At the weekend we were thinking of going away in the camper van but didn’t get around to booking anything so were looking at what day adventures we could get up to, and started looking into Visingsö.
About Visingsö
Visingsö is a small island on Lake Vattern. It is 14 kilometres long and 3 kilometres wide, so super small and completely doable for a day trip. There are only approximately 750 people who live on the island all year round, with more in the summer.
You can get to Visingsö by ferry from Gränna, which is a small town just outside of Jönköping, famous for their Polkagris sweets.
The timetable was pretty much two ferries an hour so lots of options with times and when purchasing tickets you have open times to allow as much or as little time on the island as you want. The ferry cost SEK 160 return for two adults, which is about £12.50 so super reasonable. You can go as a foot passenger, which we did and left our car in the port car park, or you can but a ticket to take your car, or you can also take bikes.
It takes about 20/25 minutes to get across.
Getting Around Visingsö
I was a little confused from looking online as to whether or not you could take your car, but you absolutely can. The information about taking a car over came with options of parking on the other side so I was unsure if that meant driving on the island was not preferred.
We hired bikes to cycle around and as you get off the ferry the cycle hire is right in the port. They do advise booking in advance to ensure they have bikes but I would think that depends on when in the season and I imagine in the summer this is in high demand. We passed many people on the hire bikes so definitely a popular option. The hire cost SEK 360 for two adults for the whole day, which is about £28.
What To Do On Visingsö
We thought about taking the camper van but the campsite looked to be at the port so decided to do a day trip instead and it was perfect.
- Obviously it is an island in the middle of a lake so beaches, swimming and all the usual options related to that.
- You can cycle around the island.
- You can also walk around the island, and both cycling and walking is very clearly posted on various routes.
- We passed quite a few people that had opted to explore by horse and cart and also a tourist train that operated on the road too.
- The ruins of Visingsborg Castle are next to the port.
- Visingsö Oak forest with over 300,000 oak trees.
- Brahekyrkan, with its super ornate interior.
- Lots of burial grounds, runes, and the Russian cemetery in memory of the largest number of prisoners held in the prisoner of war camp in the 1700s.
- Temple garden, which seemed a little out of place for Sweden and not the usual architecture but had a cute cafe and sold local art and ceramics.
- Alpaca experience and cafe.
- Golf course.
- Lots of local Loppis from residents selling local produce and crafts.
- Lots of cafes – we ate at Visingsö Pensionat & Café, which is a guesthouse and cafe and sold some great local cider.
- When we were there they had a renaissance fair on that we wandered around also.
Obviously it is an island in the middle of a lake so beaches, swimming and all the usual options related to that.
What We Thought
Super cute little island to explore for the day, especially if you like to cycle and enjoy the sun and views pretty much from wherever you are.
I would definitely go back and would love to do the Alpaca experience and walk one!
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