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Drottingholm palace in Stockholm is the official private residence of the Swedish royal family. This stunning beauty is located on an island called Lovon. Prior to 1981, it was only used as the royal summer residence. We saw the other palace in Stockholm and that was already impressive. That is now being used for official government business. It is also a popular tourist destination.
The Drottingholm palace surely offers more privacy. The fact that the grounds are massive and utterly gorgeous would be appealing to me. We decided to visit the palace on the last of ten days spent in Stockholm. I am so glad we did as it was worth every penny.
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To get to Drottingholm Palace from Stockholm, we took one of the Stockholm Boat Tour water cruises operated by Stromma from city hall. An hour of picture perfect views, cool breeze and some cold water and we were in Drottingholm. Here is our recap of our wonderful day trip from Stockholm, one that’s highly recommended.
Drottingholm Palace in Stockholm Day Trip:
Drottingholm Palace History:
Stockholm Palace:
The palace was designed by an architect by the name of Nicodemus Tessin the Elder. The original facade was pink plaster (yuck!). Thankfully, his son Nicodemus the Younger, who took over in 1681, toned down the loud color. In 1744, Queen Louisa Ulrika, mother of King Gustav III was given the palace as a wedding gift.
She further incorporated some rococo elements to the baroque style of the palace. The grounds consist of the palace, church and the oldest theater in the world that’s still in use. It is a UNESCO world heritage site. Over the years, the palace went through many changes including a white exterior.
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While Charles XIV John of Sweden’s ruled from 1818-1844, the palace was abandoned. In the king’s mind, it was part of an old history. As have happened to just about every royal residence we visited, the palace fell into ruins from abandonment.
The furnishings were taken away and auctioned off. In 1846, King Oscar 1 started repairs when he became king, and it was later finished by Oscar II. They were criticized for making the palace contemporary rather than restoring it. It was King Gustav V, who had been born in the palace that eventually restored it to its former glory over four years, ending in 1911.
Drottingholm Palace Interior:
Drottingholm Palace Tour: An English speakers tour had just started when we arrived. We did a naughty thing 😉 . As soon as we paid and got our tickets, we hurried on till we caught up with the group and sort of followed them for the tour.
I felt a bit bad cheating, but it was nice to get the lovely tidbits about the palace. We learned about the various ladies of the palace, a young one in particular who reminded me of Jane Austen. She had a diary and documented life in the palace. One of the funny things:
The king was the one who determined whether it was summer or winter. On a whim, he would change his mind, meaning all the people had to change to the appropriate clothing. That might mean for the ladies, having to remove their garments that took hours to change into winter clothing, only for the temperamental king to change his mind again and say it was summer after all 😉 🙂 . I would have committed murder!!!
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The one thing that struck me as we wandered through the rooms was that this was the very first palace I’ve been in that was actually tasteful. I have toured palaces in Versailles, Istanbul, and Marrakesh among others.
The one theme they all have in common (at least the Christian ones) is the color pink. Every room is some sort of god awful pink shade and lots of gilded gold. The rooms in Drottingholm palace actually look homey and royal. The queen had good taste, a lot of blues and gold which blend harmoniously. Understated elegance. My kind of style 🙂 .
Drottingholm Palace Library:
I would love a room like this. I could spend all day. The views are of the garden and it is so peaceful.
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The Drottingholm Palace Chinese Pavilion Room:
The “Chinese” stove was a gift from Catherine II of Russia. It was quite the attraction in those days, thanks to the sculptors and painted tiles. History has however proven that this depiction was strictly from imagination. Nothing on the stove represented China, not the tiles, the paint or even the looks of the sculptures :-).
Swedish Palace Drottingholm Ball Room:
There were so many more rooms that we saw. I just can’t remember all their names. Suffice to say they were all pretty interesting. I just loved the rich mahogany that was everywhere and the intricate patterns of flooring.
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Related Reading: Stockholm Travel Guide
Drottingholm Palace Exterior:
An awe-inspiring garden landscape. Looking out from the library or just about any room down to the grounds was just wow!. The baroque style garden was modeled after the palace of Versailles according to the guide. It reminds me more of the Champs-Elysee garden myself.
Federico was ahead of me and ran into a young newlywed couple who had been asking people to take their photos. They were dressed in white and had a simple point and shoot. Lucky for them, his wedding photographer side kicked in and they had an impromptu wedding shoot. They were so grateful, the girl was in tears when she saw the pictures. I was happy for them and didn’t mind sweltering in the sun 🙂 .
The front of the palace is just as beautiful. There are several Italian statues as you walk along the wide path of the park which had young lovers and families alike enjoying the sun. More statues are scattered all over the park and are meant to surprise the visitor. Unexpected in such a green area.
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I would recommend a visit to the Drottingholm Palace as one of the top things to do in Stockholm. It was a fantastic way to end our wonderful time in the city. We did not get a chance to explore the Chinese Pavilion as we had to catch the last boat back to the Stockholm.
How long to explore the Stockholm Palace:
I would recommend allowing at least five hours to fully enjoy and explore everything. This whole place reminded me so much of the British series Blackadder 🙂 . You can find out more on the palace at their website.
