Scandinavia: Denmark & Sweden

Depart from home for Copenhagen. The particulars of your arrival overseas are detailed with your flight itinerary.

Upon arrival at the Copenhagen airport, claim your luggage and clear customs. VBT’s local representative will meet you outside the customs area in your arrival terminal and will be holding a VBT sign. Your representative will help you transfer to your hotel.

If you are going to be delayed meeting the transfer representative due to delayed or lost luggage, please contact One Call travel assistance to advise of your delay, and they will contact our transfer service. The drivers are generally able to wait for up to 45 minutes from the time your flight lands, after which you will be responsible for your own transfer. You may also contact One Call travel assistance (information available in your final docs) to advise them of your delay, and they will contact VBT’s transfer service.

Please note: If you arrive early, your hotel room may not be available until 4:00 p.m. You may store your luggage with the reception desk.

VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you fly in earlier than the scheduled program dates, transportation from the airport will be at your own expense.

Hotel: The Square

At 8:45 a.m. meet your VBT Representative in the lobby of The Square Hotel (Rådhuspladsen 141550, Copenhagen V, Denmark, telephone +45 3338 1200). Please come dressed for cycling (with your pedals or saddle if you use your own), as there will be no place to change into cycling clothes before beginning the warm-up ride.

We will transfer to the city of Helsingör. This historic city overlooking Øre Sound, or Øresund to the locals, is called “Elsinore” in English and is known to Shakespeare readers as the site of Hamlet’s castle. You will have a guided tour of Elsinor castle before you have time to enjoy lunch on your own. After lunch meet your Trip leaders for a bike-fitting and safety briefing,and begin your warm-up ride along the scenic eastern coast of Denmark. The 2½-mile-wide strait you are cycling along separates Denmark from Sweden and is one of the busiest waterways in the world, connecting the Baltic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Arriving back in Helsingör, you board the 20-minute ferry across the Öresund to the Swedish city of Helsingborg, the oldest city in Sweden and your home for the next two nights. During the ferry ride, you might snack on a local favorite, “two reds and a green”—a pair of sausages and a Tuborg beer.

Disembark and continue to your boutique hotel in Helsingborg’s historic center, discovering this charming city with a bustling harbor and Hamlet’s castle in the distance across the Öresund. Later, gather with your Trip Leaders for a welcome dinner, where you savor a traditional Swedish dinner.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Mollberg Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Daily Options: 11 miles (19 km)

After breakfast, you cycle out of Helsingborg along the Swedish coast toward the late medieval town of Landskrona. Your flat, easy bicycle route leads you through small fishing villages and past intimate coves. Soon, you ride past Landskrona Castle, built in the 16th century to repel Danish invasion. Today, it is still highly regarded by historians for its remarkably preserved moat system. After your picnic lunch (weather permitting), begin your afternoon ride back to Helsingborg. You might even take a swim in the Öresund.

This evening join your leaders on a short bus ride to the Fredriksdal Open-Air Museum and dinner.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Hotel Mollberg
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Daily Options: 15 miles (25.8 km), 31miles (51.6 km)

Set off from Helsingborg by bike, following a cycling route along the sea. On the outskirts of town, pedal past a castle and forest, enjoying the coastal beauty along the Kattegat – the shallow sea between Denmark and Sweden. Your morning ride follows the Kattegattleden, Sweden’s first national bicycle route and an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists. Coast past quaint fishing villages with cozy thatch-roofed homes and boat-filled harbors. Admire stunning vistas of shoals and grassy bluffs overlooking the Kattegat. Soon, you turn inland near the town of Arild and pass dairy farms and small vineyards presided over by a windmill atop a gentle rise. Celebrate your refreshing morning reel enjoying lunch on your – your leaders will have suggestions for excellent lunch options.After lunch, you continue riding to the town of Ängelholm. Reward yourself with a refreshing swim at the beautiful beach. From here, you hop on a train for a 30-minute ride back to Helsingborg.

