Written by Kelsey
14 Jan 2026
Over the holidays, I spent two and a half weeks in Florida. If you don’t know, Florida is warm (often unbearably hot) pretty much all year-round, including the winters. So over Christmas and New Year’s, I was enjoying soaking up the sun and 25 degrees Celsius weather. In contrast, when I came back to Sweden in early January 2026, there was snow on the ground! I’ve said before that I love snow. This is still true, but I wasn’t exactly thrilled about dragging my suitcase through the snow while trying not to slip. Little did I know, this was foreshadowing some of the inconvenience to come over the next few days!
Apparently, snowstorms are relatively uncommon in Gothenburg. From what I’ve heard from locals, snow doesn’t stick around for long. So I guess it caught everyone by surprise when 30-40cm (or 12-16 inches) of snow fell overnight! The public transportation systems weren’t exactly prepared for this amount of snow either. For the past few days, we’ve been dealing with delays and outright cancellations of certain bus and tram routes. Plus, there have been issues with real-time updating on the Västtrafik app – so it doesn’t always accurately display which lines are delayed and cancelled.
After waiting 20 minutes for my tram to arrive on January 7, I finally realized that it wasn’t coming. I had plans to meet my friend for coffee, so I just decided to walk the 30 minutes to Espresso House. As we were catching up, it dawned on us that we would probably have to walk to class the next day to deliver our final presentations. The snow wasn’t letting up, so we weren’t hopeful that the reliability of public transportation would magically improve overnight. Obviously, it’s not a good idea to miss your mandatory final presentation! So we had to come up with a backup plan.
My walk to school in a snowstorm
For my own peace of mind, I decided to walk. That way, I knew I would make it to class on time. In the end, It took me about an hour to walk around 2 miles. I’m pretty clumsy, so I had to go slowly to avoid slipping. I had a few close calls, but I didn’t end up falling! I count that as a big win! But in an area without an already-established path, I ended up soaking my pants trying to walk through knee-deep snow. By the time I got to the psychology building, my face was bright red. A mix of flushed cheeks from the cold and sweat from my many layers of clothing. But I made it to my final presentation, and that’s the most important thing!
On the bright side, it truly was a beautiful walk. Some of the areas I walked through were basically untouched aside from the path, so the snow was perfectly white. It covered everything, from the grass to the trees. I must admit, I stopped several times to take pictures of the view! Also, I realized that Gothenburg really is a walkable city. For some reason, I just assumed it was a longer walk to the psychology campus. It feels longer from the bus, I guess! While an hour walk to class probably isn’t something I would do every day, it was nice to know that it’s definitely a feasible and safe option.
So… how do I deal with snowstorms and public transport delays?
One of the most important recommendations I have is to plan ahead! If you know you have class, work, an appointment, etc. the next day, allow for extra buffer time. Plan to get to your destination earlier than normal. That way, if there are public transportation delays, you can still make it on time. Worst case scenario, if your tram or bus gets cancelled, you will have enough time to resort to your backup plan. This backup plan will likely be walking, so make sure to find out how long it will take you to walk to the location.
Be prepared to walk! This might even turn into your plan A, if you don’t feel like frustrating yourself by waiting for trams and buses that may or may not arrive. This way, your arrival time is more in your control. Plus, it can be nice to see the scenic snow. And it’s a good way to get your steps in for the day!
If you’re going to walk, I’d definitely recommend wearing layers. While it’s freezing at first, you can quickly warm up from all the movement, so it’s nice to have the option to shed a layer if needed. But make sure your feet and hands stay warm! You’ll be stepping in and through snow, so your feet can get cold, especially if snow manages to get in your shoe. Make sure to wear gloves, thermal socks, and snow appropriate shoes, like boots with good traction.
Final Takeaways
So, in the event of a snowstorm and public transportation delays, make sure to plan ahead! You might get lucky, as this didn’t affect all lines. I had some friends who were able to take public transportation as normal, without any issues! And the public transportation issues seemed to improve after a couple days, at least for the routes I was taking. While there have still been a few delays and cancellations here and there, it’s important to stay flexible and adaptable!
For me, I’ve found it helpful just to enjoy the snow to the fullest. Since this isn’t a super common occurrence, I’d rather focus on the fun parts! For example, my friend Lucille and I took this opportunity to build my first snowman! If you haven’t built a snowman- I highly recommend it. It was so much fun, and I felt like a joyful little kid. And even if I have to walk to class, I’m lucky to have a beautiful and serene walk through snow-covered parks. Living in a new country won’t be perfect all the time, so you just have to make the best of it!
