Things to do in Borås - 15 tips for the city of art and textiles

What to see and do in Borås? Borås is an exciting city that offers art experiences in the form of street art, sculptures, art museums and art festivals. There is also a textile museum, zoo, nature experiences and many other activities. Here are our best tips on what to see and do in Borås!

Borås

The area around Borås was once home to the so-called "knallarna", i.e. farm labourers from the Sjuhärads district in Västergötland. It was partly to tax them that Gustav II Adolf granted Borås city rights in 1621. Over the years, trade in wrought goods was also carried out, and over time cotton factories and the textile industry developed.

In modern times, Borås was probably long associated with the textile industry, but during the textile crisis in the 1970s and 1980s, many people lost their jobs in this industry.

There are still memories of the textile industry here - not least in the form of the textile museum - but it is also good to see that the city has acquired a new identity. Borås has become an important and exciting art city!

Borås is located in Västergötland, just over 20 miles east of Gothenburg.

What can you do in Borås?

What can you see and do in Borås? First of all, you can experience art in different ways, but there are also other things to enjoy. We have collected our best tips here in a list.

1. See art at Borås Art Museum

Borås Art Museum can be said to be a centre for the city's art. The museum is known for its national and international exhibitions and has a large collection of Swedish contemporary art, including a focus on moving images. The museum is also responsible for the city's public art and is the organiser of the Borås International Sculpture Biennial. When we were here, you could step into a hall filled with speakers, from which came endless laughter!

2. Discover Abecita Pop Art & Photography

Abecita Pop Art & Photo is an exciting art museum that you won't want to miss during your visit to the city. The museum showcases high quality photography and art exhibitions, and continuously presents new exhibitions by renowned international photographers and artists. The background is the art-collecting couple Bengt and Berit Swegmark, who built and developed this gem of a museum.

3. Check out street art / street art

Public art in Borås is unique. The city centre is filled with hundreds of sculptures, installations and huge murals. Many of the works have been created by internationally renowned artists for the Borås International Sculpture Biennial and the No Limit Street Art Borås festival.

Start by looking up at the walls of the buildings around the centre and you'll see lots of street art in the form of murals.

4. Go on a sculpture walk

Since art is such an important part of the soul of Borås, the sculptures have their own heading. In addition to murals, there is a wide range of sculptures.

You can browse the city's art on your own, follow a map of the artworks or join a guided tour. In about 1.5 hours, you can experience everything from small works of art to 9-metre-high sculptures and 27-metre-high murals.

5. Experience the Borås Art Biennial and the No Limit festival.

A city of art must of course have art festivals, and Borås has no less than two. The city's first sculpture biennial was held in 2008 in connection with the inauguration of the sculpture Walking to Borås (or Pinocchio as it is often called) by Jim Dine. In 2021, Borås celebrated 400 years as a city and in connection with this, the biennial changed its name to Borås Art Biennial.

The second festival, No Limitis a street art festival that invites artists from all over the world to participate in the transformation of public space and create a huge outdoor gallery. This festival includes all types of street art, from murals to sculptures and installations. No Limit has been organised three times so far: in 2014, 2017 and 2020.

6. Visit Borås Textile Museum

The Textile Museum in Borås is one of the leading textile museums in the Nordic countries and an important part of the Textile Fashion Centre in the central part of the city. Outside you'll find (of course!) a large piece of art.

The museum is both pleasant and interesting and brings textile history to life in different ways - from production in different eras to the great textile crisis of the 1970s and 1980s when many people lost their jobs.

The museum also presents design, fashion and art in the context of textile materials. There is also a café and restaurant here. At the café we had a coffee and a tasty blueberry pie that energised us for new discoveries!

7. Stroll in the city park

Another thing to do in Borås is to visit the city park, which is a green oasis with lush trees and bushes. Here you will also find Stadsparksbadet, Borås Adventure Golf and the Orangery with its lunch menu. And of course the occasional work of art!

8. Admire the city's churches: Gustav Adolf Church and Caroli Church.

The Gustav Adolf Church was built between 1903-1906, when the population of Borås was growing rapidly and the town's only church, the Caroli Church, was considered too small. The architect was the Swedish-born Carl Bern from Berlin, and the style is almost neo-Gothic.

Even more interesting is a visit to the old church, the Caroli Church. This church, inaugurated in 1669, is the oldest building in Borås and has managed to survive all the city fires.