Enjoy Sweden’s prolonged evening light as you head into town for dinner on your own, perhaps at a seafood restaurant on the city’s beachfront.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Hotel Mollberg
Meals: Breakfast
Daily Options: 23 miles (37 km), 41 miles (65.7 km)

After breakfast, you depart for the starting point of today’s ride, just under a 4-hour journey. Upon arrival, you ride along a portion of the historic Göta Canal. This 380-mile waterway was constructed in the early 19th century to connect Gothenburg on Sweden’s west coast with the Baltic Sea on the east coast. It was dug to take advantage of a number of lakes and rivers, including Lake Vättern, the nation’s second largest lake. The Göta Canal bike path is well-packed gravel, which you share with local cyclists, as pleasure boats cruise the canal alongside. Rolling farmland and neat red farmhouses mark your progress today, a picture-perfect Swedish landscape accented by church spires poking through distant trees. On the route is Bergs Slussar, where a set of seven locks gently lowers boats to the lower level of Lake Roxen. Concluding your ride, enjoy lunch on your own before traveling on to Stockholm, just under three hours. Check in and enjoy dinner in Stockholm.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast
Daily Options: 15 miles (23 km)

Shuttle to the 18th century Drottningholm (Queens’s Islet) Castle – permanent home to Sweden’s Royal family since 1981. Explore the grounds of the royal premises before biking through the scenic landscapes of one of Stockholm’s many islands. Arrive to Faringso Hembygdsgard (outdoor folk museum) to enjoy a local culinary discovery lunch. After lunch continue riding before taking a ferry through Stockholm’s waterways for an hour’s cruise to the city center. Then, join locals on a short bus ride back to our hotel.
Enjoy dinner at your leisure this evening.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Daily Options: 17.7 miles (28.5 km) – 34.5 miles (55.5 km)

One of Europe’s most picturesque cities, Stockholm is pure pleasure to explore by bicycle, as any local will tell you. Today’s ride reveals the wide-ranging breadth of Stockholm’s scenic and extensive archipelago. The largest in Sweden, it extends almost 40 miles into the waters of Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. Around 24,000 islands and islets comprise the municipality, though the city occupies just 17 of them. Originally a collection of tiny fishing villages, today you will find elegant public parks, charming coves and ports, and myriad pleasure boats against a tranquil backdrop of shimmering blue water.

Departing your hotel we bike the town archipelago to the old town Gamla Stan where your leaders will take you on a walking tour before lunch on your own. In the afternoon your ride winds from the waterfront into the city’s scenic beloved park on Djurgården Island, once a royal hunting ground and now home to many of Stockholm’s fine museums, including the dramatic Vasa Museum with its 17th-century restored ship. The Skansen Museum, is the world’s first open-air museum and zoo, dating from the late 19th century and dedicated to preserving Sweden’s pre-industrial heritage of architecture and crafts. Or on the other end of the spectrum, visit the ABBA Museum or the Grona Lund amusement park. Later, continue to your hotel via the city’s ferry service.

Later this evening, you gather for a farewell dinner at your hotel.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Daily Options: 16 miles (27 km)

Enjoy a free day to explore Stockholm on your own. Your hotel is located on Stockholm’s waterfront, accessible to its center by municipal ferry or tram line. The Royal Palace, City Hall and Gamla Stan, or Old Town, are all easily accessible. VBT provides City Information, including recommendations for cafés, restaurants, museums and transportation, so you can get the most out of your stay.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast

After breakfast,* transfer to the Stockholm airport (approximately 45 minutes) for your departing flight.** Please ensure that you are ready in the hotel reception area at the designated time.

*Please note: For guests with early-morning departures, breakfast at the hotel may not be available. Please check with the front desk to verify the times that breakfast is served.

**Please note: VBT recommends that you check your transfer time in your “Transfer Reminder” or with the hotel’s reception desk the night before your flight. VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you extend your stay beyond the scheduled program dates, return transportation to the airport will be at your own expense.

Meals: Breakfast

Depart from home for Copenhagen. The particulars of your arrival overseas are detailed with your flight itinerary.

Upon arrival at the Copenhagen airport, claim your luggage and clear customs. If your luggage is lost, fill in a PIR form before leaving the customs area; VBT representatives are not allowed into the customs area. Make sure that your VBT luggage tags are attached to your bags. This helps the representative identify you.

VBT’s local representative / driver will meet you outside the customs area in your arrival terminal and will be holding a VBT sign. If you have trouble locating your VBT representative /driver, please contact One Call travel assistance to advise of your delay or contact Copenhagen Limousine Service directly at +45 70260601. If outside office hours or during national holidays an answering machine will advise you with the information on how to contact the company’s emergency staff on duty. Your VBT representative / driver will help you transfer to your hotel.

If you are going to be delayed meeting the transfer representative due to delayed or lost luggage, please contact One Call travel assistance to advise of your delay, and they will contact our transfer service. The drivers are generally able to wait for up to 45 minutes from the time your flight lands, after which you will be responsible for your own transfer.

