The Ultimate Guide to a 7-Day Canoe Trip in Sweden

Searching for a unique adventure in Europe that features beautiful landscapes, insanely cool wildlife, jaw-dropping views, unforgettable evenings, and exhilarating activities? Look no further than The Canoe Trip in Sweden, a 3- or 7-day wild camping and canoeing adventure that drops you into one of the country’s most stunning lake regions. Here’s everything you need to know about it.

Psst, this post is sponsored by Travelbase and contains affiliate links. Read our disclosure.

There’s a particular kind of quiet you only find when you’re a full day’s paddle away from the nearest road. No traffic, no notifications—just you, the canoe, water, wind, and wildlife.

My husband and I recently went on a 7-day canoe trip in Sweden to chase exactly that, and it delivered in ways I truly wasn’t expecting.

Like on our sixth morning, when a moose wandered right through our campground. No fanfare, no warning (they’re insanely quiet!)… just an enormous animal ambling between the tents and stacked canoes, making its way to the forest on the other side. It was unforgettable.

If you asked me to sum up the entire trip in one word, it would be that. Unforgettable. And in two words? Unforgettable and challenging. (But in the best way possible… you’ll understand why later on.)

We booked the whole thing through The Canoe Trip by Travelbase, and what made it enticing wasn’t any one landmark or view. It was the trip’s unique format: no guide paddling alongside us, no fixed schedule, no one to follow.

Just us, a canoe, and a map telling us roughly where the next campsite was.

What followed was equal parts magic and mild chaos—sensational views, swimming in beautiful lakes, a lot of rain, unforgettable sunsets, quiet evenings by a crackling campfire, and an ant infestation (I’m still not over that).

Here’s how it all went down, and how you can best prepare with my tips and travel advice if you’re thinking about doing a canoe trip in Sweden.

The Canoe Trip’s “Semi-Independent” Setup

If “canoe trip in Sweden” makes you picture a guide paddling alongside you, narrating the scenery and pointing out where to camp… let that image go.

This is a semi-independent trip, which in practice means you’re handed a canoe, given a quick rundown, and sent off to figure out the rest yourselves.

That doesn’t mean you’re abandoned in the wilderness, though. There’s a safety net, but it’s just a light one:

• Rangers are around if something genuinely goes wrong, and they give you a short briefing at the start on how to handle the canoe. Reassuring, especially if (like us) you weren’t exactly seasoned paddlers stepping off the dock. (The canoe is very stable, I promise.)

• The Travelbase app does the navigational heavy lifting. It maps out all the DANO shelters (the designated campsites you’ll sleep at), flags where you’ll need to portage across land between waterways, and even offers guided route options if you’d rather follow a suggested path than chart your own.

Beyond that, the days are yours. It’s basically self-guided, so you decide when to break camp, how hard to paddle, where to stop for lunch, and whether that darkening sky means push on or pull over.

That freedom appealed to us greatly. But if that’s not for you, it’s worth acknowledging and accepting that before you book.

There’s no one coming to paddle you to shore when you’re tired. (Much to my disappointment when it felt like my arms where going to fall off.)

If the idea of total self-sufficiency (with just enough backup to feel safe) sounds thrilling, you’ll love this. If you’d rather have your hand held the whole way, it might be a harder sell.

The Canoe Trip’s Logistics and Booking

This is key information to bookmark if you’re still interested in this unique trip. Below, I highlight what comes standard, the extras we added on, and transportation options.

What Comes Standard with The Canoe Trip

The core package covers the essentials that make the trip possible:

✓ The canoe itself
✓ Canoe wheels
✓ Lifejackets
✓ Paddles
✓ A waterproof barrel
✓ Three dry bags (one large, two small)
✓ Trangia cooking set (burner, pots, pan, and fuel)
✓ Sponge and biodegradable soap
✓ Two large bin bags
✓ Waterproof trail map

One thing to note: the barrel and dry bags are meant for essentials only. Not everything you bring will fit, so pack with that in mind (more on that in the packing section).

The Extras We Added On

The base trip is fairly bare-bones by design—which the starting price of €275 reflects—so we purchased a few add-ons to round things out:

• A food pack. Travelbase offers a provisions package so you don’t have to source and haul all your meals from home—think freeze-dried adventure meals, breakfast items, snacks, and the like. We requested the vegetarian pack and brought a lot of our own food to round it out. (Note: They are unable to do a fully vegan pack but the vegetarian one comes with a lot of vegan options!)

• Tenting equipment: Tent, sleeping bags, and sleeping bag liners. Unless you’re transporting in with your own camping kit, this is the add-on I’d consider essential.

• Airport transfers to and from Oslo Gardermoen Airport. We flew from Manchester to Oslo, so this add-on made getting to the starting point dramatically less stressful.

