How do I get around Stockholm?

The T-bana is Stockholm's metro and your primary way around. Three lines (red, green, blue) run through 100 stations, and trains come every 3-5 minutes during daytime hours. More than 90 stations have art installations. Kungsträdgården, the last stop on the blue line, looks like a painted cave with red and green rock walls and broken column fragments scattered across the platform. Tap any contactless Visa or Mastercard at the gate for 39 SEK per ride (about $4 at current rates), or buy a 24-hour SL travelcard for 165 SEK (~$18) from the machines at any station. Metro, bus, tram, commuter rail, and the Djurgården ferries are all included. The older SL Access smartcard still works, but since SL introduced contactless bank-card tapping in 2023, there's little reason to queue for one. Trains start around 5 AM on weekdays and run until roughly 1 AM. On Friday and Saturday nights, most lines run all night, which saves you from a 400 SEK taxi back to your hotel at 2 AM.

Stockholm is built on 14 islands, and the central ones are small enough to walk. Norrmalm to Gamla Stan is a 10-minute walk south across Norrbro. Gamla Stan to Södermalm takes another 10 minutes through Slussen. You'll cover Gamla Stan's two main streets, Västerlånggatan and Österlånggatan, in about 20 minutes on foot. The cobblestones get slick when wet, so save the smooth-soled shoes for dinner. Södermalm's southern edge along Fjällgatan has the best free views of the harbor, with cold wind off Saltsjön even in June. The walk from T-Centralen to the Vasa Museum on Djurgården takes about 35 minutes along the Strandvägen waterfront, past the moored wooden boats at Nybrokajen where the smell of diesel and salt water mixes with coffee from the kiosks. That said, the number 7 tram from Sergels Torg to Djurgården covers the same distance in 12 minutes for one SL fare.

The SL ferry to Djurgården (line 82 from Slussen) is the most pleasant commute in the city and costs one standard SL fare. The ride takes 10 minutes. In summer, you'll stand on the open deck with locals bound for Skansen or the Vasa Museum while the harbor breeze carries the faint tang of brackish Baltic water. Line 80 connects Nybroplan to Djurgården in 5 minutes. Both are covered by any SL travelcard. For the archipelago beyond the SL network, Waxholmsbolaget runs year-round ferries from Strömkajen to islands like Vaxholm (75 minutes, around 105 SEK one-way). That is a day trip, not daily transit.

Bolt and Uber both operate in Stockholm, and either works after midnight or for trips the T-bana doesn't cover. A Bolt ride from Södermalm to Östermalm runs about 120-180 SEK ($13-19) depending on demand. Stockholm taxis are expensive by any standard, with a flagfall near 50 SEK and roughly 15 SEK per kilometer. Check the yellow sticker on the rear window showing the company's quoted max price for a comparable ride. From Arlanda Airport, the Arlanda Express train reaches Stockholm Central in 20 minutes for 299 SEK (~$32) one way. The Flygbussarna coach costs 139 SEK (~$15) and takes 40-45 minutes to Cityterminalen next to T-Centralen. The cheapest option is the SL commuter train (pendeltåg), but Arlanda's station charges a separate 130 SEK supplement on top of the SL fare. Total comes to about 169 SEK. Download the SL app before you land. It handles route planning and mobile tickets, and works offline for saved routes.