Please note: If you arrive early, your hotel room may not be available until 4:00 p.m. You may store your luggage with the reception desk.

VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you fly in earlier than the scheduled program dates, transportation from the airport will be at your own expense.

Hotel: The Square

Meet your VBT local guide at 8:45 a.m. in the lobby of The Square Hotel. Please come dressed for cycling (with your pedals or saddle if you use your own), as there will be no place to change into cycling clothes before beginning the warm-up ride. Please remember NOT to pack your passport in your checked luggage and to carry the passport with you in your hand luggage as you may need to present the passport to Swedish Immigration officials upon entering Sweden.

You will transfer with your local VBT guide to the city of Helsingör. This historic city overlooking Øre Sound, or Øresund to the locals, is called “Elsinore” in English and is known to Shakespeare readers as the site of Hamlet’s castle. You will have a guided tour of Elsinore castle before enjoying lunch on your own.

After lunch, meet your Trip Leaders for a bike-fitting and safety briefing and begin your warm-up ride along the scenic eastern coast of Denmark. The 2½-mile-wide strait you are cycling along separates Denmark from Sweden and is one of the busiest waterways in the world, connecting the Baltic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Arriving back in Helsingör, you board the ferry for the 20-minute crossing of the Öresund to the Swedish city of Helsingborg. During the ferry ride, you might snack on a local favorite, “two reds and a green”—a pair of sausages and a Tuborg beer. Upon disembarking in Sweden, you will shuttle to your historic countryside manor house.

Later, gather with your Trip Leaders and fellow travelers for a welcome reception and dinner prepared by your inn’s talented chef.

Hotel: Toftaholm Herrgård
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choice:
Warm-Up: 11.4 km (7.1 miles)

What to Expect: Cycle the flat bike path in Denmark along the Øre Sound, cross the waterway on a ferry to Sweden between Helsingör, Denmark, and Helsingborg, Sweden, and transfer to your countryside manor house.

After breakfast, you cycle from your inn on country roads leading you through the surrounding countryside. Your flat, easy bicycle route takes you through forests and meadows to quaint villages and around numerous lakes. Stop in the morning at a typical countryside home for fika, the traditional Swedish coffee break.

Cycle back to the hotel and enjoy the afternoon at your lakefront inn with numerous activities such as hiking, rowing on the lake or paddling canoes, or simply relaxing in one of the unique eco-friendly saunas and hot tubs. Before your included dinner tonight, enjoy listening to a local folkloric group’s performance and learn about their traditional costumes and a unique Swedish musical instrument, nyckelharpa.

Hotel: Toftaholm Herrgård
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 31.1 km (19.3 miles) – 59.5 km (36.9 miles)

Morning
Toftaholm Hergard to Lunch: 31.1 km (19.3 miles)

Afternoon
Lunch to Toftaholm Hergard: 28.4 km (17.6 miles)

What to Expect: Depart from your hotel and ride along two-lane scenic country roads. After lunch, ride back to the hotel.

Leaving the inland countryside this morning, you will shuttle to the west coast of Sweden. Today’s cycling will start outside the port city of Halmstad on the Kattegattleden cycle route. Named Europe’s Cycle Route of the Year 2018, this scenic, 242-mile (390-km) bike path follows Sweden’s west coast from Gothenburg to Helsingborg. It was Sweden’s first national bicycle route and an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists.

Your introduction to the bike path will pass some of Sweden’s longest sandy beaches and beautiful wide meadows and tree-studded hillsides before arriving in the charming resort town of Båstad, home to Sweden’s Tennis Open—held each summer since 1948. Explore the shops and cafés at your leisure before cycling to nearby Norrviken Gardens, chosen as Sweden’s most beautiful garden and Europe’s second-most beautiful garden in 2006. Enjoy a savory lunch on your own in the estate’s villa before joining a tour of one of the year’s specially themed gardens.

After your garden visit, shuttle the short distance to the village of Torekov and settle into your charming spa hotel.

This evening, enjoy dinner in the resort’s poolside restaurant with distant views of the sea.

Hotel: Torekov Hotell
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choice:
Halmstad to Norrviken Gardens: 40.9 km (25.3 miles)

What to Expect: Cycle the Kattegattleden dedicated paved bike lane and path along Sweden’s coast to the seaside resort town of Båstad. The route alternates between a cycle path and a dedicated bike lane on country roads and village streets. Traffic in Båstad can increase during the summer months, especially in July during the weeks of Sweden’s Tennis Open tournament.

