The 608-room Royal Palace Kungliga Slottet was completed in the mid-1700s and still is the official residence of the Swedish Royal family, making it the largest in the world still used for its original purpose. The palace and much of the grounds are open to the public, however, and a popular changing of the guard ceremony is held daily.

We returned to Gamla Stan by ferry to tour the palace, watch the changing of the guard, and visit the Nobel Museum that details the history of the award and those who have received it.

Below are trip highlights from July 3rd, 2019 in Stockholm, Sweden. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.

Ferry Position: 59°19.44’N, 18°5.67’E Boarding the ferry just south of the marina to cross over to the old town Gamla Stan. All the public transit in Stockholm operates through a single integrated purchase system. You can purchase day, multi-day or multi-week transit cards good for travel on buses, ferries, trams and trains. another option is to use their on-line app and just purchase tickets as needed, which is what we’ve done. Helsinki had a similar system.

Wasahamnen Position: 59°19.46’N, 18°5.48’E View to our berth at Wasahamnen from the ferry to Gamla Stan. In the background is the renowned Vasa museum, containing the world’s best preserved 17th-century ship, Vasa. We’ve heard great things about the museum and plan to visit soon.

Gamla Stan Position: 59°19.33’N, 18°4.94’E View to Gamla Stan as we approach by ferry.

af Chapman Position: 59°19.36’N, 18°4.73’E The af Chapman is a full-rigged steel ship launched at Whitehaven, UK in 1888. The ship was used for commercial transport for several decades before the Swedish Navy purchased it for a training ship. Today the vessel is permanently moored to the western side of the islet of Skeppsholmen and serves as a youth hostel.

Superyacht Position: 59°19.50’N, 18°4.57’E At the opposite end of the spectrum from the af Chapman, a sleek and modern superyacht moored at Gamla Stan.

Crowds Position: 59°19.58’N, 18°4.21’E Crowds of people at the Royal Palace Kungliga Slottet awaiting the Changing of the Guard ceremony. About 800,000 people watch the ceremonies each year.

Changing of the Guard Position: 59°19.58’N, 18°4.21’E The Royal Guards have been continuously protecting the Swedish Royal Family in Stockholm since 1523 and are currently part of the Swedish Armed Forces. In addition to guarding the palace, they perform various ceremonial duties such as the opening of Parliament and act as honorary guard at occasions such as foreign naval visits. They are well-armed with Ak 5s, an assault rifle built by Bofors for the Swedish Armed Forces.

Military Band Position: 59°19.58’N, 18°4.21’E Military band from the Swedish Armed Forces Music Centre wearing Pickelhauben (spiked helmets) while performing at the Changing of the Guards ceremony. They did a great job—we quite enjoyed the show.

Wistroms Position: 59°19.50’N, 18°4.10’E A good lunch street-side at Wistroms Irish pub.

Gasgrand Position: 59°19.52’N, 18°4.14’E Looking down through an archway at the head of the alley Gasgrand after we walked up from lunch.

Kungliga Slottet Position: 59°19.65’N, 18°4.27’E We took a guided tour through the Royal Palace Kungliga Slottet after lunch. The 608-room Royal Palace was completed in the mid-1700s and still is the official residence of the Swedish Royal family, making it the largest in the world still used for its original purpose. This is the spectacular Karl XI’s Gallery, inspired by the Hall of Mirrors at the palace at Versailles. The hall is occasionally used for banquets, such as the annual Nobel Prize dinner hosted at the palace since 1904.

Oranges Position: 59°19.61’N, 18°4.29’E Crates and crates of oranges ready for squeezing—a common sight in Stockholm. The person at left is feeding them through an machine that slices them in half and squeezes out the juice.

Royal Chapel Position: 59°19.60’N, 18°4.37’E The elaborate Royal Chapel was completed in the mid-1700s as a parish church for members of the Royal Parish.

Nobelmuseet Position: 59°19.52’N, 18°4.24’E Swedish scientist Alfred Nobel established the Nobel Prize in his will and dictated that the prize for physics, chemistry, medicine and literature be awarded by specific Swedish institutions and that a group of five people selected by the Norwegian Parliament would award the peace prize. Thus today the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo and the rest in Stockholm. And also in Stockholm in Gamla Stan is Nobelmuseet, the Nobel Museum, that details the history of the award and those who have received it. When we visited, the museum had a large exhibit on Martin Luther King that really drove home what a hero he was and how courageous thousands of others, whose names we don’t know, also were. The exhibit was really moving, and it’s disappointing that these events are occuring during our lifetime rather than being ancient history. Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy is an excellent read on the subject.

Geronimo Position: 59°19.51’N, 18°4.06’E We finished the day with a good dinner at the colorful Geronimo Mexican restaurant in Gamla Stan.

Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map, with the complete log of our cruise. On the map page, clicking on a camera or text icon will display a picture and/or log entry for that location, and clicking on the smaller icons along the route will display latitude, longitude and other navigation data for that location. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.