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At HELSINGBORG only a narrow sound separates Sweden from Denmark; indeed, Helsingborg was Danish for most of the Middle Ages, with a castle controlling the southern regions of what is now Sweden. The town's enormously important strategic position meant that it bore the brunt of repeated attacks and rebellions, the Swedes conquering the town on six separate occasions, only to lose it back to the Danes each time. Finally, in 1710, a terrible battle saw off the Danes for the last time, and the battered town lay dormant for almost two hundred years, depopulated and abandoned. Only in the nineteenth century, when the harbour was expanded and the railway constructed, did Helsingborg find new prosperity. Today, the dramatically redeveloped harbour area has breathed new life into this likeable, relaxed town which is well worth a day's stay for its bars, cafes and cosily buzzing atmosphere. Directly south of the the North Harbour cafe-bars, the strikingly designed Henry Dunker Cultural House , named after the city's foremost industrialist benefactor, aims to provide a full vision of the city's history in context and also houses a theatre and concert hall (ask at the tourist office). East from Hamntorget and the harbours, the massive, neo-Gothic Radhus marks the bottom of Stortorget , the long thin square sloping up to the lower battlements of what's left of Helsingborg's castle, the karnan or keep (daily: April, May & Sept 9am-4pm; June-Aug 10am-7pm; Oct-March 10am-2pm; 15kr), a fourteenth-century brick tower, the only survivor from the original fortress. The views from the top are worth the entrance fee although you don't miss much from the lower (free) battlements. Off Stortorget, Norra Storgatan contains Helsingborg's oldest buildings, attractive seventeenth- and eighteenth-century merchants' houses with quiet courtyards. Apart from the Sundbussarna passenger ferry to Helsingør, which pulls up across an arm of the docks, all ferries , trains and buses arrive at Knutpunkten, the harbourside central terminal . It's just a couple of minutes' walk from here up Stortorget towards Karnen to the tourist office at Sodra Storgatan 1 (June-Aug Mon-Fri 9am-8pm, Sat & Sun 9am-5pm; Sept-May Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 10am-2pm; tel 042/10 43 50, www.visit.helsingborg.se ), which has free city maps and books private rooms at 125kr per person (plus 75kr fee). Otherwise, the cheapest of the central hotels is Linnea , Prastgatan 4 (tel 042/21 46 60; GBP15-20/$24-32), which drops prices in summer and at weekends. The Villa Thalassa youth hostel (tel 042/21 03 84; GBP10-15/$16-24; bus #7, or #44 after 7pm) is 4km north along Drottninggatan. For camping , try the waterfront site at Kustgatan Raa, 5km southeast; bus #1A or #1B from outside the Radhus. You shouldn't have any difficulty finding somewhere to eat. Lovely daytime cafes include the classic Fahlmans on Stortorget - try their apple meringue pie - and the charismatic Ebba's Fik , Bruksgatan 20, which is all decked out with authentic 1950s memorabilia. There are plenty of harbour-front bars, though the best laid-back style cafe is the gay-run K & Co , Nedre Langwinkelsgatan 9, for great muffins, cakes and ciabattas. The cheapest restaurant is the unglamorous Graffitti on the first floor at Knutpunkten. There are several good clubs , including Sweden's biggest jazz club, Jazz Klubben, Nedre Langvinkelsgatan 22 (Wed, Fri & Sat), and the noisy, popular Tivoli club, Hamntorget 11, where you can get down to the very latest sounds for a 60kr entrance.
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