Currently Sweden has 15 World Heritage sites. In relation to the population, Sweden has the most World Heritage sites of all states that signed the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in 1972. The World Heritage Convention is basically a big peace project, which is a consequence of the Second World War.
A World Heritage site is a site of special cultural or natural value that tells the story of the Earth and its people. It is so valuable that its preservation lies in the interest of mankind. There are about 1,000 such World Heritage sites worldwide.
The Royal Domain of Drottningholm by Lake Mälaren became the first Swedish World Heritage site in 1991. Today, there are both cultural and natural heritage sites in Sweden.
Cultural heritage
The Swedish National Heritage Board advises and supports all cultural heritage sites. In Swedish it is named Riksantikvarieämbetet. It is an agency of the Swedish government and bears the main responsibility for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in Sweden.
Natural heritage
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket) is responsible for the three Swedish natural heritage sites Laponia, High Coast, and Southern Öland.
Sweden’s 15 World Heritage sites
Here are all fifteen sites, from the south to the north:
- Naval Port of Karlskrona, Blekinge
- Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland
- Grimeton Radio Station, Halland
- Hanseatic Town of Visby, Gotland
- Rock Carvings in Tanum, Bohuslän
- Skogskyrkogården, The Woodland Cemetery, Stockholm/Södermanland
- Royal Domain of Drottningholm, Uppland
- Birka and Hovgården, Uppland
- Engelsberg Ironworks, Västmanland
- Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun, Dalarna
- Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland
- High Coast/Kvarken Archipelago, Ångermanland
- Church Town of Gammelstad, Norrbotten
- Struve Geodetic Arc, Norrbotten
- The Laponian Area – Lapland’s World Heritage Site
More info
Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland
The masts of Grimeton Radio Station in Halland
Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun, Dalarna
Laponia midnight sun
Read more: Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö
We give you helpful and compact information about Sweden’s three major destinations – with must-sees, favourite spots, sightseeing tours and accommodation options:
Photo Decorated Farmhouse of Hälsingland (on the top of this page): Fjällvägen project, Jocke Lagercrantz. Photo Laponia midnight sun: Peter Rosen.
