Thematic trip to Sweden - Traditional lifestyle and professions

I think you can organize this trip yourself just by doing research and pulling together an itinerary. What about going to a place like Skansen (http://www.skansen.se/en/kategori/english) or ethnographic museums that will give you a flavor of what you're looking for? The way you described your needs still sounds fairly generic (you can eat traditional food anywhere) so I'm not sure how to translate this into a tour - I would think most tours would at least touch on the things you mentioned because you're not asking for anything really out-of-this-world. Maybe you're trying to say you'd like to concentrate on more rural settings as opposed to urban? I hope others chime in....

Yes, for some reason I think that in most countries people living in rural regions managed (or maybe they had no other choice) to integrate their heritage organically in their everyday life. This is the main reason I favor visiting rural regions over urban ones.

Some years ago I walked the El Camino (the French Route), and I had the chance to see a lot of small villages and towns in northern Spain. Obviously I saw a lot of poor and struggling people as well, and since then I prefer to spend my money where it is more needed. Not saying that I don't enjoy "big city life", if I will get to Sweden I will probably spend 2-3 days in Stockholm as well, but that will be mostly because I would feel pretty much ignorant if I wouldn't do that.

You're asking for things that "you usually can't find in the offers of the travel agencies" but then you ask for "any travel agencies or organizations who offer tours" of these off-beat things. It's a bit of a dilemma. Part of the answer may be that those attractive things are offered to tourists and you just haven't reviewed the options yet. Glassblowing, at least, is easy to find. To get a flavor of the towns or activities that Rick covers in his Scandinavia book, see some outtakes at https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/sweden as well as his guided tour itinerary linked from that page.

Another part of the answer may be to look for more inspiring articles and resources on line, perhaps with the intention of planning an independent trip. Try the travel sections of web sites like the New York Times, Guardian (UK), or Travel & Leisure, as well as more surfing around the VisitSweden site where you found your linked article. They have to give you some practical advice after teasing you with this article.

Thank you for the suggestions Laura! It is true that I did no throughout research regarding the offers the travel agencies have. I checked out most of the agencies in my hometown, and they had nothing relevant.

I will check out the sites you mentioned, let's see what they have :)

Just a quick update. Right now it seems pretty sure, that I want to visit the Dalarna province and lake Siljan. Two of the people from that linked article live near the lake, and the more I think about it, the more I like the idea to make it a goal to meet these guys. Some people want to get to Stockholm to see the city, I want to meet a crispbread baker... :)

For accommodation I'm browsing through the Swedish Tourist Association's (https://book.stfturist.se/en/accommodation) site in the hope that I will find something decent but cheap. Lets see where that brings me.

An other thing I would like to do while in Sweden is to hop on the Inlandsbanan (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inland_Line). Any suggestions regarding this railway trip?

And another quick and short update - maybe this will be helpful to someone (but this really starts to feel like simply blogging about planning a trip :) ):

I just found out about the regulation of camping in Sweden (and generally in Scandinavia). You have "the Right to Roam", or the Right of Public Access ( http://www.swedishepa.se/Enjoying-nature/The-Right-of-Public-Access/This-is-allowed/Camping--tents/ ), which lets you camp "a night or two in the countryside as long as you don’t disturb the landowner or cause damage to nature".

I definitely want to take this into account, because it seems that some of the accommodation possibilities are just frightfully expensive... :(

In addition to camping, youth hostels are generally held to high Scandinavian standards and used by all sorts of travelers, even those driving nice Volvos.

Lake Siljan has train service along one side, but if it looks like a rental car would make it easier to reach multiple small towns, then I'd encourage you that the driving is not hard.

I like that you are looking for a unique trip. We visited a skansen in Sweden and I would email a few of them and ask if they can recommend some unique travel opportunities. You might find out about festivals or "stay with a family" sort of adventures.

Do you have any Swedish heritage? If so, have you located cousins? I did that and it was relatively easy. I now have a few standing invitations to stay with them and get a personal escort around the area.

I did the same type of homework in Poland and had the most wonderful and unique travel experience you could ask for. We stayed in two villages of about 2,000-3,000 people and saw an entirely different lifestyle from that of the big cities in Poland. The hospitality was amazing.