Pin it for later:
What do you think about Drottingholm Palace in Stockholm? How would you like this as your residence and wake up to these views on a daily basis? I still say “It’s good to be the King” (if you get this, you rock! 🙂 )
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Wow! I love these photos! Especially the library. I have a thing for old places and fancy architecture 🙂
Ha! Then you would love this palace. Absolutely gorgeous.
Wow, these pics are gorgeous! It’s such a blessing to be able to travel to such beautiful parts of the world!
Thank you. It was easy as the place was so beautiful. You’re right, it is a blessing and we never take it for granted 🙂
Beautiful! You visit some of the most beautiful places, I tell ya! Keep doing your thang sis!
Thanks Stacie :-). This one really was a beaut. I’ll keep going.
Wow stockholm has some really beautiful features!
Certainly does.
AMAZING!!!!!! I don’t even know what else to say but AMAZING.
That says it all!
The outside view is beautiful. Love all the photos and history.
A lot of history indeed. It is a beaut!
Indeed, it’s good to be king! That place is truly amazing. And it seems that you had an awesome weather while in Sweden – that surely was a pro. I wasn’t expecting to see beaches and people sunbathing in Sweden, to be honest 🙂
Haha! I know, we were stunned too at the people in the water. I mean it was sunny, but hot enough to get in the water, no way..but there they were! I guess to them it must have felt like 100 degrees 🙂 . Yep..truly a life of luxury for the king. The weather was perfect. The skies are the prettiest l have ever seen – anywhere.
I hadn’t heard of Drottingholm Palace. Not surprised though as I’ve only heard of Buckingham. The pictures are gorgeous though. The fact that the king selected the season is so freaking crazy. What if our President did that, WTH.
That was definitely the strangest thing ever. I think l would have committed murder.. :-), Those royals really had the run of everything and every one. I can’t imagine if that was still going on.. haha! Thanks for the compliment. There are so many gorgeous palaces all over. Each one with its own charm (on the outside anyway).. 🙂
Your pictures are captivating. I just love it!
Thank you..
Impressive residence and fit for a King indeed. It must have been frustrating to miss seeing everything and having to leave, but a good excuse to go back there again. It is funny that it reminded you of the Blackadder series, I think I know what you mean ????
It was frustrating. I would have liked to see the theater especially. Yeah..the l think it was Blackadder sense and sensibility series. Totally reminded me of it, especially seeing what the theater looks like inside. Yes..a good excuse to come back 🙂 .
This was beautiful, I want EVERYTHING in the Chinese pavillion and how petty of the king to change the seasons at his own will lol.
Oh we have similar taste. That’s what l said when l saw it too 🙂 . Right down to the tapestry on the wall. Imagine if he got drunk and changed it like 20 times a day, nobody could say anything!!! That must have been hard 🙂 .
Oh wow, this place is to die for! This is royalty on level 20. I especially love the library.
Haha! Level 20!!! It is to die for. They had a giant picture of the prince and his new bride in one of the rooms. Imagine getting married there! 🙂
I always LOVE your posts Kem. Your photos and storytelling always make feel like I’m right there with you. Adding this to my travel list.
Thanks so much Vashti. So nice of you to say 🙂 . I would love to go back and complete the visit here. We always start out so late in the day, no matter where we go. I can’t be bothered to get up at 8 so l can leave early :-).
I’d love to rock in this rococo palace – On the WOW meter it’s a definite 10! t’s hard to imagine that someone would voluntarily abandon such a beautiful place and I can certainly see why it’s a UNESCO WHS. As usual all your photos are gorgeous (the skies are spectacular too!) and I especially loved the staircase photo with the marble statues and alternating panels of red and blue. Looks like a place that’s worth getting up a little earlier to see everything and wander the grounds too! 🙂 Anita
Definitely a 10 in my book 🙂 . I think the library is probably my favorite. That or the Chinese room. Thanks for the compliment. I will pass it on. Haha! You know we can’t get going early, but l think next time, we just might. I want to see everything. I will never understand why these palaces were always abandoned at some point 🙁 . I guess people always want bigger and better.
I love that they were beaching it up! And the king changing the weather idea, ouch. Loved the pick-up photo shoot—–that was so kind of both of you (you had to wait)—-they will be just thrilled—hope their marriage is always strong with photos of their special day! The palace is pretty. I just always feel so bad thinking of the cost that goes into those kinds of things. Is it worth it, really? But, on the other hand, after it had been done, I am glad that they pulled it out of disrepair!—–Terri
I don’t know how they could have been in the water that day 🙂 . I guess to them it was like Seville on a hot summer day! Yeah, it was nice to see their faces when they looked at the pictures. I gather they had just been asking random people, but you know how it is, arm cut off here, fuzzy..etc. He likes perfection, so he fixed the hair out of place, told them how to pose etc. They loved it 🙂 . I too hope they have a long marriage, they were certainly in love. None of the palaces were worth it, but it became a question of outdoing others. They dispatched their achitects to study and copy the biggest ones and then made theirs bigger. Nothing has changed..Hahah!!! We’re still size queens as human beings.