Back in the late 16th century, you could come to Djurgården only as a hunting companion of the Swedish king, stalking the reindeer and elk in his royal game park. But at the dawn of the 19th century, the royal island of Djurgården, lying just east of the historic city center of Stockholm , (read more) was shrewdly converted to a public pleasure ground, a rival to Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen (read more) . After all, why should the king and his cronies have all the fun?

You can get here by ferry (from Skeppsbron in the historic city center) or ride the historic blue tram down Ostermalm's broad boulevard Narvavågen and over the handsome Djurgårdsbron bridge, built for the 1897 World's Fair held on Djurgården. (Check out the four Norse gods on their lofty granite columns.) The island's newer attractions are on this western waterfront, formerly a naval base. First there's Junibacken, an indoor play land for children based on Pippi Longstocking and other stories by Astrid Lindgren. South of here, the immensely popular Vasamuseet Galärvarvsvägen 14 (☎ 46/8/519-548-00;1; www.vasamuseet.se) was built to contain the world's oldest boat: the warship Vasa, which was dredged up from the floor of Stockholm harbor in 1961. Built in 1628, the Vasa was designed to be the jewel of Sweden's navy—but the very day it was launched, it tragically sank, right in front of a cheering crowd of thousands. There's still something haunting about this ship, perched on its stand inside the museum, bristling with hundreds of baroque carvings and the massive guns that dragged it to its watery death. Across the road, the Renaissance-style Nordiska Museet (Djurgårdsvägen 6–16 www.nordiskamuseet.se) ), another legacy of the World's Fair, showcases Swedish cultural life, with a charming hodgepodge of artifacts: 16th-century dining tables, period costumes, dollhouses, textiles, Lapland fishing tools.

Following Djurgårdsvägen south, you may get distracted by the swings and roller coasters of Gröna Lund, Stockholm's pint-size amusement park, built in 1883. But the real prize is east of here: Skansen Djurgården 49–51 www.skansen.se) , the world's first open-air museum, opened in 1891 as a sort of Sweden in miniature. More than 150 dwellings from around Sweden were reconstructed here: windmills, manor houses, a pharmacy, a glass blower's forge, a blacksmith shop, and even a complete town quarter. There's also a small zoo full of typically Swedish animals such as reindeer, elk, seal, lynx, brown bear, and wolverine. Originally an extension of the Nordiska Museet, Skansen has proven far more popular—for on the long golden days of a Scandinavian summer, it's much more fun to be outside.

And being outside is what Djurgården is all about. Waterfront promenades, woodland trails, bicycle paths—many locals spend the day here without visiting a single attraction. Hike around the Rosendals Trädgård Rosendalsterrassen 12, laid out in the 1820s as the parkland of the pink hilltop Rosendal Palace; at least one example of every native Swedish tree grows here. The inner core of Rosendals Trädgård is, as the name suggests, a "trade garden"—a huge organic garden (with a casual cafe onsite) run by the Swedish Horticultural Society, where you can pick your own produce. How pastoral!

Copyright © 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.