The Vasa Museum is in my opinion the must see visitor attraction in Stockholm displaying the remains of the 17th century warship the Vasa.
Background
The Vasa was launched in 1628 to be the greatest warship in the world, sadly on it's maiden voyage it keeled over and sank just off Djurgarden island where the museum is situated today. It lay at the bottom of the sea for over 330 years until it was raised in 1961 a temporary museum was opened the following year but the current Vasa museum which now houses the ship opened to the public in 1990.
~The Museum~
Before entering the museum, take a look at the exterior, where you will see 3 large 'masts' protruding from the roof; these represent the height the masts of the Vasa would have reached. Upon entering the Museum the first thing you notice is the darkness and the damp air, this is due to the fact that the ship has to be dried out extremely slowly to avoid further damage to the structure. As your eyes adjust to the light the immense size of the ship itself hits you as it dominates the main hall of the museum, it really is huge. The museum is constructed in such a manner that the ship can be viewed right the way round at various levels, from below, half way up at cannon level and looking down on to the deck of the ship. Over 90 per cent of the structure was intact when the ship was raised from the seabed and further restoration work has been done to complete the structure. This has been down using lighter coloured wood that is easily discernable from the original structure, which in my opinion is a nice touch. The ship is covered in intricate carvings and some of these have been repainted to show how they would have looked in 1628.
In addition to the ship itself the museum contains numerous exhibitions, which they do change occasionally, but revolve around the numerous artifacts found on the ship or to life in Stockholm at the time of the building of the Vasa. These exhibitions are generally well done but pale into insignificance next to the ship itself.
~Recommendations~
I would recommend to anyone visiting the Vasa to go on a guided tour, these are conducted in various languages; English tours are available at 1230 and 1430 throughout the year and more frequently during the summer months. Likewise there is an excellent Audio-visual presentation available, this covers not only the history of the Vasa but also of Anders Franzen's quest to find the Vasa and the subsequent salvage operation, well worth seeing. This shows hourly with English subtitles and in English at 11.30.and 13.30. It is well worth checking these details when you arrive as both the tour and the film will add greatly to your enjoyment of the Vasa Museum.
~Additional facilities~
In addition to the ship and the exhibition the Vasa Museum has a rather nice restaurant with a maritime theme, prices are quite expensive but compare well to other eateries in Stockholm. The museum also contains a rather nice gift shop where you can but a memento of your visit if you wish.
Being Sweden disabled access is excellent, with lift access to all levels and wheelchairs available upon request. In addition they have facilities for the blind with a touch and feel scale model and information in Braille.
~Getting there~
The Vasa Museum is on Djurgarden Island, whilst the nearest T-bana station is about 15 minutes away at Karlaplan, it can be reached by either the 47 or 69 buss from the town centre or on Stockholm's sole tram which runs from Norrmalmstorg.
~Cost~
Entrance is 80 SEK for Adults, 40 SEK for students and under 17's go free, exchange rate is about 13 SEK to the pound. However, if you have a Stockholm Card, which I would recommend to any visitor to Stockholm entry to the Vasa Museum is included along with numerous other Museums and attractions and free use of public transport.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
very helpful by (95%):
helpful by (5%):
