A Rare Visit to the Private Gardens of Solliden Palace
“Solliden was built by my great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, and was completed in 1906. I inherited the palace in 1950. It is my intention to preserve Solliden, so that future generations will be able to enjoy its unique and glorious gardens.”
King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
Tour description
Solliden Palace has been the Swedish Royal Family’s private summer residence since 1906. The palace gardens are among the most celebrated in Scandinavia, and for a few months each year they open to the public. GO Nordic takes you further — past the security checkpoint and into sections of the garden that no standard visitor programme ever reaches. The Royal Family spends most of the summer at Solliden. In the private parts of the park, they are sometimes seen.
What will you experience?
Your private transfer leaves Kalmar’s cruise pier and crosses the Öland Bridge — Sweden’s longest bridge, six kilometres across the Kalmar Strait — arriving at Solliden after approximately 35 minutes.
You are received at the palace entrance, where your Solliden guide takes over. They lead the group past the security checkpoint and into the garden. This is the moment the experience becomes different from anything a standard visitor can do: you are entering areas of the estate that are simply not part of the public programme.
A tractor ride through the park follows. The route covers both the public gardens and the private sections accessible only to GO Nordic guests — formal Italian-inspired terraces, walled gardens, long avenues of lime trees that Queen Victoria designed, and quieter corners of the estate where the guide explains the garden’s layers: what was planted in 1906, what grew under King Gustaf VI Adolf, what the current king tends today.
At a selected point in the private section, the group pauses for a glass of champagne. The Royal Family is in residence at Solliden for most of the summer. In these quieter, private parts of the park, encounters happen.
The experience closes with a traditional Swedish fika — coffee and freshly baked pastries in the palace’s café.
What makes this different from a standard visit?
Solliden is both a remarkable tourist attraction and an actively used royal residence. The public gardens are genuinely worth visiting. But the GO Nordic experience adds two things a standard ticket cannot buy.
The first is access. GO Nordic guests move past the security checkpoint into private areas of the estate not included in the visitor programme. The tractor covers ground the public never walks.
The second is proximity. The Royal Family is present at Solliden for most of the summer. In the private areas of the park — where GO Nordic guests spend a significant part of the tour — sightings occur. It is not guaranteed, and it is not staged. It is simply a consequence of being somewhere private, with a family that actually lives there.
The greenhouse: early and late season only
For tours in early May (before the public season opens) and late September (after it closes), GO Nordic includes a behind-the-scenes visit to the royal greenhouse, led by the palace gardener. You see the propagation beds, the seasonal planting schedule, and the day-to-day horticultural work that keeps the estate running.
This visit is not available during the main summer season. But those early and late tours carry something else: the gardens largely to yourselves, and a more intimate version of the entire experience.
Quick Facts
- Port: Kalmar
- Transfer: 35 minutes (via Öland Bridge)
- Duration: 4 hours
- Group size: 2–10 guests
- Season: May–September
- Palace interior: Gardens only — no entry to the palace building itself
What’s included
- Private transfer with sedan, van, or sprinter from the Kalmar cruise pier
- GO Nordic guide who leads the group past security and through both public and private garden areas
- Guided tractor tour of the park, including sections not open to standard visitors
- A glass of champagne in the private section of the garden
- Swedish fika (coffee and freshly baked pastries)
- Greenhouse visit with the palace gardener (early May and late September tours only)
Additions or combinations
Lunch at the palace restaurant. Solliden’s café and restaurant serves local Öland specialities including kroppkakor (traditional Swedish dumplings filled with pork and allspice) — a dish native to Öland and one of the most distinctly regional foods in Sweden. Add lunch before or after the garden tour.
Borgholm Castle. Next door to Solliden stands Borgholm Castle — the largest ruined castle in Scandinavia, destroyed by fire in 1806 and never rebuilt. GO Nordic offers private guided access inside the castle grounds. Combine both in a single half-day on Öland.
Lotta Sjöberg Pottery. A scenic 20-minute drive from Borgholm, ceramicist Lotta Sjöberg works from a seaside studio in Färjestaden. Her work has been commissioned by the Swedish royal family. A natural pairing with Solliden for guests who want the full cultural thread of Öland in one excursion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is this a private visit, or will we be with other visitors? GO Nordic guests move through both the public and private areas of the garden with a dedicated guide. In the private sections — which are the core of the experience — there are no other visitors. Group size is capped at 10.
Q: Is this experience available to all cruise lines calling at Kalmar? Yes. GO Nordic works with all cruise lines, expedition vessels, and superyachts calling at Kalmar’s cruise terminal. Booking is handled directly through GO Nordic or via your travel advisor.
Q: What is the difference between buying a standard Solliden ticket and booking with GO Nordic? A standard ticket gives access to the public gardens. GO Nordic adds guide-led entry past the security checkpoint, access to private sections of the estate, the tractor tour, champagne in the private garden, and the possibility of a greenhouse visit in early and late season. The experience is also sized for small groups: never more than 10 guests.
Q: Is a Royal Family sighting guaranteed? No. The Royal Family is in residence at Solliden for most of the summer, and encounters in the private parts of the park do occur. But it is not staged, not scheduled, and not guaranteed. It is simply a consequence of being somewhere private that a royal family actually uses.
Q: Is the greenhouse visit available on all tours? No. The greenhouse visit is offered on early May and late September tours, before and after the public season. During the main summer season, the greenhouse is not accessible. Tours carried out in that window focus on the full garden circuit, the private areas, and the tractor ride.
Q: Is this suitable for guests with limited mobility? The tractor ride covers the main garden circuit and is accessible for most guests. Please inform GO Nordic at booking if mobility assistance is needed — the experience can be adjusted accordingly.
Q: Can this be combined with the Borgholm Castle tour on the same day? Yes. Solliden and Borgholm Castle are within minutes of each other. GO Nordic regularly combines the two into a single half-day excursion. Ask at booking and we will build the programme around your ship’s port time.
Q: Is this available for MICE and incentive groups? Yes. GO Nordic designs private versions of this experience for corporate incentive groups and MICE buyers, including exclusive access arrangements, private catering, and bespoke programming. Contact GO Nordic directly to discuss your group’s requirements.