Malmö

From MyVacationsTo

Malmö [1] is Sweden's third largest municipality with a population of about 271,000. It is a port city located on the southern tip of the country.

Contents 1 Understand 2 Get in 2.1 By plane 2.2 By train 2.3 By car 2.4 By bus 2.5 By boat 3 Get around 4 See 4.1 Itineraries 5 Do 6 Learn 7 Work 8 Buy 9 Getting Online 10 Eat 10.1 Budget 10.2 Mid-range 10.3 Splurge 11 Drink 12 Sleep 12.1 Budget 12.2 Mid-range 12.3 Splurge 13 Contact 14 Stay safe 15 Cope 16 Get out

[edit] Understand

Malmö, along with the southern parts of Sweden, belonged to Denmark until 1658. In many ways more Danish than Swedish, many inhabitants feel more longing towards Denmark than their home-country. Danish sentiments were supressed by the Swedish government as late as into the 1960's, where speaking Danish was prevented indirectly by the government. The city is also very much like Copenhagen in its mentality and architecture.

Malmö has a large part of its inhabitants born abroad, thus contributing to a rich cultural life and many exotic and fine food opportunities. The ship building Kockums company used to be the city's biggest employer, but today the industrial city of old has been replaced by something more middle class.

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

Both Sturup airport and Copenhagen Airport serve Malmö. If you get to the Sturup airport you'll have to take the bus shuttle service to downtown Malmö, but first check the schedules at Flygbussarna's homepage because on Saturday afternoons they don't have many buses.

[edit] By train

Trains from Copenhagen cross the bridge in 35 minutes. There are about ten daily X2000 trains to Stockholm and roughly 100 daily departures for the nearby university town of Lund (17km north).

[edit] By car

If you don't take the train across the bridge (and tunnel), you can drive for yourself. It is a pay bridge, you pay to enter Sweden, after you go through the tunnel and cross the bridge. The view is much less obstructed if you choose to go by car as compared to train.

[edit] By bus

Gråhundbus, Swebus Express, and Säfflebussen have routes to Copenhagen and other places. To Copenhagen the buses take longer but are cheaper than the train, especially for daytrips.

[edit] By boat

There is a ferry link from Travemünde, Germany to Malmö.

[edit] Get around

Use the green Skånetrafiken buses to get around town.

[edit] See

• At the heart of Malmö lies two squares, called appropriately, the Big Square (Stortorget) and the Little Square (Lilla torg), and directly connected at one corner.
  • At the center of the Big Square is a statue of King Karl X Gustav of Sweden, who took the city from Danish dominion. The ornate Malmö City Hall (built in 1546) is on the east side, and in the northwest corner is Kockska Huset, the house of Jörgen Kock, a German immigrant who became mayor of the city and achieved wealth simply and directly: by taking control of the city mint.
  • The Little Square is the place for socializing and dining, with the edges taken up by various restaurants' outdoor tables. In the winter the square becomes a skating rink. The Form/Design Center [2] (free entrance) is also located here.

• Malmöhus Castle, located west of the old city core, was built in 1437 by Erik of Pomerania, inhabited by the kings of Denmark in the 1500s, and used as a prison until 1914. Currently it houses a history museum, art museum, aquarium, and terrarium. Sharing the castle grounds are other Malmö Museum facilities such as the Science and Maritime House and the Commandant's House. Fiskehoddorna - a small, traditional fish market - lies nearby.

• Turning Torso, completed in 2005, is at 190m the tallest building in Scandinavia. Mostly apartments with some offices, it's located in a new zone near the waterfront and has no observation tower or other sightseeing facilities, so it's probably best to admire it from afar (visible from almost anywhere in the city). If you are visiting in the summer there is a nice waterfront promenade and a open-sea bath nearby the Turning Torso. There is also a state of the art skateboarding park in the area.

• Möllevångstorget square, south of the city center, has a bustling open-air market on weekends. The surrounding neighborhood is full of inexpensive Asian and Middle Eastern shops, restaurants and grocery stores catering to the alternative side of the city, the immigrant population and people who are tired of mainstream commerce.

• Gamla Väster, between Lilla Torget and Malmöhus, is a quiet and sophisticated part of town with lots of galleries, design shops and restaurants.

• Davidshallstorg is a square with design shops, clothes stores and restaurants. The atmosphere here is posh, so the vibe is very different from Möllevångstorget's. There are similar shops on the nearby parts of Davidshallsgatan.

• S:t Petri kyrka is the city's oldest church (from the 14th century), while S:t Johannes kyrka probably is the largest.

• A visit to Malmö Stadsbibliotek [3] (Malmö's public library, Kung Oscars väg) is a must for all architecture buffs and intellectuals.

• Follow it with a visit to Malmö Konsthall [4] (Malmö Art Hall, S:t Johannesgatan 7, free entrance).

[edit] Itineraries

• Malmö is the end of the itinerary 'Sixteen days in Götaland and Svealand'.

[edit] Do

• Visit the Folkets park (People's Park, free entrance) [5]. Try the different rides on the amusement park (mostly for smaller kids, as the attractions aren't scary enough for teenagers). Visit the terrarium. Ride ponies. Sunbathe. Eat and drink.

• Visit Malmöfestivalen [6] - a free festival that takes place for eight days every year, with lots of cultural and culinary experiences.

