Studying abroad and packing right

Anything with a North Face logo on it would be a safe choice. Something suitable for skiing should work. He may find that Stockholm is not all that much colder than Hoboken in the winter. Other stuff he can buy while he is there.

Buy him Icebreaker merino wool liners to wear under refular clothing. They take up little space and keep you very warm. We used them above the chilly Arctic Circle in the summer before visiting Sweden in the summer.

Long thermal underwear and layer, layer, layer. REI and LL Bean should have what you need.

First, congratulations to your son for getting into a study abroad program! This is how to see Europe -- BY LIVING THERE. I also love how you say Hoboken as if everyone here knows that Hoboken is in New Jersey. (Maybe they do?) :-)

To EWR or JFK, he can wear the down coat you buy him/scarf/hat/gloves he'll need in Sweden so no need to worry about packing them. That's assuming he's leaving from the NYC metropolitan area and not from FLA. Whatever he wears in Hoboken when he's outside should be fine. Long johns like the kind he wears when skiing should be packed too. It can never hurt. He'll be packing for winter and spring which means pack a raincoat.

Make sure the boots are waterproof. Anything forgotten can either be shipped by you or can be bought in Sweden.

Last, the university probably has a packing list?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Look up the normal temperatures in Stockholm and compare them to Hoboken on Weather.com. Use the monthly tab and, even if you are looking beyond their forecast, they will still have the normal lows and highs for that date. I use this site all the time in planning my travels.

Thanks, everyone!

North Face is a good idea, Sam. And being from Green Bay, you probably know coats and winter wear better than anyone. :)

Suki, excellent tip, and thanks for the specific brand name. This is really helpful. :)

TC, you are right....layering is the way to go. We don't know about such things in Florida, but I'm sure he's developed some skills in this area already. Especially as he is outside, I think layering will be crucial.

Continental, thanks for the kind words about his acceptance into this program. It's a master's level naval engineering program, and he's doing it as a junior in college, so yeah, we're pretty proud of him. I did say 'university in New Jersey' in my first paragraph, so I thought Hoboken + context clues might be clear enough. ;) He will be leaving from the EWR/LGA/JFK as he needs to pack up some final things before he leaves with his classmates to Stockholm.

Bob, thanks for your reply. We have looked up all of that. It's a little bit colder, but the issue is a few hours less of sunlight + more time spent outside + lots of islands/bridges/etc (meaning windy, colder weather) which I recall from my own trip to Stockholm last year. One of the things I remember Rick Steves saying is when you're looking at temperatures, remember you're going to be outside much of the time, which I expect to be true for him as much of the appeal of Stockholm is being outside.

North Face sells good outerwear but so do REI and Bean and Columbia and Patagonia and others, generally for a lower price without a noticeable quality difference. It's all made in China anyway, probably in the same factory.

How about one of those lightweight down jackets, like 650 or 850 loft, that stuffs into its own pocket? A great layer under something waterproof. Around here they run $100-200 depending mostly on the label.

Congrats to your son! He'll have a (wintry) blast!

I wear Columbia, but it doesn't have the cachet of North Face. He's a college student, remember, and the right brand means everything (pardon my prejudice). I recall that all the Swedish and Norwegian skiers I run into in Europe seem to be walking North Face ads.

The Marino wool layers including leggings, gloves, and socks are a great idea. REI, Smartwool, and Royalrobbins, are three more good brands. Mountain Steels is a good discount source.

Wool is great. It dries fast, wicks away moisture, provides more warmth with less bulk, and resists odor. Marino is better as it's solf and scratch free.

Awesome replies...thanks so much! Lots to consider, and I'll be sure to consult him before I buy.

Sam...I loved your description of the walking North Face ads. :)

I lived in Stockholm for two years (so two winters).

I wore hiking boots/shoes with wool socks a lot in the winter when I was out walking. They sprinkle these small pebbles/sand on the sidewalk when there is ice and snow and shoes with good tread are useful. In Sweden, it is custom to take your shoes off when you enter someone’s flat and walk around in your socks. It is particularly practical in winter so you don’t damage the wood floors with the sand and grit you have tracked in from outside. My apartment was always toasty warm ... radiators and thick walls kept it very comfortable.

Other than that, I wore the same kind of stuff that I wear on cold winter days here in the DC area ... warm coat, scarf, hat, gloves.

It isn’t as cold as one might expect given that Stockholm is 60 degrees north. The temperature is often around the freezing mark in winter or just below. What he wears in Hoboken on cold days would likely be fine. The short days are more of a challenge.

By the way, I never wore long underwear in Stockholm except when I was actually doing outdoor sporting activities. Long underwear is pretty impractical if you will be going indoors as flats, restaurants, offices, and I assume classrooms are generally warm. I did tend to wear a long, wool winter coat (rather than a parka) when commuting to the office as that keeps your legs warmer and you have the coat between your rear and the bench if you sit down at a bus stop.

If he skates, there are some good opportunities to skate outdoors.

Will he be at KTH?

I've no advice on packing for Stockholm, but just wanted to say congrats and good luck to your son. Sounds like a wonderful adventure and opportunity.

Our son will be a junior at Iowa State next year and is tentatively planning to study abroad in Edinburgh for his spring 2019 semester. So I'll probably be here on the forum a year from now looking for advice, just as you are now. I've always gotten good advice here, all much appreciated.

I hope your son has a great experience!

After you get all that poofy warm clothes, something like this might be handy.

https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/compression-bags

As a Canadian, I can tell you that long thermal underwear is great if you are planning on doing a lot of outdoor activities like skiing, tubing etc. Not something that you would wear everyday just to go to class or go about your normal day

Not sure what your budget is but Canada goose is probably one of the warmest jackets you can get. They are also very 'in' for that age group here and in NYC, Chicago etc.

I agree with many others though that Stockholm likely won't be all that much colder that NJ

Congrats to your son. What an awesome experience!

Great ideas...thanks all! And thanks for the good vibes and good wishes. We are really proud of him and excited for him.

Laura, yes, he'll be at KTH. Seems like they are really geared toward the study abroad population. They've also built new housing near the campus that he will be staying in. So far, so good!

I'm not sure what winter sports he'll end up trying. He's a wrestler and a waterskier with a bad knee, so he will probably limit some of the things he'll do based on that. When he was a kid he learned how to snow ski, but it's been probably 13 years or so since he's skied on anything but water. ;)