Kayak and Wild Camp in Sweden
5 days of adventure surrounded by Sweden's most stunning and untouched coastal landscape.
What's Included?
Small Like-minded Groups
Solo-friendly by design, join our small n’ sociable groups of up to 8 like-minded, active and outdoorsy people…
…
What's it like?
Paddle around the remote Saint Anna Archipelago - a paradise for kayakers looking for an epic adventure!
Find a deserted island, set up camp by the water and cook a delicious meal as you watch the sunset over the water
Explore this maze of more than 6,000 islands, most of them uninhabited – from forested ones close to the mainland, to the wild and barren islets out by the open sea
Key Information
Day 1
Into the maze
Kayaking
Meet your host in Norrköping and drive through the Swedish countryside to the jump off point for the beautiful Saint Anna archipelago. Load up the supplies and then review the plan, including safety and water navigation. Take to the water and quickly find yourself surrounded by forested islands and barren skerries. Paddle northeast towards Aspöja where white-tailed eagles are regularly sighted and nest in the large trees nearby and continue through the Uggelholmarna Nature Reserve, home to three hundred year-old pine and linden trees. Take a short stroll through the forest and then navigate the narrow channel between Lammskär and Kalvskär, ending up surrounded by a sheltered atoll. Find the perfect island for the night and set up camp - the solitude and sense of freedom here are hard to put into words and simply have to be experienced!
Day 2
Islands all the way to the horizon
Kayaking
Break camp and continue exploring, this time through the barren outer archipelago to a backdrop of the open sea and a blue horizon. If you're lucky you might spot seals, as well as white-tailed eagles, Arctic skuas and ospreys. Continue to one of the most famous spots in Saint Anna – Kupa Klint - an old navigation marker used by seafarers for centuries with a spectacular view over the surrounding islands. Pay a visit to the rustic pub on Missjö where sea dog Mats serves up cold beers and delicious dishes made from fish and coastal birds sustainably hunted nearby and then find a sheltered spot for the night.
Day 3
The village that time forgot
Kayaking
Paddle south towards Harstena, a town famous for its historic beauty. Take a stroll to the museum set in the old school, wander around the village and treat yourself to a delicious lunch at the water-side restaurant. Be sure to pick up some of the heavenly cinnamon swirls from the nearby bakery and some smoked fish from the local smokehouse. Continue exploring as you head to the magical Ytterö island, home to rocky beaches and gnarly pine trees. It’s right on the open sea and from the higher ground you’ll get a truly spectacular view across Saint Anna. Enjoy dinner around the campfire and fall asleep to the sound of the waves brushing across the smooth rocks.
Day 4
Paddle to the edge of the world
Kayaking
Weather conditions permitting, head for Häradskär; an old, red iron lighthouse and the last outpost of the archipelago before the open sea. Few make it to this historic spot which feels like the edge of the world and the only sounds you’ll hear are bird calls and the rhythmic crashing of the waves. If the weather prevents the crossing, your guide will take you to some of their favourite remote and beautiful spots before selecting another deserted island for the night.
Day 5
Head due west for the mainland
Kayaking
After a hearty breakfast and a final dip in the sea, begin the final paddle back to the mainland, stopping at the abandoned copper mine on Fångö island along the way. Paddle through the small canal opposite Fyrudden and across the short stretch of open water to the finish point.
The Area
Logistics
Starts
Norrköping
10:00 on Day 1
Ends
Norrköping
17.00 on Day 5
Transfers
Your host will pick you up in Norrköping, the major hub of the area, either at the train station or any hotel/hostel of your choice. There are a number of ways to get here;
- Stockholm Skavsta (Ryanair), 55 min bus transfer to Norrköping
- Stockholm Arlanda (all major airlines), 2 hour direct train to Norrköping
- Linköping City Airport (KLM), 30 min train to Norrköping
- Norrköping Airport (bmi), 10 min taxi ride to Norrköping
- Train to Norrköping If you take advantage of typically cheaper evening flights and arrive the night before in Norrköping your local host recommends The Lamp Hotel close to the train station or Pronova Hotel in the city centre.
Your host will confirm exact meeting point prior to departure.
Day 1
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 2 – Day 4
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 5
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
What is the food like?
