Borås Things to Do

My husband and I were staying in Göteborg and were heading to Borås with Henrik one day to go to a hockey game. Henrik said “Hey, want to go to the zoo? I haven’t been there since I was a kid, but it’s quite good.”, so we said “Sure, why not?”. I was very pleasantly surprised by this zoo. The layout is very free flowing and incorporated very well into the natural landscape. There are no ugly cages or animals in tiny, uncomfortable quarters. All of the outdoor animals have tons of space and seem to be quite happy, which is unfortunately not the case in lots of zoos out there. The zoo has 80 different species of animals, including lions, tigers, cheetahs, monkeys, penguins, giraffes, elephants, flamingos, moose, reindeer, seals and so much more. The two things that stand out in my mind are 1) The sea lions. They were in a natural body of water outdoors, and they seemed to be so happy, swimming around and jumping up on the dock and posing for everyone watching, and 2) The Savannah area. I’d never seen anything like this in a zoo before. It’s a very large area that has elephants, giraffes, antelopes, ostriches, rhinos, buffalo and zebras, all in the same area and all living very happily and naturally together. It was great. If you’re in Göteborg and have a spare afternoon, I highly recommend a visit to the Borås zoo. There is a restaurant, a cafe and a few souvenir shops. There is also a mini-golf course outside.

Prices and hours vary. See website.

There is one thing in the small town of Borås that is very unique and that you won’t find anywhere else; a 9m tall bronze statue of Pinocchio called Walking to Borås. The statue is by American artist Jim Dine and has been in Boras since May 2008. There was a lot of controversy in Borås surrounding this statue before it was put up, and the residents are still divided. City counselors voted in favor of the statue by a vote of 40-28. I think it’s quite interesting, a little perplexing, and a little bit fun. The giant wooden boy is standing on a grassy patch with a few benches around. Take a look, take some silly pictures and sit and contemplate this tall, tall Pinocchio.

The zoo is in situated almost in the centre of Borås, and it is the home of almost 500 animals of 80 different species. The zoo covers the area of 40 hectares and provide the animals with an almost natural habitat. The zoo's predominant focus is on the large African animals, and there are many creatures from Asia and the Nordic region too.
The zoo is one of the biggest attractions in Borås.

Borås Museum is an open-air museum situated amongst the greenery of Ramnaparken. It has various old buildings that give an insight into old building traditions and ways of life in the area. The buildings have been moved here from different areas of Sjuhärad.

Ramnaparken is situated close to the city centre, around a Ramnasjön lake. The park was created in the beginning of the 20th century. A bird colony that was established on the lake in the 1920s is one of the attractions. The park is a good place for quiet walks or jogging, close to the centre and yet the feeling is of being in the nature, away from the urban environment.

Stadsparken is centrally located and only one of many parks in Borås (known also as the Town of Parks). It was completed in 1899. Some sections of the park have remained largely unchanged since the beginning of the park. It contains a rosarium and thousands of summer flowers, and in the summer you can rent sun-chairs and pedalos, join an outdoors aerobics class or play miniature golf.

Other Borås parks include Ramnaparken close to the nearby lake, Annelundsparken which is being preserved as a mixed forest, Almåsparken with 'The Senses' as a theme, smaller Kvarnbergsparken and Krokhallsberget and larger Fjärdingsparken that offers opportunities for recreation, play and pleasure.

The building dominating the central Borås square (Stora Torget) is Rådhus (Town Hall). It was built in 1910 by architects Ivar Tengbom and Ernst Torulf.
Being a planned new town Borås also has ith birthday that is celebrated every year on 29th June in the Main Square.

The central square in Borås is Stora Torget, dominated by the Town Hall building. In front of it there is a sculpture of stone chairs, and in one part of the square there’s also a historic plan of Borås on the floor.
The buildings surrounding the square are quite recent and reflect the history of Borås characterized by great fires that destroyed much of the old town in 1681, 1727, 1822 and 1827.