Jämtland Härjedalen

Hiking, biking and skiing are the primary reasons for most visitors to go to Jämtland Härjedalen. There are sustainable hiking trails within all destinations of the region. Trails where you walk on wooden planks so as not to disturb sensitive wetland areas. For example, Lofsdalen, Funäsfjällen, Östersund, and Åre have designated biking trails built to last even if there is rain.
For the skiers, you’ll find more cross-country tracks than you’ll have time for during your visit, and alpine skiing is becoming more and more sustainable due to the use of electric vehicles and sustainable fuels while preparing the slopes and sustainable energy sources to run the ski lifts.

A vast area with easy access to the high mountains above tree line thanks to some strategic public roads and the railway. There is also mile after mile with no roads at all. The people of Western Jämtland know how to make do with the resources they have, and they don’t care much for luxury. Tourism in the area started long ago with people wanting to explore the mountains, breathe fresh air and go skiing and hiking. Storlien is the largest village (70 inhabitants) with a long history of mountain tourism close to the Norwegian border. Even the Swedish king comes here to enjoy simple mountain life with skiing and hiking staying in his small mountain cabin. The Swedish Tourism Association has a mountain station in the area called Storulvån, which is an excellent starting point for adventures in the area. In the small village of Handöl, you will find a beautiful waterfall, a coffee shop with Swedish fika (a coffee and a small snack, usually shared with friends while you take a short break from the day in the afternoon) and a museum called Hanriis hus.

Sweden’s scenic ‘Vildmarksvägen’ or Wilderness Road, is a 500-kilometre circular route running from Strömsund in northern Jämtland via Gäddede to Vilhelmina in southern Lapland. The most iconic part of the drive crosses Stekenjokk Plateau, a protected Sámi heritage landscape where reindeer graze and rare bird species thrive. Stekenjokk has the country’s highest paved road, reaching 867 metres above sea level at its highest point. This section of the road is only open from 6 June to 15 October each year, owing to the vast amounts of snow that fall in winter. All visitors are guaranteed to see wildlife on this car route that resembles doing a mountain hike on four wheels as the road takes you to some wild landscapes. But do get out of the car to explore the many waterfalls like Hällingsåfallet, a 40-meter-high fall with an 800 meters canyon, go hiking and fishing, ride or join a guided tour with huskies, explore the Coral cave, the Bjurälven Nature Reserve, the Ankarede Sámi Church Village and the wildlife of the region.

Norråker is one of the small villages in the area, situated by Lake Tåsjön and close to the majestic Midsummer Mountain (742 M. A. S. L.). In Norråker you can go ice fishing, mushing, riding, paddling, and boating and there is a well-stocked grocery store full of local delicacies.

Base Camp Norråker and Norråkers Handel are not sustainable companies because they must, but because they love to be. The owners Ida and Johannes Collin live close to nature and want to preserve it. Therefore, they teach guests about nature in the north of Sweden, and they are naturally using eco-friendly products and care about local society. They want to leave the world a little better.

Nordic Husky Farm is set remotely on the banks of the river Vattudalen. The owners, originally from the Czech Republic, have more than 30 years of experience mushing and working with Siberian Huskies.

Sustainability is also about getting to know the local culture and a deeper understanding of the community you are visiting. The best introduction to the history of Jämtland Härjedalen is a visit to Jamtli, the open-air and living history museum of the region. The Jamtli is actually three museums in one, the indoor part with exhibitions allowing you to discover yourself what is in drawers and passageways, the outdoor part with a collection of historical buildings from the 1700s to the 1970s with actors in the summer meeting visitors as if it was the old days. The third museum is Jamtli National Art Museum showing collections from the Swedish National Art Museum.

Guests are invited to join “a time travelling”, walking tour with a guide between the different farms at Jamtli from different centuries. Social differences are highlighted to make visitors reflect on what it was like to live then compared to now. A visit to Jamtli helps you to understand the local culture and nature. Studying the diversity of human experience helps us appreciate cultures, ideas, and traditions that are not our own – and recognise them as meaningful products of specific times and places.

Spend some time at the ‘Härjedalens fjällmuseum’, or the Härjedalen Mountain Museum in Funäsdalen. This museum is about the people who endured the sometimes-hard mountain life together; the Sámi people, the mountain farmers, and the miners. They had to help each other to survive. The museum is full of stories and wonderful artful everyday objects from the area. The architecture of the museum built in 1999, is well thought through by local architect, Jörgen Grönvik, with sustainable building materials from close to nature. The museum is ahead when it comes to lifting the social and economic sustainability of the area. Exhibitions here don’t shy away from uncomfortable topics and stories. The purpose is to raise questions and lift what otherwise tends to be hidden away.

