Ven Island

In October 2017, Hovs Hallar received the award — the Treasure Of European Film Culture. Hovs Hallar Nature Reserve is one of many treasures in southern Sweden. Ingmar Bergman chose to shoot the opening scene in his film Seventh Seal here. Beyond its cinematic success, the reserve featured impressive cliff faces that are home to a variety of seabirds.

Few places in the Nordic region can match Kullen for the beauty of its natural landscape. With its breezy forests of beech and fir, its romantic grottoes, its vertiginous cliffs that plunge straight into the sea, its clifftop views over vast expanses of bright blue water, every year Kullen has attracted a steadily increasing flow of visitors from far and wide.

With its romantic grounds, Sofiero Palace makes for a popular destination. The grounds are perhaps best known for their unparalleled rhododendrons, with an incredible 5,000 bushes bursting into flower in the spring. The fairytale of Sofiero began in 1864, when Crown Prince Oskar and his wife Sophia had their summer residence built here. In 1905, Oskar — by now King Oskar ll — gave the palace to his grandson Prince Gustav Adolf and his bride Princess Margareta as a wedding present. This is when the gardens literally flourished. Princess Margareta was a keen and creative gardener, and it was she who first laid out the grounds that we can enjoy to this day. She arranged flower beds and gardens, had paving laid and wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. Every summer, the Crown Prince couple travelled from Stockholm with their four young princes and Princess Ingrid, who eventually became Queen of Denmark. When Margareta died in 1920, Gustaf Adolf carried on the work in the garden, particularly with the rhododendrons. The palace was the summer residence of the Swedish royal family up until 1973, when it was given to the town of Helsingborg. This small palace, which lies like a jewel amid the extensive lawns, is home to a restaurant where the food is prepared by some of Sweden’s finest chefs. There’s also a café with views of the Öresund Sound and Denmark.

Nowhere in Europe will you find anywhere to match to Fredriksdal. This is Skåne in miniature, with 360,000 square metres of unique settings, buildings and gardens. The history and diversity of the countryside are kept alive with care here. With its museums and gardens, Fredriksdal offers interesting activities for all ages, all year round. Take an exploratory walk, watch the animals grazing or join the manor maids on an interesting tour. Buy a bag of old-fashioned sweets in the old town quarter or your favourite rose in the flower shop. Find answers to your questions about nature or folklore, or just lie back and relax in a hammock. With its historical parks and gardens, houses and farms, animals, meadows, woods and pastures, all situated around an eighteenth century manor house, a visit to Fredriksdal is like making a journey back into the past.