Activities for children in Stockholm over the Christmas holidays

Enjoy fairytale adventures at Junibacken, home of Pippi Longstocking and other beloved Swedish children's book characters. Meet Alfons, Emil in Lönneberga and other characters brought to life through play and storytelling. 

The Paradox Museum is open throughout the Christmas holidays for surprising experiences and tricksy illusions. There are over 70 interactive exhibitions here, all offering new perspectives on things. Take the opportunity to take fun photos at the various stations and immortalise all the fun.

The popular Christmas drama show "Christmas at the palace" is back at Hallwylska museet. Experience how the staff at this perfectly preserved family mansion at Hamngatan 4 prepared for Christmas in the olden days. What was life like for the staff in a house like this and how did the family celebrate Christmas? Get into the Christmas spirit with the museum's dramatised tour through the palace.

Christmas is often described as a magical time, and if you want to enhance that feeling further still, a visit to the Stockholm Toy Museum might be in order. The museum displays Northern Europe's largest collection of toys and comics, so both adults and children can find their current or childhood toy favourites here. For younger children, there are also various play areas where they can work off some energy.

The world-famous warship Vasa sank on her maiden voyage in 1628 and was salvaged from Stockholm harbour in 1961. At the Vasa Museum, you can admire the ship up close and delve into the story of Vasa through exhibitions about its construction, sinking, and recovery over 300 years later. Get to know the people surrounding the ship and the ship's sculptures and decorative carvings that were meant to evoke both admiration and fear.

Stockholm's Museum of Photography is open every day, even on Christmas Eve. Go on a guided tour and experience a photography exhibition with the whole family.

Tom Tits is open throughout the Christmas holidays with fun scientific experiments for large and small. Explore technology, biology and illusions over four floors, through experiments and experiences using the whole body and mind.

At the Ethnographic Museum, you can explore the world through objects from North and South America, Africa, and Asia. On 13th December, the 'Fairytale worlds' exhibition opens, where you can embark on a journey into the land of imagination and listen to stories from around the globe.

At the Mediterranean Museum, you can visit an exhibition about Egypt and its 7000-year-long history and get to know the people living by the Nile. In the audio tour, The Hunt for the Golden Scarab, you're tasked with finding the museum's missing golden scarab.

At the Technical Museum, there are lots of fun activities for curious children and teenagers during the Christmas holidays. For example, you can embark on a 3D adventure, explore the forest up close, enjoy space ice cream made with liquid nitrogen, and watch the 50-metre-long model railway in action.

Explore fascinating exhibitions about dinosaurs, space, animals, and the history of the Earth, participate in family tours, and learn more about our mighty nature. Combine your visit with an immersive film experience at Cosmonova, where you can dive into the depths of the oceans and journey through the universe.

The Post Museum in the Old Town tells the story of the postal service and postmen in Sweden. In the interactive exhibition, Post, the whole family can follow the journey of the mail through history, with singing letterboxes and work clothes to try on, and for the youngest visitors there's also the popular play exhibition Postis, where you can sort packages and deliver letters just like real postmen.

For over 30 years, children, young people, and adults have been invited to showcase their gingerbread houses at ArkDes. This year, the popular exhibition opens on 28th November, and the theme is a love of architecture, design, and details.

Get to know researchers, authors, and Alfred Nobel himself at the Nobel Prize Museum in the Old Town. You'll find interactive exhibitions, exciting artefacts, and thought-provoking stories from the long history of the Nobel Prize. There are free activities for all children in the workshop.

It doesn't get much more Christmassy than Christmas at Skansen. There's fun and festivities for all ages, from Christmas crafts and pony rides to the traditional advent Christmas market, with masses of presents and goodies. Peek into the various houses and farmsteads to see how Christmas was celebrated in olden days.

There's always something fun happening at the Kulturhuset Stadsteatern! Browse a book at the children's libraries, create in the workshops, or try out new ideas in the workshops and courses. During the Christmas holidays, an exciting programme full of fun activities awaits: there will be loads of films and popcorn in the Klarabiografen, and the Creation Workshop is open every day for crafts and handiwork.

At O'Learys Tolv Stockholm Event Center you'll find 5000 square metres of fun and activities, such as bowling, adventure golf, arcade games, shuffleboard, table tennis and darts. You can also fill your belly with hamburgers and other treats. 

Do you need a moment's break after all the Christmas hustle and bustle? Let the little ones enjoy themselves among the slides, ball pits and play modules while you relax with a coffee. At Lekrum Glädjefyllt, the play centre is combined with a café, so you can just drop in and spend a couple of hours here. When it's time to refuel, there are plenty of child-friendly snacks to order. 

There's a cosy atmosphere in Hågelby Park over the Christmas holidays. Grill your own sausages, pet the animals, borrow games and play at Café Anna Giertz, take a reflective walk or participate in one of the activities organised during the Christmas holidays.

Do you feel like staying indoors but still doing something fun? The activity centre BallBreaker in Kungsholmen has everything from bowling to shuffleboard, sports simulators and masses of other activities for all levels and ages.

Artipelag art gallery in Värmdö combines art and design with food and activities in a beautiful archipelago setting. With a large art gallery exhibition, restaurant, café, and shop, you can easily while away a few hours here during the Christmas holidays. Over the holidays, there will also be a Christmas workshop with pottery painting for young and old.

