Over the years we have met quite a few people who were interested in moving to Sweden, Norway or Finland after completing their hike. Not surprising: there is a lot of space and unspoiled nature, there are a lot of (professional) opportunities and in the countryside houses can be affordable.
Still… not a lot of people actually make the step of moving. Mees from The Netherlands did. After hiking the St. Olavsleden in 2023, she decided to buy a house in Sweden and start a new life. We spoke with her about this decision.
Why?
I have been fascinated by Sweden, or actually Scandinavia, for years. It has to do with nature, the peace, the space, the silence, the language and the architecture… the charm of the simple wooden houses. All of this has always attracted me. Last year was a tough year for me personally. I lost a lot and perhaps more importantly, I lost myself. I already liked to walk long distances and then I had the idea to go on a long-distance walk on my own. That seemed very relaxing to me, completely alone for a while, dependent on myself and just walking. Then I came across the St. Olavsleden. I booked the trip through Nordic Pilgrim and went walking. I loved it. I finally came back to myself, in the silence and nature. I found the contact with the hosts of the accommodations so inspiring, it made me think about wanting to run such a type of accommodation as well. The contact with the pilgrims and what they experience, their personal stories… I wanted to be part of that. At the end of the walk I was convinced that now was my time to move to Sweden. I had already lost everything, so I was free to go wherever I wanted. And how often do you experience that in your life? Especially at 40? So the timing and personal development are right now and I decided to just jump in and go!
How?
I actually just started looking for houses. I had sold my house in The Netherlands and wanted to use that money to buy something in Sweden. Something small and simple, so that I could live mortgage-free. That seemed so liberating and relaxing to me. I wanted a piece of land in the woods without a view of neighbors, completely free. I started looking south, because I had been there more often and thought that in terms of distance to The Netherlands, amount of light, climate that would be the easiest transition. I have been looking for 9 months, mainly on Hemnet and Facebook and have now bought a house. I made a bid on several houses and the fourth one is the one I bought. Along the way, the search gave me new and important insights that redirected the search. I made another trip to the Karlstad region, but still came to the conclusion that I didn’t like it because I couldn’t drive there alone in one day. And I always want to keep walking, so half a year of snow might not be for me. I drove to Sweden about five times to mainly drive around, to look and feel what really made me happy. That’s how it developed from a remote house alone in the forest to a house at the end of an asphalt road in the forest, but with neighbors at a reasonable distance. And the road is maintained and cleared of snow by the municipality. There are still some places and facilities in the area. And friends I already know in the area. All this made it right for me. I feel comfortable and safe to be able to take this step on my own.
Tips?
⁃ Really go and look multiple times, drive around, visit houses and experience what is important to you
⁃ The bidding process is quite nerve-wracking! It is difficult to estimate in advance what the price development will be during this process. So that makes it difficult to know which houses you can bid on. But simply participating in multiple bids helps to make it clearer and then you get to know the market better.
⁃ Remote sounds nice, but you also have to take the practical side into account. A cleared road in the winter is very important and a neighbor you can ask for help is also nice.
