Looking for the top things to do in Österlen? Read this post and find out!
Österlen belongs to Skåne, the historical province in Sweden. Österlen houses the town named Simrishamn. It is well recognized for its rich culture and stunning scenery in Sweden.
It houses a lot of writers and artists. It is a well-known tourist destination, which is well regarded for its historical buildings, natural environment, and farmland. It features the cities of Tomelilia and Simrishamn, along with Stensuvud National Park.
You can easily reach Österlen via Copenhagen International Airport and Malmö-Sturup airport.
It would be best if you first visited Malmö to get to Österlen by train and then go by Pågatågen line 6 trains. It stops at various destinations in Österlen.
Here are the top things to do in Österlen!
Looking for more things to do in Sweden? Check out its beautiful palaces and castles!
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Do you need help planning your trips? Start here!
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✈️ Find out how to find cheap flights using Skyscanner or find deals now
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Experiences and top things to do in Österlen
Take a walk in Simrishamn
If you enjoy Österlen sightseeing in summer, you may get around Simrishamn harbor; wait for the ferry, which will take you to the Danish island of Bornholm, and idly lick ice creams.
Simrishamn is the largest city in the southeast of Skåne, sparsely populated in Österlen. It is a beautiful part of small fishing villages, wheat fields, and apple orchards.
At this place, everything flows at its own slow pace, and cycling is the preferred option to get along.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Tosselilla Sommarland
It is the largest theme park/amusement park in the Scania area, just around an hour’s drive from Ahus campsite. There is a water park with several heated pools and rides for all ages and Motor Park with Segway, GoCart, and Bumper Boats.
You may also find many amusement rides for people of all ages. It is one of the best Österlen landmarks.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Barnens Bokhandel
Barnens Bokhandel is a store on the main street of Simrishamn that offers plenty of puzzles, books, and many literature things for children.
There has been a concept named ‘Bookstore for Kids’ since the 1970s by a well-known culture developer and journalist, Mariane von Baumgarten-Lindberg.
The idea behind Barnens Bokandel is classic, i.e., to offer gifts, books, and games to kids of all ages. The only condition is that this item helps to learn more and nurture a passion for literature.
Marianne was assigned a national prize named “Natur och Kultur” for her substantial, longstanding, and inspiring efforts to convey the culture of reading to the youth.
You can also spot smartbooks at Barnens Bokhandel for children of all ages. There is an excellent collection of books in numerous languages. Along with books, you can also find a lot of puzzles, fun, educative games, posters, and toys.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Are you planning your travels? Here’re my top travel resources!
I’m a serial planner both in life and in travel – I have bucket lists, things to do, see, and everything. So, I always love when my life is sorted easily using tools and resources that would make my general planning a little smoother and easier. Therefore, in my many years of traveling the world, I’ve seen myself returning to these travel resources repeatedly. And here I am, sharing my tips to make your life easy and breezy so you can stress less, travel heaps, and focus on the fun part of travel!
- Booking.com – I book all my hotels through this website and don’t honestly use anything else. They always have the best prices, in my opinion.
- Airbnb – If I’m traveling long-term to one destination, I book my flats through Airbnb.
- Skyscanner – The best place to find cheap flights on flexible dates. I use this a lot to score cheap flights within Europe!
- SafetyWing – Always travel insured! Never leave your home country without one. It is worth the extra money, I promise you!
- GetYourGuide – Hands-down, the best place to find cool and unique tours if you don’t feel like winging it, and go straight to a local expert. I use this a lot in new destinations to get acquainted with the area!
- My Pretty Wild World Travel Diary (coming soon) – A book you can write down your travel plans, create itineraries, track down your budget, and dot down memories along the way! A handy book you can keep and read later to revisit memory lane.
- Pretty Wild World Travel Planning Printables (coming soon) – Are you a nut like me when it comes to planning? Yes? Good. My travel planning resource in one zip file is an easy-to-use printable planner that comes with tips that helps you plan your travels during the planning stage, a pre-flight checklist, an itinerary planner, and so on.
Glimmingehus
Located in Simrishamn, the Glimmingehus is the well-preserved age-old stronghold in southern Sweden.
It was built in 1506 when Scania formed a significant part of Denmark, and it has a lot of defensive arrangements like false doors, parapets, and murder holes to pour boiling pitch on the attackers, drawbridges, moats, and other types of death trap to prevent trespassers and peasant uprisings.
On the lower part, there are 2.4m thick stone walls, and 1.8m thick walls on the upper part.