The interior of the church is very beautiful. There is a 19th century altarpiece, an 18th century painting and a special baptismal font with a canopy-like cover from 1919.

9. Watching films in the Red Mill cinema

Röda Kvarn is a municipal cultural cinema that shows international and national quality films. The cinema was built in 1914 and is therefore one of Sweden's oldest and best preserved. The auditorium has been renovated to its original condition and has 252 seats.

10. Meet ghosts at Laxton Ghost - a haunted museum

For those who like the supernatural, there's a special thing to do in Borås: visit Sweden's first haunted museum. Here you can experience allegedly haunted objects such as the Ouija board from the TV series "Spökjakt", get a guided tour by Tony and Niclas in LaxTon Ghost Sweden or shop in Sweden's first physical ghost hunting store.

We walked here hoping to have a chat with the owners, but at the moment the museum was only open for booked tours. Instead, we chatted for a while with two people waiting outside for their tour, who told us that they had travelled 40 miles to experience a guided tour here.

11. Try out technology at the Navet Science Centre

The Hub Science Centre offers the opportunity to experience with your own eyes and hands how science, technology and mathematics work. There are, for example, water courses and "palaces of maths", and you can try your hand at building mechanical creations. The Hub Science Centre is suitable for all ages, but we would probably have felt more inspired to visit if we had children or teenagers to take with us.

12. Feel the wings of history at Borås Museum in Ramnaparken.

Borås Museum is a cultural-historical open-air museum in Ramnaparken in the city centre. It houses a number of historic buildings, including Ramna Church, a wooden church from the late 17th century. You can visit the old buildings, have a coffee at Café Gästis or a picnic. Guided tours are sometimes organised.

13. Learn about wild animals at Borås Zoo.

Borås Zoo is one of Sweden's largest zoos. When the park opened in 1962, it was the first in the country to have a large savannah, where different species roamed freely together. Still today, the savannah with African animals is the heart of the park.

The park also features monkeys and Nordic wildlife, as well as walking paths, barbecue areas, playgrounds and cafés. Djuparken participates in several conservation programmes aimed at preserving endangered animal species, including the African elephant, black rhino, Siberian tiger, orangutan and the large Swedish predators.

Our favourites were the charming zebra mussels, which normally live on the savannahs of Africa. These animals live in groups and are very sociable. They are also very curious about visitors, we can attest!

14. Enjoy the nature at Rya ridges and the view at Ryssby cliff.

Rya Ridges is a nature reserve in the city of Borås that offers a varied nature with rocky slopes, oak and coniferous forests and living farmland. There are hiking trails, picnic areas, lakes and several viewpoints, including the one at Ryssby Klint.

15. Hike the Kypegården hiking trail

Kypegården's outdoor area offers nature experiences, without having to go too far from the centre of Borås. Four trails start from Kypegården, the shortest being 1.3 kilometres and the longest being 8.7 kilometres. The 140 kilometre long Sjuhäradsleden trail also passes through here.

More things to see and do in Borås for culture and history lovers

There is of course even more to see and do in Borås, in addition to our suggestions. Here are some more tips for those interested in culture and history.

• Borås City Theatre gives different performances (P.A. Hall's Terrace).
• Flamenco Gallery is an art gallery run by Borås and Sjuhäradsbygdens Konstförening (Södra Torget 4).
• Hedared stave church is located north of Borås and is Sweden's only preserved medieval stave church (Stavkyrkovägen 25, Hedared).
• Mossebo church is located southeast of Borås. This wooden church from the 18th century is beautifully painted inside and decorated with sculptures (Tranemo).
• Torpa stone house is one of Sweden's best preserved mansions from the 16th century (Torpa Farm, Länghem).
• Museum of Carriage History displays Sweden's largest collection of carriages and sleighs. (Backa, Fristad)
• Wärenstam Museum showcases contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, textiles and ceramics from the Sjuhärad region (Herrljungagatan 15).
• Ålgården was originally a mill founded in the 17th century. Today the building is used as a gallery (Ålgårdsvägen 33).

More to see and do in Borås for those who like food and shopping

Do you like eating good food or shopping? Then you can find even more tips on things to do in Borås here.

• Café Bakgården is a cosy café in the centre of Borås (Skolgatan 5).
• Hofsnäs manor house offers Afternoon tea, Christmas table, small market hall and accommodation (Länghem).
• Firecracker country is a shopping centre in Borås with around 100 shops (Bergslenagatan 45).
• Pallas citygalleria is a modern shopping centre on the Viskan river.

