What to See in Malmö, Sweden: Free Audio Guide

Looking for things to do in Malmö? This coastal city combines medieval churches and squares with museums, design, football, and distinctive modern architecture. Its historic centre is easy to explore on foot, while neighbourhoods beyond the old town reveal another side of Malmö. Neywo’s free audio guide for Malmö includes 84 narrated places.

What to See in Malmö’s Historic Centre

Stortorget and the Statue of Carl X Gustav

Stortorget has been Malmö’s main square for nearly five centuries. The square was created in 1538 after the Monastery of the Holy Spirit was demolished, and a 1542 note already referred to it as “the new square”.

The eastern side is dominated by Malmö Town Hall, inaugurated in 1547. Other historic buildings around the square include Residenset, Jørgen Kock’s House, the Kramer Hotel, and the Lion Pharmacy. At the centre stands the equestrian statue of Carl X Gustav, unveiled in 1896. Its subject remains controversial because the king conquered Skånelandene, including Malmö, from Denmark.

Residenset

Residenset is the official residence of the governor of Skåne County. It consists of two joined houses dating from the late 1500s: Kungshuset to the west and Gyllenpalmska huset to the east. The building still serves as the governor’s residence and as a venue for official representations.

Saint Peter’s Church

Saint Peter’s Church is Malmö’s largest church and one of its defining Brick Gothic landmarks. Built in the early 1300s as a basilica with three naves and a transept, it has a 105-metre tower that dominates the city skyline. Although it is commonly called Saint Peter’s, the church is dedicated to both Saint Peter and Saint Paul.

Inside are late-medieval murals, unusual furnishings, and an altarpiece from 1611 that is among the largest in the Nordic countries. The church also reflects the religious upheavals of its past: it served as an important spiritual centre during the Reformation and suffered damage during iconoclastic reforms.

Lilla Torg and Form/Design Center

Lilla Torg is one of Malmö’s most atmospheric squares, with cobbled lanes and cafés and restaurants around its edges. Nearby, the Form/Design Center explores the relationship between form, architecture, and design. Its programme includes changing exhibitions, workshops, talks, and lectures, alongside a shop and café.

The centre was inaugurated by King Gustav VI Adolf in June 1964. Since then, it has produced and presented more than 1,200 exhibitions, making it an important part of Malmö’s design culture.

Ebba’s House

Ebba’s House offers an intimate look at everyday life in Malmö. The small museum occupies an 18th-century street house on Snapperupsgatan, with an interior preserved from the 1910s.

The rooms include a wood stove, a zinc sink, an attic room, and an outdoor toilet in the backyard. Ebba Olsson moved into the house with her family in 1911 and lived there for most of her life. She donated the property to Malmö Museums in 1984, and it opened as a museum in 1991.

Teatermuseet

Malmö’s Theatre and Circus Museum is housed in Ärkebiskopsgården, a historic building whose origins go back to the 1400s, when it was the residence of Archbishop Birger Gunnersen. The museum traces the history of theatre and circus performances across Skåne through playbills, scenery models, and other material.

Among its displays are models of theatres including the Hippodromen and Malmö Opera. The museum also publishes books and writings about the region’s performing arts.

Castles, Museums, and Modern Malmö

Malmö Castle

Malmö Castle stands on the small island of Slottsholmen. Originally a medieval stronghold, it was rebuilt between 1526 and 1539 in the Renaissance style. From 1568 to 1573, it served as a prison for James Hepburn, the Earl of Bothwell and third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Today, the castle forms part of Malmö Museums. The museum presents exhibitions on regional art, history, and culture, while the grounds include the Commandant’s House and the Castle Mill.

Technology and Maritime Museum

Opposite Malmö Castle, the Technology and Maritime Museum connects technological history with the sea. Its displays include machines and engines, the development of aviation, and hands-on experiments in an experimentarium.

A red Saab 37 Viggen jet is among the striking exhibits. It made its final flight on 11 April 2000 after serving with the disbanded Skåne Air Force.

Människan och Pegasus

Människan och Pegasus is a sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Milles. Created in 1949, the late work depicts a man beside Pegasus, the winged horse of classical mythology.

Eleda Stadion

Football fans can visit Eleda Stadion, the modern home ground of Malmö FF since 2009. The stadium opened on 13 April 2009, replacing the old Malmö Stadion, where Malmö FF had played since 1958.

For league matches, it holds up to 22,500 spectators, with 18,000 seats and 4,500 standing places. Its record attendance was 24,148, recorded on 7 November 2010 when Malmö FF defeated Mjällby AIF 2–0 to secure the league title.

Beyond the Old Town

Saint John’s Church

Near Triangeln, Saint John’s Church is a red-brick Jugend, or Art Nouveau, landmark. Built between 1903 and 1907 for the newly established worker community of Möllevången, it has soft rounded forms, a granite base, a 26-metre-high nave, and a 60-metre tower.

Limhamns Museum

Limhamns Museum occupies a traditional croft cottage in the Limhamn district. The torpstuga dates from the early 1800s and was once home to indelta soldiers, offering a glimpse of rural architecture from the nineteenth century.

The Limhamns Museiförening has overseen the museum since 1956. Its collections include an extensive image archive, and the association has published the annual yearbook Limhamniana since 1959.

Oscar Olsson Museum

The Oscar Olsson Museum is dedicated to Oscar Olsson, one of Sweden’s significant popular educators of the early twentieth century. Known locally as “Olsson med skägget”, or “Olsson with the beard”, he is presented through objects, photographs, films, texts, research reports, and literature.

In 2013, the museum established the Oscar Prize for Swedish popular education.

Per Albin Hansson’s Birthplace

Per Albin Hanssons födelsehem is the birthplace of Per Albin Hansson. It now operates as a working life museum in Malmö Municipality, connecting one person’s early life with the city’s social and political history.

Explore Malmö with a Free Audio Guide

A Malmö self-guided walking tour is an easy way to connect the city’s landmarks without joining a group. Neywo offers three walking tours, one bus route, and one bike route:

• Brick Gothic and Little Square: Malmö’s medieval heart — 1.9 km, 97 minutes, 12 narrated stops.
• From Castle Island to the Twisting Tower — 4.05 km, 101 minutes, 8 narrated stops.
• Art Nouveau and Moorish Revival beyond the old town — 4.46 km, 107 minutes, 8 narrated stops.
• Bus 7: from the station to the sea at Limhamn — 10 km, 43 minutes, 7 narrated stops.
• Malmö by Bike: Turning Torso to the Old Town — 5.6 km, 28 minutes, 8 narrated stops.

The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Narration is available in 11 languages.

Download Neywo and explore Malmö with an audio guide that stays with you as you walk, ride, or travel by bus. For more destinations in Sweden, you can also continue to Gothenburg, Stockholm, or Visby.