 |
| Stureplan square with the famous "svampen". |
Aaaah...
Stureplan. It is a name that has almost taken on a mythical status in Sweden, sometimes with a positive connotation (exclusive fashion) and other times negative (partying kids at nightclubs). In truth, Stureplan is just a small square where the streets Biblioteksgatan, Kungsgatan, Sturegatan and Birger Jarlsgatan all coverge. There is nothing really special about the square itself either, though the architecture of some of the buildings is beautiful. However, just about everyone in Sweden, young and old, have heard of Stureplan. Why? It is basically because of its location and the businesses found on the square and in the surrounding area.
Stureplan is located just in-between the downtown commercial district (
Norrmalm) and the fashionable, old-money neighborhood of
Östermalm. For Stockholmers, this is quite central and Stureplan has become a place where we often meet up with each other. Especially the flat mushroom shaped structure in the middle of the square called "Svampen" in local slang (it literally means the mushroom), so you often hear locals say "meet you under the mushroom".
During the daytime, Stureplan is a high-end shopping and business district. It is mostly (though not only) upscale shops that are found here, including several of the international fashion houses. You also have the smaller shopping center
Sturegallerian right on Stureplan as well as the fashion district of
Bibliotekstan with concentrated shopping opportunities. And just 2-3 blocks from Stureplan, you will find the
department store NK and the
Mood Stockholm shopping center. If shopping tires you out, you can always stop at the exclusive
Sturebadet spa inside Sturegalleriet to pamper yourself.
 |
| Shopping street Biblioteksgatan |
As day turns into evening, Stureplan takes on another form as the center of Stockholm nightlife. The square and surrounding streets are filled with restaurants, bars, movie theaters and (later in the evening) nightclubs. Here you will find favorite restaurants like
Sturehof,
Riche,
East,
Taverna Brillo,
Eataly,
Nosh & Chow and many more. But it is the nightclubs that are synonymous with Stureplan for many Swedes. Around 75% of Stockholm's nightclubs are located around Stureplan. Places like
Spy Bar,
Sturecompagniet,
Berns,
Rose and
Hell's Kitchen are located in the neighborhood.
Most of these places are under the same umbrella organization,
Stureplansgruppen (the Stureplan Group) along with several restaurants. Swedish tabloids are always filled with stories of celebrities and royals behaving badly in Stureplan nightclubs which has given the name a slightly negative association with some Swedes. But they are generally all good nightclubs of the high-end variety and worth a visit if you are in the mood for some nightlife! It is also nice to have them all located in the same vicinity, keeping travel time down if you want to visit several.
Stureplan is easy to get to from the
Hotel Rival... whether you are going for shopping, dinner or clubbing. You can either take the subway (red line) four stations to Östermalmstorg (exit Stureplan) or else it is a 7-8 minute taxi/Uber ride.
Comments
Post a Comment