Heading to Sweden for the Curly Olympics :)

[UpInTheAir:)]

Hi Everyone
Well after last getting off a plane in February 2020 from Copenhagen I am now getting on one again at the end of August
Heading to Sweden for what I call the Curly Olympics as it happens every 4 years. Now it may surprise some people but the photo in my avatar is not actually me It is the nose of a Curly Coated Retriever ("Curly" for short). And if anything is going to get me on a plane again it is my deep love (obsession) of this breed of dog.
So I am leaving the pack in the care of the long suffering man person and heading off overseas!
Flying Thai airways MEL-BKK-ARN and return in business class... Will be interesting as during this time I have also stopped drinking alcohol.. Is it possible to get on a plane and not drink champagne
Got accommodation at the venue sorted and heading to the Sheraton Stockholm for the first night but looking for recommendations for a good hotel on the last night?
I'm hiring a car.. I know.. conquer all the fears at once I say LOL
Anyway.. I know that this is a flying/ travel forum so I will try and keep the dog pictures to a minimum

 

[AIRwin]

Hej! I'm planning to be in Sweden in early August so I'll miss the Curly Olympics...

 

[Hvr]

You're travelling to do something you love. The best type of travel.

Dog pictures are welcome. Just glad it's not Labradors. For some reason vision impaired people are obsessed by them.

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Hej! I'm planning to be in Sweden in early August so I'll miss the Curly Olympics...

Shame..
I'm sure you will enjoy Sweden anyway

 

[LadyC]

Dog pics to the max please! Who doesn't love a retriever.

 

[Austman]

Got accommodation at the venue sorted and heading to the Sheraton Stockholm for the first night but looking for recommendations for a good hotel on the last night?

The Sheraton is a good hotel and located close to the city centre and to Gamla Stan (the old town).

If you want to be a bit special and a bit traditional Swedish, stay in Gamla Stan itself for a night. An example is Lady Hamilton hotel:

The Collector's Hotels – Gamla Stan, Stockholm, Sweden

The Collector's Hotels in Gamla Stan, Stockholm, Sweden.

www.thecollectorshotels.se

Car parking would be an issue but it will be in most of the city hotels. You'd need to use a parking station which are not cheap.

Be aware that many Swedish hotels have very small rooms!

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

The Sheraton is a good hotel and located close to the city centre and to Gamla Stan (the old town).

If you want to be a bit special and a bit traditional Swedish, stay in Gamla Stan itself for a night. An example is Lady Hamilton hotel:

The Collector's Hotels – Gamla Stan, Stockholm, Sweden

The Collector's Hotels in Gamla Stan, Stockholm, Sweden.

www.thecollectorshotels.se

Car parking would be an issue but it will be in most of the city hotels. You'd need to use a parking station which are not cheap.

Be aware that many Swedish hotels have very small rooms!

Thank you! I will have dumped the car by then LOL.. Planning to train from the airport, stay in the city the first night, hire car from CBD then travel out to the country for the Curly Olympics... drive back and safely park the car in the Avis garage then tourist Stockholm the normal way with a combination of walking and public transport

 

[Eija]

I get the dog thing been to Helsinki twice and Amsterdam once for dog shows. Gålö Havsbad resort in a national forest looks great. If you’ve dumped the car by then I’d look for a place to stay in the old town and just soak up the atmosphere. I’m jealous…ENJOY!

 

[Happy Dude]

Is it possible to get on a plane and not drink champagne

I've done it heaps of times! But not when in J, so no. Best of luck!

Also looking forward to pics of doggo and learning what is a dog olympics.

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Stage one of the trip complete
I have arrived in Bangkok for my 8 hour stop over.
So far everything is going really well
Photos are on my phone and typing is easier on the computer so I will write first and photo after..
Security check in Melbourne was pretty average.. partly my fault.. left nail scissors in my bag but very short staffed this morning.
Lounge was a place to sit but nothing exciting.
Thai airways were great.. staff were fantastic and food was good. Couldn't resist a celebratory glass of champagne
I avoided WiFi and enjoyed the 9.5 hours of me time
Lounge in Bangkok is huge and empty.. lots of good meal options and great to have some fresh watermelon and pineapple again.
Body clock is telling me that it's sleep time.. Think I will sleep well on the next leg

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Plane at MEL
Seat

Crossing the equator
Arriving Bangkok

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

So my flight has made the board
And I'm actually departing from E. So I left the spacious D (?) Lounge, did a loop of the concourse and headed to the E Thai Airways lounge. The E lounge is much smaller however during the brief time I was there looked to have similar stuff

Unfortunately the showers weren't open but the extremely helpful lounge attendant (so helpful she quickly came out of the lounge to tell me that I was going the wrong direction ) told me that the Turkish Airlines lounge had one that I could use

The Turkish lounge is smaller than the Thai lounge with less food options but it is still comfortable and quiet

Feeling refreshed again after my walk and shower

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Arrived in Stockholm and took the fast train from the airport to the city

Then lots of walking to wake the legs up
Through the old city..

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Then took the ferry to Vasamuseet.. very interesting.. about a ship that sank 1300m into it's voyage in the 1600s and was salvaged many years later.. the moral of this story is that you need to be functional not just pretty

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Then I trekked up the hill to Skansen.. it's where they popped a lot of different styles of Swedish architecture.. like schools, churches, houses from the different eras. There's also a zoo and lots of kids stuff like rides, ice cream etc

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

Then it was to the hotel (Sheraton) to collapse in a heap

 

[Anna]

Speed 192 km/hr is what Swedes would call 'full fart'

 

[Austman]

Arrived in Stockholm and took the fast train from the airport to the city

Then lots of walking to wake the legs up
Through the old city..


View attachment 289455

Back in the day... a part of this place used to be a nightclub. On summer evenings, about half of the outdoor area up to the fountain was for its outdoor dining. (Swedish nightclubs always had a restaurant)

On a nice summer night, it was a beautiful place. Stockholm mid-summer nights can be quite bright. The sun can be brightly shining again at 2 or 3am if you are up that late ...

It's all government offices (or similar) so no immediate residents got too disturbed.

Your room at the Sheraton looks very comfortable!

 

[AIRwin]

Back in the day... a part of this place used to be a nightclub. On summer evenings, about half of the outdoor area up to the fountain was for its outdoor dining. (Swedish nightclubs always had a restaurant)

On a nice summer night, it was a beautiful place. Stockholm mid-summer nights can be quite bright. The sun can be brightly shining again at 2 or 3am if you are up that late...

It's all government offices (or similar) so no immediate residents got too disturbed.

Your room at the Sheraton looks very comfortable!

Reminds me of the ABBA song Summer Night City

 

[Austman]

Reminds me of the ABBA song Summer Night City

For actual sunshine, it was probably 3:30am.

But the night sky, in clear weather, never gets totally dark. Very nice twilight.