Family Fun in Europe, Part 12: Stockholm

This is my twelfth post about our family's 2024 trip to Europe. I recommend reading the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, and eleventh posts before this one.

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Stockholm, Sweden

On Friday, July 26, Sky Princess docked in Stockholm, Sweden. The ship stayed overnight in Stockholm, so we had time to squeeze in two different shore excursions. It still wasn't nearly enough to see the best of Stockholm. I'd love to return someday. 

Our first tour couldn't have been more convenient. We got off the Sky Princess, walked 100 yards down the pier, and boarded a glass-topped boat for a tour of Stockholm's waterways. 

   

It was a beautiful day with perfect weather. The route took us through Stockholm's many canals. We mostly saw neighborhoods, which were very interesting, but none as interesting as Hammarbybacken. In winter, it's a ski slope. In summer, it's still a ski slope! I totally want to try summer skiing! (I think I do, anyway. Or will it turn out to be another bobsledding experience?) Hammarbybacken has a variety of other activities as well, like a climbing park and a mountain coaster. 

There's the port side of our ship.

This is the Royal Palace. One of Europe's largest palaces, it is the official residence of the Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf and the setting for most official receptions. It's open to the public; add that to my list of places I want to visit when I return someday. 

This is the National Museum. It covers art and design. I'd love to visit. 

We crossed under several bridges during our tour. I love the crowns on this one. 

This tour should have been outstanding, but unfortunately, it wasn't. A guide will make or break a tour. Our guide, while not horrible, was far below average. We couldn't hear her at all at the beginning of the trip due to a technical issue. She made little effort to correct that problem and just kept speaking at her regular volume, knowing the back 3/4 of the boat couldn't hear her at all. I mean, come on. Raise your voice. Move to the center of the boat. Do something!

The crew member who was onboard for the purpose of trying to sell us drinks figured out the technical issue eventually (hurray!) and we could finally hear our guide. Unfortunately, she just wasn't a great speaker. She had interesting information to share, but delivered it without much enthusiasm and with no personal stories or insights. 

Stockholm is a beautiful city. There are so many museums, parks, and other attractions I'd love to visit. I'd also like to repeat this exact tour with a better guide. 

  

I'm happy to report that the guide we had for our next tour was outstanding. I wish we could have had him guide our waterways tour! I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.