I did all of the research and planning myself. The skansens in Europe are a wonderful experience. Plan to spend a few hours in each one and try to schedule it when a festival is going on.

Thanks for your reply, Donna! I have no Swedish heritage, so the option to contact some distant relatives isn't there for me. But I will check out the possible festivals and skansens. I know that my best bet for seeing traditional stuff is to visit skansens, but I would like to focus on traditions that are "alive". Part of people's everyday lives. I think, that I will try to look for bot, like searching for still existing traditions, crafts and so on, and then check out how they look in a skansen as well.

I is really nice that after a quick google search, the second link I see is this: http://www.skansen.se/en/kategori/english. That may be a good starting point.

Ok now, here comes another update that seems something resemble a plan!

Based on my initial plan and on suggestions, I want to do the following things:

I. Taking a tour around the lake Siljan, and while there I want to:

• visit a bear park
• take a cruise on the lake
• look for some of the people from this article
• check out the Grannas Dalahäst (Dalahorse) fabric
• and keep my eyes open for the beauty of the landscape (maybe also taking advantage of some more stuff this guide recommends)

II. Initially the second part of my trip would have been a ride on the Inlandsbanan, but after checking out the ticket prices I'm not sure about this anymore... Now instead of getting on that train I plan to get some more advantage of the Right to Roam, and explore the hiking trails in Dalarna.

Is here anyone who could give me some other tips/recommendations? Do I lose a lot if I don't go further north, and stay in Dalarna for trekking?

Ok, one last update, just for the sake of wholeness. :)

It seems that I will fly to Malmö, and I will take the train to Mora from there. If I'm not mistaken, this way the whole plane+train and train+plane journey will cost me around $500.

I also tried to make a gear-list. If you have any experience with these kind of things, please feel free to check it out and comment on it:

Backpack - Osprey Atmos 65 AG
Headlamp - Black Diamond Spot
Pocketknife - Victorinox Classic SD Swiss Army Knife
Medical Kit - Adventure Medical Kits Ultralight/Watertight .5
Bivy Sack - REI Minimalist
Tarp - Mountain Laurel Designs Grace Tarp Duo
Pants - Prana Stretch Zion Pants
Shoes - Keen Targhee 2
Socks - REI Merino Wool Light Hiker II Socks (x3)
Rain Jacket - Marmot PreCip

The total price of every piece of gear on this list is somewhere between $800 and $1000. With the travel costs that would be $1500, which means that I still have some $500 to spend.

Plane tickets in my Inbox! For $140 I'm off to go!

Changes in the gear-list:

Bivy sack and tarp are definitely out, and a Marmot Limelight 2P Tent is on it’s way to my home address. I hope this wasn’t a bad decision. I was so frustrated with all the planning and waiting that I just bought it (and it had a 20% discount :)) The sleeping bag is still a question, but at least I know that I will invest in a sleeping pad as well (Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol Mattress – a foam sleeping pad, for some reason I don’t trust air pads).

I still have some time to finalize everything, but in two months and a week, I will be off to Sweden!

Just another quick question!

What chances do I have to get a proper vegetarian meal from time to time in Sweden?

I'm vegetarian, but eat fish from time to time as well (mostly while visiting places where it is hard to get a proper vegetarian meal ). Some years ago I was in Spain, and - the trip was great, but - it was a pain to find any restaurants with vegetarian dishes. That was when I started eating fish, to be able to get enough nutrients. Back then I said, that I won't ever again go on a trip without knowing what I will able to eat. I know that Sweden has a lot of fish related dishes, I even want to try one or two (like their local Fish&Chips - goo.gl/nCrsJz), but I don't want to make fish the basic ingredient for my meals.

I am essentially a vegetarian...will eat meat without complaint if no alternative. However, last year in Sweden, I had no trouble sticking to a vegetarian diet. I was in Västerbotten, Småland and Stockholm. In a small village in Småland, I did have to go with Asian food. In Västerbotten, I had the most wonderful potato risotto! Stockholm has any type of food you want, from what I could see. Although, as I was on my own heritage tour, I did have reindeer... Love Sweden. Wray

Thanks for your quick reply, Wray!