I have the option to take the June 1 RS Scandinavian tour but am trying to do a back to back trip that would make me change it to May 18 instead. For anyone who has traveled to the Scandinavian countries in May and early June, is there a large difference in the weather or perhaps the amount of greenery and wildflowers or places being open in mid-May vs early June. Any thoughts are appreciated.
Posted by
Bay Area SF & Uppsala Sweden
952 posts
is there a large difference in the weather or perhaps the amount of greenery and wildflowers or places being open in mid-May vs early June.
Hi Barbara, Personally, I love mid May in Sweden, but of course the weather is changeable so you might see some rain, lots of greenery, still cool though last week we saw temps in the mid 70's, it can still be chilly so you need a lightweight puffer jacket and a rain coat, just in case. Hey this is 2025? Spring has definitely sprung in the lower latitudes, won't comment much further north. But here in Uppsala an hour north of Stockholm many people are wearing shorts, though it was rainy today. The daffodils, tulips and green leaves as well as spring blossoms such as magnolias are out & the birch trees are in full bloom, think N CA in March! It will definitely be full-on greener in June above the arctic circle than in May, but you know what, I would go in mid May, I prefer fewer crowds.
Many palaces opened on May 2nd for the season, most of the bigger places you might visit will be open on weekends until June 1st, when usually they move to summer hours and are open more days of the week. As an example, we were at Skolkloster, a baroque palace about an hour drive from Uppsala and about the same from Stockholm in early May, it was not only open on Friday but had an English language tour with about 12 people. https://skoklostersslott.se/en/. Otherwise Swedes are out and about, sitting outdoors where ever they can, I don't think any major attraction or outdoor restaurants would be closed. The adorable Victoria Cafe in the Uppsala Botanic Gardens opened on May 1st, of course we were wearing our jackets. There will still be snow in Norway in the mountains, but I would be happy there in May too. Perhaps ask others in Norwegian Forum about the differences there? Hope that's helpful! Maybe we could meet up at the next RS travel meeting in the East Bay. Here's a TR of a short staycation we did in Stockholm the first week of May. I didn't notice any shorter hours in any of the museums. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/2-day-stockholm-trip
Posted by
OP
Arcadia, CA
574 posts
Great! Thanks so much! Mid-May sounds wonderful.
Posted by
Atlanta
2509 posts
Barbara,
I took the Scandinavia tour in mid-May of 2022 and we had perfect weather. Mild temperatures with spring flowers in bloom helped make this a special tour. I loved it!