Kingdom of Crystal

Glass came to this stretch of Smaland because the forest gave fuel and the sand was there, and Kosta, founded in 1742, is the oldest works still running in Sweden. Orrefors, Boda, Malerås and Bergdala followed, and through the twentieth century the designers working here - Simon Gate, Edward Hald, Vicke Lindstrand and later Bertil Vallien and Ulrica Hydman-Vallien - made Swedish glass an export in its own right. Many works have closed or moved production abroad, so what is left is a smaller circuit than it was: some blowing you can watch, outlet shops, museums, and hyttsill evenings where herring is baked in the cooling ovens and people eat in the works.

What you actually see

• Kosta, running since 1742 - the oldest works in the country.
• Glassblowing you can watch - where production continues.
• Design collections - Gate, Hald, Lindstrand, the Valliens.
• Hyttsill evenings - food cooked in the cooling ovens.

When to go

May to September, when demonstrations and dinners run. A full day.

Honest expectations

Several works have closed and some sites are now shops only. Blowing schedules are limited and often stop in summer holidays. Distances between villages need a car. Outlet prices are not always low.

Nearby

Vaxjo and its glass museum are west; Kalmar is east.