There are many itineraries in Stockholm (and throughout Sweden) to explore the places made famous by great Scandinavian crime writers such as Larsson, Läckberg and Mankell.
In recent years, Northern Europe has become the home of the detective novel and there are quite a few Scandinavian authors that we can find in bookstores. Sweden, of course, cannot be missed and the beautiful Stockholm has become the ideal backdrop for the adventures of now legendary protagonists such as the duo formed by the journalist Mikael Blomkvist and the hacker Lisbeth Salander.
The Millennium tour on the trail of the "girl who played with fire"
All over the world, over 80 million people have become passionate about the "Millennium" trilogy written by Stieg Larsson, so much so that at the Stadsmuseet (the City Museum) in Stockholm a real tour is being planned through the streets of the Swedish capital on the trail of its protagonists. The journey begins on the island of Sodermalm, and more precisely from the address of Bellmansgatan 1, which is the house where Mikael Blomkvist lives. From here you can enjoy an incredible view of the Riddarfjärden where it will not be difficult to see the Stockholm City Hall (Stockholms stadshus), the red brick building which also hosts the Nobel Prize banquet, and the Gamla Stan area, the city old town with its unmissable monuments.
The tour continues towards the Millennium magazine office on the third floor of Götgatan 17° where Blomkvist works together with Erika Berger, while at number 25 of the same street there is the small supermarket where Lisbeth Salander often stops to do her shopping acquisitions. Not far away there are also the Mellqvist Kaffebar, a place frequented by both the protagonist of the trilogy and its author, and the The mill in Tjärhovsgatan 4, a historic pub in Stockholm with over 100 years of history behind it and with an incredible wooden counter. All without forgetting to also take a look at Fiskargatan 9, an elegant area where the penthouse purchased by Lisbeth is located and a few steps from the Catherine's church, the beautiful Protestant church with the unmistakable yellow walls.
I guided tours they take place every Saturday at 11.30am - plus a second appointment from July to September at 18pm - but if you prefer to do it yourself there is also a map of Stockholm with 20 significant places mentioned in Larsson's books and available both at the Stockholm tourism and at the City Museum. Our advice is to calmly explore the Södermalm district, one of the most fashionable in the city, which will win you over with trendy shops and a thousand culinary options.
The events of Martin Beck and his team also take place in Stockholm, protagonists of ten novels written by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö, a pair of authors who in many ways "invented" Nordic noir as we know it today. From the old City in which the detective lives, Beck moves every day to carry out his images, crossing, for example, the elegant district of Djursholm (worth visiting for its beautiful villas and castle), up to Södermalm, once a decidedly popular area less fashionable than Larsson's novels.
With her series of novels featuring reporter Annika Bengtzon, Liza Marklund has made herself known throughout the world and once again brought Stockholm to the international spotlight. From the city port in which she started Fondazione Paradiso to the Kronobergsparken, the author chooses to tell us about the part of Stockholm in which she lives and which, for this reason, she knows inside and out. On the island of Kungsholmen you will find numerous landmarks from her books such as the police station, the City Hall and even Annika's house in the quiet Hantverkargatan.
Yellow itineraries in the surrounding area
Leaving Stockholm and continuing towards southern Sweden – not far from Malmö and the spectacular Øresund bridge which connects the city with Denmark – we find the town of Ystad where Kurt Wallander's investigations take place. Walk among its pastel-coloured wooden houses or treat yourself to a photo on the beach or on the seafront, but above all explore the places that the writer Henning Mankell made famous throughout the world also thanks to the films that were based on them.
The tour to the crime sites organized by Cinets – the local cinema museum – will take you to the police station, but also to Stortorget, the central square of Ystad, and to the train station where the body of the victim of The Red Herring is hidden. Without neglecting Runnerströms torg where Wall of Fire takes place or the real sets of the detective series... in short, a one-hour itinerary, on the road that leads from Denmark to Stockholm, travelers heading to the North Cape on a motorbike, which will make lovers of the world happy of Wallander!
On the west coast, 140 km from Gothenburg, there is Fjällbacka, typical Swedish village – reachable with a car trip from Stockholm which will allow you to appreciate the landscapes of Scandinavia –, the backdrop to Camilla Läckberg's crime novels. Don't miss its cobbled streets that will take you between the typical local wooden houses and, if you love shellfish, a visit to one of the local restaurants is also an absolute must. The village has 1000 inhabitants, but we bet that you will fall in love with its atmosphere capable of bewitching even the famous actress Ingrid Bergman, who often spent her holidays here? It goes without saying that the Fjällbacka tourist board organizes guided tours in the footsteps of the detective stories written by Läckberg and also has a brochure dedicated to the topic (for info and reservations you can write to info@kustguiden.eu.).
