Local Area
Activities & Attractions in Bodafors and Småland Highlands
Highly recommended visitor destination in Bodafors, focussing on crafts, design and creativity. Exhibitions, workshops and events incl. Lehmann’s well-preserved instarsia workshop used by students and professionals in the field of woodcraft.
Kulturgatan also has an excellent cafe and bakery with soups, sandwiches and cakes for Swedish fika.
Smedjan konstsmed blacksmith Lars-Göran Larsson, Bodafors.
Creative forgery in traditional smithy using traditional techniques.
Located on the premises of Emåns Ekomuseum. Open most Mondays and Fridays.
Dock och Leksaksmuseum Dolls and Toys museum, Bodafors.
Large collection of dolls, toys and some fashion from 1860 – 1990. See and remember in nostalgia.
Barbie, StarWars, Steiff, porcelain dolls, teddy bears, wooden toys.
Nässjö Järnvägsmuseum, railway museum, Nässjö.
Railway history museum and exhibition.
Learn how a steam locomotive works, take a look at the tools of the trade and view unique collection of uniform badges, signals and locomotive signs.
Railway yard with locomotives and wagons from the entire 20th century.
The museum is beautifully situated in a green oasis in the centre of Nässjö.
Highly recommended regular excursions on traditional trains for general public available several times per year.
Kulturgatan also has an excellent cafe and bakery with soups, sandwiches and cakes for Swedish fika.
Visit a bygone era in turn-of- the century stately home Aschanska Gården, preserved with all original interiors.
City walks of Eksjö historical town.
Exhibitions at Eksjö Museum.
Ohsabanan museum railway, Ohs.
Regardless of age or if you like trains, a trip on the Ohsabanan is a fantastic excursion for the whole family.
The Ohsabanan meanders through the Småland primeval forest past small lakes and meadows. The journey through the scenic landscape is a unique experience that can only be had from the train.
The period-typical trains are pulled by steam locomotives from the beginning of the 20th century. The sound when the locomotive struggles up Sweden’s steepest slopes on a railway cannot be described in words, it must be experienced!
In addition to the train journey, you can play on the playgrounds, have a coffee at the Railway Café, visit the Bruksmuséet or explore all our vehicles in the locomotive stables.
Naturslingan, woodland hiking trail, 8km, Bodafors
Highly recommended, clearly signposted woodland hiking trail beginning at Emåns Ekomuseum, only meters from House Viola. The 8km long walking trail will take you along the Emån river, over foot bridges, through birch forests, pine forests, wetlands, pastures and farmlands. (Thank you Therese Freid for allowing us to use your image and link to your blog Hemomkringvandring and its detailed description of Naturslingan.)
Vikskvarn nature area, Almesåkra formation, Bodafors.
Vikskvarn is a magnificent and very varied natural area. The Höglandsleden trail passes through the nature reserve.
The Almesåkra Formation dispays bedrock geology formations of quartzites, conglomerates shales and diabase. The diabase and quartzite form dramatic landslide slopes down towards the river in several places. Vikskvarn has parking, shelter, a grill and marked hiking trails.
Mattarps bokskog beech forest, Mattarp, Broddarp, Bodafors.
Scenic hiking in one of Europes most northerly beech forests dating back to the 1600s.
Swimming in Strömslundsdammen / Övre Kvarndammen, Bodafors
The closest place to swim, only a short 5 minute walk from House Viola. Small sand beach, small grass lawn, seating area with table incl bench. Staying close to the beach is advisable – strong currents close to the waterfall beneath the foot bridge.
Swimming in Vareviksbadet, Lake Storesjön, Bodafors
Family friendly swimming area approx 3 km from House Viola.
Sand beach, large lawn, pier, BBQ area, kiosk, changing rooms, toilets, parking.
Swimming in indoor swimming pool and leisure centre Familjebadet, Sävsjö
Fantastic, family friendly leisure centre with swimming pool, waterslide, jacuzzi, sauna, childrens adventure bath and cafe. Great changing rooms and facilities. Parking.
Fishing in Lake Storesjön: pike and perch, Bodafors.
Pike fishing in Lake Storesjön is excellent and big pike can be caught relatively easy. The biggest known pike from the lake weighed an impressive 15 kilos! During the summer of 2009, a single sport fisherman succeeded with the remarkable catch of two pike of 11 kilos each. Perch are abundant in the lake and perch around half a kilo are ordinary. Under the right conditions, fishing can be really good. Please note: Fishing license required! 100 SEK per week or 300 SEK per year.
Tennis courts, Bodafors Tennisklubb, Eksjövägen, Bodafors.
Three tennis courts located only 2 minutes walk from House Viola.
To book: contact Bodafors Tennisklubb
Birdwatching tower Uppsjön: Fågeltornet vid Uppsjön, 5 km south of Bodafors.
