Experience West Sweden 

There are many well known places to visit in West Sweden, and even more you’ve not heard of yet, to discover. Go on an adventure holiday in Bohuslän, Dalsland, Västergötland and the city of Gothenburg.

The Gotaleden Trail 

The Gotaleden is a 71 kilometre walking trail between Gothenburg and Alingsås in West Sweden. Beautiful nature, pitstops near to town and proximity to train stations characterise this trail.

Quick facts

Length: 71 km

Timing: approx. four days

Difficulty: moderate

Terrain: forest paths, urban environments and fields

Nature experiences close to the city

The Gotaleden is a walking trail close to the city, which has been divided into nine stages covering  a total of 71 kilometres. Proximity to train stations on the different stages makes it easy to adapt the walk as you want. Natural landscapes along the trail are varied and beautiful, with lakes you can swim in, fantastic viewpoints and undulating countryside.

Start your walk in the centre of Gothenburg

The trail starts (or finishes) in Kungsportsplatsen right in the centre of Gothenburg. From here the trail leads out of the city, along leafy tree lined avenues. Before long you come to Delsjön’s nature reserve, where the many exercise tracks are well used by families and sports clubs. It doesn’t take long however before the hubbub fades away, and the peace and quiet of the countryside takes over.  

Don’t miss the view from Getryggen, which is a huge granite plateau overlooking Skatås. From here there’s an extensive view of Gothenburg’s western side. You’ll pass several nature reserves along the trail. One of the loveliest is Säveåns nature reserve, full of bird song, salmon swimming up the river, trees felled by beavers, oceans of wild anemone hepatica, and several picnic areas.

Lots of places to fill up in along the way

There are plenty of picnic areas and shelters along the trail, as well as cosy accommodation and good locally produced food. It’s worth stopping for something to eat at Garveriet in Floda, who are working to be as sustainable as possible. You can eat locally produced lunches and pastries baked in their stone oven. As well as a restaurant, cafe and bakery they have a complete conference centre and arrange cookery courses.

Floda is also home to Jernbruket, a lovely restaurant in an old storehouse that used to belong to Floda Ironworks. Most of the food is prepared on the restaurant’s wood fired grill.

Aludden Providore is another place along the trail where sustainable and authentic West Swedish food experiences are the main focus. As a bonus you’ll also get a lovely view of Lake Aspen, which you also get from Aspenäs Herrgård. This beautiful historic manor offers both food and accommodation. Make sure you don’t miss the cafe culture in Alingsås – Sweden’s fika capital. You’ll find lots of charming cafes where you can enjoy a fika, such as Ekstedts bakery and café and Nolbygårds organic bakery and café.

Cultural treasures and historic settings

Historic environments is a recurring theme as you walk the Gotaleden. Check out Jonsereds Fabriker, a former industrial area with a number of handsome, well preserved industrial buildings, housing Hotellet Le Mat and the Poppels microbrewery, amongst others.

Tollered is another old industrial site along the route, where you’ll find Nääs Fabriker, which offers accommodation, food, a wonderfully relaxing spa area and lovely shops, all in beautiful surroundings by Lake Sävelången. The whole Nääs area is home to a unique mixture of nature and culture in the borderland between town and country. Nääs Castle is one of the best preserved 19th century buildings in Scandinavia, with guided tours of the castle, food, accommodation, nice shops, horse riding, a craft gallery and a building conservation centre.

Accommodation in the centre of Alingsås includes the historic Grand Hotel, dating back to the beginning of the 20th century.  

Fact about the trail

Length:

The trail is divided into 9 stages and is 71 kilometres in total. The length of each stage is detailed below. To read more about the stages visit gotaleden.se. 

• Stage 1 - Gothenburg - Skatås  6.2 kilometres
• Stage 2 - Skatås - Kåsjön  9.3 kilometres
• Stage 3 - Kåsjön - Jonsered  7.5 kilometres
• Stage 4 - Jonsered - Lerum  9.8 kilometres
• Stage 5 - Lerum - Floda  8.0 kilometres
• Stage 6 - Floda - Tollered  5.5 kilometres
• Stage 7 - Tollered - Norsesund  9.4 kilometres
• Stage 8 - Norsesund - Västra Bodarna  4.6 kilometres
• Stage 9 - Västra Bodarna - Alingsås  10.3 kilometres

Approximate times:

The whole stretch from Gothenburg to Alingsås can be walked in four days, but it’s also easy to shorten it using public transport. You’ll find an estimate of each stage’s timing excluding rest stops.

