Borrby – Book Town, Nature Trails and Culture

Borrby combines a distinctive book culture with a varied landscape. Borrby Backar borders the northern edge of the village directly and forms a mosaic landscape of ridges, small bodies of water, pastures and groups of deciduous woodland. There is also Borrby Bokby, Sweden’s first book town. If you would like to combine nature trails, culture and local experiences on your trip, Borrby offers several clearly distinct focal points for this.

Landscape and trails around Borrby

Borrby Backar is used for walks and other outdoor activities and is home to a rich variety of wildlife. Several different trail experiences complement this landscape: Sisselastigen was established in 1989 in an east–west direction, from Scoutstugan to Skolan. The former railway embankment in Borrby Backar is used as a nature trail. A trail with good views of wetlands and the cultural landscape has also been established around Odensjön.

There is also a beach in the area surrounding the village: Kyls strandbad / Borrby strand, with white, fine-grained sand, is located close to Borrby. This means that you can take different landscape themes into account when choosing accommodation – from the ridges and wetlands to the beach nearby.

Book town, cinema and historic sites

Borrby Bokby is the cultural centre for everyone who appreciates books and local literature. Ten booksellers are part of the shared Bokhuset. It offers books in all genres, as well as works by many local authors. The facility also includes the Läslyckan children’s corner, where children can read, draw and play. Bokhuset was open year-round from Thursday to Sunday, 1–5 p.m.

The village’s distinctive stories also include the legendary sacrificial site Sankta Sisselas källa in Borrby. Borrby S:ta Maria kyrka was built in 1841 on the site of an older church dating from 1123. Borrby Biograf is located in one of Sweden’s oldest surviving buildings used exclusively for cinema operations. Its programme included feature films, documentaries, art films and concerts; Borrby Biograf also offers film screenings.

Sisselas kapell also adds to the village’s historic and artistic character. The chapel has leaded-glass windows that were created at the same time as the windows in Borrby kyrka. Above the altar hangs a textile patchwork appliqué by Borrby artist Cilla Sjöberg. Borrby kyrka also has distinctive windows from 1910 and 1912, which constitute a significant artistic treasure.

Galleries, ceramics and pasta courses

Borrby has several specific addresses for art and crafts. Galerie Blå Kossan is located at Köpmangatan 22. Lerbruket Borrby is a ceramics workshop and shop at Köpmangatan 16. Galleri Ray is located at Timmergatan 3 in Borrby. Visual artist Birgit Ray works with oils, watercolours and pencil.

Pastahantverket uses local ingredients from Österlen in its courses and pasta-making classes. It teaches participants how to make several types of pasta within a few hours, even with little prior knowledge. This complements the cultural and landscape themes with a specific culinary experience.

Connections to Simrishamn and Ystad

Borrby has frequent bus connections to Simrishamn, 17 kilometres to the northeast, and to Ystad, 20 kilometres to the west. This orientation provides an additional point of reference when choosing a holiday destination and comparing Borrby with other destinations and excursions in the surrounding area.

If you would like to compare Borrby with other travel destinations, you can also look at Brantevik, Rörum, Gladsax, Kivik, Hammenhög, Simrishamn V, Sankt Olof and Simrishamn.

Back to the main travel overview: Simrishamn.