A Note on Getting to Outpost North (The Canoe Trip’s Starting Point)

We chose to fly into Oslo, Norway, rather than somewhere in Sweden.

A private shuttle picks you up at the airport and carries you across the border to base camp—around 2.5 to 3 hours each way—so factor that travel time into your arrival and departure days.

Sorting the transfers through Travelbase meant we didn’t have to piece together our own connections at either end.

If you’re coming from somewhere else, Travelbase can also organize a night bus from Brussels, Utrecht, or Hamburg.

What We Packed for the Swedish Wilderness

Let me save you some stress: you’ll pack a ton, because you’re camping out in the wilderness for most of the trip with no shops to pop into. We arrived with two checked bags and two large backpacks between us—and used nearly all of the space.

Though I will say that others on the trip brought much less than us, like one carry-on backpack per person. We probably overpacked but I’m so so glad we were over-prepared rather than underprepared!

In fact, a couple other people we met on The Canoe Trip had to borrow one of our power banks because they did not bring enough. One of them relied on having access to their phone and a medical app to manage their diabetes.

So always best to overpack and adjust when you get there! (You can pay for storage at base camp if you need to stash away some things before heading out on the canoe.)

Here’s our canoe trip packing list, grouped by category.

Shelter + camping

• 3 extra dry bags of our own (on top of the 3 provided)
• A tent tarp—invaluable when you’re pitching in the rain
• 2 lightweight foldable camping chairs
• 2 pillows (one inflatable, one regular—I’d say find a comfy inflatable one to save space)
• 2 quick-dry towels

Waterproofing + footwear

• Backpack rain covers
• Rain jacket and rain pants (non-negotiable—it rained a lot)
• Hiking boots for land crossings and trails
• Teva sandals—awesome for wet feet when you’re getting the canoe in and out of the water

Clothing (layers over quantity!)

• Down jackets for evenings by the fire (we each brought one)
• Caps/hats for sun
• Swimsuits for lake dips (and bathing, let’s be honest)
• General outdoor camping wear (layers you don’t mind getting grubby)

Power + lighting

• 5 power banks (no outlets in the wilderness—this is not overkill, trust me)
• Headlamp
• 3 lanterns for camp

Cooking + eating

• Cutlery and two big bowls
• GRAYL filtering water bottle (lets you drink straight from the lakes—SO worth it)
• 3 lighters for starting fires

Health + toiletries

• Sunscreen and SPF lip balm (sunburned lips are real and miserable)
• Insect repellent
• Basic first-aid kit (tick tweezers, hydrocortisone cream for rashes, plasters, tape)
• Toilet paper (not included, despite the dry toilets near the DANO shelters)

Electronics

• 2 iPhones
• Sony A7 Mirrorless Camera
• DJI Mini 3 Drone
• Insta360

My Canoe Trip Packing Tip: Modularize with Your Dry Bags

Rather than cramming everything into one bag and digging around for what you need, assign each dry bag a job.

We each kept one “quick access” bag for the things we reached for constantly—rain gear, sunscreen, a snack—so they were always within arm’s reach in the canoe without unpacking the whole boat.

I dedicated another bag entirely to electronics, which was a lifesaver given how much we brought.

Keeping all of it together in one waterproof bag meant I always knew exactly where the expensive, water-averse gear was—and never had a panicked moment wondering if it was sealed up before a land crossing or a sudden downpour.

Some of our other dry bags were large enough that our backpacks fit inside, so we’d stick those in there to make sure they were completely protected from the rain. (Backpack rain covers don’t do much when the water is in the canoe and under the backpacks.)

In the end, this system kept everything dry, organized, and easy to grab. (Shoutout to my pal, Riley, for sharing this tip with me before we went on The Canoe Trip… it was a game-changer.)

Our Day-by-Day Sweden Canoe Trip Recap

Day 1: Briefing, first paddle, and the best sunset of the trip

The adventure kicked off with a one-hour briefing with Ranger Jacob: how to handle the canoe, what to do in an emergency (aka how not to panic if you tip), and a rundown of everything that comes with your boat. Then we were off!

We didn’t get out on the water until after 6 PM, so our first day was a short one—about 5km of paddling to our first campsite, DANO Shelter 73 near the Krokfors canal.

We set up our first campfire, figured out how to pitch the tent (a learning curve, but you get the hang of it fast), and shared the site with a German couple, Felix and Nina (shoutout to them)!

As if to welcome us to Sweden, the evening delivered the single best sunset of the entire trip.

Day 2: Our first land crossing

Our first morning out on the Swedish lakes was somewhat of a struggle! One thing we noticed right away was that we received absolutely no guidance on how to actually pack up the tent.

You’d think it was simple—it’s a tent, right?—but no. The Quechua 2 Seconds Easy 3 Fresh and Black is certainly not simple to put away.

