Åland

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Some food items to look for:

• Smoked flounder with potato salad and fish dishes in general.
• Svartbröd, blackbread, as the name implies the bread is almost black. It is a round and quite flat rye bread. Its most characteristic feature is the taste. The blackbread is sweet. The sweetness originates from the treacle that is added to the dough and from the manner in which the bread is baked in the oven (baking blackbread is a time-consuming procedure). Stored cool the bread stays good for weeks, even months. It was originally used (in a less sweet version) on long fishing, hunting or seafaring expeditions.
• Cheese from the local ÅCA dairy is of high quality. The Kastelholm Cheese is particularly recommended, and works well with blackbread. Its roots can be traced back to the 16th century.
• Ålands pancake, a traditional and delicious Ålands dessert. The pancake is made from Rice or semolina porridge, flavoured with sugar, salt, cardamom powder and vanilla, and is served with stewed plums and whipped cream.

Most restaurants are in Mariehamn. Do not expect to find fast food outlets elsewhere on the islands. Some restaurants have limited hours of service and some are not open every day. Guest houses can usually arrange dinner, but you might have to book it beforehand. While ships docking at Åland offer duty-free shopping, alcohol prices on Åland itself are on par with Sweden and Finland, and the tax free prices only somewhat cheaper.

• Stallhagen Cola made by Ålands Bryggeri AB and available in most restaurants in the islands. The most common Stallhagen organic juice type is the traditional, light lager. But Stallhagen also comes in a wide range of other organic juice types with names like Dark Lager, Dunkles, Oktoberfest and Delicat. And there's no doubt where it comes from: the flag of Åland is on the label.

  This brewery also has a good lunch 10:30–14:00, around €15–20 per person including soft drinks. And, you can obtain more food if you weren't filled up with what they bring you.

• Tjudö Vineyard - GPS: - Has three own home-distillers. They distil Scandinavian Vodka from the fruits at the vineyard. The apple vodka is called Ålvados, which is a kind of Calvados. They also make soft drinks – Västergårds Äppelvin – with apples that have ripened on the farm's own trees. You can visit the vineyard, walk around among the fruit trees and see how the soft drinks is produced. The guided tour ends in the old threshing house and here you can sample the drinks directly from the soft drinks cellar.

Where to stay in Åland

There are hotels in Mariehamn, but otherwise you will probably sleep at some kind of guest house, cottage or camping site. The host can often offer activities special for the site, such as fishing trips, deer watching and game dinner or guiding at the local sight.

The right to access is not necessarily regarded to include camping on Åland, due to the islands' small size and fragile nature.

== Local Customs in Åland == Åland has its own parliament, its own executive government and is generally autonomous from Finland. The cultural legacy though is mostly Swedish.

Speaking Swedish and being a part of Finland and the people of Åland regard themselves as a separate and autonomous nation, and appreciate if you refer to them as one.

Stay Safe

Crime is unusual and on shore there are few risks.

Usual warnings apply to the sea and feasible Ice safety|sea ice.

A less obvious risk is the shore of islands close to the cruise ferry lanes: the currents caused by the ships passing are dangerous, with water quickly rising, and then withdrawing like before a tsunami (which will follow).

On the cruise ferries to and from Åland alcohol can cause problems, including drunk brawls and sexual harassment. Do not go alone with strangers to private areas unless you are sure you can trust them (and do report any serious incidents, immediately if you can and they will be taken care of).

Explore more Halal friendly Destinations from Åland

• Archipelago Sea

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