Dalarna is the Sweden of Dala horses, maypoles and falu-red cottages. Here’s how the county splits into three very different areas, what the three headline sights are like to visit, and how to get around without guesswork.
When you need this
You’re deciding whether Dalarna fits your Sweden trip, and whether to base yourself in Falun or around Lake Siljan. Maybe you want “folklore Sweden” — Midsummer, Dala horses, folk costume — and need to know where it actually happens. Or you’re planning a winter trip to Sälen, Idre or Vasaloppet, want to know when Falu Gruva, Carl Larsson-gården and the Zorn collections are open, or need to get around by bus and train.
Three Dalarnas in one county
Dalarnas län (Dalarna county) covers 28,172 km² of land, about 6.9% of Sweden, and had 286,249 inhabitants in mid-2026 across 15 municipalities. Falun (about 60,000) and Borlänge (about 51,000) are the two biggest; Mora has about 20,000. The county board sits in Falun.
For planning, think of it as three areas:
| Area | Towns | What it is for a visitor |
|---|---|---|
| Southern Dalarna | Falun, Borlänge, Sundborn | World Heritage mining town, Carl Larsson-gården, Dalarnas museum; the main rail hub |
| Siljan | Leksand, Rättvik, Mora, Orsa, Nusnäs | The lake, Midsummer villages, the Zorn collections, Dala horses, the Vasaloppet finish |
| The fjäll (mountains) of the north-west | Sälen, Idre, Särna | Ski resorts, the Vasaloppet start, Fulufjället National Park |
Distances decide the trip. By our own routing measurement (pure driving time), Stockholm–Falun is 223 km, about 3 h 10 min, and Stockholm–Mora 308 km, about 4.5 hours. Falun–Mora is 87 km, about 1.5 hours; Mora–Sälen 92 km, also about 1.5 hours; Mora–Idre 152 km. Pick one base per area rather than day-tripping everything from one hotel.
The far north-west is also part of Sápmi, the Sámi homeland, which in Sweden runs from Idre northward.
Falun and Sundborn
Falu Gruva and the World Heritage site
Falun’s copper mine at Stora Kopparberget, together with the town and the mining landscape around it, has been a World Heritage site since 2001. In the mid-1600s the mine produced two-thirds of the world’s copper; the oldest surviving document about it dates from 1288.
Falu Gruva is open all year, about 1 km on foot from Falun’s train and bus stations. Guided underground tours run almost daily and take about an hour. Be ready for the physical side: the tour covers 750 m down to 67 m, with about 400 steps, and everyone must be able to leave by emergency stairs, so it is not accessible. The minimum age is three, children under 12 go with an adult, and pets stay above ground.
If the mine tour isn’t for you, you still get a lot. Every ticket includes the walk round Stora Stöten — the open pit, about 95 m deep and 1.6 km round, formed by a collapse at Midsummer 1687 in which nobody died because the miners had the day off — plus the viewing tower that opened in 2025, the historic buildings and the World Heritage House films. The mine museum is step-free with ramps and a lift, and a 30-minute film stands in for the tour.
Check the day before you go. From 28 September to 30 April the visitor centre is closed on Mondays and the museum opens only at weekends and in school holidays; from 1 May to the end of September the museum is open daily. Prices vary by season and tour and are shown in the booking. Parking costs 20 SEK a day in June–August and is free the rest of the year.
Dalarnas museum in Falun holds probably the world’s largest collection of Dala horses.
Carl Larsson-gården in Sundborn
The artist couple Carl and Karin Larsson’s home, Lilla Hyttnäs, stands in the village of Sundborn, 13 km (about 15 minutes by car) from Falun. The house can only be seen on a guided tour of 45–50 minutes, and pre-booking is recommended.
| Season | Guided house tours |
|---|---|
| 1 May – 30 September | Daily, in Swedish, 10:00–17:00; English, German, French, Hungarian, Finnish or Dutch on request |
| 1 October – 30 April | Weekdays 11:00 (Swedish); weekends 13:00 (Swedish) and 14:15 (English) |
The garden is free during opening hours. Inside, no photography, and no large bags, backpacks, umbrellas or ice-grips. The house has high thresholds and a staircase, so it isn’t suitable for wheelchairs, rollators or pushchairs; the garden is mostly passable. Buses 234 and 235 run from Falun on weekdays only — at weekends, plan a taxi, bike or car.