• Stage 1 - Gothenburg – Skatås: approx. 1 hour
• Stage 2 - Skatås – Kåsjön:  approx. 2.5 hours
• Stage 3 - Kåsjön – Jonsered:  approx. 2 – 3 hours
• Stage 4 - Jonsered – Lerum: approx. 2 – 3 hours
• Stage 5 - Lerum – Floda: approx. 2 hours
• Stage 6 - Floda - Tollered: approx. 1.5 hours
• Stage 7 - Tollered - Norsesund:  approx. 2.5 hours
• Stage 8 - Norsesund - Västra Bodarna: cirka 1 hour
• Stage 9 - Västra Bodarna - Alingsås: approx. 2.5 hours

Marking:

The trail is marked with blue and a walking symbol with the text "Gotaleden".

• In urban areas it’s a metal sign (20 x 30 centimetres)
• In the forest it’s a ribbon (7 centimetres high) or a metal plate (8 x 8 centimetres)

In some places there are fewer waymarks, so just follow the path or the road. Crossroads where the trail changes direction are always clearly marked.

Level of difficulty:

On the whole the trail is easy to moderate, but this can vary a lot depending on which section you are walking.  There’s more detailed information below about the different stages and their respective classification.

• Stage 1 - Gothenburg – Skatås: This stage is classed as easy. The stretch is easily walked in the city and slightly hilly in the nature reserve.
   
• Stage 2 - Skatås – Kåsjön:  This stage is classed as easy to moderate, with some parts that are steep.
   
• Stage 3 - Kåsjön – Jonsered: This stage is classed as easy to moderate and is on the whole easily walked, mostly on forest paths.
   
• Stage 4 - Jonsered – Lerum: This stage is classed as hard, as parts of Goråsbergen hill are demanding, but once you’ve passed that it is very easily walked.  
   
• Stage 5 - Lerum – Floda: This stage is classed as easy.
   
• Stage 6 - Floda - Tollered: This stage is classed as easy and passes through varied and undulating landscapes, including both fields and pine forests.
   
• Stage 7 - Tollered - Norsesund: This stage is classed as moderate.
   
• Stage 8 - Norsesund - Västra Bodarna: This stage is classed as easy.
   
• Stage 9 - Västra Bodarna - Alingsås: This stage is classed as moderate, with walking in the town as well as along lake shorelines.

Start and end:

• Stage 1 - Gothenburg – Skatås: This stage passes through the municipality of Gothenburg. It starts in the centre of the city outside the Tourist Information Centre on Kungsportsplatsen. It’s easy to get there on most trams or via a short walk from Gothenburg’s Central Station.  
   
• Stage 2 - Skatås – Kåsjön: From the centre of Gothenburg Skatås recreation centre is just a tram ride away, on tram line 5 (the Welandergatan stop, approx. 1 kilometre walk from Skatås). There is also plenty of parking in Skatås.
   
• Stage 3 - Kåsjön – Jonsered: This stage starts in Kåsjön in the municipality of Partille. It’s easy to get the bus from the centre of Gothenburg or Partille, and get off at the Kåsjön stop, right next to the trail. From Gothenburg there’s a direct bus (a journey of around 40 minutes). From Partille it’s a 10 minute bus ride. By car it’s approx. 20 minutes from the centre of Gothenburg.
   
• Stage 4 - Jonsered – Lerum: This stage starts at Jonsered in the municipality of Partille. Jonsered station is right next to the start of this stage, as is the Jons väg (road) bus stop which is along the trail, about 50 metres from the start.  Commuter parking is available at Jonsered station. Regular trains leave from Gothenburg’s Central Station, with a journey time of 12 minutes.  The Gul Express bus from Gothenburg takes approx. 30 minutes to get to the Jons väg bus stop. It’s 20 minutes by car from Gothenburg.
   
• Stage 5 - Lerum – Floda: This stage starts in the centre of Lerum. Travel by train or car from the centre of Gothenburg to Lerum station in around 20 minutes. There’s plenty of parking. 
   
• Stage 6 - Floda - Tollered: Stage 6 starts in the town of Floda. Floda station is right next to the trail, and is accessible by a train or car journey of around 30 minutes. There’s parking next to the station.
   
• Stage 7 - Tollered - Norsesund: The Tollered bus stop is next to the trail, and regular buses travel there from Floda station, a journey of around 15 minutes.
   
• Stage 8 - Norsesund - Västra Bodarna: The start of this stage is by Noresund station, a train or car journey of around 35 minutes from the centre of Gothenburg.
   
• Stage 9 - Västra Bodarna - Alingsås: Stage 9 starts by Västra Bodarna station, a train or car journey of around 35 minutes from the centre of Gothenburg.

How to get here:

The trail stretches from Kungsportsplatsen in Gothenburg via Partille and Lerum and on to Lilla Torget square in Alingsås. Stages 1 and 2 start in the municipality of Gothenburg and continue into the municipality of Partille and then the municipality of Lerum. Stages 5-7 are in the municipality of Lerum and the last two stages in the municipality of Alingsås.

Source: West Sweden Tourist Board 

Image: Jona Ingman/Westsweden.com