After watching a quick YouTube video, we finally figured it out. If we hadn’t have had cell phone service, I genuinely think it would have taken us hours to pack it up.

Anyways, after breaking down camp, we paddled a short kilometer to the Krokfors canal for our first land crossing—hauling the canoe from Västra Silen lake over to Östra Silen.

From there, another 4–5km brought us to DANO Shelter 86.

This one became one of my favorites. Rather than camp at the shelter itself, we pitched our tent on a nearby hill—and struck absolute gold.

We had two secluded beaches, easy water access, a little campfire spot, and a gorgeous view out over the lake shores. Hard to beat!

Day 3: A lush campsite with ant-y neighbors

Packing and unpacking all your gear every single day is genuinely exhausting, I won’t pretend otherwise, but waking up somewhere new each morning made it more than worth it.

On day three, a 4km paddle took us to DANO Shelter 104, where we reunited with Felix and Nina. This site was lush—thick foliage, lots of green—and that beauty came with a downside: ants.

So. Many. Ants.

At one point you couldn’t even see the bottom of Nina’s bag for the sheer number of them crawling over it. Yuck doesn’t quite cover it. Felix and Nina has to move their tent twice just to get away from the six-legged crawlers.

That said, the site was well-protected, there was a beaver nearby (we spotted lots of gnawed trees but unfortunately didn’t see it—though I had my hopes up!), and the swimming around it was stunning, so we made our peace with the community we’d apparently infiltrated.

(Ultimately, I wouldn’t recommend DANO Shelter 104. Choose another nearby—they are all way better!)

Day 4: Island camping, skinny dipping, and a serious storm

We took this morning slow—coffee and breakfast sandwiches before packing up—then made an easy 2km paddle to a little island we’d spotted the day before: DANO Shelter 87.

What a spot. Ample tent space, tall pines, natural shelter from the wind, breathtaking views, and a private little beach where, yes, I absolutely went skinny dipping.

The quiet and calm didn’t last long, though! We got absolutely dumped on by rain and thunderstorms. This is where the tarp earned its keep.

But honestly, there was something deeply relaxing about being tucked in dry, reading and listening to the rain hammer down. I loved every minute of it.

Day 5: A long paddle to our favorite campsite

One of our longer days, featuring around 10km in canoeing from DANO Shelter 87 back to Krokfors for the land crossing, then up Västra Silen to DANO Shelter 77.

It paid off in droves. This was our favorite campsite of the whole trip.

We had it entirely to ourselves, and the views over the nearby islands and lake shore were nothing short of stellar! Total seclusion, total quiet. Couldn’t recommend this campsite more.

Day 6: The hardest day—16km straight into the wind

Our longest and toughest day by a stretch: around 16km from DANO Shelter 77 to Outpost North, aka base camp. And we were paddling directly into the wind the entire way!

I’ll be honest—this was the day I genuinely thought I might not make it. My arms and back were completely spent. But we broke it up with plenty of rests, kept going, and eventually pulled into base camp.

Waiting for us at base camp was our glamping tent for the next two nights. A little slice of “luxury” to cap off an exhausting, challenging, and deeply rewarding adventure!

In the end, I think we did around 43km of canoeing in total. Pretty sweet!

Day 7: Base camp, board games, and a Swedish moose

Our one full day at base camp was pure decompression. We lounged, explored, and took advantage of everything Outpost North has on offer—and there’s a lot!

From hammocks, slack lines, and archery to tents stocked with books and board games, a giant lawn chess set, kayaks and paddleboards, push bikes, and even hot tubs you can book by the hour, there’s a ton to do here.

We also got our suitcases back and reorganized our gear, which was in a glorious state of chaos after a week of camping.

But the moment that made this day unforgettable?

While playing UNO with Felix and Nina, a moose came strolling right through the campsite!!! We literally looked up from our cards and all went, “what the F*CK is that?!” It was so incredibly cool.

Day 8: Heading home

Our last day on The Canoe Trip was an early one! We had to be at the departure tent by 9 AM sharp for the shuttle back to Oslo—a roughly 3-hour drive to the airport, and then our flight home to the UK, hearts full after a truly unforgettable canoe trip in Sweden.

FAQs About Travelbase’s Swedish Canoe Trip

How much does a canoe trip in Sweden cost?

The base price of Travelbase’s 7-day Canoe Trip starts at €275 per person (the 3-day option is €175).

This is for off-peak dates (like May and September) and only includes the essentials: canoe, canoe wheels, waterproof barrel, large dry bag, Trangia cooking set, cleaning set, route description and map, Canoe Trip Lock Passage Pass, Nature Conservation card, and ranger briefing and support.

