The Best Places to Drink and Stay in Sweden

Each of the 35 rooms at this boutique hotel on a quiet, tree-lined corner near Lake Vättern is decorated around a different theme, from the Mirror Room to the Ralph Lauren Room to one that simply has a sauna in it. There's a shared outdoor jacuzzi, a spa next door for treatments, and a restaurant downstairs running breakfast through dinner. A calm, slightly eccentric base for exploring the southern end of Sweden's largest lake.

You walk through what appears to be a flower shop, find the basement door, and descend into a purple-lit cocktail bar that takes its botanical theme more seriously than most. The menu runs to nine drinks, each one built around naturalistic technique without making a fuss about it. A Difford's Guide five-star rating and a White Guide Exceptional Level nod confirm the crowd already knows the way down.

Floor-to-ceiling windows open onto a rooftop terrace on both sides, which makes Le Hibou feel less like a hotel bar and more like a very well-appointed penthouse you've somehow talked your way into. White marble bar, low leather sofas, chrome ceiling, the whole aesthetic. It has its own street entrance, mercifully separate from the hotel below. Capacity is tight, so on weekends the early arrivals win.

Mahogany panelling and wall-to-wall carpet nod to the bank director's office that once occupied this building, which tells you everything about the mood at this intimate cocktail bar tucked off the Bank Hotel lobby. The room is small enough that the bartenders clock your preferences after a round or two and start steering accordingly. The signature list leans classic, with Old Fashioned riffs doing the heavy lifting.

Tartan, not tweed, lines the walls and bar front here, a detail that sets the tone for the rest of the room. Tucked inside the Victory Hotel, this cocktail bar leans into a cosy, old-school gentlemen's club feel, with nautical odds and ends, model ships, and figureheads filling the cases and corners. The drinks follow the theme, folding in smoked sea salt and sea-foward flourishes. The kind of place where you settle in rather than pass through.

Moody lighting and a pumping soundtrack set the tone at this intimate gastro bar on Engelbrektsgatan, where the cocktail bar gets as much attention as the kitchen. The creative menu skips around South America, Asia, and Europe without apology, leaning on modern technique and bold spicing, with Oscietra caviar and Périgord truffles appearing when the mood calls for a little drama. A fun night out that also happens to be serious cooking.