When not covered in snow the northern resort of Åre is the premier, but not only, alpine mountain biking destination in Sweden. Designed to accommodate riders of varying skill levels the resorts offer some brilliant mountain bike trails and bike hire.
Choose your poison – downhill, freeride, cross country, or just some relaxing easy to navigate trails. The ski fields of Sweden offer a range of trail options from extreme downhills to flowing gentle single-tracks, and getting to the start of trails is never a problem as chair lifts and gondolas to ease the journey.
Heading south there are more options to consider. Järvsö offers a huge variety of trails from incredible smooth with flowing routes with few obstacles, to seat of your pants downhill mountain biking. Even on arrival to Stockholm you’ll be spoilt with a great little bike park to unwind from that long plane ride and get the legs stretched and blood pumping. Hammarby Backen is the perfect way to make sure you’re all set to go before heading North toward the bigger parks like Järvsö, Gesunda or Åre.
A northern country the winter days are short and cold, not very appealing at all for riding in the mountains but rug up, head south and marvel at the beauty of the frozen lakes and rivers taking in the winter wonderland.
In the north of Sweden lies the Land of the Midnight Sun with continuous daylight during the height of the summer – an opportunity to ride all night without your lights! In the South there is never continuous daylight, but up to 19 hours a day in mid summer means plenty of riding time.
April through October is best for cycling in Sweden and if you’re lucky enough to be there in June you may want to take part in Vätternrundan the world’s biggest cycling event – attracting over 20,000 riders. Although a road event it is a cycling spectacle even the most hard core mountain biker might consider entering.