After breakfast, you will cycle through the manicured farmlands and small villages of the Bjäre Pennisula with distant views of the Kattegatt Sea. Civilization on the peninsula dates to the Bronze Age, and traces of the cultivated terraces of that time can still be found today. Picture-perfect Swedish landscapes with rolling farmland and neat red farmhouses mark your progress today toward Hovs Hallar—the steepest coastal region of the peninsula. Explore by foot the nature park with its steep, red cliffs and pebbled beaches.

Afterward, as you ride back toward your hotel, pause to savor a lovely picnic lunch at the old quarry and Viking burial grounds of Dagshög. Enjoy your sumptuous picnic while feasting your eyes on the vistas of the peninsula’s rugged shoreline and distant nature-reserve island of Hallands Väderö.

It is a short ride from here to your hotel, where you may spend the afternoon relaxing by the pool or taking advantage of one of the spa treatments. (The spa is quite popular with the locals, so book in advance with your Trip Leaders when you meet them on the first day of the bike tour.)

Enjoy the evening and dinner at your leisure. You may opt to enjoy dinner in the hotel’s restaurant, walk into the village of Torekov, or take a shuttle into the town of Båstad where you will find a variety of restaurants.

Hotel: Torekov Hotell
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Today’s Ride Choice:
Torekov Hotell to Hovs Hallar Loop: 41.3 km (25.6 miles)

What to Expect: Ride well-paved, narrow country lanes with little traffic, as well as paved bike paths of the Kattegattleden cycle route. There is a short quarter-mile (400-meter) stretch of gravel road to/from the Dagshög picnic site. The terrain is fairly flat with occasional rolling hills.

This morning, you will continue your ride south, at times joining the ever-familiar Kattegattleden bike route. Traversing Sweden’s southernmost county, Skåne County, will reveal a varied landscape of forest and open shoreline meadows. Along the coast, you’ll also spin through seaside communities such as the small village of Skepparkrogen. Upon arrival in the town of Ängelholm, enjoy lunch at your leisure.

In the afternoon, cycle or hop a train to Helsingborg, the oldest town in Sweden and your home for the next two nights.
For dinner on your own this evening, you might venture out from your centrally located hotel to one of Helsingborg’s numerous restaurants.

Hotel: The Vault Hotel
Meals: Breakfast

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 33.7 km (20.9 miles) – 69.7 km (43.2 miles)

Morning
Torekov to Ängelholm: 33.7 km (20.9 miles)

Afternoon
Ängelholm to Helsingborg: 36 km (22.3 miles)

What to Expect: Ride from hotel to hotel today, or, for a shorter option, hop a train from Ängelholm to Helsingborg after your morning ride. The morning route follows the popular Kattegattleden bike route and country roads before joining busier bike lanes in the cities of Ängelholm and Helsingborg.

Set off from Helsingborg by bike, following a cycling route along the sea. On the outskirts of town, pedal past a castle and forest, enjoying the coastal beauty along the Kattegat—the shallow sea between Denmark and Sweden. Your morning ride follows the Kattegattleden route, an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists. Coast past quaint fishing villages with cozy thatch-roofed homes and boat-filled harbors. Admire stunning vistas of shoals and grassy bluffs overlooking the Kattegat. Soon, you turn inland near the town of Arild and pass dairy farms and small vineyards presided over by a windmill atop a gentle rise. Your refreshing morning reel has several lunch options along the way: a seaside restaurant or a lovely garden café.

After lunch, you may choose to shuttle in the van or continue riding to the town of Ängelholm. From here, you hop on a train for a 30-minute ride back to Helsingborg.

This evening, step out with your group to one of Helsingborg’s oldest buildings for your smörgåsbord farewell dinner. Your dinner is catered by a local chef who will introduce you to the history, flavors, and protocol of Sweden’s most famous style of dining.

Hotel: The Vault Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 36.8 km (22.8 miles) – 63.8 km (39.5 miles)

Morning
Skäret to Arild: 36.8 km (22.8 miles)

Afternoon
Arild to Ängelholm: 27 km (16.7 miles)

What to Expect: From your hotel, ride along the Kattlegattleden bike lane and path to the rural towns of Skäret and Arild. After lunch, continue on the bike path from Arild to catch a train in Ängelholm back to Helsingborg. Alternatively, you may shuttle to Ängelholm’s train station after lunch if you prefer a shorter option or more time to explore Helsingborg in the afternoon.

