What to bring from Sweden - souvenirs and gifts

"What to bring from Sweden?" - This question is often asked by tourists planning a trip to this Scandinavian country.

Quality Swedish chocolate, meat and fish delicacies, souvenirs with famous fairy-tale heroes and Vikings are often brought from there. If finances allow you to purchase something more expensive, then take sets of cosmetics, shoes, crystal products.

Let's take a closer look at what you can bring from Sweden for yourself and as a gift to friends.

Memorable souvenirs from Sweden - a trifle, but nice

Stockholm's main street, Drottninggatan (Drottninggatan), connecting the Old Town and new districts, is a concentration of souvenir shops of various sizes. But for money it is much more profitable to buy various trinkets as a gift not in Stockholm, but in smaller towns, and always in small shops. What to bring from Sweden, what souvenirs will be the most original gift?

Swedish "brand" No. 1 is an elk; in every souvenir shop they offer its most diverse variations. In Sweden you can buy many products: postcards and magnets, badges and bags, T-shirts, dishes and aprons, oven mitts. Wooden figures and soft toys in the form of an animal, as well as comic road and car signs "Caution, moose!" The selection of souvenirs is huge!

The next character, claiming to be the main character of the country, is the Dalekarli horse, which is also called the Dala horse, Dala Hest, the horse from Dalarna. In all of Stockholm's souvenir shops, you can find wooden Dalekali horses, most often painted red or blue. A chocolate Dala Hast will be a good gift for the sweet tooth, and for your own kitchen you can bring a stylish towel with the image of this character.

Ancient Viking figurines made of metal or wood are gifts from Sweden that are considered classics. But we must remember that in reality the Vikings did not wear helmets with horns. There were helmets, because in the battle they served to protect the head and face, but the directors who “sought to show the Scandinavian warriors too terrifying” “attached” the Viking horns.

Be that as it may, on the shelves of souvenir shops of Stockholm and other cities of Sweden you can find figures of different Vikings. This theme was continued in other souvenirs that you can buy for a gift: swords, amulets, cups, helmets with horns, jewelry with the corresponding symbols.

Almost all of us from childhood have known who Pippi Longstocking, Carlson, Kid, Emil and Madiken are. These heroes of the works of the famous writer Astrid Lindgren are known and loved by children all over the world. And although the cost of such toys is quite high (starting from 100 kroons), is it possible to disagree with the fact that to bring your favorite character doll from Sweden as a present to your child is a great idea! You can buy a gift in specialized stores with toys (for example, BR leksaker), in the store at the Unibaken Museum or in souvenir shops.

What else is worth buying in Sweden is klogs (codfish) - medieval shoes of cheerful colors, the sole of which is wooden and the upper is made of genuine leather. Such handmade products can be considered both an original souvenir and a practical thing for everyday use. Swedes even now in summer often wear this comfortable, albeit a bit ridiculous, shoe. Treskurs were very popular in the 1970s, when members of the famous ABBA band performed in them.

Food: what is brought from Sweden

Delicious souvenirs from Sweden also have considerable demand among tourists.

It is tempting to bring from this country dried or smoked moose and venison, moose in jars (from 150 kroons), moose milk cheeses. You will not find anything like this anywhere else!

In addition, the supermarkets COOP, ICA, HEMHÖP (they are in Stockholm and most cities in Sweden) have a fairly wide range of fish products. You can buy canned fish spreads, herring and caviar in jars, delicious salted, dried or smoked red fish. Herring and caviar are sold in small banks, prices start at 10 kroons.

What especially brave tourists can bring from Stockholm is an exotic surstroemming. The name translates as "rotten herring", and, in general, it is very accurate. Surströmming is a fermented canned herring with a very unpleasant odor. So that it does not spread too much, the canned food is opened under water or with candles. Such a herring is eaten by adding raw onions and boiled potatoes, or they make a filling for pita bread from it. The price of a jar surströmming is from 50 CZK

A jar of jam from some northern berries, such as cloudberries, will be a good gift from Sweden. This jam is considered the most delicious here and is included in the daily menu of the Swedes.

In Sweden there are several companies engaged in the production of high-quality chocolate products. The most recognized and popular brand of chocolate Marabou. The manufacturing company produces a huge range of products, and during the New Year and Christmas holidays, customers are also offered a limited series of thematic chocolate bars.

You should know that in Sweden you can buy real Marabou chocolate in Pressbyrån stalls and HEMHÖP, COOP, ICA supermarkets - there they offer it at 30 kroons per bar.

