Summer Travel Fun - Pirate Ship Rides in Malmo, Sweden

There is traveling (which we do extensively for work) and there is road tripping (which we do extensively for pleasure.) It was on a road trip yesterday that we happened upon the first public voyage of the pirate ship docked at the Koggmuseet in Malmo Sweden. This medieval ship museum was having their annual Medeltiden festival, which is what we stopped in for. I am a Medieval freak so any hint of a RenFest and I am soooo there. This is a small one compared to Riddarespelen or Scarborough Faire, but it was wonderful anyway, and getting to be among the first of the general populace to ride the pirate ship was priceless.

This pirate ship was hand built by the local Viking clan. See, in Sweden there are numerous Viking guilds. These are folks who live and breath the Viking way of life on a daily basis. The clan in Malmo doesn't travel around Scandinavia as much as others, having plenty to do with the tourist trade right there at home. When a sunken Pirate Ship was discovered off the coast of Sweden they decided to recreate that wreck. They began in 1998 and the ship was ready to sail in 2002. Up until July 14, 2007 the only feet to grace its bow other than the crew were wealthy businesses who shelled out the big bucks to charter the ship for private functions. When we heard that the ship would sail for the first time for commoners, we immediately bought tickets. The tickets for the cruise were 100SEK each, or about 12 or 13 US dollars. It was soooo worth it.

Now, these folks actually built two pirate ships. A small one that has been giving tourist rides from the Koggmuseet for a few years now, and this bigger full-scale pirate ship (or Cog.) The wood they used is all oak, except for the deck itself. My Swedish is not the best so I did not understand what kind of wood they said when the crew was telling my husband and I all about it. Apparently, this pirate ship was one of about 50 operating in the Baltic area back in times Medieval. They reckon it to be one built in Poland or that area around there, and possibly flying under a German flag. It's a bit sketchy given the fact this was a wreck they used as a model, and my problems with translation. This ship is 29 meters long and is the largest known cog in the World. It was originally built in around 1390 and is possibly one of the oldest ships found to date that had cannons aboard. I do not know the width of this ship, but it is thinner than the merchant cargo ships. This was designed for speed. They were pirates, after all, and needed the extra oomph to overtake the merchant ships and then get away fast.

The Captain and crew are the men who built it and they dress to period to flesh out the experience of the ride. They don't dress the fantasy pirate garb, though. No. They dress the more real to life peasant kind of garb, which consisted of lots of pastel muslins and wool in this area of the world in that time period. I, of course, was outlandish in my black and red garb complete with black & white striped knickers. It was fun posing for all the pictures, but I think it may have annoyed the realistically dressed folks even though they mostly appeared amused by it and fawned all over me. Again, not being fluent in Swedish, it is possible they were laughing at me rather than with me...

The Pirate Ship ride lasts about an hour and takes you from the harbor in Malmo out into the Oresund a ways... pretty much to the Beach area of Malmo, and then back to the small Medieval seaside village. All the while the crew is more than happy to tell you all bout the ships and the time period. A few of them do speak some English, but naturally revert to Swedish without realizing it. Some of the flyers you can pick up for free at the entrance to the museum are in English, but they do not fully translate all of the information you can get in the Swedish flyers.

Entrance to the Koggmuseet is 11:00 -16:00 7 days a week during the summer, and closed on Mondays during the winter. The smaller cog sails a few times daily and is a free ride with entry to the museum. The big pirate ship sailed at noon on that first public voyage, but I have no idea if they will keep to that schedule or not in the future so do call ahead if you wish to feel the wind in your hair aboard the big ship and say silly things like Arrrrgh Matey!

If you are planning on traveling to the southern area of Sweden, do schedule some time in Malmo, and absolutely do look into this ride aboard this wondrous pirate ship. This is an experience you will not want to miss, and if you come in your Medieval garb, they might let you into the museum and village for free... it wasn't clear to me if that was standard policy, or if I was just special...