Places to stay
Annerstad: Come for the Pizza, Stay on the Water
A detour from the E4 near Ljungby leads to pizzas served with scissors, a farm shop full of local finds and a tiny floating cabin. Prästgården Annerstad is one of my favourite places in Småland. I also happen to have got married here.
By Lina Skandevall
Published · Updated
I should declare a personal attachment to Annerstad. We got married here in October, so this little corner of Småland has a place in my life that goes well beyond a good lunch recommendation.
But the pizza deserves a recommendation of its own.
Prästgården Annerstad sits by the River Bolmån, just off road 25 between Ljungby and Halmstad. For anyone driving through southern Sweden on the E4, it is an easy place to build a proper break into the journey. There is a restaurant, a farm shop and somewhere to stay, including a particularly lovely option that floats.
You can make a short stop of it. There is also plenty of reason to give it longer.
Bring an appetite
I have called these pizzas the best in Småland. They arrive with a substantial pair of scissors: a pleasingly practical way of dealing with a pizza whose raised, blistered crust deserves your attention. The one in my photographs is scattered with red and yellow tomatoes, basil and generous dollops of white cheese.
And then there is the antipasti. Cured meat, wedges of cheese, olives, tomatoes and rocket, with pieces of bread sporting beautifully charred edges. My advice is to leave room for it when you order. Pizza may be the headline, but this is very much part of the reason to come.
The setting is relaxed. Inside are long wooden tables, mismatched chairs, small vases of flowers and hanging bulbs. Outside, picnic tables sit between the red farm buildings. Take your pick according to the weather.
Gelato had joined the offering when I visited in June 2026, and my recommendation was emphatic: pistachio. It came piled into a tall glass, with chopped nuts on top. Worth remembering if it is on the menu when you go.
A bed with water outside the window
The little floating cabin gives Annerstad another dimension entirely. Inside, timber walls slope towards the roof, and a large triangular window frames the water beyond the bed. There is very little between you and the view.
In my notes, I wrote about crawling into bed and listening to the waves and birds. That is the appeal here. The accommodation is small, and the setting does much of the work: water, reeds, a wooden deck and a boat tied alongside.
Breakfast at the time of my visit was delivered in the morning to the adjoining floating platform. The table was laid with bread, juice, cups and a flask, right beside the water. A rather good argument for allowing yourself a night here instead of returning straight to the road.
For those who prefer solid ground, there are also cottages and motorhome pitches. Check the options and arrangements directly when booking; the floating stay is a specific experience, rather than a description of all the accommodation.
Leave time for the shop
There is a lot going on at Annerstad, and the farm shop makes that especially clear. During my visit, the shelves held pear balsamic vinegar from Odensjö and ceramics from Ljung by Ljung in nearby Ljungby: cups, bowls and vases in soft, earthy colours. Jenny’s own clothing label, Wild Woods, was there too.
Food, pottery, clothes, somewhere to sleep, a barn for celebrations. There is no shortage of ideas here. The barn’s broad wall of windows looks out towards the trees, bringing the landscape into a space made for gathering people together.
Yes, I am attached to this place for personal reasons. But the details I keep pointing people towards are quite tangible: the antipasti, the pizza scissors, the pistachio gelato, the breakfast table beside the reeds. Those are good reasons to turn off the main road.
Plan your visit
- Prästgården Annerstad, Prästgården 1, Annerstad, Småland.
- Just off road 25 between Ljungby and Halmstad.
- Check current restaurant opening days and contact details on Prästgården Annerstad’s official website.
- Confirm breakfast arrangements and the facilities for your chosen stay when booking.
More places to stay
If a woodland cabin is more your kind of stay, explore Hyssna Forest Resort in western Sweden. Browse the journal for more of Lina’s stories.