Top 15 Dalsland

 
In a red building by lake Spången in Upperud is Dalsland’s Museum and Art Gallery. The beautiful museum building fits in well among the red houses of the old ironworks community, and was created in accordance with ecological principles.

The House of Crafts in Upperud is one of Sweden’s largest and most diverse. Beautifully located by Lake Upperudshöljen, it occupies more than five stories in an old granary, and features all types of craft products made of wood, metal, textile, straw and paper, from Dalsland and the rest of Sweden.

High up on Majberget mountain in Bengtsfors, with magnificent views of the surrounding countryside, is Gammelgården, incorporating 18 historical buildings and a large collection of objects. This is one of Sweden’s largest outdoor museums.

 
The House of Straw is Scandinavia’s only museum specialising in the history of straw craft. Here you can learn how the straw craftspeople work, and you can view special straw products from different periods.

Probably more than anything else, Dalsland is known as a mecca for kayakers and canoeists. As a service to them and to the landowners who make their land available, a large number of campsites have been established throughout the lake system.

One of the most beautiful waterways in Europe, the Dalsland Canal connects a labyrinth of large and small lakes and rivers, and idyllic, meandering canals. Only ten kilometres of the canal is man-made; the rest is a 240-kilometre navigable system of lakes with a total of 31 locks at 17 different stations.

The forests of Dalsland are rich in both beaver and elk. The beaver is Europe's largest rodent and it lives in family groups, by lakes and waterways. The elk is Europe's largest land animal and there are an estimated 5,000 of them in Dalsland alone. On guided tours you can learn about beavers and elks, and often see them as well. 

In Tresticklan National Park in northwestern Dalsland, by the Norwegian border, visitors can experience large tracts of virgin forest, thin, barren pine forest and rift valley landscapes, as well as pine forest birds like capercaillie, black grouse and hazel grouse.

Falkholt’s, one in the group of quality restaurants that wear the Västsvensk Mersmak badge, serves up exquisite culinary experiences in the heart of Dalsland. Falkholt’s is located in a charming old building, used as a schoolhouse through the first half of the 20th century.

A popular way to experience the magnificent countryside of Dalsland is on a railway inspection trolley. You travel on disused railway lines straight into the wilderness, where you can spot elk, deer and various birds. The route is between Bengtsfors and Årjäng, a distance of 52 kilometres.

The fishing waters of Dalsland are numerous and varied. Large, clear lakes and small waterways, as well as trolling in Vänern, Europe's largest lake. Vänern is also considered to have some of Scandinavia’s best trolling waters.