{"id":31385,"date":"2024-04-09T12:56:22","date_gmt":"2024-04-09T10:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.visitsmaland.se\/?post_type=guide&p=31385"},"modified":"2025-04-22T15:39:06","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T13:39:06","slug":"holiday-in-smaland","status":"publish","type":"guide","link":"https:\/\/www.visitsmaland.se\/en\/discover\/holiday-in-smaland\/","title":{"rendered":"Holiday in Sm\u00e5land"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Holiday in Sm\u00e5land <\/h1>\n <\/div>\n
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Sara Kroezen, a copywriter based in Amsterdam, has shared her experiences from a holiday in Sm\u00e5land. She travelled with her family, husband Tom and daughters Emma and Mia, to discover Sm\u00e5land like a local \u2013 a summer holiday in a typical Swedish cottage in Vimmerby. <\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n

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\n Sneezing moose? <\/h3>\n
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I look with surprise at my daughter and barely manage to keep a straight face. \u201cI\u2019m not sure darling, but I guess they are used to all the nature around them\u201d. Mia sniffs her freshly picked flowers, sneezes, but seems satisfied with my answer and skips on to her sister. Emma and Mia have already spent the whole morning searching for the most beautiful flowers around our cottage. Sneezing moose? I think about Mia\u2019s question and can no longer suppress my laughter. From the array of freshly-picked flowers, we build summery wreaths, while making plans for the afternoon. It is time for some action. And there is more than enough to do in Sm\u00e5land!<\/p>\n

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\n Nature lovers, “fika” and MTB <\/h3>\n
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We are on holiday in Sm\u00e5land, a dream come true for me. Other than the time we\u2019ve spent relaxing and spending time playing endless card games in our gorgeous cottage, we really haven\u2019t sat still. Here, nature begins at the front door and we are thoroughly enjoying that. The girls are turning out to be true nature lovers and, during our hikes and bike rides, they are continuously searching for the abundant treasures from nature. As for me, I\u2019m certainly happy with the breaks in between, especially when we take part in the Swedish tradition of \u201cFika\u201d. It\u2019s a tradition deeply embedded in Swedish culture that mostly involves eating pastries, drinking coffee and making time for a chat. The Swedish pastries belonging to this tradition are dangerously delicious. And Tom? He has rediscovered an old passion: his mountain bike\u2026 Biking the zigzagging paths in the forest is certainly not for me, but I\u2019m happy for him to wear himself out enjoying this muddy hobby.<\/p>\n

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\n I instantly fell in love <\/h3>\n
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Tom comes outside with two mugs of coffee and carefully sits down next to me. His hair still wet from the morning swim, he turns to me and says: \u201cYou were right! \u201cYour\u201d Sweden really is amazing!\u201d That Sweden is mine is a slight exaggeration, I think, smiling. My mother\u2019s family has roots here, so, it was only logical for us to travel here for holidays sometimes while I was growing up. While this was many years ago, the memories of the wonderful Swedish summers have remained strong in my mind. This is exactly what I wanted Tom and the girls to experience. That\u2019s why we are sitting here on a sunny summer\u2019s day in Sm\u00e5land. The decision to choose Sm\u00e5land as a destination was an easy one. It is nearby by car from the Netherlands and the region offers everything we desire: The beautiful archipelago with idyllic islands on the east coast, the big lakes and the richness of green forests, hills, the typical red houses and above all\u2026 enough to do. I instantly fell in love, when I came across our cute little red wooden cottage, called a stuga in Swedish.<\/p>\n

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\n Time for the second swim of the day! <\/h3>\n
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Tom was not difficult to convince, and we found ourselves mapping out our route the very same evening: A short ferry crossing between Germany and Denmark \u2013 making the kids happy \u2013 and, after driving across the impressive \u00d6resund Bridge, a beautiful route through southern Sweden. Now, here we are. My bare feet are happily playing with the lush grass and I take a deep breath of the fresh air\u2026 Abruptly, I\u2019m awakened from my daydream by a towel brushing over my face. \u201cMuuuum, come on!\u201d Emma shouts, as she races past me straight into the glittering lake. Alright, time for the second swim of the day!<\/p>\n

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\n Hi Emil! <\/h2>\n
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Our cottage is located close to the village of Vimmerby. And this just happens to be the cradle of all my childhood idols: Pippi Longstocking and Emil of L\u00f6nneberga. The characters from the books, …