--- description: Find out why Skelleftea, Sweden is on TIME's list of the world's greatest places of 2022. title: Skelleftea, Sweden: World's Greatest Places 2022 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd772075c2a642578/698a3386db2987b3c9267fcb/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SkellefteaSweden.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Jul 12, 2022 # Skelleftea, Sweden Nordic warmth by Brad Japhe  "The Wood Hotel in Skelleftea, Sweden. " "The Wood Hotel in Skelleftea, Sweden. "Jonas Westling Exciting new offerings have pushed this quaint Swedish city into must-see territory. Though it lies just 125 miles south of the [Arctic Circle](https://time.com/6174966/north-south-pole-melting-climate-change/ "undefined"), Skelleftea emanates un-deniable warmth. A parade of timbered buildings line the main promenade, punctuated by the newly opened [Wood Hotel](https://elite.se/sv/hotell/skelleftea/thewoodhotelbyelite/ "undefined")—one of the largest structures in the world built entirely of its eponymous material. At the restaurant [Bryggargatan](https://www.bryggargatan.se/ "undefined"), Michelin-caliber Nordic cuisine is plated without pretension. Sometimes the warmth is literal: downtown now boasts heated sidewalks during the frigid Scandinavian winter. A steadfast commitment to sustainability encompasses it all, from bio-gas-powered mass transit to the electric-battery factory—among Europe’s largest—operating just outside town. Later this year, the city will introduce electric snowmobiles so tourists can explore the powdery expanse of Lapland emission-free. It’s a magnet for modern urbanites, those who want to live in tune with nature rather than in opposition to it. In recent years, [creative types](https://time.com/6159793/nordic-noir-tv-books/ "undefined") have emigrated from larger cities, peppering Skelleftea storefronts with art galleries and street food, warming the crisp Lapland air with an unexpectedly cosmopolitan vibe for a town of less than 74,000 year-round residents. Skelleftea, Sweden: World's Greatest Places 2022 ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/"},"headline":"Skelleftea, Sweden","datePublished":"2022-07-12T11:06:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:04:40.851Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/","keywords":["franchise","Magazine","World's Greatest Places"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd772075c2a642578/698a3386db2987b3c9267fcb/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SkellefteaSweden.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd772075c2a642578/698a3386db2987b3c9267fcb/Worlds-Greatest-Places-2022-SkellefteaSweden.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/","name":"Skelleftea, Sweden"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The World's Greatest Places of 2022","description":"50 extraordinary destinations to explore","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/by8VqGWH/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2022-07-11T22:04:53.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/by8VqGWH.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/","duration":"PT1M47S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2022/6194523/skelleftea-sweden/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```