My semester is wrapping up quickly here in Stockholm! I’ll be on the plane home soon and thought it would be fun for my last blog to highlight my favorite activities to do in Stockholm. Just in case anyone reading plans on visiting Stockholm anytime soon, here is a comprehensive travel guide from an honorary Swede (that’s me) about the best things Stockholm has to offer.

Let’s start with the fun tourist attractions in Stockholm. Downtown Stockholm is a place you must see. If you take public transportation, get off at T-Centralen to see Sergels torg where the famous glass obelisk stands. This area is the most modern area of Stockholm, and I’d recommend taking a stroll down Drottninggatan, a popular street dedicated to shopping. Just a short walk south of T-Centralen, you can see the prime minister’s house, the Parliament building and the Royal Palace. The Royal Palace was amazing to tour, it is absolutely gorgeous inside with elaborate French-inspired rooms.

As a tourist, it would be sinful to not visit the old town called Gamla Stan. Gamla Stan is so pretty with many medieval buildings and churches to look at along with dozens of souvenir shops for the perfect gifts. Stockholm’s City Hall is the last tourist destination that should be on your list. It is home to the Nobel Prize dinner and has an amazing view of Stockholm from its tower.

Another fantastic thing about Stockholm is that there are many wonderful museums, and most are free of charge. I really enjoyed the Vasa museum. The main attraction at the museum is the old Vasa warship that sank on its maiden voyage. The entire ship has been saved from the bottom of the ocean and you can see it along with other interesting surrounding exhibits.

I love art museums and Stockholm’s National Museum was fun to visit. The impressive sculptures and beautifully decorated porcelain plates were my favorites. Skansen is a cool open-air museum that has preserved many old buildings so you can see what Sweden looked like at different points in time. Skansen is also a zoo that is home to wild Nordic animals like reindeer, moose and wolverines. I also enjoyed the Medieval Museum which showcased what life was like in the Middle Ages and Swedish history during that time. There are many other museums I missed that I’ve heard are great like the ABBA museum, Viking museum and Nobel Prize Museum. There are wonderful museums for all interests here in Stockholm.

If you are a nature-lover, that’s awesome because Stockholm has many beautiful spots to explore and enjoy nature. Kungsträdgården is a little park downtown that is breathtaking during the spring when the cherry blossom trees are blooming. It is a popular spot to sit and look at the pink flowers while eating ice cream. Haga Park is located north of the city and has a pretty lakeside view with many lovely walking trails. You can also see Crowned Princess Victoria’s home at Haga Park, which is super fun. A great spot to watch the sunset is on Södermalm called Skinnarviksberget. You sit on a rocky hill and view the city from above, it is amazing.

Still not enough nature for you? Then I highly recommend going to Stenhamra. Stenhamra is a beautiful place for hiking and has many rock quarries to climb on. Once you climb to the top, you get an amazing view of Stockholm’s archipelago. Stenhamra is so stunning that it has been featured in multiple Swedish films.

If you ever find yourself in Stockholm, I hope my little travel guide helps! As I reflect on the past four months, I cannot express how amazing my experience was studying abroad. I’ve gained clarity on what I want my career and future to look like. I learned so many things about myself, made great friends and my host family became my family.

If you are considering studying abroad, please do it. I never thought I would go abroad in college, but it has by far been the best decision I have made for myself. I’m leaving a piece of my heart in Stockholm, and it is the most bittersweet feeling. Goodbye Sweden, you fulfilled all of my wildest dreams.