Gävle Central Station stands a short drive from the city centre on the north side of the Gavleån river. The 19th-century station is impressive for a city the size of Gävle, although it has become something of a rail hub – the regular fast trains mean that Stockholm is only an hour and 20 mins away. The station faces the Central Plan Square; if you pick up a hire car from Gävle station it's easy to drive into the centre and for journeys further afield, Gävle is a useful link for road transport too. The E4, R67, R68, R76 and R80 all converge on this Norrland city.
If you pick up a hire car at Gävle Station you'll find that the visitor highlights of this busy provincial city include the historic web of narrow streets of colourful wooden houses in the old town. The Central Station may be a landmark but there's also an acclaimed Railway Museum here too. There are also rather quirky museums associated with American labour organizer Joe Hill and covering the history of prisons. A short drive out of the city you'll find the family-friendly Furuvik Park, which offers another odd mix: a small children's arcade, zoo and relics of wartime coastal defences.