteket CW Scheele (Map; 454 81 30; Klarabergsgatan 64) Twenty-four-hour pharmacy.
CityAkuten (Map; 412 29 00; Apelbergsgatan 48; 8am-8pm) Emergency health and dental care.
Södersjukhuset (Map; 616 10 00; Ring-vägen 52) The most central hospital.
Money
ATMs are plentiful, with several at Central-stationen; expect queues.
The exchange company Forex has over a dozen branches in the capital and charges Skr15 per travellers cheque; the following are two handy locations:
Stockholm-Arlanda Airport (Terminal 2; 5.30am-10pm Sun-Fri, to 6pm Sat)
Sweden House (Map; 820 03 89; Hamngatan 27; 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat, noon-4pm Sun)
Post
You can buy stamps and send letters at a number of city locations, including newsagents and supermarkets – keep an eye out for the Swedish postal symbol (yellow on a blue background). There’s a convenient outlet next to the Hemköp supermarket in the basement of central department store Åhléns (Map; Klarabergsgatan 50).
Telephone
Coin-operated phones are virtually nonexistent and pay phones are operated with phonecards purchased from any Pressbyrån location (or with a credit card, although this is ludicrously expensive). Ask for a telefonkort for Skr50 or Skr120, which roughly equate to 50 minutes and 120 minutes of local talk time, respectively. International calls are charged at a higher rate; for calls abroad, you’re better off buying a long-distance calling card, available at many Pressbyrån outlets. For mobile phones, check with your service provider to ensure your network is compatible with Sweden’s (Click here).
Toilets
Most public toilets charge Skr5 or Skr10, and most only take Skr5 or Skr10 coins, so keep a few handy. (If you’re desperate, head for the toilets in one of the city’s free museums, or ask nicely at a cafe or restaurant.)
Tourist Information
Sweden House (Map; 50 82 85 08, www.stockholmtown.se; Hamngatan 27; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat, 10am-4pm Sun May-Sep; 9am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-5pm Sat, 10am-4pm Sun Oct-Apr) The capital’s main tourist office is just off Kungsträdgården across from the NK department store. It has loads of good brochures and can help book hotel rooms, theatre and concert tickets, and packages such as boat trips to the archipelago. There’s a Forex currency-exchange counter in the same building.
Travel Agencies
STA Travel (Map; 0771-47 48 50; Kungsgatan 30) and the nearby Kilroy Travels (Map; 0771-54 57 69; Kungsgatan 4) both specialise in discount youth and student flights.