林雪平

June to August is the best time to visit, with long, mild days and the canal boats running. Summer is also the wettest season, so pack for showers. Winters are cold and dark, with frost on most days and regular snow.

The big day of the year is Valborg on 30 April. A student band marches through town and plays in Trädgårdsföreningen. In the afternoon, a student choir sings in the spring outside the castle to a crowd that often reaches around a thousand, while thousands of students spend the day picnicking in the park.

Domkyrkan is the city's landmark, with a 107-metre tower that you see from far away. Building began in the 13th century, and inside you find carved medieval arcades, a 16th-century altarpiece by Maarten van Heemskerck and modern stained glass by Brian Clarke.

Linköpings slott stands opposite the cathedral and has been the county governor's residence since 1785. A museum in its north wing tells the castle's 900-year history and shows church silver and medieval textiles.

Old Linköping is an open-air museum about 2 km west of the centre, with around 90 old houses along cobbled streets. Some were moved here when the old town centre was rebuilt in the 1960s. Small shops and cafés open in the houses. It is free to wander, and around 20 small museums are tucked into the buildings.

Swedish Air Force Museum sits at the Malmen air base in Malmslätt, about 7 km west of the city. Its large halls show Swedish military aircraft from early biplanes to the Saab Gripen. A highlight is a DC-3 shot down by a Soviet fighter in 1952 and raised from the Baltic Sea in 2003.

Östergötlands länsmuseum is the county museum, a short walk north of the cathedral. Its collections cover the region's history and art.

Trädgårdsföreningen is the city park, founded in 1859, with rocky hills, lawns, ponds and a tropical house. Climb the 22-metre Belvederen tower for a view over the rooftops, and stop at its café.

Sankt Lars kyrka is a whitewashed church near the main square, with a medieval lower tower and a nave from 1801. Its acoustics make it a popular concert venue, and in a cellar under the floor you can see the walls of a 12th-century church.

Many of Linköping's best moments are outdoors, on the water or in the woods.

• A summer canal boat trip: in summer, passenger boats leave the city along the Kinda Canal or down the Stångån river and across Lake Roxen to the Berg locks. Visit Linköping
• Walk in the Tinnerö oak landscape: on the southern edge of the city, paths lead through old oak pastures, meadows and woods. You can reach it on foot or by bike from the centre.
• Coffee at the top of Belvederen: climb the lookout tower in Trädgårdsföreningen and have a fika in its café.
• Ice hockey in winter: watch the local team, Linköping HC, play at Saab Arena.

Canals, lakes and small historic towns are all within an hour of Linköping.

• Vreta kloster and the Berg locks (about 15 min by car, north-west): Vreta was Sweden's first nunnery, and its stone church from the early 12th century is still in use. A short walk away, the Göta Canal climbs from Lake Roxen through the Carl Johan locks, a staircase of seven locks. Watch the boats pass in summer.
• Norrköping (about 30 min by train, north-east): a former textile city with old mills and waterfalls along the Motala ström river in the centre.
• Söderköping (about 40 min by car, east): a small wooden town on the Göta Canal, with a busy canal harbour in summer.
• Vadstena (about 40 min by car, west): a lakeside town on Lake Vättern with a Vasa-era castle and the abbey of Saint Birgitta.

Linköping is the largest city of Östergötland. Its twin city lies just to the north-east.

• Nearest neighbour: Norrköping, a former industrial city on the Motala ström, about 30 minutes away by train.

• By air: Linköping City Airport, a short taxi ride east of the centre, has daily flights to Amsterdam with KLM, plus a few domestic and Nordic routes. Most international travellers arrive at Stockholm Arlanda and continue by train, which takes about 2.5 hours with a change in Stockholm.
• By train: Linköping Central is on the main line between Stockholm and southern Sweden. Fast trains reach Stockholm in about 1 h 40 min. Regional trains run to Norrköping every 30 minutes and take about 30 minutes.
• By bus: Long-distance coaches link Linköping with Stockholm, Gothenburg and other Swedish cities. They stop at the bus terminal next to the train station.

• Public transport: Östgötatrafiken runs the city buses. Tap your bank card on the reader by the bus door to pay for a single trip, or buy tickets in the Östgötatrafiken app. You cannot pay with cash. For Swedish Air Force Museum, take bus 6 (about 20 minutes). Östgötatrafiken
• On foot: The centre is compact. The cathedral, the castle, the main square and the parks are all within a 10-minute walk. Old Linköping is about 2 km west.
• Cycling: The city is flat and has a wide network of cycle paths, so a bike is a good way to reach the open-air museum, the riverside and the oak woods south of town.

• Is a car worth it?: Not for the city, which is small, flat and well served by buses and cycle paths. A car is useful for the canal and lake countryside, where buses are infrequent.
• Parking: Use the multi-storey car parks around the centre or paid street parking. Pay at a machine or with a parking app.
• Restrictions: The streets around the main square and the central shopping area are largely pedestrian, so park at the edge of the centre and walk in.

Linköping is a good place for a classic Swedish weekday lunch: look for dagens lunch deals in the centre. In the evening, most pubs, bars and restaurants cluster around Stora torget, the main square, and the nearby street Ågatan.

For a quieter meal or coffee, the streets between the square and the cathedral have many cafés. In summer, the cafés in Old Linköping and in Trädgårdsföreningen are pleasant places for fika, the Swedish coffee break.

Linköping is a safe city for visitors. Normal care is enough: watch your bag in crowded places and around the station, and at night in the busy bar streets.

Cycling is popular, so keep off the cycle lanes when you walk. In winter, pavements can be icy, and shoes with a good grip help.

Linköping grew up around its bishop's seat, first mentioned in 1104. A stone church stood here in the 12th century, and King Valdemar Birgersson was crowned in Domkyrkan in 1251. The bishops built a fortified residence next to it, which became Linköpings slott.

In 1598 Duke Karl defeated his nephew, King Sigismund, at the Battle of Stångebro, by the main bridge over the Stångån. Two years later, in the Linköping Bloodbath of 1600, the duke had five of his opponents beheaded on the main square. The castle museum covers both events.

Linköping stayed a small cathedral town until 1937, when Saab started building aircraft here. The city then grew fast, and Swedish Air Force Museum tells part of that story. A university followed in the 1960s. When the old centre was rebuilt in that decade, some of its old houses were saved and moved to Old Linköping.

Quick practical facts for Sweden at a glance: