Malmö in One Day: 9 Best Things to See
Malmö is a very popular destination that can easily be explored in just one day. In this guide, we share 9 must see places you should not miss during your visit to this fascinating city in southern Sweden.
By the way, here is a little bit of context that will be useful for your trip. Although Malmö is part of Sweden today, historically it belonged to Denmark from its foundation in the 13th century and, together with Copenhagen, was one of the most important cities in Danish territory. This explains many of the architectural similarities between the two cities. It was not until the 17th century that Sweden took control of Malmö.
For us, Malmö was a day trip during our visit to Copenhagen, Denmark.
1. Turning Torso
Turning Torso is without a doubt the most iconic building in Malmö. Although it is slightly outside the city center, you should not leave it out of your one day itinerary in Malmö. The skyscraper has a façade that twists 90 degrees and is the tallest building in Scandinavia. Its innovative design was created by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and is considered a landmark of modern engineering.
We leave you the location of the building here, as it is a little outside the historic center. That said, you will have no trouble spotting it on the skyline thanks to its height.
2. Lilla Torg
Lilla Torg is the best known square in Malmö. It was once the city’s market square and today is home to several restaurants and cafés. Surrounded by traditional houses, it is a lovely place to walk around, stop for a coffee on one of the terraces and enjoy the atmosphere.
3. Stortorget: Malmö’s Town Hall Square
Stortorget is the square where Malmö Town Hall is located. It is very close to the central station, so it will probably be one of the first places you see in the city if you are arriving from Copenhagen, Denmark.
It is the largest square in Malmö and also one of the oldest, as construction began in 1538. In the center, you can see a statue of King Charles X of Sweden, who conquered Malmö from the Kingdom of Denmark in the 17th century. The other main attraction is the Town Hall building, which you can see in the photo below. This impressive building occupies one entire side of the square. Unfortunately, its interior is only open to the public during events and on special occasions.
4. St. Peter’s Church (St. Petri Kyrka)
Another place you should not miss when visiting Malmö in one day is St. Peter’s Church, known in Swedish as St. Petri Kyrka. It is the oldest church in Malmö and a beautiful example of Gothic architecture. Like many other churches and cathedrals across Scandinavia, it was built using clay bricks, giving its façade its characteristic reddish orange color. We recommend taking a look inside as admission is free.
5. Kungsparken and Slottsparken
Kungsparken and Slottsparken translate as the King’s Park and the Castle Park. We include them together because they are right next to each other, separated only by a canal. Even if you are spending just one day in Malmö, we recommend walking through both parks and perhaps stopping at one of the unusual greenhouse cafés in the center of Slottsparken.
6. Malmöhus Slott: Malmö Castle
This Renaissance castle is the oldest of its kind in Scandinavia. There are several museums inside, but since we were visiting Malmö in just one day, we decided not to go in. One of the nicest ways to reach the castle is by taking a peaceful walk through Kungsparken and Slottsparken, which we mentioned in the previous section.
The castle is surrounded by a moat and there is a parking area directly opposite with fairly large spaces, where we saw several motorhomes parked. So, if you are traveling in a motorhome or camper van, this could be a convenient place to park before exploring the city on foot.
7. Malmö Saluhall Market
If you are only spending one day in Malmö, Malmö Saluhall might be one of the best places to stop for lunch. It is a small food market with several stalls serving both traditional Swedish food and international dishes.
We decided to try the famous Swedish meatballs that we had enjoyed so much during our visit to Stockholm. They are called Köttbullar and are usually made with a mixture of beef and pork. They are typically served with mashed potatoes, gravy and lingonberry jam. At the market, you can also find other Swedish specialties such as shrimp sandwiches, known as Räkmacka, and smoked salmon.
You will also find Smørrebrød, the traditional Danish open faced sandwich, although for us the ones we tried in Copenhagen looked better.
If none of these options appeal to you, or if you are vegetarian, don’t worry. There are plenty of other dishes to choose from.
You can find the location of Malmö Saluhall here.
8. Malmö Canal
To complete your visit to Malmö, we recommend taking a walk along the city’s main canal. We started our walk back from Turning Torso towards the lighthouse at the entrance to the canal. The walk is short but very pleasant and gives you a chance to see Malmö’s more maritime side.
9. Ribersborgsstranden Beach
If you are trying to see Malmö in one day, you may not have enough time to make the detour to this beach, which was our case. We were visiting from Copenhagen and eventually decided to leave this beautiful Nordic beach out of our itinerary. If you have enough time during your trip, we think it is worth visiting. Ideally, you could head there after seeing Turning Torso, with a walk of around 30 minutes to reach the beach area.
How many days do you need in Malmö?
For us, the answer is simple: one day is enough to explore Malmö and get a good impression of what everyday life in the city feels like. After hearing how popular Malmö was, we had expected a little more from the city. We would recommend spending just one day here, unless you are planning to visit some of the museums or take additional excursions.
That said, being able to visit such a well known city in a single day made it perfect for us as a day trip from Copenhagen during our visit to the Danish capital.
That brings us to the end of our travel guide to Malmö. We hope it helps you plan your own visit to this Swedish city.
See you on the road!
