Karlskrona

Karlskrona, archaic spelling Carlskrona, is a city in Blekinge in southern Sweden. While the city has 37,000 inhabitants (2021), around 60,000 live in the municipality, Karlskrona kommun. The town hosts a naval base and is the largest city in the county of Blekinge. The old shipyard, the naval base's oldest constructions, and the three churches on Trossö island are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Understand
The city was established as a naval base in 1680, during the reign of King Karl XI, after whom the town is named (Karlskrona: Karl's Crown). King Karl XI was tired of having his fleet constantly frozen up in Stockholm during the harsh winters and was therefore looking for a port further south. This was at the height of the Swedish Empire and there were grand plans to eventually develop Karlskrona into a new Swedish capital.

However, the city was built according to a plan by Erik Dahlbergh and the settlement did not begin in earnest until the late 1680s. The shipyard soon became Sweden's largest industry, employing 1,100 people in 1711. By the mid-17th century, more than 10,000 people lived in the town and about 2/3 of the workforce was employed by the Crown. At this time, Karlskrona was the third largest city in the kingdom. Karlskrona's strategic location gave it the right to engage in foreign trade. Gustaf III invested in an increase in the naval fleet, which boosted Karlskrona's good economic status. In 1790, the city burned and the boom turned into economic stagnation. The town plan did not change significantly. At the end of the 19th century there were major changes in the naval fleet with the gradual transition to more modern warships. The arrival of the railway (Carlskrona-Wexiö Railway, CWJ) and industrialisation contributed to the greatly increased prosperity. In addition to the increase in population and general economic prosperity, this was also reflected in the planting of trees along the main streets, creating avenues that are still partly in existence. Military dominance has now been replaced by increased civilian industrial influence, including in the telecommunications industry.

The town centre lies 5 km south from the mainland on the island Trossö.

By train
Direct trains runs at least every two hours from Copenhagen via Malmö and Kristianstad. From Kalmar, Gothenburg or Stockholm a change of trains in Alvesta, Emmaboda or Hässleholm is required. Ticket can be bought from SJ. The station, is found at the northern end of the city centre.

By plane
Karlskrona-Ronneby Airport is approximately 30 km from Karlskrona centrum. Blekingetrafiken operates an airport bus (Flygbussen) between Karlskrona and Ronneby airport, which is convenient and cost-effective. It leaves Karlskrona 80 minutes before the take-off times of flights to Arlanda and Bromma. The bus stops at several places in central Karlskrona, at the Hospital/Bergåsa, at Nättraby E22, at Hjortahammar junction and at Listerby. The bus costs around 95 kr for adults and 45 kr for children.

By bus
Long-distance buses are available from Stockholm and Malmö.

By ferry
Stena Line runs ferries two times a day from Gdynia, Poland (day trip for a passenger with bike costs around 500 kr and takes 11 hours). The port,, commonly known as Polenterminalen, is on the nearby island of Verkö. Local bus #6 connects with the city centre.

By bus
There is a large local/regional bus network connecting Karlskrona Centrum with other regional locations. Bus fares are typically 20 kr for adults.

By ferry
There are also boats/ferries to many islands within the archipelago, and it is possible to cruise around the archipelago for between 1½ and 3 hours in the summer months. Adult fare is 20 kr, youth (<19 yr) is 15 kr.

Sleep


If you leave early for Poland with a Stena Line ferry, you may consider spending last night in tent wild camping on Verkö island.

Day trip to Aspö
Take the large yellow Aspö ferry from Karlskrona Harbour (near the bridge to Stumholmen) to Aspö (30 min) and spend the day enjoying the rugged island beaches, tiny shops and old military fort.

The ring road around Aspö is about 6 km long and, in addition to the beaches and fort, Aspö also hosts a small yacht club and a number of summer cottages. Amenities are rather sparse even in the busiest summer months, when there are only a few basic places to eat and stay. In the winter months (i.e. outside the June to August period), the only place to buy things is the local ICA supermarket and most (if not all) other things will be closed.

The ferry is part of the Swedish road system and so is free for vehicles, bicycles and foot passengers in both directions.



Ronneby
Ronneby is an old spa town with a spectacular park and forest 30 minutes by train from Karlskrona.