Ekerö: Water, Nature and History

Ekerö’s swimming spots include jetties, beaches, places for forest bathing and individual rocks. Visitors can rent kayaks and canoes at several locations on the water. Friluftsfrämjandet offers guided kayaking and canoeing tours in Ekerö with varying levels of difficulty. SUP boards can be rented in Ekerö for paddling on Lake Mälaren. For mountain biking, there are downhill and cross-country trails, as well as hiking trails stretching for kilometres through wooded surroundings and historic landscapes.

Swimming

Ekerö Badhus has a modern 25-metre pool for swimming, playing, exercise and training. The facility also includes a pool with an adjustable-height floor, a teaching pool, a relaxation pool, a children’s pool, a sauna and a café.

Nature

The Lovö nature reserve also includes Kärsön, where there are several paths accessible, for example, by wheelchair and pushchair. Sweden’s northernmost naturally regenerating beech forest is located in the park of Ekebyhov Palace. Ekebyhov’s apple gene bank comprises around 50 apple varieties associated with Uppland and central Sweden. Ekerö is particularly known for its apple orchards. There are several opportunities for picking your own fruit and vegetables around Ekerö.

History

Ekerö Church was built in the late 12th century as the estate church of Askanäs. It is located on the northern shore of Ekeröfjärden, near a steep shore slope. Between approximately 750 and 980 AD, Birka was one of the most important trading towns in Northern Europe. Birka’s activities were organised and directed from the royal residence of Hovgården. The visible remains in Birka include a hillfort, the town fortifications, burial mounds and the settlement site from the Viking Age. The visible remains in Hovgården include monumental mounds, a cemetery, a harbour, a runestone and the foundations of Alsnö hus. The Drottningholm World Heritage Site preserves the palace, the palace theatre, the Chinese Pavilion and the gardens. Several runestones were created in the Ekerö Municipality area around the year 1000.

Culture

The Kulturhuset in central Ekerö includes a library, a cinema, a theatre auditorium and a gallery. Erskinesalen in central Ekerö is an assembly and theatre hall with 218 seats. Erskinesalen hosts theatre performances, concerts, lectures and film screenings. The Utkiken Gallery at Kulturhuset in central Ekerö displays contemporary art and themed exhibitions. Utkiken Gallery presents around four exhibitions a year. Occasionally, it offers public tours with the exhibiting artist and workshops related to the exhibitions. Ekerö Library has a genealogical research room in central Ekerö with a computer for genealogical research.

Geographical location

The Ekerö destination also includes the localities of Ekerö, Färentuna, Stenhamra, Skå, Munsö and Adelsön.

Getting there

Ekerö is accessible by bus, car, boat, ferry and bicycle. SL commuter boat route 89 operates between central Ekerö and Klara Mälarstrand.

When staying in Ekerö, the travel period, room category and cancellation conditions can determine the personal framework. Swimming spots, water activities on Lake Mälaren, nature, history and culture can be considered independently of one another, without prescribing a particular order.

To the higher-level travel overview: Stockholm.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

Sundbyberg, Yxlan.