Accommodation: Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel

My flight from Edinburgh to Stockholm Skavsta left on time at 2:35pm.  It left from gate 12 which is in a new part of Edinburgh Airport which I’ve never seen before.  It was nice to see they are still making this little airport nicer and nicer every year. There’s a new Brewdog Pub and Pret a Manger down that way, so good to know if you feel like having a drink but don’t like the old choices at the airport.

I arrived at Skavsta on time at 5:35pm and managed to get through immigration and customs quickly enough to catch the bus at 5:50pm.  Since this was a Ryanair flight to “Stockholm”, I should have known that the airport wouldn’t actually be anywhere close to Stockholm.  I had researched how to get to the city from the airport before flying and saw that the only reasonable way to go was by bus with the company Flygbussarna. The ticket cost 139 Swedish Krowns (£11).  This seems like a lot for an airport transfer, but the airport is a one hour twenty minute drive, without stops, to get to the city center. I guess that’s worth it.

Lucky for me, the bus stop in the city was at the central terminal which is a two minute walk from my hotel.  This was particularly good tonight because the weather was less than desirable. It is just below freezing and it is snowing sideways with some pretty gusty winds.  I got to the Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel and checked into my fairly basic but nice room. I’m certainly not going to complain for £89 a night right in the city center.

It was now about 8pm and I was starving so went to the front desk to ask for a recommendation and was given an excellent one.  I took the 15 minute walk in the challenging weather to find Brasserie Vau De Ville. It was in the middle of a square called Norrmalmstorg.  I actually think it was helped by the lights at night and the snow coming down, but it looked beautiful. I also got lucky going into what was a much trendier restaurant than I had expected, and getting a table on a Friday night.  I had a table right next to a Swedish couple who were very nice and starting chatting with me about my trip. They were obviously curious about the underdressed foreigner who ordered a Swedish beer and meatballs for dinner.

I had a nice chat with the couple and the food was absolutely amazing.  The meatballs were a lot bigger than I had pictured them to be because I’m used to the small meatballs at Ikea, but these were much bigger.  The were served with a side of pureed potatoes, lingenberries, and pickled cucumbers. It was delicious. This meal cost 330kr (£27).

I finished up my dinner, said goodbye to the nice couple, and headed out.  I walked around for about 40 minutes to see what was around my area, and it turns out the main thing near me was just shops.  Lots and lots of shops. I did manage to find a cafe that was open at 10pm and got a cinnamon bun for dessert. It was excellent.  After having the dessert, I felt like it was time to come back and get some rest. I’m really hoping the weather will be nice tomorrow morning when I wake up.  I want to do some exploring, and this weather is going to make it rough!