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Plus France by classic French car, have a go at canoeing, and a gorgeous boutique hotel in Edinburgh available for parties
Preview: The new Abba Museum, Stockholm
If there's any doubt about whether Sweden is excited about the opening of its Abba museum next week (it has historically been a bit sniffy about its biggest export) it is dispelled as soon as you enter baggage reclaim at Stockholm airport.
A three-metre high photograph of Benny, Björn, Agnetha and Anni-Frid kicks off a Swedish hall of fame that lines the arrivals hall (including Björn Borg, Ingrid Bergman and pop duo Roxette), and song titles grace the luggage carousels.
If you're looking for an excuse to visit one of Scandinavia's loveliest cities, this could be it. The museum chronicles the group from the day Benny met Björn at a folk festival via the 1974 Eurovision contest that launched them, to the present, post-Mamma Mia! day.
There are costumes, artefacts (including Björn Ulvaeus's star-shaped guitar), interactive stuff, photo and reproductions of important places, such as the cottage where they wrote several hits. And, of course, there's the joyful music.
"We took it dead seriously," said Björn, slim, neat and twinkly, when I met him at a preview last week. "But everything else was tongue in cheek."
Adjoining the museum is a new boutique hotel, Melody (melody.se), whose restaurant serves the best rye bread I've ever eaten. The site is on one of Stockholm's 14 islands, Djurgården: reached by ferry, or a five-minute tram ride from the centre, where I spent the morning trying not to spend too much at design stores Illums Bolighus and Acne.
There is plenty to see around the museum, too. Gröna Lund (gronalund.com) is a wonderfully old-school fairground, founded in 1883, that adds a new ride each year. And Skansen (skansen.se) is an open-air museum filled with old Swedish buildings. It's unexpectedly interesting, and its vintage restaurant is superb.
By singing loudly about Abba, Stockholm is set to attract a new set of visitors. Gimme, gimme, gimme …
• Abba the Museum (abbathemuseum.com) opens 7 May, adults SEK 195 (£19.25), children eight-15 £14.30, under-eights £5. The trip was provided by Visit Stockholm (visitstockholm.com/en). The Clarion Hotel Sign (+46 8 676 9800, clarionsign.com) has an Abba the Museum package, including two tickets and a night in a double room with breakfast, from £176, based on two sharing. Flights were provided by SAS (flysas.co.uk) which flies from Heathrow to Stockholm from £146 return
Hannah Booth
What's new?
Accommodation
A gorgeous Victorian building in Edinburgh, Murrayfield House, has opened as a hotel. But the entire property, sleeping 22, is also available to rent. Vintage furniture from India sits alongside quirky features such as TVs hidden behind dressing table mirrors, and jars of teacakes and macaroons. Parties renting the whole place will have the run of the garden and house, and their own staff.
• Doubles £135 a night B&B, whole house £1,495 (£68pp), 0131-347 1844, themurrayfieldhouse.co.uk
French road trip
RétroScapade is offering brightly coloured, convertible Citroën 2CVs, plus vintage Ami 8s and Renault 4Ls, for hire in the Ardennes region of France, for day, weekend or week-long tours. Packages with accommodation, picnics and guided tours are also available. The cars can be delivered to hotels or train stations, or collected at the Domaine de la Motte holiday village, close to the Belgian border.
•retroscapade.com, from €99 for four hours
Canoe week
National Go Canoeing Week (18-26 May) will see more than 400 canoe and kayak clubs encouraging people to take up the activity. There will be demo days, starter sessions and new canoe trails for experienced paddlers, with many activities free or discounted.
• gocanoeing.org.uk/go/index.cfm/national-go-canoeing-week
Glampwatch
Visitors to the Hay Festival (23 May-2 June) have a new accommodation option in Blue Bell Tents, a glampsite by the river Wye. The tents sleep two or four and have beds, duvets, carpets, lamps and side tables. The site has hot showers, and Home-Cooked Hampers can provide all meals.
• Available at eight other UK festivals, from £85 a night, 07710 244732, (bluebelltents.com)