gotska sandön travel guide (bad)
sandoresor.se website got xnopyt'd so i'm assembling a guide here for those of you that listen to my advice and visit places i tell you to
contents
- reasons NOT to go
- things to see
- things that don't exist
- things that do exist (surprisingly)
- things you need to bring
- rules (very very important)
- boat information
- how long to stay
- SEAL GUIDE
- things i recommend doing
- more info
reasons NOT to go
believe it or not, there are some reasons you shouldn't go to gotska sandön
- you're wheelchair-bound (shockingly sand and hiking trails aren't very wheelchair-accessible)
- you have better things to do with your money (going to gotska sandön can cost between 2000 and 10000SEK (170 to 900€))
- you don't like sand. it's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere
- you can't walk 4-10km from the boat to the campsite (skill issue tbh)
- you can't cook (did you really expect there to be a restaurant on an island with 0 inhabitants)
look there are seals
things to see
- lighthouse
- seals!1!1!11!111!1
- beautiful beaches (they're very long and very empty)
- very pretty forests (although they are a bit monotonous)
- historical buildings
- the other lighthouses
- birds
- did i mention there are seals
things that don't exist
- GROCERY STORE or anywhere to get food at all; all food must be brought from the mainland (or gotland i guess)
- HARBOUR, the boat does try to dock on the beach, but if it can't you will need to disembark/embark via a smaller boat (expect you and your luggage to get very wet)
- REAL TOILET, there are outhouses and that's it (actually maybe the more expensive accomodation does have toilets i could be wrong)
- CELL RECEPTION FOR TRE (3), you will need to get a prepaid sim card if you use tre
- HEALTHCARE, if you break your leg you will need to wait for the next boat back or for a helicopter
things that do exist (surprisingly)
- showers (the water temperature is surprisingly good)
- electricity
- 5G (yep that's right you're not even safe from 5G radiation on an uninhabited island)
- 4G (the 5G coverage is basically limited to the immidiate vicinity of the mast which is in the middle of the island)
- very good facilities for cooking (the communal kitchen was renovated in 2023 i think)
- fridges (in some of the accomodation)
- root cellar/earth cellar/underground room to store food in
- jellyfish (they're chill tho)
- a chapel for some reason
things you need to bring
- good clothes (FOR ANY WEATHER EXCEPT MAYBE SNOWSTORM)
- please for the love of seals bring a jacket
- good shoes (if you can comfortably walk 20km in them they're good shoes
- water (not much you can refill your water once you get to the campsite but you will want water for the walk there (you will need more water than you expect))
- jacket
- binoculars (unless your phone zoom is really good i guess (also the seal observation fence has binoculars you can use))
- bedding
- sleeping bag if you're bringing a tent (the tents that are for rent have mattresses)
- toothpaste toothbrush spf 5000 sunscreen soap etc
- "Glöm inte tältet om du köpt tältplats ("Don't forget the tent if you bought a spot for a tent") - gotska sandön website
rules (very very important)
do not rely on me to tell you the rules, LISTEN TO THE STAFF ON THE ISLAND WHEN YOU GET THERE
that being said it's better if you hear the rules twice
- DO NOT hurt or damage or move plants or animals
- DO NOT remove parts of the island's nature (yes this includes rocks don't move rocks too far)
- DO NOT bring pets
- DO NOT ENTER the seal protection area (and stay away from the seals in general)
- DO NOT operate aircraft (this includes drones
- DO NOT use a grill without permission (you can get permission)
- DO NOT use a bicycle EXCEPT on designated paths (there are quite a few (some of them are good i'd recommend the one that goes to hamnudden))
- DO NOT pitch a tent EXCEPT for designated areas at Lägerplatsen (the campsite) or Nymans
- you are allowed to pick berries or mushrooms for your own consumption (haven't seen any mushrooms tho)
- this isn't an island rule it's a boat rule but max weight for luggage is 15kg (you can bring as many as you want tho)
this is what the boat looks like (fun fact: when i put this image here it was exactly 1 year old)
boat information
the boat is not very big (it's 30m long, that's the same as the width of the average sweden-finland ferry) so any adverse weather WILL make you seasick
however, the chairs are very comfortable and there are tables so if the weather is nice you can play cards or something (there is no cell reception in the middle of the journey so you'll have to pretend it's 1992)
the boat is equipped with a small café that sells food (coffee, hot dogs, sandwiches, beer and wine for some reason, cinnamon rolls)
large luggage like bicycles or canoes (why would you bring a canoe to an island in the sea those are for lakes and rivers) requires an extra fee of 400kr per item (they raised it it was 300kr last year) (luckily this price covers both the outbound and return trip)
the trip from nynäshamn (mainland) is 50nmi and takes 3,5 hours, while the trip from fårösund (gotland) is 35nmi and takes 2,5 hours
free seasickness pills in the café if you need them (i didn't but i felt like shit the entire return journey)
IMPORTANT: the journey can be delayed (sometimes by multiple days) so BE PREPARED for that to happen: bring extra food
website says something about QR code tickets idk when i was there they just had a list of names so they probably changed that
how long to stay
how long you should stay depends on three factors:
- how much time you're willing to waste
- how much money you're willing to waste
- how much of the island you want to see
daytrips are possible and they're the cheapest way to get to gotska sandön, but really the only thing you have time for on a daytrip is seeing the seals and going for a swim
stay at least 1-2 nights if you have time/money, that gives you time to see between 1/3 and half of the island
if you want to see the entire island the absolute minimum is 4 nights, but i would not recommend speedrunning the island, if you have infinite time/money and you want to see the whole island, go for a 1 week stay
(also a 4 night stay is more suited for seeing most of the island, just go do that if you want a 4 night stay)
staying longer than a week is possible but it's not worth it, you just need to bring 5 trillion kg of food, and chances are it'll spoil, it's better to split it up into 2 trips
SEAL GUIDE
SEAL GUIDE SEAL GUIDE SEAL GUIDE
the best way to see the most seals at once is to get lucky
this isn't very reliable so the second best way to see the most seals at once is to predict their presence by checking the weather
the seals like:
- sun
- no wind
therefore, your chances are best on a cloudless day with the wind blowing from the south (as the seals are on the north side of the island)
a normal amount of seals is about 5-25, sometimes there are more, sometimes there are fewer (i saw 15 seals and then the next day when i wasn't there there were 60-something seals)
things i recommend doing
- seals seals seals seals go see the seals
- lighthouse guided tour (unless you're afraid of heights i guess)
- swimming (obviously)
- see bredsandsudde (it's a nice evening walk destination (leave the birds alone tho you don't want to get attacked by seagulls))
- go to church (there's a chapel) (church isn't THAT religious in sweden especially on gotska sandön i'm not religious in the slightest and i would have liked to go there (i didn't tho))
more info
please don't rely on this really bad travel guide and instead go to the official gotska sandön website at
gotskasandon.se or sverigesnationalparker.se/park/gotska-sandons-nationalpark (loads faster)