ESCToday in collaboration with the City of Stockholm will be bringing you a series of articles leading up to the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest in order to showcase and introduce the 2016 Eurovision host city Stockholm to our readers. Today we will have a look at one of the hottest places in the city, none other than the ABBA Museum!

My, my at Waterloo, Napoleon did surrender… Remember? Yes we are talking about ABBA, the internationally acclaimed Swedish group which shot to fame after winning the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton. ABBA went places ever since they won our beloved contest and remain until today one of the biggest Swedish exports!

Stockholm has a special museum dedicated to our evergreen Swedish quartet ABBA. Every true Eurovision fan should visit the ABBA Museum when in Stockholm! It is one of the most popular attractions in the city!

Walk in, dance out! is the main tagline of the ABBA Museum, which opened its doors in 2013. The main aim of the museum is to showcase the true story of 4 talented people who met in the early 70’s and wrote Swedish music history, leaving a great legacy behind them.

ABBA the Museum- video courtesy of the ABBA Museum

The first thing I did when I landed in Stockholm was to take a cab from Arlanda to the ABBA Museum. My, my was it an experience!  I was totally spellbound after visiting this piece of marvel. This is one thing you should not miss when you to come to Stockholm for Eurovision, it will be one of the hotposts for Eurovision fans next May, as the ABBA Museum will be hosting a special Eurovision exhibition- Good Evening Europe!

The ABBA Museum is located on Djurgården Island just a hop from the city centre and close to many other popular museums and attractions in Stockholm.

At the ABBA Museum you can walk through ABBA’s musical journey through the years and interact with the quartet. You can experience what it’s like being the 5th member of ABBA, try out their legendary clothes and sing in the Polar Studio. You can dance and sing with ABBA ,with the aid of modern technology on a state of the art Hologram stage.

The best news is that you can save all your material and access it online via your personal ID number on your ticket! Don’t forget to download your videos and audios and share them with your friends on Facebeook, etc.

At the ABBA Museum you should not miss the following features:  The Polar Studio, Benny’s Piano, Audio Guide, Folkpark, Dance Floor, the Helicopter, the cinema etc.

You will get the chance to admire the life size figures of the 4 ABBA members in the museum, boy did they look real! A great collection of ABBA’s stage clothes, gold records, personal artefacts, lyrics, stories musicals, and memorablia are on display in the museum.

If you are a true ABBA fan ,the museum will be a feast for your eyes, believe me! It has become one of the most visited and popular attractions in town. I came to the ABBA Museum during my research trip and I wanna go back again when I come to Stockholm for Eurovision!

The Swedish Music Hall of Fame

Taking into account that Sweden has become one of the world’s biggest music exporters and boasts of having one the finest music industry’s in the world, a visit to the Swedish Music Hall of Fame should not be missed. More than 400 Swedish artists are presented here. You will travel through time from the early 1920’s all the way to the current era.

You will be able to learn more about Sweden’s popular music history and its many celebrated artists: ABBA, Roxette, Avicci, First Aid Kit, Swedish House Mafia, Robyn, The Cardigans, Max Martin, Carola,The Sounds etc.

The Swedish Music Hall of Fame has become a popular spot for gigs and events, attracting its visitors to get inspired, play, listen and enjoy the music. It showcases the rich Swedish musical heritage throughout the last century.

The ABBA Cafe

The ABBA Cafe is a quaint and cosy coffe shop where you can enjoy a good cuppa of coffee and Swedish fika! You can relax, chill and have a drink here after visiting the museum.

The Pop House Hotel and Restaurant

The Pop House Hotel consists of a total of 49 designed rooms. Some of the rooms have a music theme and decor. The hotel is located in the same buiding as the ABBA Museum. The hotel’s Pop House Restaurant is ideal for dining and wining offering some amazing rustic meals. You will be mesmerised by the restaurant’s theme and decor.

How to buy tickets?

Tickets to the ABBA Museum can be booked/ purchased online here. I would advice you to pre-book your ticket in order to save your pennies. If you buy your ticket at the museum it will cost you an extra 20 SEK.  Remember that bills and coins are not accepted in the museum so better have a credit at hand if you decide to buy a ticket on the counter. The admission fee includes entrance to both the ABBA Museum and the Swedish Music Hall of Fame.

• Adult ticket-  195 SEK
• Children’s ticket- 65 SEK

 

Don’t forget to read our series of Discover Stockholm articles leading up to the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest including The first impression of Stockhom- the host city!

 For more information on Stockholm you can visit visitstockholm.com

You can follow our forthcoming series of Discover Stockholm articles with photographs and videos on ESCToday.com and on our official Esctoday Instagram and ESCToday Facebook pages.