[edit] Learn

[edit] Work

[edit] Buy

Malmö offers four shopping plazas in the centre, HansaCompagniet, Triangeln, Storgatan, and Caroli. Storgatan mostly has clothes for young people and coffee shops. The others offer the usual mixture of town shopping with clothes, cameras, jewelry, electronics, books, movies etc. blended with eateries, both international fast food chains and local ones. World famous Swedish glassware can also be bought there.

The main shopping streets are Södergatan and Södra Förstadsgatan, where you can find all kinds of shops.

Les Trois Roses (Gustav Adolfs torg, Davidshallstorg) is a great chocolaterie.

[edit] Getting Online

• Sidewalk Express, Railway station. 19 SEK per hour.

[edit] Eat

[edit] Budget

• Many places around Möllevångstorget cater to the budget option. Get a falafel (15-25 SEK), Indian, Thai, Middle Eastern or Chinese meal from 35 SEK and up. Plenty to choose from. Råå Bar & Restaurang and Krua Thai on Möllevångstorget are two great, inexpensive Thai places. On Södra Förstadsgatan near Möllevångstorget are a number of good places - Ganesha does tasty and cheap Indian fast food for 45 SEK and up, and restaurant Middle East has good shawarmas for 30 SEK. Just off Möllevångstorget on Ystadsgatan is an unpretentious Persian restaurant which does good food.
• Turkish restaurant Ankara (on Södra Förstadsgatan near the Hilton Hotel) does an excellent buffet (59 SEK daytime and 79 SEK evenings). On Friday and Saturday evenings they have a free belly-dancing show too.
• Dolce Sicilia [7], Drottningtorget 6. Heavenly homemade ice cream.
• Lilla glassfabriken [8], Holmgatan 9. Really tasty homemade ice cream and sorbet.

[edit] Mid-range

There are a lot of restaurants in the Little Square with outdoor seating (with heating year-round).

• Mello Yello, +46 40304525. A delicious mix of Swedish and European food. The best view and service is in the one located close to the Turning Torso and the beach (150 SEK each).
• Victor's, +46 40127670. Swedish and international cuisine.
• Izakaya Koi, +46 4075700. Not quite like a Tokyo tavern, but it still manages to attract visiting Japanese businessmen.
• Steak House. +46 40973497.
• Indian Side, +46 40307744.
• Indian Haweli on Södra Förstadsgatan near Möllevångstorget is not the best Indian restaurant in town and the service is quite bad (140 SEK each).
• La Couronne on Södra Förstadsgatan (north of the Hilton Hotel) does excellent moules marinieres with or without french fries and mayonaisse. Nearby restaurant Brogatan on Brogatan serves oysters at 14 SEK each, which is almost what you'd pay in the shop (12 SEK).
• Nesta on the main shopping street (at the corner of Baltzar gata) is an excellent mid-priced Italian café, with good snacks and Malmö's best coffee.
• Pizzeria Ristorante Siciliana (Möllevångsgatan 34) is an authentic Italian restaurant with great food. It was founded in 1970.
• Moonlitlounge [9] (Davidshallstorg 7) has a nice mix between unpretentious cosyness and Davidshallstorg-style trendyness. Mainly Italian food. Mains 120-205 SEK.
• Tempo bar och kök (Södra Skolgatan 30A) is a trendy place with a modern version of Swedish food. Mains 75-135 SEK.
• Metro [10] (Ängelholmsgatan 14) is another restaurant and bar for the local hipsters. They also have club nights. Mains 115-230 SEK.

[edit] Splurge

[edit] Drink

• Möllevångstorget Any of the many bars, cafés and restaurants in this bustling part of town is good value.
• Slagthuset [11], Jörgen Kocksgatan 7A. The city's best-known nightclub, housed in a former slaughterhouse (hence the name). The facility also includes a performance theater and restaurants during the day.
• Étage [12], Stortorget 6. Popular nightclub in the Big Square.
• Gatan Bar, Master Johansgatan 15. Lively pub with darts, located just off the Little Square.
• Kulturbolaget (usually known as just KB) [13] (Bergsgatan 18) is Malmö's premier rock club with many international and national touring acts. They also have clubs on weekends for those who are more into partying.

You can pick up the free Nöjesguiden and Dygnet Runt magazines in various stores to read more about Malmö's nightlife. They are only available in Swedish though.

[edit] Sleep

[edit] Budget

• STF Hostel Malmö City [14], Rönngatan 1, phone 040-611 62 20, is the IYHF hostel in town. Dorm bed 180 SEK, singles from 325 SEK, doubles from 430 SEK. Add 45 SEK to the price if you're not a member of the IYHF. It opened in 2006, so it's new and fresh. Helpful staff.

[edit] Mid-range

• SAS Radisson [15], Östergatan 10. Central location.
• First Hotel Garden [16], Baltzargatan 20. Central location, with a unique rooftop garden.
• Hilton Malmo City [17], Triangeln 2. A gigantic edifice towering over the Triangeln shopping center.
• Scandic St. Jörgen [18], Stora Nygatan 35. A nice building with views over the Gustav Adolfs Torg market square and the famous Hansa shopping mall.

[edit] Splurge

[edit] Contact

[edit] Stay safe

[edit] Cope

[edit] Get out

Skånetrafiken's Around the Sound (Öresund Rundt) ticket is a great way to see the surrounding region of Scania as well as North Zealand, Denmark (including Copenhagen). For 199 SEK, you get unlimited train travel and one ferry trip, for two days.