Scandinavia — World News, Travel and Social Action

From the southern coast of Denmark to the northern lights of Sweden, experience the best road trip destinations in Scandinavia.

Open road at Sognefjellet in Norway. Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 3.0

The art of friluftsliv, or one’s love for the Great Outdoors, is best expressed through Scandinavian road trip culture. Scandinavians thrive off of exposure to the region’s coastlines, lush forests and snow-peaked mountains. With its panoramic viewpoints, scenic hiking trails and idyllic towns, Scandinavia is a playground for road trippers worldwide. In Sweden, public access to nature isn’t limited, and visitors are allowed to walk, cycle, and camp on public land, with the exception of private gardens and newly-cultivated land. Swedish right to public access, allemansratt, stresses that visitors simply “do not disturb, do not destroy.” Scandinavian countries are deemed the most environmentally-conscious worldwide, thus the governments are concerned with the environmental impacts of industrial tourism. Tourism by car is encouraged in Scandinavia to strengthen economies in rural areas, and scenic routes are accessible via well-paved, well-maintained roads. Here are the best destinations for road trippers seeking to uncover the scenic wonders of Scandinavia, spanning from the southernmost tip of Denmark to the northernmost region of Sweden.

View from Geiranger. TravelingOtter. CC BY-SA 2.0

Norway is renowned for its access to fjords, or bodies of water surrounded by cliffs. Fjords are often set in U-shaped valleys and formed by glaciers. The geirangerfjord is dubbed the crown jewel of Norway’s fjords, spanning 15 kilometers wide and 260 feet deep. The fjord is a six-hour drive from Oslo via the E6 and E15, passing through Rondane and Jotunheimen National Parks. The geirangerfjord is surrounded by lush vegetation and pristine waterfalls, populated with villages overlooking the vast landscape. Geiranger is at the head of the geirangerfjord, recognized on the UNESCO World Heritage List for its tranquility and scenic beauty. Geiranger offers a hiking trail to the Seven Sisters waterfall viewpoint, as well as kayak and bike rentals for visitors interested in further sightseeing.

Northern lights in Abisko National Park. Pavel.shyshkouski. CC BY-SA 4.0

Abisko National Park is located in the Arctic Circle, a two-day drive from Stockholm via the scenic E4, which follows the coast of Sweden. Abisko National Park is one of the few regions worldwide in which the Northern Lights are viewable, being most vivid between September and early April. Scandinavia’s largest alpine lake is located in Abisko National Park, and the region is dominated by meadows, rivers and birch trees. During the summer visitors can experience the midnight sun, a twenty four-hour period of sunlight.

Stora Hammar Old Church. Maria Eklind. CC BY-SA 2.0

Skane is the southernmost region of Sweden, known for its pristine beaches, green forests and culinary culture. A six-hour drive from Stockholm and only an hour-long drive from Copenhagen, Skane is an ideal destination for road trippers seeking a countryside getaway. The region is populated with Viking villages, historic castles and gardens. Visitors are encouraged to bike down the winding country roads, surf the small, rolling waves in Skalderviken, and enjoy Spettekaka (pyramid cake) at one of the many bakeries.

White cliffs in Møns Klint. Bob Collowan, Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0

Mons Klint is located in the southernmost region of Denmark, a two-hour drive from Copenhagen. Also recognized on the UNESCO World Heritage List, Mons Klint is a six-kilometer stretch of chalk cliffs overlooking the ocean. The best way to explore Mons Klint is through a kayaking or fishing trip, or by one of the region’s mountain biking trails. Mons Klint is highly recommended for road trippers, who are encouraged to stay overnight at Camp Mons Klint.

Scandinavian road trip culture contradicts the tourism industry’s “staged authenticity,” in which the limitations of urban living can be mitigated with fabricated versions of the past. Tourism in Scandinavia thrives on raw, unfiltered experiences that highlight the region's natural beauty, with road trips emerging as the ultimate way to travel between landmarks.

Agnes Volland

Agnes is a student at UC Berkeley majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies and minoring in Creative Writing, with a research focus on road trip culture in America. She currently writes for BARE Magazine and Caravan Travel & Style Magazine. She is working on a novel that follows two sisters as they road trip down Highway 40, from California to Oklahoma. In the future, she hopes to pursue a career in journalism, publishing, or research.

The Sámi have resided in Northern Scandinavia long before the borders of existing countries were drawn. Despite pressure to assimilate to Norwegian culture, traditional Sámi culture remains strong.

Sami couple in traditional clothing. Saamiblog. CC BY 2.0

More than 4,000 miles north of the equator in Finnmark county, Norway live roughly 40,000 descendents of the Sámi, a nomadic people from thousands of years ago in Northern Scandinavia. The Sámi live in parts of Norway, Finland, Sweden and Russia. Of the 80,000 total population of Sámi, roughly half live in Finnmark, Norway.

The Sámi have their own language with five dialects currently used in Northern Norway. Of the dialects spoken, Northern Sámi, Lule Sámi and Southern Sámi are the most common. Each dialect is completely unique and does not resemble each other nor other Scandinavian languages. In the 1990s, the Norwegian government made speaking Sámi illegal in efforts to force assimilation of the Sámi people, resulting in many Sámi today being unable to speak the language. The Norwegian government has officially apologized for the past legislation, but the damage is still evident as less than half of Sámi people in Norway speak a Sámi dialect. In recent years the Sámi language has had an increasing role in new media and broadcasting, signaling efforts to keep the language alive.

A pillar of Sámi culture is reindeer herding, which played a major part in the Sámi economy for hundreds of years. Starting in the 16th or 17th century, the Sámi transitioned from hunting reindeer to becoming nomadic herders. Reindeers are used for more than just cooking — the Sámi make clothes and shoes from the skin, and the horns can be used to make traditional art. Today, Sámi herding is less nomadic; most families stay in permanent homes while the herder will travel with the reindeer.

Reindeer herd in Lapland. RukaKuusamo.com. CC BY 2.0

Despite previous attempts from governments to assimilate Sámi people, their culture and traditions have remained present in modern life. Notably, Sámi Joik has had a cultural renaissance in recent years. Joik is a traditional form of music that has been passed down orally for generations. The music, performed acapella, is storied to have been taught to the Sámi by fairies and elves. Joik is very personal in nature, as the music is typically dedicated to a specific person, place or animal. Joik is a central part to Sámi culture, and many young Sámi people have begun to incorporate the traditional music into different genres of music.

New artists are revitalizing Joik after intense pressure from the Norwegian government in the 20th century caused some areas to lose the tradition. Norwegian music group KEiiNO entered the 2019 Eurovision Song contest with music that included pop, electronic and Joik, and took 6th in the competition, winning the popular vote by viewers. Joik has made a recent impact in Hollywood as well, inspiring “Vuelie,” the opening track of Disney’s Frozen.

Joik is not the only part of Sámi culture that has continued in contemporary forms. The Sámi Center for Contemporary Art was established in 1986 and features contemporary Sámi art. The gallery blends traditional art pieces with modern art forms of expression. Despite past pressure and action from governments, the Sámi continue to keep important aspects of their culture alive. These efforts were continued with the establishment of the Norwegian Sámi Parliament in 1989. The Sámi Parliament is made of 39 elected representatives and oversees matters that deal directly with the Sámi. The parliament is a political party for the Sámi people that promotes Sámi interests. Traditional Sami culture remains an integral part of daily life for the Sami to this day, and illustrates how the rich history of the Sami is being brought into the modern day.