Gullholmen
One of the oldest fishing settlements on the Swedish west coast, houses crammed onto a tiny island off Orust.
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Gullholmen is mentioned in the fourteenth century and has been fished from continuously since, which makes it one of the oldest surviving fishing settlements on this coast. The island is tiny, so the houses are built up against each other on the rock with lanes and steps between and no gardens to speak of, and the effect from the water is a solid block of white and pale timber on grey stone. Herring brought the money in the good centuries and its collapse took it away again. A museum in an old fisherman's house shows how a family lived in one of these rooms. No cars; a small ferry from Orust.
What you actually see
- Houses built against each other - lanes and steps, no gardens.
- A settlement fished since the 1300s - among the oldest on the coast.
- A fisherman's house museum - one family's rooms as they were.
- No cars on the island - the ferry from Orust and then on foot.
When to go
June to August, when the museum and cafes open. Half a day.
Honest expectations
The island is very small and quickly seen. Almost everything shuts outside summer. Ferries are weather dependent. There is little shelter and no shop worth the name.
Nearby
Karingon is north; Orust is the mainland side.
What to pack for Gullholmen
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
