Ven: The Island Between Sweden and Denmark

Ven is an easy day trip: a train to Landskrona, a half-hour boat, then a bike or your feet. The catch is the boat, not the island. Book it, know when the last one leaves, and check the museum’s short season before you go.

When you need this

You are planning a day or a night on Ven from Malmö, Helsingborg, Lund or Copenhagen. You want to know whether to bring a car, a bike or neither, whether the Tycho Brahe Museum and the old church will be open on your date, and how full the boat gets in summer or at weekends.

The island at a glance

Ven lies in the middle of the Öresund, between the Swedish mainland and Denmark, and belongs to Landskrona municipality in Skåne. It is about 4.5 km long and 11.7 km around. SCB, the national statistics office, counted 372 registered residents at the end of 2020, the latest year in its island table.

Most of the island is farmland that ends in steep slopes down to the sea, called backafall (cliff slopes). Most of them are protected as the Vens backafall nature reserve.

It is Swedish, not Danish. Ven passed to Sweden with Skåne in the peace treaties of 1658–1660: the parish dates it to the Treaty of Roskilde (1658), the ferry operator to the Treaty of Copenhagen (1660). The currency on the island is the Swedish krona.

The boat from Landskrona

Rederi AB Ventrafiken is the only operator running the Ven boat all year, on commission from Landskrona stad and Region Skåne. Boats leave Skeppsbron in Landskrona for Bäckviken and take about 30 minutes.

The current timetable, valid until 31 December 2026, has nine departures each way. On weekdays the first boat leaves Landskrona at 06:05; the last leaves at 21:30. The last boat from Ven is at 20:55 (not on New Year’s Eve), so a late dinner on the island means a night there. Six extra departures each way ran in summer 2026, from 27 June to 16 August.

Booking and queues

The operator’s own advice is blunt: unbooked passengers can wait a long time for a boat, in either direction. There are two queues, bokad kö (booked queue) and obokad kö (unbooked queue), plus a commuter lane.

• Book and pay at the same time, online or at the ticket office in the Landskrona terminal. Staff can help by phone but cannot take payment by phone.
• Payment is taken online through a payment provider and on card terminals in the terminal; the terms do not mention cash.
• Every passenger needs a ticket, including children aged 0–5, who travel free.
• Be in the booked queue 10 minutes before departure, or 15 minutes with a vehicle. Boarding closes 2 minutes before departure; after that the booking lapses.
• A booked ticket also works on other departures that day, but only from the unbooked queue.
• Changes and cancellations are free more than 7 days ahead; closer to the day, there is no refund.

Skånetrafiken tickets on the boat

Skånetrafiken’s single, 24-hour, 72-hour and Flex tickets are not valid on the boat. A 30-day ticket bought in the app, with a zone covering both harbors, is. Öresund Runt, senior, summer and youth tickets give no discount. For how Skåne’s zones work, see the Skåne public transport guide.

Service break this autumn

From 21 September to 2 October 2026 the larger ferry, M/S Uraniborg, is out of service for maintenance and certification; it returns on 2 October at 14:15. The timetable stays the same, but capacity is lower, so book. The next break is planned for two weeks in mid-March 2027.

Getting to Skeppsbron

Take the train to Landskrona; Öresundståg stops there (see the Öresundståg guide). Evening and night track works between Landskrona and Helsingborg run to 29 October and on 2–6 November 2026, when some trains skip Landskrona and buses replace others. From the station, a trolleybus runs to its last stop, Skeppsbron, right at the terminal. By car, follow the ferry-symbol signs from Landskrona S. The operator has no parking; Landskrona stad’s car parks next to the terminal include 3-day and 7-day areas.

Car, bike or bus

You can take a car: 750 kronor each way, driver not included, and vehicle spaces open for booking only 30 days ahead. But the operator itself says Ven is not suited to driving, and the municipality suggests leaving the car on the mainland.

Most visitors bike or walk. Bike hire is by Bäckviken harbor and runs all year; bringing your own costs 80 kronor each way. Skånetrafiken buses meet the boats and run between Bäckviken and Kyrkbacken. On the bus, buy a ticket in the app before you go (mobile coverage on the island is patchy, but an app ticket can be activated without it) or tap a bank card on board. Other options on the island include a tractor-drawn wagon, horse and cart, and golf-cart hire.

Dogs and prams travel free. Pets must be leashed or in a cage or bag and are not allowed in the ships’ pet-free saloons; guide dogs are always welcome. You may not drink your own alcohol or smoke on board.

Tycho Brahe Museum

The Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, born in 1546 at Knutstorp in Skåne, made his name with the new star in Cassiopeia in 1572. The Danish king granted him Ven in return for building an observatory. In the late 1500s he built the castle Uraniborg, the underground observatory Stjerneborg and a Renaissance garden in the middle of the island. He left Denmark after a dispute with the court in 1597 and died in Prague on 24 October 1601.

The Tycho Brahe Museum, run by Landskrona stad, stands on the site. It is housed in Allhelgonakyrkan, Ven’s newer church, inaugurated in 1899 and deconsecrated in 2003. The reconstructed garden holds 200 garden plants known in the 1500s, and the museum has reconstructed Tycho’s instruments.

