Sweden
Sweden is the largest and most populous of the Nordic countries and the fifth-largest in Europe: 10.6 million people across 450,295 square kilometres, which works out at about twenty-five to the square kilometre, and almost nine in ten of them living in towns in the south and centre. Stockholm is the capital and largest city. The country stretches from 55°N to 69°N, so the far north lies well inside the Arctic Circle while the south is farmland.
A country that shape is natural railway territory, and the network runs the whole length of it — fast intercity trains between the southern cities, sleepers that cover the distance north overnight, and slower lines into the mountains and the roadless interior. SJ runs most of it, the trains are clean and punctual and booking online is straightforward. What Swedish rail travel offers that few others can is latitude: the midnight sun in June and the northern lights in winter are both reachable on a scheduled train.
Rail journeys in Sweden
The Arctic Train to Narvik
Over the roof of Sweden and down to the sea — from the mining city of Kiruna through Abisko's mountains to an ice-free Norwegian fjord, under the midnight sun.
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The Inlandsbanan
Two summer days and a thousand kilometres up the wild heart of Sweden, stopping for coffee, waterfalls and the occasional moose on the line.
View journey →Good to know
Is Sweden a good country for train travel?
Excellent. SJ runs a modern, punctual network the length of the country, and the scenery in the north is world-class. Two journeys are unmissable: the summer-only Inlandsbanan up the wild interior, and the year-round Arctic train to Narvik through Lapland. Night trains let you cross the huge distances while you sleep.
What is the Inlandsbanan?
The Inlandsbanan, or Inland Line, is a 1,288 km railway up the middle of Sweden, from Kristinehamn to Gällivare. Regular traffic ended in 1992, and today it runs as a summer tourist line (mid-June to mid-August): a little diesel railcar that takes two unhurried days from Mora across the Arctic Circle to Lapland, stopping for meals, waterfalls and wildlife.
Can you take a train to the Arctic Circle in Sweden?
Yes — in fact two ways. The Inlandsbanan crosses the Arctic Circle near Jokkmokk with a photo stop at the marker; and the Arctic train on the Iron Ore Line runs far above it, from Kiruna through Abisko to Narvik on the Norwegian coast. The overnight sleeper from Stockholm reaches Kiruna and Abisko directly.
How do I buy Swedish train tickets?
Book online at sj.se (English site, e-tickets); night trains to the far north are also sold via vy.se, and the Inlandsbanan is booked with its own operator at inlandsbanan.se. Reserve well ahead for the summer midnight-sun season and the winter aurora peak, when berths and the one-a-day Inland Line trains sell out.