Fact - food always tastes better in the wild. You’ll cook delicious meals together as a team, using lots of typical Swedish ingredients, with the menu planned by our own wilderness chef. Vegans and vegetarians can be catered for and if you have any dietary requests, just let us know beforehand and we will do our best to accommodate them.
What is the accommodation like?
The islands
You'll wild camp on a different, remote island each night. Top quality solo Hilleberg tents, Haglöfs sleeping bags, sleeping mats and cooking equipment are provided. Your guide will also give you information on the rules and practices with regards to rubbish disposal, open fires, bird sanctuaries, protected plant and animal species etc. Saint Anna is incredibly clean and untouched and together we can keep it that way!
It was a fantastic trip. The two guides were very experienced and the provided gear was of highest quality. They had a delicious meal plan put together for the trip. On our trip, there was very bad weather on two of the five days. However, the two guides ensured that we could still enjoy the trip by making good decisions regarding health, security and comfort (so the inside of our tents remained dry). Will do it again!
Amazing food, hosts and wildlife with good kayaking and beautiful scenery. The hosts were excellent guides and we also had a local for some Swedish cultural insight!
I picked this trip in part because of the itinerary and the food reviews and wasn’t disappointed. The kitlist was comprehensive and really did include everything. They provided you with a reusable Water bottle, head torch, sleeping bag, tent, mattress etc and a bag of trail mix as a snack. The food was good and inc Swedish faves. The itinerary wasn’t exactly as per the trip info but highlights were all inc.! And it was a very inclusive group wrt decision-making so you could influence this! Opportunity to learn navigation, camping, cooking as well as kayaking skills!
It was a really good first wild camping experience for me. The host is Swedish and I felt I learned a little more about the culture and food which was important for me. The food is very yum. If you’re up for wild camping, great sunsets and kayaking - it’s for you
This is a great trip for anyone who loves to actively immerse themselves in nature. The islands within the archipelago are beautiful with some amazing wild camping and swimming spots without a single other human in site!! The Swedes take ‘Fika’ (coffee and cake) to another level, so if you love these too this is the trip for you!!
Fantastic. Amazing. Extraordinary. I could go on. I'd recommend anyone with a healthy appetite for adventure to go on this trip. A highly experienced, competent guide will take the group through the ins and outs of the Swedish archipelago with everything it has to offer. The scenery speaks for itself and the quality of the cooked-in-the-wild meals will put even the best restaurants to shame. Top nudge equipment made wild camping feel like a walk in the park. Solo travellers and groups alike - don't wait, book this trip now!
The community atmosphere, the organisation, the equipment and especially the guides were great!
The whole experience was fantastic. The thought that’s gone into the food, the equipment and the journey whilst you’re out on the water was impressive.
Did enough distance to feel it and see a lot of the archipelago, but not too much to be horrendously difficult.
Guides
Experienced kayaking guide
Accommodation
4 nights wild camping on deserted islands
Meals
Munch on tasty food throughout
Equipment
All your kayaking, safety and camping equipment
Our trips are hassle-free by design. We include all the activities and equipment, as well as many of the meals, so you can simply rock up with your rucksack and share the adventure with your new pals.
Personal Expenses
You know your own spending habits best, so please budget an appropriate amount for things like optional meals and drinks, shopping, optional activities, and laundry.
What's included?
- Kayak and paddle
- Spraydeck
- Life jacket
- First aid kit
- Water pump
- Drybags
- Rolling compass
- Maps
- Guide book
- Cell phone
- Waterproof jacket
- Sleeping bag
- Sleeping mat
- Tent
- Tarp
- Spade
- Folding saw
- Drinking bottle
- Water containers
- Gas stove & fuel
- Lighters
- Grill plate
- Pan for fire
- Cooler
- Kitchen knife
- Cutting board
- Cooking utensils
- Eating utensils
- Dishwashing kit
- Head torch
- Knife
- Rope
What do I need to bring?
- Shorts & t-shirts
- Trousers & warm sweater
- Shoes (Although Neoprene socks are good to wear instead)
- Swimsuit & towel
- Sun cap & beanie
- Sunglasses
- Sunblock & toiletries
- Camera
- Binoculars
- Books
- Luxury items – be it beer, food or a small instrument to entertain the group.
