Great Continental Railway Journeys

Michael Portillo sets out on a scenic rail journey covering roughly a thousand miles in total, on this extensive route. He travels from Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, to the remote town of Abisko situated within the Arctic Circle's northern reaches.

Stockholm to the Arctic Circle is a television programme presented as a single episode within a travel‑focused series. It falls under the genre of a travel‑oriented episode, and the title itself signals the geographical stretch that the show will cover, moving from Sweden’s capital city up to the edge of the Arctic region. The episode follows presenter Michael Portillo as he sets out on a rail adventure that spans roughly a thousand miles. Beginning his journey in Stockholm, he boards the train and heads northward, travelling the length of Sweden until he reaches the town of Abisko, which lies inside the Arctic Circle. Throughout the trip, the programme captures the changing landscape as the train moves away from the urban environment of the capital and into increasingly remote and northern terrain. The route showcases the varied scenery that characterises the Swedish countryside, ultimately arriving at the far‑northern reaches where the Arctic Circle is crossed. By the end of the episode, viewers have seen Portillo’s progress along this extensive railway line, witnessing the distance covered and the shift in surroundings from the south‑central parts of Sweden to the Arctic frontier at Abisko.