Skansen Open-Air Museum in Stockholm?

Sharon, we were a group of adults (no children) and we enjoyed it very much. If you're at all interested in Scandinavian history (18th-19th c.), you would probably enjoy it. They have a very pretty church. The costumed docents were excellent at imparting the history and culture. We had very nice weather when we went (July) so it's hard to say if I would have enjoyed it as much in poor weather. It's a pretty typical living history museum, maybe a little larger than most I have seen. I thought it was one of my highlights of Sweden. Also, the restaurant there had really good food. However that was quite a few years ago when we went so can't really say it's the same now.

Yes, we enjoyed it a great deal. We had only planned to be there a few hours but ended up spending the whole afternoon (well past when they closed the gates to new admissions). In the late afternoon it clears out and we had the place mostly to ourselves. My wife loves animals and we were happy to discover there is also a nice zoo. BTW - It may to late for you now, but the Stockholm Card made our stay in that city very easy and we saved money (always important!). If you're staying much longer make sure to look into getting one. Enjoy!

Thanks all! You've given us great info. The weather has improved so we'll plan to go tomorrow. Mark, we looked at purchasing the Stockholm Card but worked out the numbers for a 24-hour card and decided we couldn't get to enough sites to make it pay off. It's 450 kr now - $64.25 each!

I was actually disappointed with Skansen. I expected it to be similar to Williamsburg, VA - where all the employees in period dress can discuss local history, culture, how they make a living, etc. The employees at Skansen dress in period costumes but don't seem to know anything about the period. Maybe my questions were too hard: How many people usually lived in a farmhouse like this (they're designed for more than one family). How many animals? Do the animals have to stay inside to avoid predators? How far away would your nearest neighbors be? How far to the nearest town? Were these farm-houses self-sufficient communities?
Are they always oriented the same way to protect from prevailing winds or take advantage of the sun? Yes, maybe the answers depended on the situation - but that wasn't the response. It was either a blank stare or "I don't know." The employees near the entrance couldn't even tell me where to find local services near Skansen. Walmart greeters are much more helpful. I might have talked to the wrong people; if so, I talked to lots of the wrong people. This made the experience less like an open air museum and more just a bunch of buildings you could walk around - with some random people in period costume.

While not in the amazing category, I really enjoyed visiting Skansen and the less than Disneyland style presentation. When next in Stockholm, I'll most certainly visit again.

How did you like it, Sharon? Having some Swedish forbears, I thought it was great back in 1998. Castles and cathedrals are fine, but my ancestors were not princes or clergymen. I found the Skansen farmsteads and crafts to be wonderful.