VBT Air Package guests: Transfer from Helsingborg to Copenhagen after breakfast. Enjoy a free day to explore Copenhagen on your own. Your hotel is ideally located in Copenhagen’s city center, and most major sites are within walking distance of the hotel. VBT provides City Information, including recommendations for cafés, restaurants, museums, and transportation, so you can get the most out of your stay.

Hotel: The Square
Meals: Breakfast

VBT Post-trip Extension guests: Transfer from Helsingborg to the Copenhagen airport for a midday flight to Stockholm. Upon arrival at the Stockholm airport, claim your luggage and clear customs. If your luggage is lost, fill in a PIR form before leaving the customs area—VBT representatives are not allowed into the customs area. (Please note: Also make certain your VBT luggage tags are affixed to your bag so your VBT representative can identify you.)

After exiting customs, enter the arrival hall and look for your VBT representative, who will be holding a VBT sign and who will make arrangements for your transfer via private car or minibus to your Stockholm hotel (transfer time is approximately 45 minutes, depending on traffic).

Enjoy the remainder of the afternoon and evening exploring Sweden’s capital.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Stockholm Plaza
Meals: Breakfast

After breakfast,* transfer to the Copenhagen airport (approximately 30 minutes) for your departing flight.** Please ensure that you are ready in the hotel reception area at the designated time.

*Please note: For guests with early-morning departures, breakfast at the hotel may not be available. Please check with the front desk to verify the times that breakfast is served.

**Please note: VBT recommends that you check your transfer time in your “Transfer Reminder” or with the hotel’s reception desk the night before your flight. VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you extend your stay beyond the scheduled program dates, return transportation to the airport will be at your own expense.

Meals: Breakfast

At 8:45 a.m. meet your VBT Representative in the lobby of The Square Hotel (Rådhuspladsen 141550, Copenhagen V, Denmark, telephone +45 3338 1200). Please come dressed for cycling (with your pedals or saddle if you use your own), as there will be no place to change into cycling clothes before beginning the warm-up ride.

We will transfer to the city of Helsingör. This historic city overlooking Øre Sound, or Øresund to the locals, is called “Elsinore” in English and is known to Shakespeare readers as the site of Hamlet’s castle. You will have a guided tour of Elsinor castle before you have time to enjoy lunch on your own. After lunch meet your Trip leaders for a bike-fitting and safety briefing,and begin your warm-up ride along the scenic eastern coast of Denmark. The 2½-mile-wide strait you are cycling along separates Denmark from Sweden and is one of the busiest waterways in the world, connecting the Baltic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Arriving back in Helsingör, you board the 20-minute ferry across the Öresund to the Swedish city of Helsingborg, the oldest city in Sweden and your home for the next two nights. During the ferry ride, you might snack on a local favorite, “two reds and a green”—a pair of sausages and a Tuborg beer.

Disembark and continue to your boutique hotel in Helsingborg’s historic center, discovering this charming city with a bustling harbor and Hamlet’s castle in the distance across the Öresund. Later, gather with your Trip Leaders for a welcome dinner, where you savor a traditional Swedish dinner.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Mollberg Hotel
Meals: Dinner
Daily Options: 11 miles (19 km)

After breakfast, you cycle out of Helsingborg along the Swedish coast toward the late medieval town of Landskrona. Your flat, easy bicycle route leads you through small fishing villages and past intimate coves. Soon, you ride past Landskrona Castle, built in the 16th century to repel Danish invasion. Today, it is still highly regarded by historians for its remarkably preserved moat system. After your picnic lunch (weather permitting), begin your afternoon ride back to Helsingborg. You might even take a swim in the Öresund.

This evening join your leaders on a short bus ride to the Fredriksdal Open-Air Museum and dinner.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Hotel Mollberg
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Daily Options: 15 miles (25.8 km), 31miles (51.6 km)

Set off from Helsingborg by bike, following a cycling route along the sea. On the outskirts of town, pedal past a castle and forest, enjoying the coastal beauty along the Kattegat – the shallow sea between Denmark and Sweden. Your morning ride follows the Kattegattleden, Sweden’s first national bicycle route and an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists. Coast past quaint fishing villages with cozy thatch-roofed homes and boat-filled harbors. Admire stunning vistas of shoals and grassy bluffs overlooking the Kattegat. Soon, you turn inland near the town of Arild and pass dairy farms and small vineyards presided over by a windmill atop a gentle rise. Celebrate your refreshing morning reel enjoying lunch on your – your leaders will have suggestions for excellent lunch options.After lunch, you continue riding to the town of Ängelholm. Reward yourself with a refreshing swim at the beautiful beach. From here, you hop on a train for a 30-minute ride back to Helsingborg.