Combine food with fun at La Botanica in the Mall of Scandinavia! Sweden's largest buffet is served here, with vegetables, fish, meat, and dishes from America, Italy, and Asia. There's guaranteed to be something to suit all tastes here, even the fussiest of diners. After eating, head to their games zone, where you can challenge each other in everything from shuffleboard to mini-golf.

At Exit Games, players must collaborate to solve challenging riddles in escape rooms. The rooms have various themes, from secret submarine missions to encounters with mob boss Al Capone. The challenges are tailored for both children and adults who come together to think outside the box, have fun together, and hopefully break free in the end.

You can play boules and eat French food all year round at Boulebar. If you visit the Boulebar locations in Liljeholmen, Haga and Radhuset you can enjoy both French Christmas music and boules throughout December. Bring along your family and friends for a fun outing.

When you've had enough of Christmas movies, lounging on the sofa and chocolates, it could be time for a bit of an adrenaline kick with some speed and excitement. At Järfälla Go-Kart, people of all ages can hop into a go-kart and zoom around the track. There's a special track and karts for the younger ones, while the older members of the group can really step on it in extra fast racing karts. They have tracks both outdoors and indoors, and both are open year-round.

Vrex in Bromma is a VR experience centre where you solve various challenges and missions with your team. There are 300 square metres to play on, and with the help of the latest technology, you can conquer games like Skull Adventure and Zombie Apocalypse. A minimum of four players is required per game, and the minimum age is 11 years.

Take a day trip out to Hellasgården in Nackareservatet nature reserve and get a taste of the great outdoors just outside the city centre. Go for a long walk, have a coffee, grill sausages and more. If it's cold enough, there's a sledging hill, cross-country ski tracks and a lake to ice skate on.

Experience the feeling of floating in the air - the same feeling as jumping out of an airplane. The world's highest wind tunnel makes it possible, and of course the right equipment ensures that you fly safely. Before the flight, you're given a safety briefing, then you just take off while your group looks on. Suitable for children aged three and up.

Get your body moving at the JumpYard activity centre. Play dodgeball, jump on trampolines and do parkour, among other things. Action and adventure for all the family, or take your friends along and get sweaty together.

Every year around Christmas time, NK decorates its Christmas windows with landscapes, figures, and other impressive displays that attract the curious to peek into their festive world. This year, Pippi Longstocking turns 80 and moves into NK. Make it into an outing and combine it with a visit to a café and a cup of hot chocolate for the ultimate cosy feeling.

Say hello to animals, ride ponies and grill sausages at Aspuddenspark in Aspudden, south of the city. They also have a large playground that draws in crowds of kids (and parents) of all ages.

Check out the sparkling Christmas lights that illuminate Stockholm every year. With a Map of Lights from #Stockholmsjul you can go on a walk around the city centre and check out the streets and squares that are bedecked with Christmas lights. You'll find the map on #Stockholmsjul's website and at hotels and tourist offices.

Take a trip to Södertälje and the large adventure pool for the whole family, featuring slides, a jacuzzi, and water play. Perfect for energetic children and adults who want to warm up in the pool for a while.

Does the family need a bit of relaxation over the Christmas break? This popular Japanese spa has lowered its minimum age to 13 years, with an overnight package that includes access to the Japanese baths, activities, overnight stay and breakfast buffet.

Birka Bowling & Dart is an enormous bowling alley that's been drawing in bowling aficionados and keen amateurs since the 1970s. There's also a restaurant here so you can combine your bowling with a burger.

Klättercentret arranges Christmas holiday camps for children and young people who want to learn to climb. Everyone can learn to climb here, whatever your level of experience. Learn through games, technique practice and group exercises.

Stockholm Skatepark at Fryshuset has pretty much everything a skater could desire. There's a mini ramp, concrete bowl, a large street area and Stockholm's only vert ramp. They also run a skate camp for young skaters over the Christmas holidays.

Popular Cosmonova shows 3D films about the planet and animals. A popular and immersive cinema experience with the largest domed screen in Sweden. Pay a visit to the Museum of Natural History while you're there.

The cosy neighbourhood cinema Zita on Birger Jarlsgatan shows films for cinephiles of all ages. At weekends and school holidays, they have a special programme, Barnens Bio - Children's Cinema - featuring children's films, both classics and new films. 

Kulturhuset Stadsteatern's branch in Skärholmen is home to Europe's only cinema for children and young people between 5 and 19 years old, and they'll be hosting a film fest over the Christmas holidays.  Cinema tickets cost 50 kronor each and include popcorn and crafting.

All ages and abilities can enjoy skiing at Hammarbybacken. Pre-book your Skipass and rent skis online on their website, and check which lifts and runs are open at the moment.

Several artificial ice rinks open up around Stockholm when it gets cold enough, including rinks in Kungsträdgården and Vasaparken. Don't miss Scandinavian Ice Adventure, new for this year. You'll find information on where and when the rinks are open on Stockholm city's website.

When the snow finally covers the city, it's time to pull on your salopettes and get out onto the slopes with a sledge. There are lots of great sledging slopes in central Stockholm, we've listed some of the best below.

Vitabergsparken, Södermalm
Tanto, Södermalm
Stora Blecktornsparken, Södermalm
Vasaparken, Vasastan
Observatorielunden, Vasastan
Rålambshovsparken, Kungsholmen
Kronobergsparken, Kungsholmen
Humlegården, Östermalm

You'll find numerous open-air natural skating spots outside the city where you can skate when the ice is at least 20cm thick. Be careful and never skate alone or without safety equipment. You'll find information on the various lake and sea-skating spots on Stockholm city's website.