Skarø
Skarø is a little gem in the South Funen archipelago, which to that extent is worth an island hop!
You reach the island via a 35-minute voyage with the ferry Højestene, which departs several times daily from Svendborg.
We visited the island during our stay at Thorséng Nature Resort in May 2021 and it is our experience you can read about below.
Great taste experiences
Skarø is a very small island, and there is not really that much to see, apart from the church and of course the beautiful nature. You can walk to it all and experience most of the island in a few hours.
No, it's actually the eateries that are the island's major attractions. On the island you will find Café Sommersild and Skarø Ice Cream, and we might as well reveal it right away; this little island saves on some great tasting experiences!
Café Sommersild
Café Sommersild is one of the first things you encounter when you get off the ferry from Svendborg.
Here you come to a cozy little country house, Strandgaarden, owned by Gitte and Kristian Loftlund, and where the café is located.
We arrived before the big lunch-rykind, and it gave us the opportunity to get a tour of Gitte. Here she told about the many offers they have on the island, because you can rent SUP-boards, go to the sauna at the water's edge and spend the night, but more about that later. Back to the cafe.
After the tour, we ordered the café's new lunch plate, which consisted of a dish with homemade lakerilette, chicken liver pâté, crispy salad, new potatoes with herb mayo and home-baked bread. In addition, we got a Skarø Pale Ale brewed at Svendborgsund Bryghus:
If you thought it looked like a million, then you should just try to put your teeth into the cases. It was just so fresh and tasted absolutely adventurous!
Such taste experiences are only worth the boat trip to Skarø. Thank you Gitte and Kristian!
After licking both the plate and a little sun, it was time to travel on to the island's next taste experience, the locally famous Skarø Ice Cream.
Skarø Is
Just a stone's throw from Café Sommersild is Skarø Ice Cream, which houses an ice cream café, bistro and grocery store. Really cozy.
In the shop we are greeted by the owner Martin Jørgensen, who has just finished an ice cream tasting for a group of school children.
We order an ice cream, and since the other guests who came with the morning ferry have already received, there is time for us to sit down with Martin and hear more about the place, the history and the ice cream.
However, one does not have to talk to Martin for long to find out that he is much more than an ice maker in Outlying Denmark. Martin became an ice cream producer by chance, when he actually researched the positive effects of birch sap on allergies etc. To make the juice taste good, fruit had to be added and to preserve the juice, it had to be frozen, and what do you have then?
You guessed it. Ice.
And what does that mean for you?
Yes, this means that with Skarø Ice Cream you get the pure, natural product, as far as possible with the island's ingredients including birch sap and sugar seaweed. The ice cream is thus organic and completely without additives. Delicious!
The talk with Martin is so exciting that we end up getting a tour of the production and learning about the latest new initiatives.
Subsequently, we are presented with a blind tasting of different ice creams:
We guess at all sorts of different types of chocolate ice cream, but it turns out we’ve tasted the new protein ice creams.
Normally, consuming a high-protein diet is associated with bad taste and discomfort, but with the recent development of production, Martin has made an ice cream where one does not even notice it. The proteinaceous ice cream can i.a. help reduce infant mortality in pregnant women! Wildly exciting - and not least really tasty!
We also taste the latest development of the production apparatus, which has just received a huge upgrade. We have to spare you the nerdy details, but we taste a sorbet ice cream from before and after. The result is absolutely wild, because with the older sorbet you can feel and taste that it is sorbet. But with a taste of the same ice cream of more recent date, the sorbet has become really creamy and full-bodied like an ice cream!
The call from here is therefore quite clear. You should not just taste Skarø Ice Cream. You should also try their sorbet ice cream in 2021 and beyond. It tastes heavenly and contains only calories equivalent to a slice of rye bread!
The whole talk with Martin is so engrossing that we almost arrive late to our ferry. However, we reach it straight, and on the way back to the mainland we talk about how amazing the visit has been.
Accommodation on Skarø
Well enough, Skarø can be experienced in 2-4 hours, and that is also how we did. But there is actually plenty of reason to stay and spend the night on Skarø, and enjoy nature and the peace and quiet that is here.
At Café Sommersild you can both pitch a tent or rent one of their cozy cabins through AirBnB:
With an overnight stay, you can wave goodbye to the last ferry and the last tourists of the day and almost have the island to yourself.
Now you can throw yourself in the hammock, light a fire by the fire, take a walk in the sauna that Gitte and Kristian have right down at the water's edge, or rent a SUP board. The possibilities are really many, and will definitely be what we need next time we visit Skarø.
But whether you want to stay overnight or not, you owe yourself a visit to Gitte, Kristian, Martin and Britta a visit to Skarø ❤️
Frequently asked questions
In the section below, we have collected (almost) all the questions that can be asked for a visit to the island. If you don't find an answer here, feel free to write to us at info@wordpress-378369-3668824.cloudwaysapps.com
Most people come to the island with the ferry M / F Højestene, which departs from Svendborg 3-5 times a day depending on the season.
However, it is also possible to dock if you get in your own boat.
Approx. 1.97 km² or 197 hectares
The island has approx. 30 farmers
Skarø is a small island, and you can easily walk around and see it all in a few hours. The nature is beautiful and the church beautiful, but the real attractions are Skarø Ice Cream and Café Sommersild, where some really delicious taste experiences await!
Café Sommersild rents out cabins and tent pitches for very affordable money.
Yes! Skarø Ice Cream is a must to taste, as it tastes adventurous. The greater hunger can be satisfied in Café Sommersild, where you can taste a wealth of the island's homemade specialties, but also Skarø Ice Cream offers food to eat in their shop. You will not go to bed hungry on this island!
More tips for Funen?
Use our guide to Funen, where we have collected a handful of good ideas and tips for Funen, both regarding experiences, places to eat and accommodation.