Hear and view common types of waterfowl, redshank, brown heron and water rail.
In the reeds there are reed warblers and with a bit of luck you can also hear a bearded tit.
(De vanligaste sjöfåglarna, rördrom, brun kärrhök och vattenrall. I vassarna finns rör- och sävsångare och med lite tur skäggmes.)
Shorter gravelroute from Bodafors. A gravelbike or mountainbike will be suitable for this route. You roll out of Bodafors on fast rolling gravel and small tarmac roads. After about 9 km you reach Mattarp where the route turns left onto the hiking trail through the beech forest. The trail is pretty smooth and not too technical, mostly on nice trails and small gravel roads to Forsa. In Forsa you can go for a swim or visit the old mill turned into café. forsakvarnagard.se. After Forsa the route follows fast gravel roads back to Bodafors.
Longer gravelroute from Bodafors. A gravelbike or mountainbike will be suitable for this route. You roll out of Bodafors on fast rolling gravel and small tarmac roads. After about 9 km you reach Mattarp where the route turns left onto the hiking trail through the beech forest. The trail is pretty smooth and not too technical, mostly on nice trails and small gravel roads to Forsa. In Forsa you can go for a swim or visit the old mill turned into café. forsakvarnagard.se. After Forsa the route follows fast gravel roads to Sävsjö where a coffee at Melins Konditori is recommended.
After the coffee break the route follows the old railroad towards Vallsjön. The rest of the route is pretty easy going on gravel and tarmac.
If you want a longer ride, this route could easily be combined with Fikatur till Bodafors.
Route mostly on tarmac but be prepared for shorter sections of both gravel and rougher forest roads. In Anneberg the route follows the old church road to Norra Solberga Church. After the church in Flisby you can choose between riding to the Moose farm in Skullaryd (Skullaryds Älgpark) skullaryd-algpark.se/en and take a swim in the lake or shorten the route by around 10 kilometers and continue straight ahead. The best place for a coffee break is Butik Botanik butikbotanik.com a combined cut flowers florist, plant shop and floristry class provider where they offer cyclists free coffee or tea if you buy a cake or something else to eat. After Solberga you will ride on smooth gravel roads for about 5 kilometers before the final stretch into Nässjö. The best bike for this route is probably a gravel bike with fast rolling tires.
This route is a bit more adventurous and takes you east to Eksjö and back. You will ride on tarmac, gravel, forest roads and some single track. A gravel bike or mountainbike is probably the best bike for this route but it should be doable on any bike with wider tires if you are willing to push on through the rougher sections. On the way to Eksjö you will pass the recreational area called Borgmästarängen with a nice picnic area, shelters and a small obstacle course for kids. Here you can spend the night outside if you like. In Eksjö you’ll find cafes, restaurants, shops, hotel, campsite and a bike shop. There is also the possibility to take the bus or train back to Nässjö in case you only want to ride one way. After a stop in Eksjö the route passes Ränneslätt which is one of Swedens oldest military training grounds. After some easy kilometers on tarmac you can stop by Älmeshultasjön for a swim before the route continues along an old railroad all the way to a beautiful beech forest with picnic tables. The final part of the route offers a bit of single track and a short detour to Fagertofta, a graveyard more than a thousand years old.
From Sävsjö follow Sävsjö Häradsväg road to the village Norra Ljunga where you can see a beautiful old church and interesting ancient monuments.
Then continue cycling to the heritage village / cultural village Komstad with an old mill, mill ponds and picturesque surroundings.
Then you continue through Bringetofta and Forsa. In Forsa you can also have have fika at Forsa Kvarnagård.
Finally visit Skrapstad with its burial mounds and cycle along Lake Skrapstad (Skrapstadsjön) to Sävsjö.
Highly recommended visitor destination in Bodafors, focussing on crafts, design and creativity. Exhibitions, workshops and events incl. Lehmann’s well-preserved instarsia workshop used by students and professionals in the field of woodcraft.
Kulturgatan also has an excellent cafe and bakery with soups, sandwiches and cakes for Swedish fika.
Highly recommended visitor destination in Bodafors, focussing on crafts, design and creativity. Exhibitions, workshops and events incl. Lehmann’s well-preserved instarsia workshop used by students and professionals in the field of woodcraft.
Kulturgatan also has an excellent cafe and bakery with soups, sandwiches and cakes for Swedish fika.
Highly recommended visitor destination in Bodafors, focussing on crafts, design and creativity. Exhibitions, workshops and events incl. Lehmann’s well-preserved instarsia workshop used by students and professionals in the field of woodcraft.
Kulturgatan also has an excellent cafe and bakery with soups, sandwiches and cakes for Swedish fika.