Enjoy Sweden’s prolonged evening light as you head into town for dinner on your own, perhaps at a seafood restaurant on the city’s beachfront.

Hotel: V Hotel Helsingborg
Alternate Hotel: Elite Hotel Mollberg
Meals: Breakfast
Daily Options: 23 miles (37 km), 41 miles (65.7 km)

After breakfast, you depart for the starting point of today’s ride, just under a 4-hour journey. Upon arrival, you ride along a portion of the historic Göta Canal. This 380-mile waterway was constructed in the early 19th century to connect Gothenburg on Sweden’s west coast with the Baltic Sea on the east coast. It was dug to take advantage of a number of lakes and rivers, including Lake Vättern, the nation’s second largest lake. The Göta Canal bike path is well-packed gravel, which you share with local cyclists, as pleasure boats cruise the canal alongside. Rolling farmland and neat red farmhouses mark your progress today, a picture-perfect Swedish landscape accented by church spires poking through distant trees. On the route is Bergs Slussar, where a set of seven locks gently lowers boats to the lower level of Lake Roxen. Concluding your ride, enjoy lunch on your own before traveling on to Stockholm, just under three hours. Check in and enjoy dinner in Stockholm.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast
Daily Options: 15 miles (23 km)

Shuttle to the 18th century Drottningholm (Queens’s Islet) Castle – permanent home to Sweden’s Royal family since 1981. Explore the grounds of the royal premises before biking through the scenic landscapes of one of Stockholm’s many islands. Arrive to Faringso Hembygdsgard (outdoor folk museum) to enjoy a local culinary discovery lunch. After lunch continue riding before taking a ferry through Stockholm’s waterways for an hour’s cruise to the city center. Then, join locals on a short bus ride back to our hotel.
Enjoy dinner at your leisure this evening.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Daily Options: 17.7 miles (28.5 km) – 34.5 miles (55.5 km)

One of Europe’s most picturesque cities, Stockholm is pure pleasure to explore by bicycle, as any local will tell you. Today’s ride reveals the wide-ranging breadth of Stockholm’s scenic and extensive archipelago. The largest in Sweden, it extends almost 40 miles into the waters of Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. Around 24,000 islands and islets comprise the municipality, though the city occupies just 17 of them. Originally a collection of tiny fishing villages, today you will find elegant public parks, charming coves and ports, and myriad pleasure boats against a tranquil backdrop of shimmering blue water.

Departing your hotel we bike the town archipelago to the old town Gamla Stan where your leaders will take you on a walking tour before lunch on your own. In the afternoon your ride winds from the waterfront into the city’s scenic beloved park on Djurgården Island, once a royal hunting ground and now home to many of Stockholm’s fine museums, including the dramatic Vasa Museum with its 17th-century restored ship. The Skansen Museum, is the world’s first open-air museum and zoo, dating from the late 19th century and dedicated to preserving Sweden’s pre-industrial heritage of architecture and crafts. Or on the other end of the spectrum, visit the ABBA Museum or the Grona Lund amusement park. Later, continue to your hotel via the city’s ferry service.

Later this evening, you gather for a farewell dinner at your hotel.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Daily Options: 16 miles (27 km)

Your tour ends after breakfast. A taxi ride from the Elite Hotel Marina Tower to the Stockholm train station costs approximately SEK 250/$25 USD and takes approximately 15 minutes. A taxi ride to the Stockholm airport costs approximately SEK 1,000/$120 USD and takes approximately 45 minutes.

Hotel: Elite Hotel Marina Tower Stockholm
Meals: Breakfast

At 8:45 a.m., meet your VBT local guide in the lobby of The Square Hotel (Rådhuspladsen 141550, Copenhagen V, Denmark, telephone +45 3338 1200). Please come dressed for cycling (with your pedals or saddle if you use your own), as there will be no place to change into cycling clothes before beginning the warm-up ride. Please remember NOT to pack your passport in your checked luggage and to carry the passport with you in your hand luggage as you may need to present the passport to Swedish Immigration officials upon entering Sweden.

