Terri's Scandinavia Travel Blog

To all readers in the U.S. at least. The Scandinavian countries do have Independence Days or National Days - just not on the fourth of July. National Days in Scandinavia are great events for travelers as you can enjoy the locals celebrating with parades and special events on their own national day.

The latest of these holidays took place on June 17 in Iceland. Boy, Iceland certainly knows how to celebrate its national day: travelers can't overlook the parades, street theaters, and many special events on this day. You can find out more about Iceland's National Day or take a look at all the Scandinavian Independence Days & National Days here instead.

What's happening in Scandinavia in July? Quite a bit! Popular outdoor events include:

Roskilde Festival, Denmark

Copenhagen Jazz Festival, Denmark

Karlshamn Baltic Festival, Sweden

Stockholm Jazz Festival, Sweden

Viking Moot Festival in Aarhus, Denmark

Reykholt Music Festival, Iceland

Rattviksdansen Folklore Festival (Rattvik, Sweden)

Olavsoka Festival, Faroe Islands (Denmark)

July in Scandinavia is probably the most popular month for travelers due to the nice weather this time of year. Plus, all the outdoor activities are open now, even though it might get a little crowded sometimes. Since July is such a popular month for Scandinavia travelers, it also means...<read more>

If you love dogs and are visiting Scandinavia soon, you're in for a great canine event: The World Dog Show 2008 in Stockholm, Sweden on July 3 - 6, 2008.

As a visitor to the biggest dog show in 2008, ticket prices start at SEK 140 (approx. EUR 15) per adult per day. Admission for a WDS 4-day ticket will be SEK 450 (EUR 50), which is the same admission price as for a single-day ticket covering a family (includes 2 adults and a child in the age of 7-15).

If you're interested and want more details and directions to the World Dog Show (or even find out how to bring your own dog!), take a look at the World Dog Show 2008 Event Profile!

If you're visiting Stockholm this summer, you really should not miss out on a unique tour of the city - and there are several different ones available, for different types of travelers and interests:

The Best Guided Tours in Stockholm

lists the top 8 guided tours in and around the Swedish capital. From a viking-style boat tour to "ghost walk" tours and canal tours gliding by Stockholm's historical buildings, you can find a tour here that is right for you. You can compare tour lengths and prices, and even make reservations online.

Visit the travel article The Best Guided Tours in Stockholm to find out more...

Even the name of this annual festival sounds like a romantic story from an old book. In actuality, the "Days of Tordenskjold" are an annual outdoor event in Frederickshavn, which lies in Denmark's North Jutland region. They take place this year on June 27-29.

The Days of Tordenskjold are well-known to all Danes and are a popular event which focusses on the Scandinavian history of the Great Northern War (1709-1720). Visit and enjoy historic group performances and costumes from Scandinavia - along with authentic Scandinavian cuisine!

Full Articles: Days of Tordenskjold | Overview: History of Scandinavia | The Scandinavian Cuisine | Annual Events in Denmark

Mark your calendars from June 28 to July 1, for this year's Stockholm Summer Games! This ever-growing attraction has become a very popular annual sports event for youngsters in Stockholm (see Stockholm Travel Guide). Visitors can watch exciting soccer games, competitions in swimming, wrestling, beach volleyball, streetbasket, minigolf ...and even armwrestling! There are also competitions in archery, trampoline, and even inline skating.

Find out more about this annual event in the travel profile The Stockholm Summer Games. Participants are given many opportunities for local sightseeing, both guided and unguided.

The Oslo Gay and Lesbian Pride Week in Norway's capital Oslo began on June 20 2008, and will be celebrated with lots of events until June 29. This annual pride festival includes a film festival, concerts, workshops, exhibitions, and many other GLBT entertainment events for visitors.

Meanwhile, others are getting ready to visit the Stockholm Pride and the Reykjavik Gay Pride in early August. If you want to go, make sure to get a hotel room now since these events can gobble up thousands of hotel rooms! The Reykjavik Gay Pride in Iceland receives over 50,000 visitors each August, and the Stockholm Pride is the largest event for GLBT in Scandinavia.

In-Depth Travel Articles:

• Stockholm Pride in Sweden
• Reykjavik Gay Pride in Iceland
• Scandinavia for Gays & Lesbians

Related sites: About.com Gay & Lesbian Travel - About.com Gay Life

It is a wonderful event for visitors to participate in: The celebration of the Summer solstice, and the longest day of the year - on June 21. Midsummer's Eve in Scandinavia is truly unforgettable, and each Scandinavian country has found a way to celebrate this time of year in their own, unique style.

For example, Sweden celebrates Midsummer's Eve even as a national holiday - but did you know that Midsummer was originally a fertility festival with nature rituals, in the hope for a good harvest in fall? It's quite interesting what kind of local Midsummer's Eve traditions in Scandinavia remain today.

This event also heralds the beginning of another event: the Vikingespil Frederikssund, which is a great Viking-style event consisting of annual viking theater plays and craft markets. It'll last until mid-July and takes place not too far from Copenhagen!

Today is all about "The Best of". Let's start with Monocle's new report. For the past year, the editors of Monocle have been visiting the world's biggest bustling metro areas to locate the cities with the best quality of life. They have rated international cities on crime rates, weather, shopping hours, and much, much more.

As I had expected, the world's 20 cities with the highest quality of life also include Scandinavia. But not just one city - no, three Nordic capitals have made it onto the list: Copenhagen (2nd place), Helsinki (6th), and Stockholm (8th). About Copenhagen, Monocle writes that, "There's no shame coming second, particularly when phase two of your new metro is about to go live, your airport is a joy, you can bike safely through the city and you have so many stunning residents."

In other news, Scandinavia is said to be the region with the most beautiful women, according to a new article Traveler's Digest - Denmark and Sweden both made that list. Thank you for the compliment.

And lastly, there's a report by Traveler's Digest titled "The World's Safest Destinations". The Scandinavian countries made it onto that list easily!

If you're visiting Iceland soon, you might be pleasantly surprised by the local festivities. Iceland celebrates their Independence Day on June 17. Icelanders selected June 17 to be the official holiday because it was the birthday of Jon Sigurdsson who is regarded as Iceland's champion to the nationalist cause.

Independence Days in Scandinavia are mostly in June, which gives travelers a great opportunity to learn more about the country they are visiting:

• Overview: Independence Days in Scandinavia
• Independence Day (National Day) in Iceland
• Useful Icelandic Phrases