Visingsö’s Oak Forest

Near the harbour on Visingsö you will find the famous oak forest, a unique forest that is very pleasant to walk or cycle through. During the summer, there are also special horse and wagon rides, running all day long, that you can take through the forest.

Hagavägen runs through Visingsö’s oak forest, and as you go along it, you can feel how the forest envelops you and creates a wonderful sense of calm. The dirt road is flat and you can cycle or walk to Persgården, Bengtsgården or Näs.

During the summer, there are regular trips with a ‘remmalag’, a horse-drawn wagon, to Persgården. Hagavägen, which takes you through the oak forest, was also named Sweden's most beautiful dirt road in 2019.

History of the unique forest area on Visingsö

The forest has unusually straight and tall oak trees that puts it in a class of its own in Sweden, and it has an exciting history to say the least. Oak timber is perfect for shipbuilding, and this was also one of the reasons why the government had the oaks planted on Visingsö. The tree planting would ensure a supply of good timber for the Swedish navy and thus also play a major role in Swedish history.

After Swedish Pomerania and its extensive oak forests were lost in the floodwaters after the Napoleonic Wars, the Swedish crown had a several hundred-hectare oak plantation established on Visingsö in the 1830s. By the mid-19th century, some 300,000 oak trees had been planted, many of which still exist today. The area increased to around 360 hectares.

In 1975, Sweden’s Chief of Navy was informed that the first oaks were ready. As the navy had stopped building warships from oak several years previously, they turned down the offer of timber. Thanks to this, the forest still stands today with its unique appearance.

The trees that are felled are now used for flooring, whisky barrels, interior fittings and many other purposes where a hard and compact material is needed.

How to get here

Travel by car or bus via the E4 motorway to Gränna and its harbour, then take the ferry across to Visingsö. The bus stop in Gränna is called Gränna Hamn.