Top Ten Places to Visit in Öland, Sweden

So I've recently been on a car trip to Southern Sweden, and one of the places we stayed at the longest was Öland, which is the second largest island of Sweden, but the smallest of Sweden's 25 traditional provinces. But size isn't a qualifier for quality, as the small size allowed me to explore nearly everything in just three days! So here is the list of the top ten best places to visit on Öland, Sweden!
The Top Ten
1 Borgholm Castle

Borgholm Castle was one of the first places I visited on Öland, and also one of the absolute best at the same time! To say that this castle is huge would be an understatement! It's by far the most iconic Swedish castle in my opinion, looking exactly like a typical medieval castle, only without the moat, which isn't that big of a deal either way because of how great is already is! It truly feels ancient, and gives an amazing view of Borgholm at the top! Borgholm Castle is my favourite from Öland!

2 Tall Jean

Tall Jean (in Swedish Långe Jan) is the largest lighthouse in all of Sweden, located at the southernmost cape of Öland. It's 42 meters high, and the view from here is absolutely amazing! Terrifying, but amazing! The nature around this lighthouse is also quite amazing, as it's a hotspot for birds of all kinds, and there's a little village around the lighthouse with its own fair share of restaurants and museums! Overall I loved my time here!

3 Trollforest

This is by far the most interesting natural location on Öland! Located at the northern tip of Öland, the Trollforest is one mysterious forest. Located just by the coast, there are old trees of all kinds, leaning over other trees, trees covered with ivy, trees that are tied to other trees... and it's all naturally grown without human interference! Add in a comfy view of the sea and you have the Trollforest, one of the best preserved primeval forests in Sweden!

4 Eketorp Ringfort

Eketorp's Fort is another ancient fortification, this time from the iron age! It's not the oldest, nor the largest, however it is the best preserved of Öland's many ruins! It's a huge ringfort which not offers a great view from the top, but there's also a reconstructed Iron Age village inside of it! It truly feels like you're travelling back in time when you enter it. You can even play games, and my personal favourite is Archery!

5 Rauks of Byrum

Rauks are in a nutshell, rocks by the coast that have been hit so many times by sea waves that they're softened and earned unique shapes. Most rauks are found on Gotland, another Swedish island/province, however, getting to Gotland is pretty hard as there is no bridge there. So if you've never seen rauks before, the Rauks of Byrum is a good start! It was for me at least. It was quite beautiful, with the many rocks everywhere, and the island of Blåkulla in the sea horizon.

6 Böda Beach

Böda Beach is one of the top rated beaches in all of Sweden, located at the Böda Bay at northeastern Öland! Northern Öland as a whole is more beautiful and fit for beaches, so it's no surprise that the top beach here happened to be located here! This beach is ENORMOUS, with so much tourism. There's not just a beach, there's also a town, a water park, etc. The tourism is spot on, and I recommend this beach to anyone!

7 Sandvik Mill

The windmill of Sandvik is the largest in all of Northern Europe, and is nowadays a combination of a restaurant and a museum, and both aspects are great! The restaurants serve the best of Ölands national dish, potato dumplings, and the museum offers a deeper view on how a windmill works, and also a balcony with a great view!

8 Köpingsvik Beach

The beach in Köpingsvik is probably the most calm yet beautiful beach on Öland! It's not as populous as Böda Beach, however, despite being on the west coast towards the mainland, it's really chill, especially in the evening! There are concerts singing chill music, a bridge that goes out into the sea, etc. It's really nice!

9 Öland Bridge

Öland, while being an island, is connected to the Swedish mainland through the Öland Bridge. It's the second largest bridge in Sweden, at 6 kilometers. However, if you don't count trans-national bridges, then it IS the largest swedish bridge, and it's so cool that it even made it to the top ten! From one end you can see Öland, and the other you see Kalmar, and to the sides you see the sea meet the horizon. At one point, the bridge is 42 metres above the sea (which yes is also the height of the tallest Swedish lighthouse!). Overall, this bridge is super cool!

10 Ottenby Bird Station
The Contenders
11 Mysinge Hög
12 Neptuni Fields

This is the largest shingle field on Öland, which is basically a beach made up of mainly rocks and stone, and it's quite beautiful! Nothing compared to say Byrum's rauks, but it's still pretty cool! Located in the north by Byxelkrok, it's a nice place to just take a break and take in the beautiful view of the ocean!

13 Kapelludden

For being so small, it's surprisingly interesting! Historically, it was an important hotspot for trade, as travellers from the east came here and then ventured forth to Köpingsvik. Today, there's ruins of a capell, a stone crucifix, and even a lighthouse! The view of the ocean is cool as well, however, it does smell a lot of cow dung here, and isn't too suitable with family.

14 Tall Erik

From now on we've gone from the great tier to good tier. Tall Erik is the lighthouse located on the northern tip of Öland, but it's quite a disappointment compared to Tall Jean. Disregarding the fact that it's ten metres shorter, it offers more nature than the southern tip, but without all the wildlife of the southern, and the tourism is dead compared to Tall Jean. What disappointed me the most though was the fact that the lighthouse was closed, and there was no explanation to why! So a bit disappointing, however, I did enjoy the nature around it slightly, even though I'd much rather revisit the southern tip overall.

15 Gettlinge Gravefield

The gravefield of Gettlinge is in a nutshell, a smaller Ale's Stones, found in southern Öland just by the road. So it's a gravefield shaped like a viking longship, and it's cool. There's even a windmill by it, so that also adds to the atmosphere!

16 Ismantorp's Ringfort
17 Gråborg Ruin

Gråborg ruin is the largest of Öland's many ringforts, although to be fair there's really no other reason to go here. The church ruin nearby is pretty cool, but the ringfort itself doesn't really offer anything, as you can't really go inside of the fort. It's good if you're a history nerd, but if you want to go with the family, visit Eketorp or Ismantorps ringforts instead!

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