Nordic Countries - So, is Gotland worth a few days?

At the end of May, I'll be in Sweden for a week. The middle part will be a couple days in Pitea visiting some old friends, and the last part will be a couple nights at the Lydmar in Stockholm. I'm having some trouble figuring out what to do with the first few days, though. I thought I might rent a car at ARN, drive it on to the ferry and spend a few days at the Tott Hotel in Gotland drinking port, watching the sea and reading. With the understanding that taking a car over is probably overcomplicated and I might change to a flight, what's the consensus generally about a few days in Visby in late May? I'm looking for relaxation and a little solitude more than anything else.

Appreciate any advice.

Thanks.

I have only been to Gotland once...so take what I say with a grain of salt. But as your question has not received an answer, maybe this will get some others posting.

I'm having some trouble figuring out what to do with the first few days, though. I thought I might rent a car at ARN, drive it on to the ferry and spend a few days at the Tott Hotel in Gotland drinking port, watching the sea and reading.

If you are unsure of taking a car, the ferries that leave from Nynäshamn can be reached by train from Stockholm and are rather convenient. If coming from the airport, you can catch a train to Stockholm and then switch to the Pendeltag at T-Centralen. If I recall corretly, Nynäshamn is about 1 hour via the Pendeltag and it drops you within a very short walk to the ferry. I am not sure that a car will do much good on Gotland as there is not much outside of Visby.

what's the consensus generally about a few days in Visby in late May? I'm looking for relaxation and a little solitude more than anything else.

Visby would be rather fine for this and you can fit in a couple of strolls around town. If the weather permits you can even catch a bus and head to the other areas of the island if you are up for it.

In all, there is probably not too much to do if you really up for action (especially before tourist season). I had a pre-honeymoon with the wife just after we got married, and Gotland was a nice place to chill out for a few days. For drinking and reading, then I think Gotland will be fine.

Thanks very much for the response - that's exactly what I needed to know.

Thanks very much for the response - that's exactly what I needed to know.

Glad I could help. I hope that the snow has melted in Pitea by then and that you have a nice trip!

Although TOTT is a very nice hotel I would recommend that you stay in Visby Centre if deciding to go. TOTT would be a good 30 minutes walk into town and is “the place to be” more in the summer then spring.

You certainly won’t need a car going from Stockholm, just follow the_horvats very accurate and good advice on the train and then take the speed ferry (if I recall correct it’s only a three hour journey).

Since Visby’s “thing” is the medieval atmosphere I would have a look at the medieval hotel in the centre. Visited it with some foreign clients last year and it was a success.

http://www.medeltidshotellet.se/language/english/

Thank you for the excellent advice. I was intrigued by the balconies and porches at TOTT, but will look for those features at hotels closer to the town center.

Spent a very enjoyable week bicycling around Gotland in 2004 with my then GF, now wife. Accommodations outside Visby were informal country places to stay, but uniformly immaculate and pleasant. I remember the food as being good, but some of that may have been hunger from all the cycling. Lots of interesting small churches, ruins, Viking burial sites, rocky ocean shores and so on. The bike itself was several notches up from the usual rental sort.

Don't know if this fits in with your wishes, but there it is.

Spent a very enjoyable week bicycling around Gotland in 2004 with my then GF, now wife. Accommodations outside Visby were informal country places to stay, but uniformly immaculate and pleasant. I remember the food as being good, but some of that may have been hunger from all the cycling. Lots of interesting small churches, ruins, Viking burial sites, rocky ocean shores and so on. The bike itself was several notches up from the usual rental sort.

Don't know if this fits in with your wishes, but there it is.That's great to hear. I'm a hiker, not a biker, but have rented a car to explore the island. Thanks for the advice.

I've been doing a fair amount of stays in Gotland, and the Hotel Wisby (a Clarion hotel for some years now) has worked out very well for me (albeit far short of any sort of luxury property standard). A few days there is quite nice, for walking around. Biking around works well, but nowhere as nicely as Bornholm. May is a quieter time. in June, July and August, Visby has much more of a party atmosphere, but the place is still very pleasant to visit.

While a car is useful to have, there is a bus network on the island that does cover the place reasonably well, as long as willing to align your schedule with a rather limited bus schedule and aware that the bus may have more stops in one direction (the return direction to Visby) than on the way out of Visby (unless passengers request the stops off the main roads). A willingness to walk up to 20 minutes to get to/from a bus stop would help when outside of Visby.

To get to Visby, flights are a lot faster but ferries are more commonly used by tourists. Ferries from the one port about an hour south of Stockholm works; ferries from Oskarshamn (if coming from the south or west of Sweden) are shorter and cheaper than ferries from Kalmar or elsewhere on the Swedish mainland.

Kalmar has one of the better old castles in Scandinavia and is much more of a tourist destination than Oskarshamn, so keep that in mind if doing surface transport to Gotland is part of the plan.

Gotland supposedly is one of the sunniest places in Sweden, but San Diego it isn't.

Thank you for following up on this thread. I ended up staying at TOTT a couple of days and really enjoyed it. The ferry was very easy to use and I took a car that I scraped up nicely driving through the old city. :)

In May, the island seemed to be populated very much by locals and was quiet outside of Visby proper, which was nice. I liked Stockholm and Pitea (paper factory tour!) much more, but the trip to Gotland delivered exactly what was promised.

Thank you for following up on this thread. I ended up staying at TOTT a couple of days and really enjoyed it. The ferry was very easy to use and I took a car that I scraped up nicely driving through the old city. :)

In May, the island seemed to be populated very much by locals and was quiet outside of Visby proper, which was nice. I liked Stockholm and Pitea (paper factory tour!) much more, but the trip to Gotland delivered exactly what was promised.

Driving inside the walled part of the city is restricted in some part for a few good reasons. :D [Hopefully you had CDW insurance.] Between scraped cars and sheep/ram statue road blocks having half a head, it seems that some of those few who drive in the older part of Visby are in for a bit of a challenge from time to time.

Last week in Visby's old town I saw two cars -- one a minivan of some sort -- that had scrape marks on its side too. Saw a couple more in the same situation this week. Seems to be rather frequent damage for the car rental providers to come across on Gotland.

Some days ago I did go to Knieppbyn -- don't ask me why -- and I have never seen such an overpacked waterpark in my life. At least they had some live musical entertainment. :D