More things to see and do in Borås for nature lovers

Are you most comfortable in nature? Then you'll find some more suggestions for things to do in Borås here:

• Annelund Park is a park where azaleas and rhododendrons bloom in early summer.
• Hofsnäs nature trails can be found in the Torpanäset nature reserve, where there is also a swimming area and the possibility to rent a boat or go fishing.
• Kypegården hiking trail is an 8.7 km circular trail starting from the Kypegården recreation centre.
• Sjuhäradsrundan cycle path is a 15-mile paved cycle path.
• Vänga bog offers scenic hiking and rich birdlife, half an hour from the city.

More to see and do in Borås with children

Here are some more tips for things to do in Borås with children or teenagers.

• Alidebergsbadet is a heated outdoor pool at the Borås swimming arena. (Alidelundsgatan 12)
• The Borås Pass can be purchased for 'Little Adventurer' or 'Big Adventurer' and provides discounted entry to a range of activities.
• Borås Äventyrsgolf is a minigolf course with 12 holes in the City Park (Sven Eriksonsgatan 27).
• Hop N Pop is a trampoline park with two activity zones (Enedalsgatan 10).
• Leo's playground (Alidelundinkatu 11) (in Swedish)
• City Park Baths is a family pool for all ages. (Sven Erikson Street 29)
• Upzone adventure park has activities such as high ropes course, escape game and water adventure (Vilénplan).

Where can you stay or park your motorhome?

There are of course many different hotels and other accommodation options in Borås, such as Best Western Plus Hotell or Scandic Plaza.

If you are travelling by motorhome, you can stop at Motorhome parking Astern, on Sven Eriksonsgatan 28 not far from Stadsparksbadet. The location is excellent for visiting the city and the price is quite ok (150 SEK including electricity). Otherwise, it is a slightly tricky place that slopes quite well, where you don't really understand how to stand, and where the traffic is close. There is no toilet, but ordinary small rubbish bins are available.

There is also the possibility to enrol in Borås camping, or Saltemad's campsite as it seems to be called sometimes, which is centrally located on Campinggatan 25. Just outside the city you will also find Seglora camping and holiday village.

Things to do in Borås - and more to see nearby

When you are in Västergötland, you can, of course, take the opportunity to visit Ulricehamn, Gothenburg or Varberg. It is also great to make an excursion to . Bohus Fortress or beautiful Tjolöholm Castle. If you are travelling east instead, you can take the opportunity to discover the interesting Torpa stone house, beautiful Habo church or to nice Jönköping.

More suggestions for things to do in Borås?

Have you been to Borås? How was your experience? Do you have any other good tips on what to see and do in Borås?

Facts about Borås

• Landscape: Västergötland
• County: Västra Götaland County
• Location: More than 6 miles east of Gothenburg
• District:Caroli district, Gustav Adolfs district, Brämhult district, Sandhult district, Fristad-Gingri district.
• Population: More than 113 000 in the municipality (2021)
• The name: The place name is believed to have its origins in farmhouses located on the ridge, Fäbodaråsen-Bodaråsen, eventually Borås. Today the hill is called Rya åsar.

History of Borås

• 1621: The city was founded by King Gustav II Adolf, mainly to legalise the extensive farm trade so that the Crown would receive tax revenue from the sales of the so-called 'bangers'. The traders developed their own secret language called 'månsing'.
• 1624: The trading privileges were extended to allow the people of Borås to trade wherever they wanted, as long as they had cleared the goods through customs in the town. This year also saw the establishment of the Älvsborg Regiment, based in Sjuhäradsbygden.
• 1681: A first city fire raged.
• 1669: Caroli Church was inaugurated, making it the oldest building in the city.

18th century

• 1727: A second city fire raged.
• First half of the 18th century: The town's population grew rapidly and there was a farmer's market as well as a trade in forged goods such as scissors, nails and horseshoes.
• Second half of the 18th century: Conditions deteriorated and the town faced competition from Ulricehamn.

19th century to 20th century

• 1822: A third city fire raged.
• 1827: A fourth city fire raged.
• Mid-19th century: Several cotton mills were established and the population increased.
• 1950: At the time, Borås was Sweden's ninth largest city.
• 1970s and 1980s: The textile crisis, or teko crisis, hit the city hard.