Although coffee is not grown in Stockholm, it was the Swedes who better than other Europeans learned to process grains and prepare excellent quality products from them. In the previously mentioned supermarkets, both for yourself and as a gift, you can buy coffee varieties such as Zoega, Gevalia, Arvid Nordquist.Find out RATES or book any accommodation using this form

Swedish alcoholic drinks

If we talk about alcohol, then in Sweden they produce “Carnegie Porter” beer, various liqueurs and herbal tinctures, and the famous Absolut vodka. Here you will find what to choose and buy for both a gift and a collection in your personal bar.

One of the most famous and popular national alcoholic beverages is Aquavit vodka. It can be infused with dill, cinnamon, coriander, St. John's wort and other herbs, and it is usually served with smoked salmon. Whether it is necessary to clarify what to bring to the connoisseurs of strong alcohol Aquavit vodka from Stockholm, and also other cities in Sweden, is to present them with the best gift. The strength of this alcohol is 38-50%, a bottle of 0.5 liter costs about 200 crowns.

You can also recommend buying a glog - it is perfect for a gift to women and connoisseurs of light alcoholic drinks. Glogue is a traditional Scandinavian drink made from wine flavored with a variety of spices (in fact, it is a well-known mulled wine). In Sweden, you can buy a glog not only in an ordinary 0.5 liter bottle, but also in a souvenir pack consisting of several bottles with drinks of different tastes. The greatest demand is for “bottle” glosses of the Blossa Glogg brand.

Tourists need to remember that you can buy alcohol in Sweden only at specialized retail outlets, for example, in Systembolaget stores. And one more thing: no more than 1 liter of spirits is allowed to be exported from this country.

Smokers - Swedish Snus

Snus is the perfect souvenir for smokers - the so-called shredded and moistened tobacco.

Snus do not smoke. It is placed under the upper lip and kept there for 5-30 minutes, and then thrown away. During the use of snus, nicotine enters the body, but the lungs are not contaminated with tobacco resins. And there is no harm to others from such use of tobacco.

Of course, nobody calls for the use of snus here. But if you need to bring something from Stockholm as a gift to smoking friends who cannot cope with nicotine addiction, do not forget about snus.

In Sweden, you can buy different types of snus: regular with a taste of tobacco, or flavored, for example, menthol, mint, raspberry. This tobacco product can be loose - in cans of 40-50 g, and portioned - packed in cotton bags of 1 g. The average price of one can is 20 kroons.

There is an opportunity to buy snus in souvenir shops, in Pressbyrån stalls, in supermarkets.

Cosmetics & Perfumes

What you can bring from Sweden both for yourself and as a gift to women is cosmetics. The cosmetics that are produced here are hypoallergenic and environmentally friendly, of excellent quality.

The most popular brand is Oriflame. The manufacturer offers perfumes and decorative cosmetics, as well as cosmetics and body care accessories. All Oriflame products are distributed through catalogs, but the company has an official boutique in Stockholm. And since sales are often organized in Sweden, as in other European countries, this boutique is a must-see.

IsaDora is another well-known brand. The company is mainly engaged in the manufacture of makeup products, and for their manufacture it uses only natural coloring substances without perfumes.

Curiosa is also on the list of cosmetics brands popular in Sweden and Europe. The products of this company cannot be called budget, but it is of impeccable quality, especially decorative and care lines.

Swedish crystal products

When planning your shopping in Sweden, and thinking about what to buy as a memorable and practical souvenir, take a look at the crystal. Swedish crystal products have excellent quality and original forms; they are in constant demand in Europe and America.

In the south of the state, in the province of Smoland, there is a large-scale craft center for the production of crystal. This center, consisting of 15 villages with specialized workshops, is called Glasriket ("Kingdom of Glass"). The workshops are open for visitors who can observe the process of creating various products and buy their favorite products.

One of the most famous brands of Swedish crystal is Moleros. The manufacturer offers multi-colored masks, candle holders, fancy bottles, vases of various shapes.

More expensive brands include Orrefors and Costa Boda. Swedish crystal and art glass are not only amazingly beautiful, the products from it are also practical, and they also have collectible value (referring to original author's works).

But it’s not enough just to decide what to bring crystal from Sweden - this is the best option for a memorable gift. You still need to know where to buy it. This can be done in the “Kingdom of Glass”, in the ethnographic museum “Skansen”, in the shops of the Old Town in Stockholm - prices here start at 300 EEK. But you can save some money by buying crystal at Duty Free at the airport - there the minimum price is 200 crowns.

Watch the video: What souvenirs to bring home from Sweden (November 2024).