Falsterbo: the Swedish Riviera

If you’ve seen the Scandi-noir TV crime series The Bridge you’ll be familiar with the remarkable feat of engineering that links Sweden and Denmark across the Öresund strait. Like me, you might have been chilled to the core by some of the gruelling scenes set in nearby waterside locations – and may even be under the impression this particular stretch of coastline is a bit grim. Not so, as I recently discovered. In fact, just south of here lies one of the most desirable destinations in Sweden, popular with families, weekenders and the telecommuting Stockholm elite, who pack up their lives and decamp to the coast for the entire summer.

Forty minutes south of Malmö and with clear views to the bridge, the mermaid-shaped Falsterbo peninsula marks the far southwestern tip of Sweden and is home to a couple of Skåne’s prettiest beach towns. Often referred to as the Swedish Riviera, the twin medieval hotspots of Falsterbo town and its northern neighbour Skanör sit behind a six-mile arc of chalk white sand backing onto grassy dunes, intermittent Scotch pine woods and quiet residential streets lined with a harmonious mix of contemporary and traditional houses, all unfailingly stylish and well-tended.

Around 150 species and up to three million birds are counted at Falsterbo each autumn. Leaving the far north and flying over land, the Baltic sea is the first major hurdle in their journey back to the tropics and the narrow promontory marks the end of the coastline they’ve been following for days, serving as a natural rest stop. Nabben is the most popular nature reserve for viewing the migration, and though you’ll be able to tick off scores of different species here, the superstars are the birds of prey. Late summer sees the arrival of those travelling furthest – ospreys, honey-buzzards, peregrine falcons and marsh harriers among others – followed predominantly by sparrowhawks in September then red kites and buzzards in October; sometimes up to several thousand per day.