Just 25 miles north of Faro lies the most isolated island in the Baltic, Gotska Sandon. It is  one of Sweden’s national parks and features a unique landscape of deserted, constantly changing sandy beaches and dunes, pine forests and a rich flora. There are migratory birds, unusual beetles, but only one mammal, the hare. The island became a national park in 1909.

Gotska Sandon has been inhabited since the dawn of civilization, although the population has never been large. Colonies of grey seals led seal hunters to settle on the island and the dangerous waters offshore attracted wreck plunderers. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries sheep were grazed here and later crops were grown. As recently as the 1950s a few lighthouse keepers and their families lived here, but now the lighthouse is automated and the only permanent resident is a caretaker.

There is no harbour and regular boat traffic from Faro or Nynashamn is infrequent and dependent on the weather. It is possible to camp or stay in a shared sleeping hut or cottage. Accommodation must be looked before arrival.