In 1499, Jens Holgersen Ulfstand, the Danish knight, and the architect and stone-cutter-mason Adam van Duren, a North German master, started construction.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Midsummer celebration
You must stay and join the midsummer celebration if you are heading to Österlen in June. Every town celebrates Midsommar in its way.
The dance and music events start at around 2 to 3 pm. You can enjoy all the schnapps and food later on. You can enjoy fresh strawberries, new potatoes, and other dishes.
You can have fun in holiday homes in this part of the nation. You may learn how they celebrate midsummer from many locals.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Apple Safari
Well, it is one of the best things to do in Österlen. There is a family-run fruit farm, Kiviks Musteri. Over here, you can taste cider, explore the orchards, and get to the ‘House of Apples’ and see the process of making cider and juice. In addition, try some homemade apple juice and apple cake in the café before leaving.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Hold up! Have you thought about the importance of travel insurance?
Remember this: anything can happen. Travel is fun, but your health is more important; thus, I always, always, always recommend getting insured during the duration of your trip. I have benefitted from having one multiple times, and it has been covered for thousands of euros!
The latest one is not necessarily “health” related – it was during the peak of the unspeakable terrible C that consumed the world. I was living in Vietnam when I received an email from SafetyWing (my travel insurance) that if I want they’ll fly be back home to Finland as the world goes through a global emergency alert. I flew back fully covered, and dealing with SafetyWing was a breeze despite the roar of people in contact with them trying to get back home.
I can’t highly recommend them enough. Otherwise, I rarely get sick; hence I don’t always need to head to a hospital, but knowing that I have travel insurance makes me feel safe at the very least.
Read my post about why you should get travel insurance for more information. Otherwise, you can get a free quote from SafetyWing – they’re the best, in my opinion.
Berry picking
In this part of the country, fruit is quite a big deal. Picking raspberry with friends and family is one of the best activities in Österlen.
Be sure to visit Norra Bjorstop, located between Ystad and Kristianstad, i.e., 3km north of Route 19.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Explore a vineyard
It is one of Sweden’s only vineyards in a district famed for apple orchards. It is a fun and calm day out.
Here you can walk along the vineyard, talk to the locals or wine farmers, and check out their section of the vineyard.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Apple art
You cannot just turn water into wine but make an apple art. There is a free event named, ‘The Kivik Apple Market Festival” held in late September.
Here, you can explore apple brewery, a mosaic sculpture made of 4 tons of apples, and taste apples.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
What are my favorite travel must-haves?
As a frequent traveler, I’ve learned a lot throughout my years of travel, and there are five items that I always carry with me regardless of where I go and how long the trip is. Here are my five travel must-haves!
- Warm packable jacket – I always carry a light jacket, even when heading to warm countries. There hasn’t been a time I never used it, especially in airports and planes.
- Transparent toiletry bag – I often bring a carry-on if I’m only traveling within Europe for a few days. Life is so much easier to go through security checks with a transparent toiletry bag.
- Kindle Paperwhite – I love a good read and always take my Kindle everywhere. It keeps me entertained during long flights and waiting times.
- Powerbank – I don’t know how I could travel without one! Having a power bank saved me a ton since I carry a lot of electronic devices with me.
- Travel Adapter – I never leave my luggage without a travel adapter! I carry one with me all the time. It is just one of that travel-must haves that doesn’t hurt to have in your bag at all times.
Visit Stenshuvuds National Park
If you do not want to leave this region even after a tour, you should visit Stenshuvuds National Park.
Vitemolla is yet another great place you should explore. You can find a lot of charming houses, fantastic sea views, and untouched and unmatched beaches where you can walk along.
Where to stay in Österlen? Find awesome deals and book your hotel here!
Planning to visit Sweden? Check out these posts!
- Best time to visit Sweden
- Sweden Points of Interests: Places to visit, Castles to visit, Islands to check out, National Parks to hike, UNESCO Sites, Museums to check out, Beaches to chill at, Hiking spots, Camping spots, and Stockholm to Helsinki Ferry
- Stockholm Points of Interests: Things to do in Stockholm, Day trips from Stockholm, How to get from the airport, Cafes to check out, Pubs to hang out, Museums to visit, Restaurants to try, and Where to stay in Stockholm
- Swedish Culture Overview: Tipping guide, Drinks to try, Supermarkets to do your groceries, and Food to try
- Places to visit in Sweden: Kalmar, Gammelstad, Ystad, Gothenburg, Uppsala, Malmö, Swedish Lapland, Luleå, Kosterhavet National Park, Gotland, Österlen, Lund, and Skåne