‘Glösa hällristningar’, the petroglyphs (rock carvings) of Glösa with the artful exhibits around them gives direct insight into the Stone Age life of Jämtland Härjedalen. See the actual rock carvings depicting around 40 moose, the recreated Stone Age hut, and the exhibition on how they transported themselves and their beliefs. There are recreated Stone Age outfits to try on and together with the guide you can take part in making a fish dish a la Stone Age in a pit together with hot rocks. Glösa is run non-profit by local people who enjoy spreading local history.

At the ‘Myskoxcenter’, or Musk Ox Centre, you can encounter muskoxen in their natural habitat together with experienced guides. When you visit the enclosure, you are not only embarking on an extraordinary nature experience, but also supporting the enclosure’s crucial work in research, breeding, and knowledge dissemination. The Muskox centre is in Tännäs, a part of Destination Funäsfjällen, a mountain area in the southwest of Jämtland Härjedalen.

The largest waterfall of Jämtland Härjedalen is Tännforsen, sending volumes of water creating a 60-metre wide rushing wall down the Indalsälven river towards the Baltic Sea. Ristafallet is another great fall as well as the Handölsforsen in Western Jämtland and Fettjeåfallet in Destination Vemdalen. There are more waterfalls than you will have time for during a visit to Jämtland Härjedalen. Ask the locals or your nearest Tourist Information about which ones are close to your destination.

Döda fallet means the dead waterfall and it occurred because of the work of one man trying to establish safe passage for floating timber. He dug a chute so the timber would be able to pass and not get stuck in the rocky waterfall. Unfortunately, he emptied the whole lake above the fall as the water ran down the chute instead of taking the way down the fall.
Today there are wooden walkways around the bottom of the fall to let you see potholes created by the water and other formations. There is also a visitor centre, a restaurant, and a 360°-turning platform used for outdoor performances with the Döda fallet as a backdrop. The National Geopark Indalsälven was officially opened in 2023 and consists of a long list of geological sights in the area. The geopark aims to create sustainable growth by coordinating these sights, supporting research and education, and spreading knowledge about geology to the public.

Visit the Wikner Family in the village of Persåsen, where sustainability, art, handicraft, and recreation are paramount, and follow the rhythm of the seasons in nature’s eternal cycle.

The wood shop and the entire visitor’s centre have acquired character and atmosphere from the surrounding area, the beautiful landscape around Lake Storsjön – Storsjöbygden.

Stay in their special wood hotel rooms – one with only birch-wood furniture, one with aspen, one with fir etc, enjoy the exhibitions and take part in a workshop creating your own cutting board.

Brasserie Kerstin in Funäsfjällen
At Kerstin, there is pride in being able to offer the best possible food from local producers with a nose-to-tail philosophy. You will see everything from cloudberries and lingonberries to beef, char, reindeer, or moose on the evening menu. Everything is cooked with love and with global inspiration. At Brasserie Kerstin you can also enjoy a hearty sandwich and homemade soup or Swedish fika including waffles.

Republiken Restaurant in Östersund
A stone’s throw from the big square in Östersund, Republiken restaurant focuses on seasonal local or regional, ingredients and high-quality products from the rest of Sweden. Fish and shellfish are caught from the nearby lakes or seas outside Norway. They pick most of their herbs, mushrooms and berries themselves and whatever needs to be imported they select carefully. The restaurant takes extra care of gluten and lactose sensitivities and is especially proud of its desserts and locally produced beverages.

Kretsloppshuset Restaurant and shop outside Åre
The idea for Kretsloppshuset (the house of the natural cycle) was born 25 years ago with the intention of inspiring guests to enjoy a more sustainable lifestyle, focusing solely on the simple changes in our day-to-day lives.
Everything served in the restaurant and cafe is prepared from scratch using only the finest organic produce with a particular focus on local suppliers and growers. As the whole restaurant area is in the glasshouse part of Kretsloppshuset, its evergreen and beautiful interior makes for an atmosphere that is a delight for all senses.

Restaurant Imilla in Åre
At Imilla (meaning ‘in-between’ in the local dialect) there is a special focus on local vegetables, butter, meat, and fish. The chefs cook what they like to eat themselves, honest food with no fuss and if possible, from local producers. In the evenings all booked guests are served their popular tasting menu with six different dishes. Because they work with a set menu for booked guests only, they have zero waste.

Storhogna Högfällshotel (Mountain Hotel) Restaurant in Vemdalen
Storhogna Högfjällshotell & Spa is a hotel in the mountains with XC-skiing and alpine skiing as well as hiking on the doorstep. Book your locally produced meals, spa and mountain adventures that take pampering to a whole new level. Dining in the Winter Garden is like stepping into another universe as the wind rages outside.

Lofsdalens fjällhotel (Mountain Hotel) and restaurant in Lofsdalen
In Lofsdalens Mountain Hotel there are a lot of vegetarian dishes and Alp-inspired Swedish foods. High quality without being pretentious, so to speak. Lots of heart, high ambition and of course cooked from scratch with ingredients from local and selected producers.