Getting to Sweden

Sweden

Sweden is a large country, but the major international airports or border crossings are centralised to its southern part.

The most common destinations by air are Stockholm or Gothenburg, which also has direct boat connections or rail and bus links from Norway, Denmark or Germany.

By air

The quickest and in most cases cheapest way to get to Sweden is by plane.

Where to buy plane tickets to Sweden?

Flights are operated by many airlines, mainly from Europe. Compare prices, for example, using the Skyscanner comparison engine. Once you have selected your flights, we always recommend clicking on the link that takes you directly to the airline's website.

Compare prices for flights to Sweden

The airlines with bases at Stockholm Arlanda or Gothenburg airports in Sweden offer the most flights to Sweden, especially SAS, Norwegian and Ryanair.

The cheapest tickets from European destinations (mainly Western Europe, Poland or the Balkans) are typically available from 25 eur one-way.

You can also buy flights to Sweden through the websites of other foreign airlines, especially:

Major airports in Sweden

Sweden has many international airports. For information on transport to/from the airport, services or terminals, click on the airport name below.

  • Stockholm Arlanda ARN - Sweden's largest airport with heavy traffic on domestic and European routes and direct flights also to many destinations in Asia and North America
  • Göteborg Landvetter GOT - a major international airport with excellent connections to all European hubs by major airlines, plus a large number of low-cost flights, especially to holiday destinations.
  • Malmö MMX - Smaller airports with a significant number of low-cost flights mainly to the Balkans
  • Stockholm Skavsta NYO - small low-cost airport 100 km from Stockholm, with flights mainly to the Balkans, Poland and summer destinations
  • Åre Östersund OSD - a small airport near Sweden's largest ski resort (Åre) offering winter seasonal flights to, for example, England, the Netherlands or Denmark
  • Sälen/Scandinavia Mountains SCR - a relatively new airport in the mountains near the ski resorts of Sälen and Trysil with a number of winter ski charters mainly from the UK or the Netherlands

Drive over the Öresund Bridge

The road and rail bridge (and partly tunnel) across the Øresund Strait is one of the symbols of both Denmark and Sweden. The Øresund Bridge connects the two countries.

There is no extra charge on top of the normal ticket when travelling over the bridge by train or bus, but if you travel over the bridge by car, there is no toll.

For up-to-date information, visit the official website of the bridge operator: oresundsbron.com

There are four ways to pay:

  1. At the toll gate (you can pay by card, Danish kroner, Swedish kroner and euros).
  2. Through the Brobizz mobile app by entering the number plate and card - you do not need to stop at the toll gate, payment is automatically taken when the number plate is loaded as you cross the bridge
  3. Online at oresundsbron.com with a 5% discount if you subscribe to the Newsletter
  4. Through a subscription to ØresundGO with an annual fee 539 sek (pays for itself with 2 bridge crossings)
Vehicle type Payment at the toll gate Payment via Brobizz Online payment Payment via ØresundGO
Car or van up to 6 m 685 sek 685 sek 645 sek 263 sek
Motorcycle 345 sek 345 sek 325 sek 137 sek
Caravan 1 370 sek 1 370 sek 1 290 sek 526 sek

The Öresund Bridge can be circumnavigated by ferry between Helsingør and Helsingborg. ForSea ferries carry cars from 199 dkk when booked online at least 14 days in advance.

Acombined discounted toll can be purchased for the Öresund Bridge crossing and the Scandlines ferry from Germany.

  • Bridge + ferry on the route Puttgarden - Rodby: from 91 eur if booked in advance, 133,50 eur standard price
  • Bridge + ferry on the route Rostock - Gedser: from 106 eur if booked in advance, 157 eur standard price
  • Booking at oresundsbron.com

By train

There are direct rail connections to Sweden from Denmark, Norway and Germany.

From Denmark

There are very frequent lines across the Öresund Bridge between Copenhagen and Malmö, running up to once every 10 minutes during the day.

Most services run between central Copenhagen and Malmö, where they connect to other lines around Sweden, but direct trains run up to twice an hour from Copenhagen to Gothenburg and several times a day to Stockholm.

All trains from Denmark to Sweden always stop at Copenhagen CPH airport.

With the exception of the Copenhagen - Malmö connection, where ticket prices are always the same, it is worth buying train tickets at least 1 month in advance to keep the price as low as possible.

  • oresundstag.se - All direct connections between Denmark and Sweden
  • sj.se - compared to the website above, also offers connections with transfers

How long, how often and at what price do trains run between Denmark and Sweden?

