Turning Torso in Malmö.
Average costs
Stay – In the small Malmö there are a lot less places to stay than in the capital of Sweden, Stockholm. Because of the lesser competition accommodation is a little more expensive. The cheapest accommodations around the city need to be booked quite a while in advance. Hostels start at €22 or 205 SEK ($24). But like I said before: be sure to book in advance!
Budget options cost between 48 and 100 euro ($53 to $110). Personally, I would choose a classier hotel if you’re planning on taking a budget option otherwise. These better hotels start at pretty much the same prices anyway…
For an overview of all accommodations and prices in Malmö, you can go to this link.
Eat – Comparable to other big cities in Sweden. Lunch is the cheapest option. If you’re on a budget in Sweden, I suggest you stuff yourself during lunch. I ate a Thai curry for only 69 SEK (€7,5 or $8,5). For Malmö this is very inexpensive. At Burger King you will already pay 80 SEK for a menu. For dinner or eating in a ‘real’ restaurant, the prices will be between 150 and 200 SEK for the cheapest dishes.
Transport – All sights are within walking distance from each other. So public transport in Malmö is really not necessary… Would you like to explore a little around Malmö too? Then there are several options. A single ticket costs anything between 21 and 99 SEK. Normally there also are 24 hour and 72 hour passes. A 24 hour pass costs 65 SEK and a 72 hour pass will cost you 165 SEK or 18 euro ($20).
City cemetery in Malmö.
Saving money
Stuff yourself at lunch – Lunch is a lot less expensive than going to a restaurant to get dinner. Around Malmö there are plenty of choices who offer warm, delicious lunches. For an amount between €7 and €12 ($8 and $13), I think it’s quite inexpensive. I ate at the central station of Malmö. There you’ll get a big choice of places to eat lunch at. Because of the cheap food, be prepared to wait in line a bit.
Tap water – Why spent money on expensive drinks if you can buy perfectly purified tap water? A soda can be cheap, but can be very expensive too. It all depends where you buy it.
Walk around – Malmö is a tiny city and you can walk it easy enough. The only sight that’s located a little out of the city center is the Turning Torso. A 20 to 30 minute walk. Which isn’t too bad, really.
Free Wi-Fi – On popular spots around the city there is a lot of Wi-Fi available. Even when you’re outside. In stead of going to an expensive coffee shop to drink an expensive tea or coffee, you might as well just sit down on a bench to update your facebook status.
Square in Malmö.
Do’s
Turning Torso – I thought this was the most beautiful building in Malmö. The high building has the form of a rotating backbone and seems to be made out of separate vertebrae. Everyone who likes architecture will definitely appreciate this building.
Oresund bridge – Famous from the Scandinavian series ‘The bridge’. This giant bridge connects Sweden with Denmark. You best use your car if you plan to go to Denmark. But who knows… Maybe you can even walk into Copenhagen?
St. Petri – The Saint Peters church of Malmö. An impressive, big church which has an especially beautiful interior.
Malmohus – A medieval castle centrally located in a park.
Sint-Petri Kyrka in Malmö.
Don’ts
Staying too long – It looks like I’m giving this advice for every Scandinavian city, but it just is the truth. There just isn’t that much to see. On half a day I had already seen all of the top sights from this little city. Instead, travel on to Copenhagen or Stockholm. Or go explore the nearby nature!
Cross the border without a passport – Since 2016 there are border controls between Copenhagen and Sweden. This all has to do with the refugees crisis. EU ID cards are pretty much never accepted as a valid way to cross the border. So definitely take your passport or visum with you if you plan to do this. I could also use my international driver’s licence, but I’m not sure if this is always accepted.
The Malmöhus Slott.