There are a variety of optional add-ons that’ll increase that price. For example, here are the cost of some extras per person:

• Food pack: €165
• Camping gear: €70
• Oslo Airport shuttle: €95
• Värmland Express night bus: €145
• Glamping tipi: €50 per night
• Parking at Outpost North: €70 per week

With all the add-ons, our 7-day Sweden canoe trip in June was €585 per person, not including flights. Honestly, that’s a pretty good price for what you get!

Click here to learn more about The Canoe Trip.

Do I need canoeing experience for a Swedish canoe trip?

Shockingly, no. It’s actually quite easy once you get the hang of it. And you get a one-hour briefing covering the basics and emergency procedures, and the routes are on calm lakes rather than rapids.

That said, it’s very physically demanding (see the 16km day), so I’d say general fitness helps more than paddling skill.

Is it safe? What if I tip the canoe?

The briefing covers exactly this; you’re in lifejackets the whole time, and rangers are reachable in a crisis.

If you stick by the shore, the lakes are usually pretty calm. And also, thanks to all the weight in the bottom of the canoe, it’s actually very stable!

Where do you go to the toilet?

Each DANO shelter has a dedicated drop toilet. This means it’s essentially a little shelter with a raised hole that you do your business in—some have toilet seats, others don’t. Make sure to bring your own toilet paper, as it’s not a guarantee.

Also, lots of the toilets and shelters have hornets/wasps nests in them. So if you’re allergic, like Nina was, be very cautious and don’t piss them off. I will say they typically just buzzed around and kept to themselves but… just stay aware.

Where do you store your food?

We chose to store our food in the waterproof barrel, while others put their food in the bin bags you get given by the rangers.

I definitely recommend the waterproof barrel storage method. We even had others tell us that makes so much more sense, as it’s easier to keep things organized and less likely to tear.

If you have enough space in there, you can also store the Trangia cooking set and lighter fluid, which is what we did. It was handy to have all the cooking equipment and food in one place.

What’s the weather like?

The weather is seriously unpredictable in southwest Sweden. One second it was cloudy and rainy, the next I was getting too warm from the sun. On our 7-day canoe trip, it rained a lot. So we packed accordingly.

I recommend packing for a variety of weather conditions, from rain to wind to sun.

Do you camp in the same spot every night?

No, and you actually can’t stay at a DANO Shelter two nights in a row. You are required to move on. This means packing and unpacking daily.

That said, if you’re wild camping, you can stay in one place for multiple nights. Though I recommend trying a new spot every day, as this region of Sweden is incredibly picturesque.

When is the best time to go on a Sweden canoe trip?

Typically May through September. It’s chillier in May and September; warmer in the peak summer months. Though because of the warmth, there’s often more mosquitoes in the peak summer months.

We went on our canoe trip in June and there were barely any mosquitoes. It was definitely on the colder side, when very chilly evenings, but I loved it.

Who is The Canoe Trip best for?

Anyone comfortable with self-sufficiency and a bit of discomfort in exchange for real wilderness and solitude. Less ideal for those wanting a guided, hand-held experience.

I’d highly recommend you have some camping experience before embarking on The Canoe Trip. My husband and I have camped a lot all across the UK and North America, and that experience definitely lended to better preparation and a more enjoyable adventure.

Is The Canoe Trip really worth it?

Yes… but with an honest caveat.

Sweden is one of the last places in Europe where you can truly immerse yourself in remote wilderness, and when you combine that with the wild camping, the wildlife, the views, the sunsets, and everything else, you get an experience that’s genuinely hard to find anywhere else.

That said, I’ll be straight with you: I found it really challenging.

Canoeing every single day pushed me to my limits. But I came away with a newfound sense of what I’m actually capable of—and that’s something I didn’t expect to take home with me.

So is it worth it? I’d say so. (Especially for the price you pay.)

But this trip isn’t for everyone, and that’s worth being honest with yourself about before you book. If you’re after remote, self-propelled adventure and you don’t mind being pushed (physically and mentally), you’ll likely treasure it.

If you’d rather a relaxing, low-effort getaway, this probably isn’t your trip. And that’s okay.

Book The Canoe Trip with Travelbase

If you’ve read my entire canoe trip guide and you’re like “HELL YEAH, this sounds like my kinda trip!” Book The Canoe Trip now with Travelbase and get ready for an unforgettable adventure! Again, I think the best time to book is June or September but go whenever you have time.

I hope my Swedish canoe trip guide helps you plan the ultimate adventure! If you have any questions, stick ’em in the comment section below and I’ll do my best to answer.

Sophie xx

---

Not sure what to check out next? Readers love these posts:

---

Love this post on a canoe trip in Sweden? Pin it!

As mentioned above, this post contains affiliate links. Which means if you make a purchase through the links, this site receives a small commission at no extra cost to you. Read our full disclosure here.

And many thanks to Travelbase for hosting me on The Canoe Trip. As always, all opinions are my own and I wouldn’t be sharing this very lengthy and thoughtful guide if I didn’t enjoy it!