Discover Mjölby: Trails, Water and Culture

Mjölby combines trails along the Svartån with an Ice Age-shaped landscape, swimming opportunities and local history. When choosing a hotel in Mjölby, you can plan your stay around whether you want to focus on walks, time by the water or cultural experiences. The different themes give the town more than one possible focal point.

Trails along the Svartån and near Skogssjön

Hälsans stig is a 4.5-kilometre walking trail, with each kilometre marked. The route follows the banks of the Svartån and passes through parks in the town centre as well as natural areas close to town with large oak trees. This route brings together urban green spaces and oak-dotted natural landscapes.

Istidsspåret offers a different trail length: the blue-marked route is three kilometres long and lies in the Skogssjön Nature Reserve. Information boards cover Ice Age landforms as well as the reserve’s flora and fauna. In a direct comparison of lengths, Istidsspåret is 1.5 kilometres shorter than Hälsans stig; it also differs in its location in the nature reserve and its themed information boards.

An Ice Age landscape

The Skogssjöområdet Nature Reserve is very hilly. Its landscape was shaped by the melting of the inland ice 10,000 to 12,000 years ago; Skogssjön lies in a depression. West of the lake is a well-defined glacial ridge. These landforms give the information boards along Istidsspåret a direct connection to the landscape: the trail covers not only the general history of the ice, but also the surrounding terrain it shaped and life in the reserve.

The Svartån also shapes Mjölby’s character: the river runs through the town, linking natural landscapes with the urban environment. Along its banks, Hälsans stig passes through parks and natural areas. Those interested in the landscape can therefore explore both a riverside route and the hilly, Ice Age-shaped surroundings near Skogssjön.

Water activities at Lundbybadet

At Lundbybadet, you can rent canoes and take a trip on the Svartån. As booking details may change, check them before planning a canoe trip. Lundbybadet also offers water aerobics classes in a 25-metre pool, including interval, pulse and Tabata sessions. If a particular class format is important to your stay, plan around the current class schedule.

Lundbybadet’s outdoor pool complex includes a 50-metre swimming pool with eight lanes and a five-metre diving tower. Check the outdoor pool’s opening dates in advance if you are planning a visit. This makes it easier to fit the different water activities into your travel plans: canoeing on the river, classes in the 25-metre pool and the outdoor pool with its own dimensions and diving tower.

Local history, the church and art

Mjölby Hembygdsgård is located on a small island in the Svartån in central Mjölby. Its buildings and collections present local history from the 18th century to the present day. An inlay collection connects to Mjölby’s industrial history. The site thus combines the history of the community with a specific aspect of local industry.

Mjölby kyrka was originally built in the early Middle Ages; parts of its medieval tower have been preserved. The stained-glass windows add a much more recent touch: they were created in 1968 based on designs by Charles Crodel and made by the Franz Mayer company. The church brings together several distinct periods: its early construction, surviving parts of the medieval tower and the 20th-century window designs.

Public art adds its own motifs to the townscape. A mural created by Judith de Leeuw in 2020 is on the Kvarnen building near Mjölby’s main railway station. Potatisen at Viringerondellen, meanwhile, depicts a King Edward potato. The two works explore different themes: a mural on the one hand, and a depiction connected to a specific potato variety on the other.

Getting there and finding your way

Mjölby is easy to reach by rail and thanks to its proximity to the E4. For hikers, the Lundbyvallen–Skogssjön section of the Östgötaleden also provides a 1.4-kilometre route through Mjölby to Mjölby Resecentrum via Burensköldsvägen. The named section and its destination at the travel centre provide specific wayfinding if you include the hiking route in your travel plans.

Whether you choose Mjölby mainly for its trails, riverside landscapes, water activities or local history, the themes described offer different ways to shape your stay. Looking for a hotel in Mjölby can go hand in hand with deciding which side of the town you would like to discover.

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Go to the main travel overview: Mjölby.