Siljan: Leksand, Rättvik, Mora
Lake Siljan lies in the Siljansringen, the trace of a meteorite impact 377 million years ago that made one of the world’s largest craters, 52 km across, according to the Geological Survey of Sweden. The regional Siljan rail line runs through Leksand, Tällberg and Rättvik to Mora.
Leksand has a public Midsummer anyone can join: the municipality runs central Leksand’s celebration in an open area called Gropen, with around 30,000 visitors. It is an evening event: in 2026 the church boats left at 19:00, so plan your return if you’re on the train. And it isn’t just one evening — about 90 villages around Leksand celebrate, from a week before the Midsummer weekend and through much of the summer. Midsummer Eve is Friday 25 June in 2027. Our Midsummer events guide has the details.
Rättvik has a heritage farm (gammelgård) whose grounds, with a maypole ground, are always open.
Mora is the Vasaloppet finish and home of the Zorn collections. The artist couple Anders and Emma Zorn gave almost everything they owned to the Swedish state — some 60 buildings and nearly 20,000 objects, including 180 Rembrandt etchings.
| Zorn site | Winter 2026/27 (31 Aug – 4 Jun) | Summer 2027 (5 Jun – 5 Sep) |
|---|---|---|
| Zornmuseet | Tuesday–Sunday 11:00–17:00, Mondays closed | Daily 9:00–17:00 |
| Zorngården (the Zorns’ home) | Guided tours only: Tue–Fri 13, 14, 15; Sat–Sun 12–15; at least one English tour a day | Daily tours from 9:30 |
Parts of Zornmuseet are closed for rehanging until 28 November 2026, with reduced admission. The museum is cashless, and Zorngården allows no photography inside and has limited places, so book ahead.
Nusnäs, a village near Mora, is where the Dala horse tradition lives on. Forest workers around Mora carved the first horses in the 1700s; the painted kurbits pattern came in the 1830s, and a giant red horse at the 1939 New York World’s Fair made it a national symbol. See our Swedish souvenirs guide for the craft.
The mountains: Sälen, Idre, Särna
The north-west is ski country. Sälen’s Lindvallen lifts are planned to open on 4 December 2026, the other Sälen areas on 11 December; Idre’s regular winter season runs 19 December 2026 – 4 April 2027, all subject to snow. Our skiing in Sweden guide and cross-country skiing guide go deeper.
Vasaloppet, 90 km from Sälen to Mora, is on 7 March 2027. This time the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Falun run 24 February – 7 March 2027, the same fortnight, so two major events compete for beds and transport: book as early as you can.
Near Särna, Fulufjället National Park has Njupeskär, at 93 m with a 70 m free fall the waterfall with the highest free fall in Sweden, about 25 km west of Särna.
If you drive, winter tyres are required from 1 December to 31 March whenever there are winter road conditions, foreign cars included. See winter driving in Sweden.
Getting around
- Trains: the regional line runs Borlänge–Leksand–Rättvik–Mora; line 50 runs Mora–Borlänge–Sala (current timetable valid to 12 December 2026). Plan through-journeys in a journey planner — see train travel in Sweden.
- Buses: Dalatrafik runs them. Buy most tickets on board with a Visa or Mastercard card or a reskassa (travel card), or in the app (Swish, card or Klarna invoice). Cash is not among the listed payment methods.
- Halved fares? Not for you: Dalatrafik’s halved 2026 prices cover 30-day tickets bought 1 July – 2 December 2026, not single or 24-hour tickets.
- To Fulufjället: line 396 runs Mora–Älvdalen–Särna; flex line 785 continues to Njupeskär on Mondays and Thursdays and must be booked by phone at least three hours ahead.
- Ski season: a train to Mora with a connecting bus to Sälen runs on Saturdays 19 December 2026 – 10 April 2027; seasonal coaches from Stockholm (via Rättvik) and Gothenburg reach Sälen and Idre 17 December 2026 – 11 April 2027.
- Summer: Inlandsbanan runs north from Mora (daily 15 June – 12 August in 2026).
- By air: Mora’s state-procured route to Arlanda runs under a contract ending 26 October 2027, and Trafikverket proposed in March 2026 not to renew it. See domestic flights.
