Photo by phototouring

Baltic cruiseferry giant Tallink-Silja is currently offering one-way overnight ferry rides from Stockholm to Riga for as little as SEK100 (€10.90; $14.80)!

Ferries depart from Stockholm’s Frihamnen terminal, which can easily be reached by bus. (Note that in the summer it will also be possible to take Viking Line from the more conveniently located Stadsgården terminal in northeast Södermalm.)

Approximately 18 hours—and lord knows how many banana cocktails—later, the mammoth cruiseferry pulls into Riga’s Juras Pasazieru Stacija (Sea Passenger Terminal), less than one km north of Riga’s old town. In addition to being entirely manageable by foot, Riga’s rosy cheapness will heal memories of those SEK50 hot chocolates purchased back in Stockholm.

Here’s another tip: from Riga, other Baltic capitals can be reached by bus for next to nothing. By “next to nothing” we mean to suggest €5 to Tallinn and to €6 to Vilnius.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Ryanair announced today that they’ll fly three new routes from Stockholm’s secondary Skavsta airport: Skavsta-Marseille (as of May 7), Skavsta-Venice (as of May 23), and Skavsta-Alghero (as of May 24.)

In line with their expansion/contraction move last week, the airline will eliminate three current routes in and out of Skavsta as well: Skavsta-Brussels (ending May 22), Skavsta-Gdansk (also ending May 22), and Skavsta-Kaunas (ending May 23).

Though the last of these cancellations doesn’t really surprise us—we flew between Skavsta and Kaunas in January on half-empty flights, both ways—we’re missing those rapacious Ryanair route expansion announcements.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Photo by quinnsolomon

Beneath the grand Sergel Filmstaden cinema complex at Hötorget is a hidden food court. Entering through the glass doors on the southern end of the building one arrives at the escalators and descends.

It’s a hive for foreign exports, with exotic fruits, stores specializing in the goods of particular countries, and religious food stuffs. There are also many eateries and a customer-friendly Systembolaget. For the uninitiated, Systembolaget is the Swedish state liquor store chain. This particular link in the Systembolaget chain has kindly placed turncounters all over the shop, so one is free to walk around (as opposed to waiting by a single counter) whilst waiting to buy alcohol. For a snarky take on the Systembolaget experience, check out this review.

The best value discovery at the Hötorget Food Court? The Turkish snack bar offering ox tongue and eggplant hot sandwiches, of course.

–by Adrian Sluzky

Popularity: 4% [?]

When we think Hostelling International, we think ping-pong tables and bunk beds. But during a recent research jam session, we also found a range of HI hostels with adultish, cheap double rooms. The best of these deserve a plug or two, so keep readin’.

South of the Wista River on Grochowa Street—a bit of a (beautiful) walk from the sights pictured above—Krakow’s Hostel Szkolne Schronisko Młodzieżowe has 20 basic private doubles for PLN80 (€20.50, $27). The hostel boasts a spacious guest kitchen, and on-site laundry facilities make living out of your suitcase a fresh affair.

Långholmen Hostel, located on a small island in the middle of Stockholm, has a jaw-dropping 79 private doubles for SEK520 (€60, $74). Housed within a stately 19th-century building, Långholmen is also easier on the eyes than some of HI’s big box hostels. Also on the premises: a boutique, beach, garden, and museum that chronicles the building’s unromantic past—it was once a prison.

The Zurich City Hostel in Wollishofen has 16 private doubles starting at CHF116 (€72, $95). Wollishofen is a quiet suburb—15 minutes by tram to the city center—and there’s on-site cycle rental, perfect for a short ride to the banks of Lake Zurich.

Proof positive that HI hostels aren’t just for whipper snappers with nothing but a rucksack and a dream.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Malaysia Airlines continues to tout its New York City-Stockholm route, which takes off three days a week and then continues onto Kuala Lumpur.

Through Spring 2007, round-trip fare on this direct flight is only US $199. Sure, taxes add on at least another $180 and the offer doesn’t extend into Sweden’s sunny summer season…

But $390 is an unparalleled deal for an eight-hour, transatlantic flight, and we think Stockholm is fantastisk most any time of year.

Tickets must be purchased by March 9th, 2007.

Popularity: 4% [?]