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Route 2. The Event City

In 1923, the great Gothenburg Exhibition was held. It centred around the then newly opened Götaplatsen, and continued down towards Korsvägen, where it laid the foundations for the amusement park, Liseberg, and later also for the permanent Swedish Congress and Exhibition Centre. Since then, the entire area has been turned into Gothenburg’s centre for major events, with venues for exhibitions, sporting events, large concerts, and more.

Just like the Gothenburg Exhibition, this walk begins at Götaplatsen. Kungsportsavenyn was the first main street built outside the fortified town within the canals, and Götaplatsen crowns the street. The first building to be erected here was the Art Museum in 1923 (architects Arvid Bjerke, R O Svensson, Ernst Torulf and Sigfrid Ericsson) followed by Stadsteatern in 1934 (architect Carl Bergsten), the Concert Hall in 1935 (architect Nils Einar Eriksson), Park Aveny Hotel in 1950 (architect Nils Einar Eriksson) and the City Library in 1967 (architect Lund & Valentin). The square itself is impressive, and all the buildings are made of yellow brick, a common material in the Gothenburg palette. Perhaps the Concert Hall is the most noticeable of the buildings, with its famous wooden hall and well-preserved original interior, see further information in a separate section.

 

The walk continues past the college of music and down towards Korsvägen and the chain of event venues. This is where you'll find the large premises of the Swedish Congress and Exhibition Centre, right next to Gothia Hotel with its twin towers and popular Sky Bar. On the opposite side of the road is Liseberg, which is Sweden's single largest visitor attraction, and next to the park, Universeum climbs up the hill. This is a centre for natural science and Swedish inventiveness, in a modern and ecological building, vivaciously designed by the successful Gothenburg architect Gert Wingårdh.

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Before walking any further, why not pop into Mahogny, one of Gothenburg's best espresso bars. This is a meeting place for young locals, tourist and international visitors to the Swedish Congress and Exhibition Centre. Further along the road is Scandinavium, the city's ice hockey temple, designed by Poul Hultberg. After that you'll pass the multi-screen cinema, Bergakungen, partly underground, before reaching Ullevi, which was also designed by Sten Samuelsson and Fritz Jaenecke. Ullevi was built for the World Championships in 1958. Its huge curved stands are held up by large concrete structures, above which hangs a roof, which looks almost as if it's floating in the air. Ullevi has been extended a number of times, and even more extensions are planned, which will ensure that this arena continues to be the biggest one in Scandinavia, and to offer both sporting events and concerts with world famous artists. Next to Ullevi is its sister arena Gamla Ullevi (Old Ullevi), which despite its name opened in 2009. It's the home arena of Gothenburg's football team, as well as the Swedish ladies' national team.

 

Text: Per Nadén