City centre
First-timersAround the cathedral and the river: the university buildings, cafés and most of the beds.
Uppsala city guide
Things To Do In Uppsala
A university town forty minutes from Stockholm, with Scandinavia's largest cathedral, royal burial mounds older than the Vikings, and student clubs that run the cheapest bars in Sweden.
4
Hostels in the city
7.8
Average, from 1,677 reviews
1477
Uppsala University founded, the oldest in the Nordic countries
118 m
The cathedral towers
13
Student nations, each with its own pub
A university town that was a royal centre before Sweden existed
Uppsala is Sweden's fourth city and its oldest university town. The university, founded in 1477, is the oldest in the Nordic countries, and students set the rhythm of the place.
Long before that, Gamla Uppsala, just north of the modern town, was a royal and religious centre. Its great burial mounds date from the sixth century and are among the most important early Scandinavian sites.
The cathedral, with twin spires 118 metres high, is the largest church in Scandinavia and the burial place of Swedish kings and of the botanist Carl Linnaeus.
Linnaeus, who devised the system for naming plants and animals still used today, taught here, and his garden has been restored.
The student nations — thirteen societies, each linked to a region of Sweden — run pubs, clubs and cafés that are among the cheapest places to eat and drink in the country. Some are open to visitors, with conditions.
It is forty minutes from Stockholm and makes a good day trip or a cheaper overnight. One or two days.
Where to stay
A compact centre on the Fyris river, with the cathedral above it.
Near the station
Value and transportEast of the river: good trains to Stockholm and Arlanda, and a short walk to the centre.
Orange labels are neighbourhoods, dots are the 4 top-rated hostels. Map © MapTiler © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Things to do
Things to do in Uppsala
The cathedral is free to enter and is the largest church in Scandinavia, with spires of 118 metres. Swedish kings are buried here, and so is Carl Linnaeus.
Go out to Gamla Uppsala, about twenty minutes by bus, to see the great royal burial mounds from the sixth century and the museum that explains them. It is one of the most important early sites in Scandinavia.
The Gustavianum, the university museum, holds the anatomical theatre of 1662, a steep wooden dissection theatre under a dome, and the Augsburg Art Cabinet, an extraordinary seventeenth-century curiosity cabinet.
The Linnaeus Garden, restored to the botanist's original plan, is small and charming.
The castle, pink and on a hill, gives a view over the town.
Then eat and drink cheaply at a student nation, if one is open to visitors while you are there.
Free things
Free things to do in Uppsala
The cathedral is free.
The Gamla Uppsala mounds are free to walk around; only the museum charges.
The castle hill and its view are free.
The Fyris river walks through the centre and the University Park are free.
The Carolina Rediviva university library has a free exhibition hall with the Silver Bible, a sixth-century Gothic manuscript written in silver ink on purple parchment.
Food and drink
Eating and drinking in Uppsala
Cheaper than Stockholm, largely because of the students. Dagens lunch is 110 to 140 SEK (€10–13).
The student nations run pubs and cafés that are among the cheapest places to eat and drink in Sweden. Some are open to non-members and visitors; the rules vary between nations and have changed over time, so ask locally.
Fika is taken seriously, and the cafés around the cathedral are good.
A beer in an ordinary bar is 70 to 100 SEK (€6.50–9), and cheaper in a nation.
Strong alcohol is sold only at Systembolaget, closed on Sundays.
Nightlife
Going out in Uppsala
The student nations are the nightlife. Each of the thirteen runs pubs and club nights, and they are cheap. Access for non-students varies — some welcome visitors, some require membership or a student card — and the rules have changed over time, so ask locally.
Ordinary bars in the centre fill the gaps.
Valborg, on 30 April, is the biggest day of the student year: a raft race on the Fyris river, champagne breakfasts, huge crowds and celebrations through the night.
Out of term the town is noticeably quiet.
Getting around
Getting around Uppsala
The town is small, flat and walkable, and it is one of the most cycling-friendly towns in Sweden.
Buses cover the town and reach Gamla Uppsala.
