Arholma

Latitud: N 59º 50' 57.54"
Longitud: E 19º 7' 27.44"

Arholma lies in the northern Stockholm Archipelago, just where the sea route to Åland reaches the open sea. It is a blossoming archipelago community which has been an important seamark throughout the years for seafarers. It is a very popular tourist spot with original archipelago buildings and active agriculture. The landscape is beautiful and varied with nice areas for rambling in lush woodlands. You can also swim here off the sun warmed rocks or child-friendly beaches. There are two large guest harbours and a nice campsite for visitors. There is a hostel at Norra Bryggan and Arholma Nord at the northern point of the island. There is good cultural life here with music, art exhibitions and craft sales amongst other things.

The island, which is 6 square kilometres and has about 60 permanent residents, has a lot to be discovered, including the following:

• Arholma Båk (watch beacon) is one of the best known silhouettes in Roslagen and was built in 1768. It is said to have been built of stone from the ruins of Lidö Castle which was burnt during the Russian raids of the early 18^th century. There are art and craft exhibitions here during the summer months.
• Arholma Österhamn with echoes of its great days during the second half of the 19^th century when nearly every farm on the island owned a boat and the harbour was filled with cargo ships.
• Simesgården was built during the 17^th century and was moved out of the village, lock, stock and barrel, at the end of the 19^th century. Today it is an agricultural centre and home for the lease-holder from Skärgårdsstiftelsen (the Stockholm Archipelago Foundation).
• Bull-August's farm is a fine example of a typical farm from Roslagen. Today, the STF (Swedish Tourist Association) hostel is in the long farmyard-building terrace.
• The church was built under the initiative of the islands residents during the 1920s. The original building was a mission house on Kungsholmen, in Stockholm and the decorations are done by Harald Lindberg. The church is in a beautiful setting and is often used for weddings during the summer.

You can eat at Bryggcaféet on Norra Bryggan or at Dansbanans Restaurant who serve locally produced archipelago specialities with a fantastic view over the Sea of Åland.

How to get there
Arholma has good communications. The Waxholmsbolaget boats go here during the summer from Stockholm and a tender boat serves the island from Simpnäs on the nearby Björkö. You can drive to Simpnäs Brygga (jetty) and SL busses go here from Östra Station in Stockholm, via Kapellskär.

Accommodation
The STF Hostel in Bull-August's farm, tel 017-560 18
Arholma Nord, tel 070 - 654 20 81

Food
Arholma Dansbana & Café, tel 0176-560 87
Bryggcaféet, tel 070-735 62 76

Guest Harbours
Österhamn has about 30 berths and services like sauna, fresh water, rubbish bins and toilets.
Ahlmansviken has visitor berths on a jetty for ca 25 boats

Services & Information
Island Supervisor (tillsynsman), tel 070-827 53 61
Local store with fuel, agent for Systembolaget (off-licence) and Apoteket (pharmacy), shop, post-office and bicycle rental tel 0176-560 12 
Traffic information, tel 08-679 58 30
Authorised Stockholm Archipelago guides can tell you about Arholma:
Sylvia Manners tel 0176-561 36, 

Bathing
There is swimming from the rocks all round the island
A beach at Norra Bryggan

Sauna
There is a sauna at the guest harbour in Österhamn and at Arholma Nord 

Nature
Arholma is about 6 square kilometres. The landscape varies between rocky coastline, well-maintained woodland, the open agriculture and original archipelago buildings of the inland areas and several larger farms. About 60 people live on the island, a figure that increases 10-fold during the summer months.

History  
The idyllic island has a history that was dramatic at times. Houses, boats and fishing areas were burnt down by the Russian Navy in 1719 and the inhabitants were force to flee. It took the Arholma residents decades to rebuild the island, but then they lived well on agriculture, hunting, the sea and a piloting industry. The large houses around the island are evidence of this. When shipping contracted towards the end of the 19^th century and the local economy shrank, a lot of these houses were converted into guest houses for holiday-makers from Stockholm. After the Second World War, profitability in agriculture was poor and the island started to grow over. In the 1960s, Skärgårdsstiftelsen (The Stockholm Archipelago Foundation) obtained a number of farms and re-built the traditional archipelago farming and began active woodland conservation. Today there is a well-functioning farming industry on the island and cows and sheep graze on the open meadows inland.

Other
Trafficinformation, tel 08-679 58 30
Tillsynsman, tel 070-827 53 61
Auktoriserad Skärgårdsguide Sylvia Manners tel 0176-561 36

http://www.arholma.nu/

Visit Skärgården
e-mail:  info@visitskargarden.se
Telephone: 08-100 222