Sweden: Göta Canal - booking now possible for coveted places

Christian Tiedt

· 17.02.2026

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Photo: Christian Tiedt

The Göta Canal in the south of Sweden is one of the best known and most popular inland waterways in Europe. But the season is short. If you want to be on the safe side, you can book your passage online now.

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The Göta Canal is known as the "Blue Ribbon". Over a distance of 190 kilometres, it connects the mighty Vänern, Sweden's largest lake, with the east coast of the country. Together with the Trollhätte Canal, which in turn leads from Lake Vänern to the west coast near Gothenburg, it creates a continuously navigable waterway, 400 kilometres long in total.

The Göta Canal as an experience

What makes the Göta Canal so extraordinary is not only its beautiful route through wild nature and ancient cultural landscape or the historic lock stairs, but also the fact that it can also be passed with a standing mast - and thus also gives sailors the opportunity to circumnavigate the entire south of Sweden by sea and inland waterway on their own keel.

The passage is correspondingly popular, and with a comparatively short season: this year, the main season on the Göta Canal runs from 16 June to 12 August. There is also the pre-season (from 5 May to 15 June) and post-season (from 13 August to 28 September).

More about the Göta Canal:

Across Sweden, Part 1: The Trollhätte Canal
Across Sweden, Part 2: The Göta Canal
Sweden: New large locks for the Trollhätte Canal

In the low season only with registration

Only in the high season are the 58 historic lock chambers and numerous movable bridges operated continuously during the operating hours from 9 am to 6 pm. And it is only during this time that passing boats can freely organise their passage.

In the early and late season, however, the passage is only possible in convoys. It lasts five days as standard, departs three days a week, but is also cheaper. In addition, the limited number of places available must be reserved in advance.

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The booking portal is now open

For the upcoming 2026 summer season, the Online booking portal on the canal company's website. Anyone wishing to reserve a specific date, for example for their return after a cruise along the Swedish east coast, can do so now if they want to be on the safe side. Bookings can also be made for the peak season.

The price for a one-way passage along the entire Göta Canal from Sjötorp on Lake Vänern to Mem on the Baltic Sea is 6,273 Swedish kronor (SEK), which corresponds to 590 euros, for a 10 metre boat in the low season, 9,085 SEK (854 euros) in the high season in June and August and 9,993 SEK (940 euros) in July.

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Christian Tiedt

Editor Travel

Christian Tiedt was born in Hamburg in 1975, but grew up in the northern suburbs of the city - except for numerous visits to the harbor, North Sea and Baltic Sea, but without direct access to water sports for a long time. His first adventures then took place on dry land: With the classics from Chichester, Slocum and Co. After completing his vocational training, his studies finally gave him the opportunity (in terms of time) to get active on the water - and to obtain the relevant licenses. First with cruising and then, when he joined BOOTE in 2004, with motorboats of all kinds. In the meantime, Christian has been able to get to know almost all of Europe (and some more distant destinations) on his own keel and prefers to share his adventures and experiences as head of the travel department for YACHT and BOOTE in cruise reports.

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