Trains to Stockholm take about forty minutes, and Arlanda airport is about twenty minutes away, which makes Uppsala a practical first or last night.
Pay by card or app — there are few cash options.
Costs
What Uppsala costs
Cheaper than Stockholm. Dorms are 250 to 450 SEK (€23–41), dagens lunch 110 to 140 SEK (€10–13), and a beer 70 to 100 SEK (€6.50–9).
A day is €55 to €95.
You pay in kronor, almost always by card.
The cathedral and the Gamla Uppsala mounds are free, and the museums are modestly priced.
Being twenty minutes from Arlanda and forty from Stockholm, Uppsala is a cheaper place to stay at the start or end of a trip.
Safety
Staying safe in Uppsala
Uppsala is a very safe town and crime against visitors is low.
Valborg on 30 April brings huge crowds and heavy drinking, and the Fyris river raft race draws dense crowds onto the bridges and banks. Watch your footing and your belongings.
The river is cold and fast in spring. Do not swim in it.
Winter brings ice on pavements and short days.
Emergency number is 112.
Day trips from Uppsala
Royal mounds, a baroque castle and the capital.
Stockholm
The capital, with the Vasa and the archipelago.
Sigtuna
Sweden's oldest town, with rune stones and ruined medieval churches.
What's on
What is on while you are there
The biggest student celebration in Sweden, every 30 April.
30 April
Valborg
Citywide
A raft race on the Fyris river, champagne breakfasts, a ceremony on the library steps and huge crowds. The biggest day of the student year.
13 December
Lucia
The cathedral
Candlelit processions, with the cathedral a fine setting.
June
Graduation season
Citywide
Students in white caps across the town.
September to June
Term time
Citywide
When the nations are open and busy.
Late June
Midsummer
Countrywide
Maypoles and the longest days.
Hostels
Where to stay in Uppsala
A small scene in the centre, and a cheaper base than Stockholm. Live from Hostelworld.
When to go
April to June and September. 30 April is Valborg.
Jan
Cold and dark
Feb
Cold
Mar
Brightening
Apr
Valborg on the 30th, the student highlight
May
Excellent
Jun
Midsummer and graduation season
Jul
Warm, students gone
Aug
Warm and quiet
Sep
Term restarts
Oct
Autumn
Nov
Dark
Dec
Christmas, and Lucia on the 13th
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average highs. Term time is when Uppsala is at its best — July and August are warm but noticeably quiet.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel. Per person per night, in euros — you will pay in kronor, at roughly 11 to the euro, and mostly by card.
Shown in euros for comparison; you pay in kronor. Student nation prices can bring the food line lower still.
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- Beds—
- Food and drink—
- Getting around—
- Doing things—
Uppsala travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
What are the student nations?
Thirteen student societies, each linked to a region of Sweden, which run pubs, clubs and cafés. They are among the cheapest places to eat and drink in the country. Access for visitors varies — some welcome non-members, others need a student card — and the rules change, so ask locally.
What is Valborg?
The celebration on 30 April, and the biggest day of the student year: a raft race on the Fyris river, champagne breakfasts, a ceremony on the university library steps and crowds all day and night.
Is Uppsala worth a day trip from Stockholm?
Yes — forty minutes by train. The cathedral, the Gamla Uppsala burial mounds and the Gustavianum's anatomical theatre make a full day.
What is Gamla Uppsala?
The site just north of the town where sixth-century kings were buried in great mounds. It was a royal and religious centre before Sweden existed as a country, and is one of the most important early sites in Scandinavia.
Who was Linnaeus?
Carl Linnaeus, the eighteenth-century botanist who devised the system still used for naming plants and animals. He taught at the university and is buried in the cathedral, and his garden has been restored.
Is it cheaper than Stockholm?
Yes. Dorms 250 to 450 SEK (€23–41), and a day around €55 to €95. It is also twenty minutes from Arlanda airport, which makes it a useful first or last night.
Do I need cash?
No. Cards are accepted almost everywhere and cash often is not.
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