Photo: Thomas Carlsson, Vånö Skärgårdsliv AB.
About Nämdö Hembygdsförening
We haven’t translated the whole website into English or other languages because GoogleTranslate is capable of doing that for you. Instead, we’ve written this brief introduction into the Nämdö skärgård (archipelago).
This website is created for the members of Nämdö Hembygdsförening (community association), who live or stay in the group of islands collectively known as the Nämdö Archipelago. It’s made up of several hundred islands, skerries and rocks, and reaches out into the Baltic Ocean. To the north and south are other islands of the extensive Stockholm Archipelago; to the west lies the open Nämdöfjärden (Nämdö fjord) across to the mainland, and to the east lies the empty and barren Östersjön (Baltic Ocean or ‘Eastern Sea’).
Of the several hundred islands there are roughly thirty that are inhabited all year around by a small, and diminishing, population of around 100 people. Nämdö is by the far the biggest island but is still home to only 35 people. There’s a map to help you get around. Some people even live far out on some of the most isolated islands, often alone. Check out our map of the islands.
There are families living here whose forefathers first moved here five, six or even seven generations ago. Equally, there is an active group of recent retirees who move out here and a small band of tradespeople and wardens who keep it all shipshape. Many of the outlying islands are bird sanctuaries and nature reserves or are privately owned by wealthy families or by businesses and institutions. Skärgårdstiftelsen is the foundation that protects and preserves those islands in the Stockholm archipelago that are not privately owned, including 40 nature reserves.
The small resident population on Nämdö and the surrounding islands swells from Easter to October when Stockholmers visit their holiday homes and sailors moor up out on their favourite skerry. Many of the plots remain in the same family that purchased the original rights in the post-war period. The association’s members are both residents and holiday-home owners, and everyone is invited to become a member and an active participant in this small but thriving community.
What we do
We are a non-profit association with about four hundred members. As a group, we work to:
protect the environment and cultural heritage
maintain and manage the hembygdsgård (a kind of ‘village hall’)
promote the Nämdö archipelago’s interests across all issues and audiences
In addition, we organise many popular community-based events, at all times of year. Examples include:
monthly Pub Evenings where volunteers take it in turns to cater a three-course dinner for the rest of the community
the annual 'Nämdö Day', now in its thirtieth year, is a one day festival for all the family
summer activities from courses and races to walks and talks
One additional service the association can offer is to hire out hembygdsgården (the village hall) for meetings, courses, weddings and parties. The function room takes up to eighty people and the commercial kitchen caters perfectly for these large numbers. There’s a shower, an outdoor area and three very basic cabins, but no comfortable accommodation.
All the official documentation about the association is available to read, but only in Swedish.
Tourist information
We are a local association and this website is for our members, so you won’t find information for tourists on these pages. Ours is a very small world so our members mostly know all about Nämdö and the area.
There are many websites where tourists, visitors and newcomers to Nämdö can find out all about the area. Here are some good places to start:
Information about Archipelago foundation on and around Nämdö
Information about visiting and preserving nature
On visitvarmdo.com you will find more information about Nämdö
Eniro provides maps and sea charts around the Nämdö skärgård
On Lars Fredrik Larssons website there is information and the history of the islands in Nämdö skärgård
Facebook group with pictures of Nämdö skärgård from now and in the past
Transport and services
You don’t need your own boat to explore. Nämdö and seven other islands are on Waxholmbolaget’s daily ferry route 17, and there are also regular services using Stavsnas’s taxiboat timetable service to nine stops not on route 17. In the summer Waxholm’s North South line stops at Östanvik, Solvik and Rögrund. There are a number of private taxis and tours for hire, as well as transport boats for materials and contractors.
It’s a small community but quite spread out, so we’ve created a helpful way of finding out everything you might want to know if you live here or visit regularly. Check out Service och Information for useful links to everything from Nämdö’s farm shop opening hours to where to find the ferry timetables. Please note that none of these services are provided by or outsourced by Nämdö Hembygdsförening.
Becoming a member
Becoming a member of the association is easy, and cheap. The annual fee is just 150kr (€14, £12, $16) per person and is payable in January each year. It’s not much to give to keep the community thriving.
Paying online is easiest. If you have a Swedish bank account pay to Plusgiro 495 89 99 7. Please set up an annual standing order / recurring payment to reduce administration for us. If you don’t have a Swedish bank account, please email es.fb1598907521hodma1598907521n@ofn1598907521i1598907521 and we’ll give you details for international banking. Please support us. It means you will always have a voice in how the Nämdö archipelago is both preserved and developed.