A guide to historic mills and industrial heritage in West Sweden

Discover some of West Sweden’s and Gothenburg's most beautiful and fascinating industrial heritage. Explore red-brick buildings and old factory sites, and stop for fika at a cosy mill café.

One of Sweden’s first cotton mills was established at Nääs in 1832, around half an hour from Gothenburg. As the industry grew, so did the community of Tollered nearby so workers could live close to the mill.

Today, Tollered is one of West Sweden’s most charming historic villages, with many well-preserved buildings. Information signs throughout the village tell the story of its industrial past.

Don’t miss:

• Tollereds Biograf is said to be Sweden’s smallest cinema and even has a tiled stove inside the screening room.
• The Gotaleden hiking trail passes through Tollered.
• Stop for lunch or fika, or explore the shops at Nääs Fabriker.
• Across Lake Sävelången lies Nääs Castle, one of Sweden’s best-preserved late 19th-century estates.

The fast-flowing waters of the Säveån have powered industry for centuries, including here at Vänga Kvarn, around half an hour from Borås. The current mill building dates from the 1860s and is still in operation today. All the flour used in the café is milled on site.

The area also includes the remains of an old starch factory and a traditional country store. It’s a perfect place to combine local history with fika.

Don’t miss:

• Enjoy fika in the award-winning café and buy freshly milled flour from the country store.
• Kärleksstigen — a short walking trail along the Säveån where you can see remains of old mills and sawmills.
• The nearby Vänga Mosse Nature Reserve, where an accessible walking trail follows wooden boardwalks across the wetlands.

The old mill village of Gustavsfors lies on the border between Dalsland and Värmland. On either side are the lakes Västra Silen and Lelång, connected by the Dalsland Canal, which runs straight through the village.

Water, history, and nature meet among beautiful red-brick industrial buildings. Down by the harbour are restaurants and a small museum.

Don’t miss:

• Alcatraz Adventure Centre, with canoe hire, camping, and hostel accommodation.
• Cycle a railbike along the old railway line or try gravel cycling on the winding roads nearby.
• Vårviks Church, considered one of Sweden’s most beautiful churches, on an island around 15 minutes from Gustavsfors.

Industrial heritage and railway nostalgia meet at Anten–Gräfsnäs Railway. In the lakeside park at Gräfsnäs stand the ruins of a castle built in the mid-16th century. After several devastating fires, the castle fell into ruin and today remains one of the area’s most popular landmarks. In summer, the old railway line is brought back to life by steam trains almost 100 years old running between Anten and Gräfsnäs.

Don’t miss:

• The castle park, with a swimming beach and playground, is perfect for a family picnic.
• The sea of wood anemones that fills the park each spring.
• A historic steam train journey along the Anten–Gräfsnäs Railway.
• Route 190 between Hjällbo and Nossebro, with cafés, farm shops, and swimming spots scattered along the way.

Idyllic Turbinhusön, literally Turbine House Island, sits in the river Tidan in the centre of Tidaholm. The small island is home to beautifully preserved heritage buildings, including three red blacksmith cottages from the late 18th century and the turbine house that gave the island its name.
Today, the area is home to art exhibitions, a café, craft workshops, a small heritage shop, and a museum. 

Don’t miss:

• Summer fika at the café on Turbinhusön.
• A walk through Tidaholm along the Tidan river.
• A wine tasting at VinContoret.

Not Quite inhabits the old mill complex of Fengersfors in north-eastern Dalsland, a perfect example of how disused industrial buildings can be given new life. Today, the area is home to a vibrant cultural centre where artists and designers work side by side, and where visitors can explore galleries, exhibition spaces, studios and cafés.

Don’t miss:

• The changing exhibitions in the main exhibition hall.
• The sourdough pizzas at Brukets Godaste stone-oven bakery.
• Garden fika at Not Quite Café & Bistro.

Welcome to Forsviks Bruk, one of Sweden’s oldest industrial sites with more than 600 years of history. Over the centuries, everything from paper pulp to cast-iron products has been produced here.
Today, the area is a living industrial museum where you can explore well-preserved buildings, discover the site’s history, or join a guided tour.

Don’t miss

• The annual Christmas market, An Old-Fashioned Christmas Experience.
• Fika at Forsviks Café while watching leisure boats glide past on the Göta Canal.
• Tiveden National Park, around half an hour north of Forsvik, with some of the country’s finest hiking trails.

The historic mill district of Kvarnbyn is a dramatic place, where the waters of the Mölndalsån plunge 48 metres down a gorge between old factory walls.
Water power was already being used here during the Middle Ages to drive mills, but it was in the 19th century that industry really took off. Today, you can explore the riverside paths, walk through Kvarnbyparken, and discover many well-preserved historic buildings.

Don’t miss:

• Visit in the evening when the Mölndalsfallen waterfalls are lit up against the old factory buildings
• Mölndal City Museum, located on the edge of Kvarnbyn, where you can also pick up a map of the area.
• A half-hour walk past Stensjön to Gunnebo House and Gardens.

Just 12 minutes by train from Gothenburg lies the charming mill community of Jonsered. Textile production began here in the 1830s and was later joined by a mechanical workshop and foundry.
Today, the old red-brick factory buildings are home to cafés, a hotel, a brewery, and creative businesses.

Don’t miss:

• Gibsons Hotell if you want to stay longer in the area.
• Food and drinks at Poppels Öl & Mat.
• Brödfabriken, one of the area’s most popular cafés.
• Follow the Bohusleden hiking trail from the factory area to nearby Jonsereds Trädgårdar, with its gardens, café, and manor house.

On the shores of Lake Vättern, just south of Hjo, lies Almnäs Bruk, an estate first mentioned in written records in 1225. While the 18th-century manor house is impressive, Almnäs is best known today for its cheese production.
The dairy is housed in the old distillery building, where the award-winning Wrångebäck cheese is produced. It is Sweden’s oldest registered cheese trademark.

Don’t miss:

• Buy a piece of cheese to take home from the self-service farm shop, open 24 hours a day.
• The annual open farm day, when visitors can explore the barns and learn more about cheese-making.
• The Hjo–Kungslena Pilgrim Trail, which passes Almnäs Bruk.
• Hjo, around 15 minutes away and one of Sweden’s best-preserved wooden towns.