Roadtrips, sandskulpturer och populära ställplatser

It's Monday again! We are on a motorhome trip in Sweden, but that doesn't stop us from publishing travel news here on Mondays. At the same time, we want to wish all our readers a great week!

Table of contents

Swedes optimistic about summer holidays - despite economy

According to Ticket's latest Sifo survey, Swedes seem optimistic about their summer holidays in 2023. Only 13 per cent are choosing not to go on holiday due to the uncertain economic situation, and the majority (52 per cent) are instead adapting by, for example, choosing destinations based on budget or by chasing cheaper airline tickets. 33% do not change their holiday plans at all because of the economy. The summer of 2023 looks set to be particularly popular for international travel, with an increase of 28% compared to 2019.

Increased interest in road trips this summer

Hotels.com is seeing an increase in travellers hitting the road during the summer holidays. According to data from Hotels.com, one of this year's major travel trends is to stay in hotels with fewer stars as Swedish travellers look for a smarter way to explore the world, without having to compromise on comfort. It has seen searches for motels and hostels increase by over 105 per cent each and searches for bed and breakfasts increase by almost 30 per cent.

Tallink Silja presents a new Menu Nordic

Tallink Silja has launched a new five-course gourmet menu, Menu Nordic, to the delight of all food enthusiasts travelling with the company's ships to Europe. Tallinn or Helsinki. The new Menu Nordic is created by Chef Jonas Niklasson from the Silja Symphony ship. The menu focuses on exciting flavour combinations and locally produced seasonal ingredients, and is also available in a vegan version. Menu Nordic is available on board until 13 September 2023.

Sweden's most popular caravan sites in 2023

Every year, Husbil.se compiles a list of statistics from how visitors to the website have clicked in the search service for Swedish parking spaces. The information is taken from the period 1 May 2022 to 1 May 2023 and is based on just over 1 million searches. You can find the full list here. Here are the top 5:

Nature stand Grebbestad, Grebbestad
North Harbour Marina, Helsingborg
Lysekil Marina Basteviksholmarna, Lysekil
Bua harbour, Bua
Sportshopen car park, Grebbestad

10th anniversary of the Kalmar International Sandsculpture Festival

On 17-21 July, you will be able to see amazing sand sculptures emerge at Kalmarsundsbadet. This is when squid International Sandsculpture Festival, which is also celebrating its 10th anniversary. The anniversary will be a battle between the champions of previous years, which is why this year's festival is called Champions of Sand. A total of eight teams are participating, with artists from Sweden, Latvia, Ukraine, the UK, the Netherlands and Mongolia.

Sand sculpture festival, photo: Albin Rylander

BadringsBumpers - this year's novelty at Skara Sommarland!

On 3 June, Skara Sommarland opens its gates to the water park, amusement park and campsite for the season. This year, a brand new ride has also moved into the area. BadringsBumpers is a round version of bumper cars - where riders control their BadringsBumper, which can both spin and crash.

Reflection of the week

Holidays are important to us Swedes, so we understand that you don't want to miss out on holiday trips. But there are plenty of ways to holiday on a budget, which is something to consider in these times. By the way, the sand sculptures look great - have you ever seen the festival?

Did you miss the last travel news? Read the Popular travel destinations - and how Swedes spend their money