Season by season
| When | What’s on |
|---|---|
| December – April | Ski season in Sälen and Idre; winter tyres in winter conditions |
| 24 Feb – 7 Mar 2027 | Falun World Championships; Vasaloppet 7 March |
| 1 May – 30 September | Carl Larsson-gården daily tours; Falu Gruva museum daily |
| Midsummer (Eve 25 June 2027) | Leksand’s Gropen and the villages, from a week before |
| 5 June – 5 September 2027 | Zorn sites on summer hours |
| Mid-June – mid-August | Inlandsbanan from Mora |
| 28 September – 30 April | Falu Gruva centre closed Mondays; museum weekends and holidays |
Practical information
| Item | Details (checked 2026-09-25) |
|---|---|
| Falu Gruva tickets | Prices vary by season and tour — shown in the operator’s booking |
| Falu Gruva parking | 20 SEK/day June–August; free otherwise |
| Carl Larsson-gården tour | Adult 265 SEK; 6–16 75 SEK; under 6 free; family (2+2) 605 SEK; garden free |
| Zornmuseet | Adult 125 SEK (65 SEK reduced to 28 November 2026); under 18 free; cashless |
| Zorngården tour | Adult 150 SEK; under 18 75 SEK |
| Dalatrafik fares | Zone-based; check the operator |
FAQ
Where is Dalarna in Sweden?
Dalarna is a county in central Sweden, north-west of Stockholm, reaching from Falun and Borlänge in the south-east to the mountains at Sälen and Idre in the north-west. Falun is about 223 km and three hours’ drive from Stockholm, Mora about 308 km and four and a half hours. It covers about 7% of Sweden’s land and has about 286,000 people.
Is Falun or Mora the better base?
It depends on what you want to see. Falun suits the World Heritage copper mine, Carl Larsson-gården in Sundborn and Dalarnas museum. Mora, at the end of the Siljan rail line, suits the Zorn collections, the Dala horse village of Nusnäs and the Vasaloppet finish. They are 87 km apart, about 1.5 hours by car, so many visitors split their stay.
Can you visit the Falun copper mine?
Yes, Falu Gruva is open all year, about 1 km from Falun’s train station. Guided underground tours run almost daily and take about an hour: 750 m of walking down to 67 m, with about 400 steps, from age three. The tour is not wheelchair-accessible, but the mine museum is, and a 30-minute film replaces the tour. Stora Stöten’s walk and tower are included.
How do you visit Carl Larsson-gården?
Carl Larsson-gården is in Sundborn, 13 km from Falun, and the house can only be seen on a guided tour of about 45 minutes. From May to September tours run daily 10:00–17:00; in winter there are fewer, including an English weekend tour at 14:15. An adult ticket was 265 SEK at our check. The garden is free. Weekday buses 234 and 235 run from Falun.
When is the best time to visit Dalarna?
For folklore, come at Midsummer, when Leksand’s villages raise maypoles from a week before the Eve through much of the summer. For winter sport, come December to April for Sälen and Idre, or early March for Vasaloppet. Late February to 7 March 2027 is unusually busy because the Falun World Championships overlap Vasaloppet, so book early.
Can you get around Dalarna without a car?
Partly. Regional trains run the Siljan line through Leksand and Rättvik to Mora, and Dalatrafik buses reach smaller places; pay on board with Visa or Mastercard or use the app, as cash is not mentioned. Remote spots are harder: buses to Sundborn run only on weekdays, and the Fulufjället flex bus must be booked by phone three hours ahead.
Related guides
- Midsummer events — where visitors can join in, with Leksand and Rättvik in detail.
- Vasaloppet — the 2027 race week, entries and getting to the start.
- Fulufjället and Njupeskär — the national park in Dalarna’s north-west.
- Skiing in Sweden — Sälen and Idre among the resorts.
- Other regions: Småland and Bohuslän and the West Coast.
Facts verified 2026-09-25. Sources: Riksantikvarieämbetet, SGU, SCB, Länsstyrelsen Dalarna, Dalatrafik, Transportstyrelsen, Trafikverket, Sveriges nationalparker, Leksands kommun, Mora kommun, Dalarnas museum, Falu Gruva, Carl Larsson-gården, Zornsamlingarna, Tåg i Bergslagen, Vasaloppet, Destination Inlandsbanan, OSRM route measurements — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.