12 hours in ARN?
 

Mr. Kipper and I are traveling separately from EWR to PRG, via ARN. I'm pondering two different flights, both through ARN. One has about a 5 hour layover, the other about a 12 hour layover. I'm leaning towards the 12 hour layover, so I have some time to venture into ARN for a bit.

How much travel time should I allow to get to/from the airport and back to the gate?
What should I definitely see in ARN?
Is it crazy to try to see anything in 12 hours? If it is, then I'll book the other flight.

You'll easily have at least 7-10 hours to see things in central Stockholm. After landing of my US-ARN flights and getting off the plane at Arlanda without checked baggage to claim at ARN, I'm in central Stockholm in 26-60 minutes. If you budget 60-75 minutes for travel time each way and 30 minutes to clear security and get to the ARN-PRG gate, it should work fine assuming you've checked in for the ARN-PRG flight before leaving ARN for central Stockholm. Pad 15-30 minutes more in each direction and it should be way more than enough. Buying the roundtrip transport for ARN-city center at ARN would be a time saver.

I think you would be able to get a good 8 hours of sightseeing in central Stockholm without issue.

Suggestions on what to see, where to go, etc.? :D

Gamla Stan/Old Town, the Royal Palace (including changing of th guard), and the Vasa Museum are usually part of the main day tour -- not in that order? stadshuset/city hall, but from a distance works for some.

Some ideas:

http://www.visitstockholm.com/en/See...-in-24-hours1/

Going to one of the bathhouses in central Stockholm to freshen up and even eat can be an interesting break if you need to shower up in town anyway. Saluhall in Ostermalm for food at lunch time?

The most reliable way to get to/from ARN is via Arlanda Express. 20 minutes each way. It is a bit pricey.

If you are traveling this summer, and assuming your flight arrives early in the morning, I would recommend getting to the Vasa Museum as early as possible (they open at 8:30am through August 31). Since you're an outdoorsy person, perhaps a stroll through Skansen (a nice park/zoo with good views of the harbor) nearby then hitting the Vasa Museum a little later in the day to avoid the initial crush of tourists. After the Museum, you can take a ferry across the harbor to Gamla Stan and walk around. It's about a 10-minute walk from the north side of Gamla Stan back to the Central Station to catch the Arlanda Express back to ARN.

If you're traveling in the fall/winter, then the crowds won't be as bad at the Vasa Museum, but it doesn't open until 10am, so maybe you should still hit Skansen first.

I typically have four hours between my flight landing and taking a train to my final destination. That still gives me plenty of time to walk around Gamla Stan and eat at a random café before walking back to the Central Station.

We're looking at late summer/early fall, so I think I'd still be in the 8:30 am opening range. the Museum sounds like a definite for me.