You will transfer with your local VBT guide to the city of Helsingör. This historic city overlooking Øre Sound, or Øresund to the locals, is called “Elsinore” in English and is known to Shakespeare readers as the site of Hamlet’s castle. You will have a guided tour of Elsinore castle before enjoying lunch on your own.

After lunch, meet your Trip Leaders for a bike-fitting and safety briefing and begin your warm-up ride along the scenic eastern coast of Denmark. The 2½-mile-wide strait you are cycling along separates Denmark from Sweden and is one of the busiest waterways in the world, connecting the Baltic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Arriving back in Helsingör, you board the ferry for the 20-minute crossing of the Öresund to the Swedish city of Helsingborg. During the ferry ride, you might snack on a local favorite, “two reds and a green”—a pair of sausages and a Tuborg beer. Upon disembarking in Sweden, you will shuttle to your historic countryside manor house.

Later, gather with your Trip Leaders and fellow travelers for a welcome reception and dinner prepared by your inn’s talented chef.

Hotel: Toftaholm Herrgård
Meals: Dinner

Today’s Ride Choice:
Warm-Up: 11.4 km (7.1 miles)

What to Expect: Cycle the flat bike path in Denmark along the Øre Sound, cross the waterway on a ferry to Sweden between Helsingör, Denmark, and Helsingborg, Sweden, and transfer to your countryside manor house.

After breakfast, you cycle from your inn on country roads leading you through the surrounding countryside. Your flat, easy bicycle route takes you through forests and meadows to quaint villages and around numerous lakes. Stop in the morning at a typical countryside home for fika, the traditional Swedish coffee break.

Cycle back to the hotel and enjoy the afternoon at your lakefront inn with numerous activities such as hiking, rowing on the lake or paddling canoes, or simply relaxing in one of the unique eco-friendly saunas and hot tubs. Before your included dinner tonight, enjoy listening to a local folkloric group’s performance and learn about their traditional costumes and a unique Swedish musical instrument, nyckelharpa.

Hotel: Toftaholm Herrgård
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 31.1 km (19.3 miles) – 59.5 km (36.9 miles)

Morning
Toftaholm Hergard to Lunch: 31.1 km (19.3 miles)

Afternoon
Lunch to Toftaholm Hergard: 28.4 km (17.6 miles)

What to Expect: Depart from your hotel and ride along two-lane scenic country roads. After lunch, ride back to the hotel.

Leaving the inland countryside this morning, you will shuttle to the west coast of Sweden. Today’s cycling will start outside the port city of Halmstad on the Kattegattleden cycle route. Named Europe’s Cycle Route of the Year 2018, this scenic, 242-mile (390-km) bike path follows Sweden’s west coast from Gothenburg to Helsingborg. It was Sweden’s first national bicycle route and an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists.

Your introduction to the bike path will pass some of Sweden’s longest sandy beaches and beautiful wide meadows and tree-studded hillsides before arriving in the charming resort town of Båstad, home to Sweden’s Tennis Open—held each summer since 1948. Explore the shops and cafés at your leisure before cycling to nearby Norrviken Gardens, chosen as Sweden’s most beautiful garden and Europe’s second-most beautiful garden in 2006. Enjoy a savory lunch on your own in the estate’s villa before joining a tour of one of the year’s specially themed gardens.

After your garden visit, shuttle the short distance to the village of Torekov and settle into your charming spa hotel.

This evening, enjoy dinner in the resort’s poolside restaurant with distant views of the sea.

Hotel: Torekov Hotell
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choice:
Halmstad to Norrviken Gardens: 40.9 km (25.3 miles)

What to Expect: Cycle the Kattegattleden dedicated paved bike lane and path along Sweden’s coast to the seaside resort town of Båstad. The route alternates between a cycle path and a dedicated bike lane on country roads and village streets. Traffic in Båstad can increase during the summer months, especially in July during the weeks of Sweden’s Tennis Open tournament.

After breakfast, you will cycle through the manicured farmlands and small villages of the Bjäre Pennisula with distant views of the Kattegatt Sea. Civilization on the peninsula dates to the Bronze Age, and traces of the cultivated terraces of that time can still be found today. Picture-perfect Swedish landscapes with rolling farmland and neat red farmhouses mark your progress today toward Hovs Hallar—the steepest coastal region of the peninsula. Explore by foot the nature park with its steep, red cliffs and pebbled beaches.