Route Price Travel time Frequency
Copenhagen - Malmö 162 sek 40 minutes 4-6 times per hour
Copenhagen - Gothenburg 544 sek 3h 50min 1x per hour
Copenhagen - Stockholm from 819 sek
(with transfer from 500 sek)
5h 15min 3x daily
(connecting 1-2 times per hour)
Copenhagen - Lund 195 sek 55 minutes 4-6x per hour
Copenhagen - Helsingborg 264 sek 85 minutes 2-4 times per hour

Cheaper but less frequent connections are usually offered by buses, see information below.

From Norway

Direct trains from Norway cross the border with Sweden at 4 different points.

The most used connections are from Oslo to Gothenburg and Stockholm. Significantly fewer trains run between Trondheim and the border station of Storlien, where you change trains to Åre and Östersund.

There are also direct trains all the way north between Narvik in Norway and Kiruna and Gällivare in Sweden.

However, buses are often busier and considerably cheaper on the route from Oslo to Gothenburg and Stockholm.

Buy tickets on the Norwegian and Swedish rail websites, which always offer the same connections. However, the Swedish Railways website sj.se often offers lower prices.

Route Price Travel time Frequency
Oslo - Stockholm from 305 sek 5h 15min 5 times a day
Oslo - Gothenburg from 388 sek 3.5 hours 3-4x daily
Boden - Kiruna - Narvik from 416 sek 7 hours 1-2x daily
Trondheim - Åre - Östersund from 294 sek 2.5 hours 2x daily

From Finland

There is no direct rail connection between Finland and Sweden. The Swedish railway ends in Haparanda, from where you can cross the Finnish border by bus or on foot.

From Germany

There is also a direct overnight sleeper train from Germany, along the following route:

  • Berlin Gesundbrunnen - Hamburg Hbf - Padborg - Copenhagen - Malmö - Lund - Hässleholm - Alvesta - Nässjö - Linköping - Norrköping - Stockholm

You can buy a couchette from 1 020 sek one-way, but seated cars are also included with prices from 755 sek.

The train can cover the entire route in about 15.5 hours and you can book your ticket on the sj.se website. We recommend buying at least 3 weeks in advance for the cheapest ticket.

By bus

International bus travel often represents a saving of up to three times compared to the train. The disadvantages are longer journey times, less comfort and often less frequent connections.

However, between some of the Nordic regions of Finland or Norway, buses are the only possible cross-border form of transport.

From Denmark

Buses from Denmark are considerably cheaper than trains and there are two carriers in particular competing on the routes. Online ticket purchase and timetables can be found on their websites.

  • Bus4You.com - Swedish-Norwegian major carrier with stable prices and reliable services
  • Flixbus.com - multinational carrier with frequent special offers

Examples of bus routes and prices from Denmark to Sweden and back.

Route Cheapest carrier Price Travel time Frequency
Copenhagen - Malmö Flixbus.com From 90 sek 75 minutes 1-3 times per hour
Copenhagen - Helsingborg Flixbus.com From 110 sek 2.5 hours 8x daily
Copenhagen - Gothenburg Flixbus.com From 220 sek 5 hours 10x daily
Copenhagen - Stockholm Flixbus.com From 340 sek 10.5 hours 4x daily
Copenhagen - Jönköping Flixbus.com From 210 sek 5.5 hours 3x daily

With the exception of the route to Stockholm, Vy Bus4you also operates on all routes.

From Norway

Between Sweden and Norway, direct buses run practically only via the southern border crossings.

The exceptions are the routes from Stockholm and Gothenburg to Oslo, from Kiruna to Narvik and from Åre to Trondheim, where trains also run.

Examples of the main bus routes and prices from Norway to Sweden and back, for which tickets can be bought online.

Route Cheapest carrier Price Travel time Frequency
Oslo - Stockholm Flixbus.com From 310 sek 7.5 hours 2x daily
Oslo - Gothenburg Bus4You.com From 200 sek 3.5 hours 16x daily
Oslo - Helsingborg Bus4You.com From 336 sek 6.5 hours 6x daily
Oslo - Malmö Bus4You.com From 356 sek 7 hours 6x daily
Oslo - Karlstad Flixbus.com From 125 sek 3 hours 6x daily
Oslo - Örebro Flixbus.com From 210 sek 5 hours 6x daily

Only regional border traffic runs through the other two border crossings. Ticket prices are around 50 sek to 100 sek and you can always pay with your own contactless card at the driver.

From Finland

There is only public mass transit across the border in Haparanda (Sweden) / Tornio (Finland), where you can either cross the border on foot or use public transport buses lines 1, 2, 70 and 633 for 3,80 eur.

For timetable searches, visit: matkahuolto.fi/en.

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