How much does it cost to visit Sweden?

Sweden is one of the best countries to travel to in Europe. It has beautiful Scandinavian style cities, astonishing countryside and of course vast untouched nature. Whether you prefer urban travel or wish to explore the wilderness, travelling in Sweden is not cheap. Compared to other European destinations, it’s definitely on a more expensive side. However, to give you a more clear picture we decided to overview how much does it cost to visit Sweden.

This article will be broken down into different categories and will give you an overview of the average costs of visiting Sweden. Namely, we will look at transportation, accommodation, food, going out, sights and attractions as well as extra costs.

Transportation

Airport transfers

While there are many beautiful regions in Sweden, we will focus more on the prices in Stockholm since most of the tourists arrive in this city first. So, once you land in Arlanda (the country’s main airport located 50km away from the city), you have a few options on how to get to the centre. The cheapest and most common option is to hop on a shuttle bus Flygbussarna which will cost you 100SEK (9.7€, 12$) per way. Otherwise, you may choose an express train – Arlanda Express, which takes half the time to reach the city (18min), however, will set you down a hefty 300SEK (29€, 36$). Lastly, you may choose to go by taxi or use one of the ride-sharing platforms. In this case, a ride to the city will be around 550SEK (53€, 66$). It’s not too bad if you share the costs with fellow passengers. Otherwise, it seems a bit pricy.

Car rental

Renting a car in Sweden is not that cheap either. However, if you plan to go far out of the cities it’s the only way to go. Whereas, within the cities, it becomes an unnecessary burden. Since the pandemic, the number of rental cars available reduced significantly, hence the cost went up. Now, to rent a small to average size car will cost 700-800SEK (73€, 90$) per day if you stick to traditional rental agencies. A pro tip would be to use a peer to peer rental platform which works similarly as ‘Airbnb’ – you rent a car from people. This way, a vehicle will cost you 400-500SEK (44€, 54$) a day. Finally, there is an option of car-sharing (we used Aimo electric cars). It costs around 170SEK (16€, 20$) per hour or 800SEK (78€, 96$) per 24h.

Transport within the city

Your costs of visiting Sweden can go up or down depending on which transport method you are going to use. The most efficient and affordable option of getting around is the public transport network. It consists of metro, buses, trams and even commuter ferries. A single ticket is the least economical option as it costs 37 SEK (3,5€ 4.4$). However, you can make your money go further by buying a 24h or 72h pass, which costs 155SEK (15€, 19$) and 310SEK (30€, 37$) accordingly. Other than public transport, you may use electric scooters, which are very popular in Sweden. An average price consists of 10SEK (1€, 1.2$) starting fee and around 2.5 SEK (0.24€, 0.3$) for each minute of use. Lastly, the most expensive option to make your way around town is by taxi or ride-sharing. A ride could easily cost you at least 250 SEK (24€, 30$) within the city.

Transport between cities

The most common and convenient way of travelling between major Swedish cities is by train. The national carrier SJ applies the revenue management system, therefore ticket prices differ significantly depending on the day and time. However, just to give a rough estimate, a one-way ticket from Stockholm to Gothenburg will cost around 300-400SEK (34€, 42$). Whereas, a trip to Malmö will be around 500SEK (49€, 60$). Of course, it can be cheaper if you manage to find a good deal. Yet, it can also be more than that if you need to travel at a popular time. Our suggestion would be to buy your train tickets in advance. This will guarantee a much lower price. Travelling shorter distances will end up costing 100-200SEK (15€, 18$) per way.

Accommodation

In the cities

Another significant cost of visiting Sweden is, of course, accommodation. There are many different options in, so we will overview the most common ones. To start with, a double hotel room (4*) will cost at least 1000SEK (97€, 120$) per night. It can, of course, be much higher if you opt for big names. Whereas, an apartment on Airbnb will costs around 800SEK (78€, 96$) for 2 people or 1300 SEK (126€, 156$) for 4 people per night. Again, this is just a rough indication, since it can differ a lot based on location. The most budget-friendly option is a hostel. There are definitely very nice venues in Sweden, therefore be open to this type of accommodation as well. Roughly, a hostel bed in a centrally located place would cost around 200SEK (19€, 24$) per night.