- Personal medicine if required (please inform your guide in case of emergency)
No optional extras are available for this trip.
We partner with the World Land Trust to ensure this trip achieves Net-Zero emissions. We also support their Buy an Acre programme, helping local communities to buy and protect natural habitats in perpetuity.
What's the number?
It works out on average at 48kg of CO2 emissions per person, including all local transport, accommodation, food, activities, guides, staff and office operations.
The only thing it doesn’t include right now is flights and travel to the destination. We do make an overall estimate across all our customers separately, but as we don’t book flights, have customers from all corners of the world, and no way of reliably knowing their travel plans, we simply can’t include an individual number in the figure on display here. We’ve got a goal to fix that, so that when you book, there is a way to measure and mitigate the carbon emitted by your flight too.
But what does the number mean?
Yep, hard to picture eh? To give you an idea:
- Driving 1000 miles/1609km would be approximately 281kg of CO2 in an average car (or 140.5kg per person, if there were two of you in it).
- A return economy class flight between London and New York would be approximately 1619kg (1.66 tonnes) per person.
- 10 trees in a temperate forest are estimated to remove approximately 250kg of CO2 from the air in a period of 5-10 years.
What are we doing about it?
Our trips are relatively low-carbon by design, and we're working with all our hosts to develop long term carbon reduction plans. We partner with the World Land Trust to ensure this trip achieves Net-Zero emissions. We also support their Buy an Acre programme, helping local communities to buy and protect natural habitats in perpetuity, ensuring the protection of the reserve and its wildlife.
Want to know more?
Amazingly, no international travel company has ever publicly published their carbon measurements before, as far as we know. We believe that must change, quickly. So we’re openly sharing the method we used in the hope that other companies will be able to more easily follow suit and build on what we've done so far. You'll find it all here.
Whilst most of our trips are exclusive to Much Better Adventures, due to the nature of this destination and the design of the trip, this particular host also sells this adventure via other channels. This means that it’s possible that your group may consist of people who haven't booked through the Much Better Adventures website. But rest assured, anyone booking this trip is in search of an active, outdoors adventure, just as you are!
Yes. Any excess luggage can be safely left with your local host at the launch point.
For current advice about travelling in Sweden, have a read of the UK Foreign Office pages here.
Sure can! Over 70% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.
Our team of Adventure Hunters co-create exclusive adventures which are run by highly vetted, specialist hosts. The trip is run by our trusted host partner in the destination. We only work with independent, local, in-destination experts who know the very best places to explore and how to stay safe. Read more information about the local teams we partner with. You’ll be introduced to the host straight after making a booking via the Much Better Adventures platform.
Much Better Adventures refer to the UK Government’s official travel advice when designing trips and monitoring trip operations. We recommend that all customers are familiar with the practical information provided on the Government’s FCDO website, where current travel advice can be found by searching for the applicable destination(s).
For customers joining this trip from other international destinations – please also read the official travel advice applicable to your country of residence/origin, as this may differ.
We recommend checking out the country-specific information and also talking to a travel nurse.
We automatically convert prices from the local currency that a host receives to your chosen currency. We update our exchange rates on a daily basis so this does mean that prices displayed on the site are subject to currency fluctuations, which is why you may see them change over time.
If you wish to change the currency you pay in, head to the bottom of the page.
All of our group adventures are specially designed for adults to enjoy as we want these adventures to bring together outdoorsy people who are truly like-minded. You must be over 18 to join one of our trips.
You're always in good company on one of our adventures.
Our trips are typically made up of a mixture of solo travellers and small groups of 2 or 3 friends, with most in their 30s-50s.
Our sociable adventures are solo-friendly by design and naturally attract outdoorsy people with a shared mindset; a love for adventure, a desire to push themselves and meet awesome, like-minded people along the way.
It’s this camaraderie that has so often turned a great adventure into a life-changing one.
Don't just take our word for it:
- 95% of people rate the group dynamics on our trips 5/5
- 90% of people recommend joining a trip to make new friends
- 75% of people have met people on our trips that they would now consider friends
See here for more info about the Much Better Adventures tribe.
Need help finding flights?
From logistics and how to get there, to fitness, group dynamic and trip difficulty, Rory and his team of friendly experts are on hand to help.
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DEPARTURE DATES