Check the season first. The museum’s published hours for 2026 are Saturdays and Sundays in September, 09:30–14:00, and no later dates are listed. Booked groups are received all year. On open days a 45-minute guided tour starts at 11:15, included in the entry price, with no booking; the Stjärneborg observatory show is not part of it and costs a 20-kronor supplement.

S:t Ibbs kyrka and the Backafall cliffs

S:t Ibbs kyrka, the old church from the 1200s, stands on top of Kyrkbacken with a view over the Sound. It is the only one of Ven’s two churches still in use, and its altarpiece, painted in 1578, was a gift from Tycho Brahe. It opens daily in May–August (1–15 May 13:00–16:00; 15 May – 9 August weekdays 11:00–16:00, holidays 13:00–16:00; 10–31 August 13:00–16:00), and otherwise only for services and by arrangement.

The backafall are up to 30–40 m high, with bare rockfall slopes and scrub. The reserve holds one of Sweden’s largest sand-lizard populations, and sand martins nest in the eroded slopes. Tycho Brahe’s paper mill stood by the Möllebäcken stream, inside the reserve. The county board advises seeing the cliffs from the cycle path along the top and keeping away from the edges. The small harbor museum at Kyrkbacken shows clinker-built wooden boats on summer weekends, 13:00–15:00.

Walking, cycling and camping

Skåneleden’s Ven round (SL5 Öresund, stage 9A) is 12 km, mostly along the coast; see Skåneleden for the wider trail. Avoid the coastal path to and from Norreborg harbor on the east side, which has a landslide risk; the municipality points walkers to Götevägen or Fyrvägen/Mossvägen instead.

Camping is the one place where Ven’s rules are strict. Tents are allowed only at the campsite, because large parts of the island are nature reserve. Inside the Vens backafall reserve you may not:

Much of the island is open from mid-June to mid-August; outside that, check opening times before you go. There is no cash machine on Ven, but most businesses take cards. Maps are available from Ventrafiken and the island’s InfoPoints, and defibrillators are at the Bäckviken ferry terminal, Norreborg harbor office, the Kyrkbacken service building and the Tycho Brahe Museum, among other places.

Mistakes to avoid

• Arriving at Skeppsbron in July without a booking.
• Buying a Skånetrafiken single or 24-hour ticket for the boat.
• Taking the car for a day trip on an island the operator says is not suited to driving.
• Planning the Tycho Brahe Museum for a weekday or after September.
• Leaving the booked queue until the last minute.
• Walking the Norreborg coastal path.

Practical information

FAQ

How do I get to Ven?

Take the train to Landskrona, then the trolleybus from the station to its last stop at Skeppsbron, where Ventrafiken’s terminal is. The boat to Bäckviken on Ven runs all year and takes about 30 minutes, with nine departures each way in the current timetable. Book online in advance, because unbooked passengers travel only if there is space.

How much is the ferry to Ven?

In the price list valid from 1 May 2026 to 30 April 2027, an adult pays 99 kronor one way and a child aged 6–16 pays 49 kronor. Children up to five travel free but still need a ticket. A return family ticket for two adults and up to four children costs 494 kronor. A bike is 80 kronor each way.

Can I take my car to Ven?

Yes, but it costs 750 kronor each way, driver not included, and vehicle spaces open for booking only 30 days ahead. The operator itself says Ven is not suited to driving and suggests parking in Landskrona and using a bike or the bus instead. The island is about 4.5 km long, so most visitors cycle or walk.

Is the Tycho Brahe Museum open?

In 2026 the museum’s published hours are Saturdays and Sundays in September, 09:30–14:00, and no later dates are listed; groups can book guided tours all year. Adults pay 120 kronor and children up to 12 enter free with a guardian. A 45-minute guided tour at 11:15 is included in the entry price.

Do I need a passport to go to Ven?

Ven is Swedish territory, not Danish: it passed to Sweden with Skåne in the peace treaties of 1658–1660. The Landskrona boat runs between two Swedish harbors, Skeppsbron and Bäckviken, and Swedish kronor are the island’s currency. Bring the ID you would carry anywhere in Sweden; the museum, for example, asks for it before giving student or pensioner prices.

Can I camp on Ven?

Only at the campsite. The municipality says tents are allowed only there because large parts of the island are nature reserve, and the Vens backafall reserve rules ban camping and parking caravans or motorhomes. Fires are allowed only on bare ground by the shore inside the reserve, so plan a stove or a campsite stay.

How long does it take to cycle round Ven?

The Skåneleden round-the-island route is 12 km, mostly along the coast, so a relaxed ride takes a few hours with stops. Keep to the path along the top of the cliffs, stay away from the edges, and avoid the coastal path by Norreborg harbor, which has a landslide risk. Bikes can be hired all year by the harbor.

Related guides

• Skåne: Sweden’s continental south — the region around Landskrona and Ven.
• Helsingborg travel guide — the Öresund city just north of Landskrona.
• Öresundståg — the train to Landskrona, with its autumn track works.
• Cycling in Sweden — rules of the road before you ride the island.
• Malmö travel guide — the southern Öresund city, a common base for the trip.

Other islands: the Stockholm archipelago and the Koster Islands on the west coast. For a swim on the way, see Swedish beaches.

Facts verified 2026-09-25. Sources: Rederi AB Ventrafiken, Landskrona stad, Tycho Brahe-museet, Länsstyrelsen Skåne, SCB, Svenska kyrkan Landskrona församling, Skånetrafiken, Öresundståg — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.