Afterward, as you ride back toward your hotel, pause to savor a lovely picnic lunch at the old quarry and Viking burial grounds of Dagshög. Enjoy your sumptuous picnic while feasting your eyes on the vistas of the peninsula’s rugged shoreline and distant nature-reserve island of Hallands Väderö.

It is a short ride from here to your hotel, where you may spend the afternoon relaxing by the pool or taking advantage of one of the spa treatments. (The spa is quite popular with the locals, so book in advance with your Trip Leaders when you meet them on the first day of the bike tour.)

Enjoy the evening and dinner at your leisure. You may opt to enjoy dinner in the hotel’s restaurant, walk into the village of Torekov, or take a shuttle into the town of Båstad where you will find a variety of restaurants.

Hotel: Torekov Hotell
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Today’s Ride Choice:
Torekov Hotell to Hovs Hallar Loop: 41.3 km (25.6 miles)

What to Expect: Ride well-paved, narrow country lanes with little traffic, as well as paved bike paths of the Kattegattleden cycle route. There is a short quarter-mile (400-meter) stretch of gravel road to/from the Dagshög picnic site. The terrain is fairly flat with occasional rolling hills.

This morning, you will continue your ride south, at times joining the ever-familiar Kattegattleden bike route. Traversing Sweden’s southernmost county, Skåne County, will reveal a varied landscape of forest and open shoreline meadows. Along the coast, you’ll also spin through seaside communities such as the small village of Skepparkrogen. Upon arrival in the town of Ängelholm, enjoy lunch at your leisure.

In the afternoon, cycle or hop a train to Helsingborg, the oldest town in Sweden and your home for the next two nights.
For dinner on your own this evening, you might venture out from your centrally located hotel to one of Helsingborg’s numerous restaurants.

Hotel: The Vault Hotel
Meals: Breakfast

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 33.7 km (20.9 miles) – 69.7 km (43.2 miles)

Morning
Torekov to Ängelholm: 33.7 km (20.9 miles)

Afternoon
Ängelholm to Helsingborg: 36 km (22.3 miles)

What to Expect: Ride from hotel to hotel today, or, for a shorter option, hop a train from Ängelholm to Helsingborg after your morning ride. The morning route follows the popular Kattegattleden bike route and country roads before joining busier bike lanes in the cities of Ängelholm and Helsingborg.

Set off from Helsingborg by bike, following a cycling route along the sea. On the outskirts of town, pedal past a castle and forest, enjoying the coastal beauty along the Kattegat—the shallow sea between Denmark and Sweden. Your morning ride follows the Kattegattleden route, an inspiration to local and visiting cyclists. Coast past quaint fishing villages with cozy thatch-roofed homes and boat-filled harbors. Admire stunning vistas of shoals and grassy bluffs overlooking the Kattegat. Soon, you turn inland near the town of Arild and pass dairy farms and small vineyards presided over by a windmill atop a gentle rise. Your refreshing morning reel has several lunch options along the way: a seaside restaurant or a lovely garden café.

After lunch, you may choose to shuttle in the van or continue riding to the town of Ängelholm. From here, you hop on a train for a 30-minute ride back to Helsingborg.

This evening, step out with your group to one of Helsingborg’s oldest buildings for your smörgåsbord farewell dinner. Your dinner is catered by a local chef who will introduce you to the history, flavors, and protocol of Sweden’s most famous style of dining.

Hotel: The Vault Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Today’s Ride Choices:
Cumulative Distance Range: 36.8 km (22.8 miles) – 63.8 km (39.5 miles)

Morning
Skäret to Arild: 36.8 km (22.8 miles)

Afternoon
Arild to Ängelholm: 27 km (16.7 miles)

What to Expect: From your hotel, ride along the Kattlegattleden bike lane and path to the rural towns of Skäret and Arild. After lunch, continue on the bike path from Arild to catch a train in Ängelholm back to Helsingborg. Alternatively, you may shuttle to Ängelholm’s train station after lunch if you prefer a shorter option or more time to explore Helsingborg in the afternoon.

Your tour ends upon arrival at The Square in Copenhagen. It is a short stroll (approximately 15 -20 minutes) from The Square Hotel (Rådhuspladsen 141550, Copenhagen V, Denmark) to Copenhagen’s central train station. A taxi ride to the Copenhagen airport costs approximately DKK300/$45 USD and takes approximately 30 minutes.

Meals: Breakfast