How are you going to spend your holidays?
Boat trips & Boat holidays
Anyone who has their own leisure boat can probably relate to the habit of going to the same favourite spots year after year. Many people struggle with the idea of longer boat trips or spending the majority of their holiday onboard. Therefore, we have put together a few different suggestions for both boat trips and boat holidays on and near the Göta Canal.
For those of you who live in Stockholm or Gothenburg, it's not very far to make an excursion to the Göta Canal by boat. As the canal spans 190 kilometres, you can easily spend part of your holiday travelling the canal.
For those of you who have already decided to travel on the Göta Canal, we would also like to give some tips on how you can extend your stay on either one of the larger lakes Vättern or Vänern. There are many islands and cosy harbours to discover, even if they are not exactly part of the canal surroundings.
Where are you traveling from?
Göta Canal is almost always close
Do you dream of sailing on the Göta Canal?
Do you dream of sailing Sweden's "blue ribbon" from east to west, or vice versa? You're not alone! Many people have this classic trip on their bucket list. In the excavated parts, i.e., you are not allowed to set sail on the canal itself, but the lakes in between offer pleasant sailing opportunities.
For those who want to take a break from the canal with its locks and bridges, on the larger lakes it is possible to find many beautiful natural harbours in which to dock.
Many choose to make a brief excursion with their sailboat on the Göta Canal, and buy a round-trip ticket for a certain distance. Others want a longer boating holiday and choose to travel on the Göta Canal one way, and then sail around Sweden on the way home.
Are you coming to the Göta Canal by motorboat?
For those of you who are used to whizzing along at high speed over open seas or lakes, the Göta Canal can instead offer a relaxing pace, moving along at a gentle 5 knots. Then you can increase your speed when you traverse the lakes, so that you can also get to feel a little wind in your hair.
If you live too far from the Göta Canal to travel by boat to Sjötorp or Mem, there are places to launch adjacent to both ends of the canal. In this way, you can also take the boat with you on a trailer and spend the holiday on the Göta Canal instead of on the way there and back.
However, we recommend that you buy a return ticket, as it can be expensive and take time to travel around southern Sweden to make your way back.
Mini trips
Try life on the canal!
For those who want to see what it's like to travel on the Göta Canal, and perhaps going through a lock for the first time, we recommend the mini trip.
The mini trip is a special offer that can be booked during the high season for four specially selected routes,
each with its own unique character and charm. In addition to the canal trip, the ticket includes 3 guest harbour nights.
Mem - Söderköping
The ticket includes a round trip journey between Mem and Söderköping, as well as three overnight stays in one of the guest harbours. You will experience both the tranquil, picturesque Mem, and the bustling summer atmosphere of Söderköping.
Motala - Borensberg
The ticket includes a round trip journey between Motala and Borensberg, as well as three overnight stays in one of the guest harbours. Take the time to enjoy Motala, one of the largest harbours on the canal, the historical environment surrounding the old Motala Workshop, and the idyllic Borensberg. Along the way, you will pass the Göta Canal's steepest flight of locks, with 5 locks, in Borenshult.
Karlsborg - Vassbacken
The ticket includes a round trip journey between Karlsborg and Vassbacken, as well as three overnight stays in one of the guest harbours. Take the opportunity to experience harbour life in Karlsborg, feel the beating wings of history in the old mill town of Forsvik, or the quietly idyllic Vassbacken. Along the way, you will pass 2 locks and 3 bridges.
Sjötorp - Lyrestad
The ticket includes a round trip journey between Sjötorp and Lyrestad, as well as three overnight stays in one of the guest harbours. Take the opportunity to experience the bustling, high-season atmosphere at Sjötorp, and the tranquility of the idyllic Lyrestad harbour. Along the way, you will pass 8 locks and 2 bridges.
Standard tickets
Our subsections
The Göta Canal is divided into three subsections. For those who don't wish to travel all the way, or
for those who already have a boat on one of the lakes along the route, it is perfectly fine to travel just one or two sections.
Below you can see which sections are available to choose from, and of course you can buy one-way trips in both directions
or round-trip tickets.
Sjötorp - Karlsborg
A journey from Sjötorp to Karlsborg will take you through the entire western section of the Göta Canal, from Lake Vänern to Lake Vättern. Along the way, you will be passing a number of picturesque locations where you can pause to enjoy the lovely pace of the Göta Canal.
You will also have the opportunity to make a stop at Töreboda, where you will find both a swimming pool and shops, and at the lively canal harbour of Karlsborg. Going through the Berg Canal and Lake Viken, the surroundings grow more fairytale-like, and the forests are a sharp contrast to the open plains of Västergötland. Once you reach Karlborg, you will pass the Rödesund bridge to Lake Vättern, where there are many adventures to discover, for anyone wishing to explore.
Duration
During the high season, you should expect the journey to take 2-3 days. Your ticket includes five nights in every guest harbour along the way, so there is no reason to hurry. During pre- and post-season, you will travel according to a fixed itinerary. A standard journey will then take 2 days, and an express journey will take 1. Visit the links to see the itineraries for the respective journeys.
The Trollhätte Canal
If you are also travelling the Göteborg-Vänersborg section, you will need to pass through the Trollhätte Canal and Lake Vänern before arriving in Sjötorp. Tickets for the Trollhätte canal are sold at the Canal Control Center in Trollhättan.
Motala - Berg
This section will take you right through a part of Swedish industrial history. You begin your journey by travelling through the old industrial area by the Motala Workshop. Here, Baltzar von Platen founded a mechanical workshop for the purpose of repairing the machinery used in canal construction.
Once you have passed Lake Boren, you will reach the picturesque town of Borensberg, best known for the renowned Göta Hotel, one of Sweden’s most photographed buildings. Further on lies the long canal, a 20 km section without a single lock, but with a number of beautiful bridges. Your journey will conclude with one of the most famous locks on the Göta Canal, the Carl Johan flight of locks at Berg. There, you will be lowered a full 18 metres before passing on to Lake Roxen.
Duration
During the high season, you should expect the journey to take 2-3 days. Your ticket includes five nights in every guest harbour along the way, so there is no reason to hurry.
During pre- and post-season, you will travel according to a fixed itinerary. A standard journey will then take 2 days, and an express journey will take 1. Visit the links to see the itineraries for the respective journeys.
Norsholm - Mem
The Norsholm-Mem ticket will take you through the eastern section of the Göta Canal, from Lake Roxen to the Baltic Sea. It is not a very long journey, but it holds many experiences.
Your journey begins at Norsholm, by passing the railroad bridge, which the Swedish Transport Authority only opens for brief periods of time, and the stately E4 road bridge. Further on lies a section with six locks, in the midst of the Östergötland countryside. The last part of the journey, out to Mem, goes through the famous summer town of Söderköping, often bustling with life in the summer months.
Duration
During the high season, you should expect the journey to take 1-2 days. Your ticket includes five nights in every guest harbour along the way, so there is no reason to hurry.
During pre- and post-season, you will travel according to a fixed itinerary. A standard journey will then take 1 day, as will an express journey. Visit the links to see the itineraries for the respective journeys.
