Shops During the Holidays

(EDIT: This is a blog post from 2011, for information regarding 2013- click here!) One of the most popular questions I get from people planning their vacation in Stockholm during the holiday season is how the stores are open. Generally speaking, stores tend to be open on the 24th (though they close early) and closed on the 25th. Smaller stores will often be closed on the 24th as well and maybe even on the 26th. The really big shopping days in Sweden are between Christmas and New Years during what we call mellandagarna (literally "the middle days"). You will see signs all through the city advertising their sales (rea or mellandagsrea) and you can really get some good deals if you don't mind the crowds. Last year I wrote a little more in depth about these sales and you can read about them here.

Shopping crowds in front of NK

I can't give you the opening hours for every store, but here are the special hours for the larger stores and shopping centers in the city:

• NK Department Store- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Åhlens City Department Store- Dec 24th 9am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Gallerian Shopping Center- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 11am to 5pm and closed Jan 1st.
• Sturegallerian Shopping Center- Dec 24th 10am to 2pm, closed Dec 25th, Dec 31st 10am to 2pm and closed Jan 1st.

As I said, these are just the large stores and shopping centers, though the opening hours can be a guide for how other stores will be open. All are located in the downtown area... about a 25-30 minute walk from the Rival Hotel, otherwise 3-4 subway stops. Subways & buses run all through the holidays! If you are staying at the hotel and are interested in a specific store's opening hours... contact me directly by e-mail.