In nature

If you choose to go to the countryside or nature you have three different options. Firstly, there is the most popular Swedish countryside accommodation – stuga (cottage). So many Swedes have their own cottage or can access one through family or friends. However, you can also rent it. A self-catering little cottage would cost you around 600-700SEK (63€, 78$) a night for 2 people or around 1000SEK (97€, 120$) per night for 4 people. This type of accommodation is just a classic and you have to try it out! Secondly, travelling by campervan is another very popular way of tourism. Therefore, there are tons of campings designated for campervans. A regular price to host your house on wheels is around 250SEK (24€, 30$) per night. Thirdly, in the same campsites, you can also rent a tent spot. For two people this would cost 100-200SEK (15€, 18$) a night. Worth mentioning, that campsites often have hot showers, access to drinking water, electricity and sometimes even little kitchen areas. It is a great way to minimize your travel costs in Sweden.

Food

Eating in

While cooking meals yourself is a great budget saver, it’s still more expensive compared to most other European countries. If you plan to camp or prepare food in an ‘Airbnb’, you should count at least 100SEK (9.7€,12$) per person per day. Just to give an example, living in Stockholm, we cook most of our meals at home. Our grocery bill comes to around 1200SEK (116€, 144$) per week for 2 people. Whereas, if you want to buy already made meals from supermarkets you should count around 50SEK (5€, 6$) per meal.

Eating out

Eating out would be one of the significant costs of visiting Sweden, however, there are ways to save as well. To go into more detail, a breakfast consisting of a decent sandwich and a coffee would cost around 100 SEK (9.7€,12$). A brunch meal and a drink would be around 200 SEK (19€, 24$). Whereas, a dinner in a restaurant would be around 400-500 SEK (44€, 54$). However, lunch price during working days is regulated. Therefore, you can have a good meal for 100-130 SEK (11€, 14$). This usually includes a main course, salad buffet, bread, coffee and water. Hence, eating out during lunch is definitely the best value for money. Another option is to go to take-away places and get a meal there (noodles, burger, wraps, bowls, etc.) for around 100-150 SEK (12€,15$).

Going out

To start with, it’s worth mentioning that clubs are closed at the moment. However, before the pandemic, an average entrance fee was around 150 SEK (15€, 18$). This price didn’t include a drink or a cloakroom fee. We would guess that the similar price will remain in the future as well, however, don’t quote us on this one. On the other hand, entrance to lounges, bars or rooftop terraces is usually free. Though, they make their bucks with the price of drinks. For instance, the price of a beer is 70-80 SEK (7€, 9$), whereas a cocktail is around 150SEK (15€, 18$). The prices are similar in different venues.

Sights/attractions

Entrance fees to different sights will not make that big of a chunk of your total travel costs in Sweden. This is because all of the national parks, nature reserves, parks or even some museums are free of charge. Whereas, entrance fees to more popular museums are between 100-150SEK (12€,15$) per person. Bear in mind, that there are always discounts for children, students or seniors. In addition, visiting very popular sights such as a city hall or an observation tower costs roughly 50SEK (4.85€, 6$) or rather often is even free.

Extras

We tried to think of various miscellaneous costs that you might incur when visiting Sweden. First, is petrol/diesel, which is very relevant if you rent a car. On average a litre of fuel will cost around 14 SEK (1.36€, 1.68$). Then, there is a cost of mobile data (relevant if you come outside of the EU). While SIM cards are very often given for free in airports or stations, the data costs 100SEK (9.7€,12$) for 3GB or 150 SEK (15€, 18$) for 5GB. This is very subject to a provider, but that’s what we personally pay.

Total budget

Even though the daily budget highly depends on your travel style, we tried to estimate two different options: economical and regular. So, including accommodation, food, transportation, and some attractions we would estimate that you need at least 500SEK (49€, 60$) per person per day if travelling economically. Whereas, if you wish to stay in a nicer hotel and enjoy a dinner out once in a while, we would recommend planning at least 1000SEK (97€, 120$) a day.

In short, the costs of visiting Sweden are relatively high. Based on our own experience it’s slightly higher than in Western Europe. Yet, still more affordable compared to Norway, Iceland or Switzerland. We hope that this article shed some light on what you can expect to spend travelling in this Scandinavian country. If you wish to get more information about budget travel in Sweden – check out this article.