Why go
Gamla Stan is the island where Stockholm started. The city’s tourism office calls it Stockholm’s oldest district, founded sometime during the 13th century, and both the Royal Palace and the main square, Stortorget, stand on it. The lanes, the gabled houses and the palace courtyards cost nothing to walk through, and the island is small enough to cross on foot between one coffee and the next.
What makes it worth a full day rather than a stroll is how much you can go into. A working royal palace with over 600 rooms, the city’s cathedral, the museum of the Nobel Prize and, one bridge away, the church where Sweden’s monarchs are buried all sit within a few minutes of each other. This page treats them as one visit and gives you the hours and prices you need to decide what to book.
What you will see
Stortorget and the lanes. The square in the photo above is the centre of the old town, ringed by tall merchants’ houses, with the former stock exchange building on one side and the old well in the middle. Cafés take the ground floors; the benches around the well are where most people stop first. From here the lanes run downhill to the quays on every side. Wander rather than navigate: you will find Stortorget again without trying.
The Royal Palace. The palace at Slottsbacken 1 is the King’s official residence, with over 600 rooms on 11 floors. The areas you can go into are the Royal Apartments, the Hall of State, the Treasury with the regalia, the Tre Kronor Museum, Gustav III’s Museum of Antiquities and the Royal Chapel, as the palace lists them; the price list shows a single Royal Palace ticket, but does not spell out which of these it includes, so confirm at the desk if one area matters to you. If you have time for one interior on the island, this is the one.
Changing of the Guard. The Royal Guard was founded by Gustav Vasa in 1523 and puts about 35 personnel on duty at the palace. The ceremony takes place in the Outer Courtyard, starting at 12:15 on weekdays and Saturdays and at 13:15 on Sundays and public holidays, and lasts about 40 minutes. From April to August a mounted parade rides in on selected days from the cavalry barracks at Lidingövägen 28; the foot parade marches from the Army Museum at Riddargatan 13; in November and December the relief sets off from Mynttorget inside the old town. The Armed Forces warn that times and locations are subject to change and publish the daily schedule in a calendar on the same page; check it for the day you plan to go rather than assuming a daily ceremony.
Storkyrkan. The cathedral, entered from Trångsund 1, began as a brick church in the 1300s and had roughly its present form by the mid-1400s. It only became a cathedral in the 1940s. The object to see is the wooden St George and the Dragon, unveiled in 1489, which the parish describes as Europe’s largest wooden sculpture and attributes, with a question mark, to Bernt Notke of Lübeck. Large bags and backpacks are not allowed inside, the church may close for funerals, and the wheelchair entrance is at Slottsbacken 2.
Nobel Prize Museum. The museum sits at Stortorget 2 in the former stock exchange building. It is compact; go for the laureate stories and take the guided tour, which is included in the ticket.
Riddarholmen Church. Cross the short bridge west to Riddarholmen for the burial church of the Swedish monarchy. Its history goes back to a Franciscan priory in 1270, and the Royal Court calls it Stockholm’s only preserved mediaeval abbey. Every ruler from Gustav II Adolf, who died in 1632, to Gustaf V, who died in 1950, lies here, with the exception of Queen Christina; the medieval kings Magnus Ladulås and Karl Knutsson Bonde are here too. It is a burial and memorial church, not a parish church, so there are no services to plan around.
Royal Armoury. Livrustkammaren, in the south-eastern corner of the palace at Slottsbacken 3, is Sweden’s museum of royal history: royal carriages, costumes and armour. We did not verify its hours or prices this run, so check its site before you plan around it.
Visiting: hours, admission, booking
Gamla Stan itself has no opening hours or entrance fee, which is why the facts box carries only the tourist office link. The venues on the island do, and they differ.
The Royal Palace charges adults SEK 220, or SEK 240 from May to September; students pay SEK 200 or 220, children aged 7 to 17 SEK 110 or 120, and children 6 and under enter free with an adult. A combination ticket for the palace and Riddarholmen Church costs SEK 270 for adults, 250 for students and 135 for children; an annual card is SEK 500. In September 2026 the palace opens 10:00 to 17:00 daily, except 29 September; from October to December it opens 10:00 to 16:00 daily, closed on 24 and 25 December and open again on 26 December. The Royal Apartments close fully or partly for the King’s official receptions, listed for 21 and 22 September and several dates between 12 and 21 October 2026; the same list marks the whole palace closed on 19 October, even though the day-by-day table still shows it open, so treat that date as closed. Tickets are sold online and at the entrance.
Storkyrkan is open daily 09:30 to 17:00 from 1 January to 31 May, 09:00 to 18:00 from 1 June to 13 September and 09:30 to 17:00 from 14 September to 31 December. Adults pay SEK 120, seniors SEK 90, and anyone up to 18 goes in free; the audio guide is included.
The Nobel Prize Museum charges adults SEK 160, students and seniors SEK 120, and admits visitors under 18 free; tickets are sold only at the entrance desk. From January to March and in October and November it is closed on Mondays, open Tuesday to Thursday 11:00 to 17:00, Friday 11:00 to 21:00 and weekends 11:00 to 17:00; in April, May and September the weekday pattern is the same but weekends run 10:00 to 18:00. In June it opens daily 10:00 to 18:00, Fridays to 21:00; in July and August daily 10:00 to 19:00, Fridays to 21:00. December brings Monday closures, 11:00 to 17:00 Tuesday to Thursday, 11:00 to 21:00 on Fridays and 11:00 to 18:00 at weekends, and the museum is closed on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. Last entry is 15 minutes before closing.
Riddarholmen Church is a summer venue. In September 2026 it opens 10:00 to 17:00 daily, from 12:00 on 9 September, and the Royal Court warns that it can close occasionally from 17 to 30 September for restoration work on the spire. No dates beyond September had been published when we checked. Admission is SEK 65 for adults, 45 for students and 30 for children aged 7 to 17.
Getting there
Take the metro to Gamla Stan station and walk about five minutes through the old town to the palace, or get off at Kungsträdgården and walk ten minutes across the Strömbron bridge. Buses stop at Slottsbacken and Riddarhustorget, each a five-minute walk from the palace. Buy an SL ticket in the app before you travel; fares for the city network belong on the Stockholm page rather than here.
Nearby
The island is the pivot of a Stockholm visit, and our Stockholm city page sets it against the other districts. Across the water to the east, on Djurgården, the Vasa Museum and Skansen fill a second day. To the south, Fotografiska on the Södermalm waterfront is the contemporary counterweight to all this brick and baroque. For a second royal residence, Drottningholm Palace is where the family actually lives, reached by bus from Brommaplan or by boat from the City Hall quay.