By the Stockholm By Boat captain team · Last updated

Svartsö

Svartsö is one of the larger islands in the middle Stockholm archipelago, in Värmdö municipality between Möja and Ljusterö. By private boat from Strandvägen, the trip takes about 1h 30min by motorboat or 2h 45min by yacht. Recommended stay: full day.

An island in the middle archipelago, with a general store at Alsvik jetty, Svartsö Krog, inland lakes and gravel roads for walking and cycling.

Red waterfront buildings and the guest harbour jetty on Svartsö in the Stockholm archipelago

Svartsö is one of the larger islands in the middle Stockholm archipelago, in Värmdö municipality between Möja and Ljusterö. It lies about 2 nautical miles east of southern Ljusterö, just south of Ingmarsö, and is about 8 kilometres long and 1.5 kilometres wide. The island's own website, svartso.se, says about 60 people live here permanently and that the population grows to about 800 in summer thanks to the many holiday homes. The landscape is varied, with old and new buildings, several inland lakes, untouched forest and open farmland, and grazing animals still help keep the landscape open. By the mid-1500s there were farms at Alsvik and Skälvik, which later grew into villages, and summer villas and holiday homes began to be built around 1900. In 1732 the bank commissioner Johan Söderling built a stone manor house at Alsvik, with bricks from the brickworks he had founded on the neighbouring island of Hästnacken. Värmdö municipality's island guide calls it an example of the small bourgeois manor houses that began to appear in the archipelago in the 1700s. The house is privately owned. West of Alsvik jetty is the local heritage house, a former mission house inaugurated in 1880 and one of the oldest in the archipelago. It is used today for meetings, parties, exhibitions, markets and film screenings, and there is a swimming spot nearby. At Alsvik jetty you find Svartsö Lanthandel, a general store with tourist information that is also an agent for post, pharmacy and Systembolaget and rents out bikes. East of the steamboat jetty is Svartsö Krog, which looks out over Träsköfjärden and has its own jetty. Visit Stockholm notes that it also runs glamping. The island also has a hotel and hostel and a school. The roads are gravel, with many footpaths, and svartso.se says the island is accessible for wheelchair users, with an accessible toilet at the hotel. Both Alsvik and Skälvik jetties have scheduled boats, and Visit Stockholm recommends Waxholmsbolaget's boats for getting here. From Strandvägen, the fairway route is an estimated 22 nautical miles. Cruise time is about 1h 30min at 15 knots in a motorboat and about 2h 45min at 8 knots in a yacht. These are estimated cruise times at those speeds, not a scheduled departure, and the actual time depends on traffic, speed limits and conditions on the water.

Best time to visit: June-August

Travel time from Strandvägen: motorboat 1h 30min, yacht 2h 45min

Svartsö at a glance

TypeIsland
Travel time by motorboat1h 30min from Strandvägen
Travel time by yacht2h 45min from Strandvägen
Best time to visitJune-August
Recommended stayFull day
AmenitiesToilet, Restaurant, Seating, Café, Drinking water, Shower, Trash bins, Guest Harbor
Coordinates59.4388, 18.6560

Things to do on Svartsö

Walk the gravel roads and footpaths past lakes, forest and farmland, rent a bike at the general store, swim near the heritage house at Alsvik, and see the 1732 stone manor house at Alsvik from the outside, as it is privately owned.

Where to dock at Svartsö

Svartsö has a guest harbour.

Pictures from Svartsö

Rustic outdoor pub bar with corrugated metal walls and a lifebuoy on SvartsöBlack wooden house with a striped awning and outdoor dining among trees on SvartsöView from a glamping tent over a wooden deck and the sea on SvartsöAerial view of the guest harbour on Svartsö, with boats at the jetties beside the forestShared plates of food and glasses of white wine on a table by the water on SvartsöRed wooden houses and moored boats along a jetty on Svartsö

Go to Svartsö with our boats

Private boats with a licensed captain from Strandvägen. Cruise times are estimates at 15 knots by motorboat and 8 knots by yacht.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Svartsö?

Svartsö is in the middle Stockholm archipelago, in Värmdö municipality, about 2 nautical miles east of southern Ljusterö and just south of Ingmarsö. The island is about 8 kilometres long and 1.5 kilometres wide.

How long does it take to reach Svartsö by boat?

From Strandvägen the fairway route is an estimated 22 nautical miles: about 1h 30min at 15 knots in a motorboat and about 2h 45min at 8 knots in a yacht. Those are estimates, not a scheduled departure.

What is there to do on Svartsö?

Walk the gravel roads and footpaths past lakes, forest and farmland, rent a bike at the general store, swim near the heritage house at Alsvik, and see the 1732 stone manor house at Alsvik from the outside, as it is privately owned.

Where can you eat on Svartsö?

Svartsö Krog, east of Alsvik jetty, looks out over Träsköfjärden and has its own jetty. The island also has a hotel, and Svartsö Lanthandel at Alsvik jetty sells groceries.

Can you get to Svartsö without a private boat?

Yes. Waxholmsbolaget's boats call at Alsvik and Skälvik, the island's two steamboat jetties.

When is the best time to visit Svartsö?

The best time to visit by boat is June to August, when the population grows to about 800 and the island is at its liveliest.

Nearby destinations

About Stockholm By Boat

Stockholm By Boat is a Stockholm-based private boat charter company. We arrange private boat trips with a licensed captain in Stockholm and the Stockholm archipelago, and most charters depart from Strandvägen in central Stockholm. Our fleet includes more than 50 motorboats, yachts, sailboats and event vessels, supported by over 40 professional captains. Destination guides like this one are written and kept up to date by our captain team.

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