Gothenburg and Bohuslän: boating safety

Harbour and marinas

Gothenburg Port Control is staffed around the clock: VHF channel 12, phone +46 31 368 75 15. VTS Gothenburg (Swedish Maritime Administration) works VHF channel 13.

Weather

SMHI coastal forecasts cover this coast as Nidingen–Måseskär (Kattegat and southernmost Skagerrak) and Måseskär–Nordkoster (Skagerrak). Navigational and weather warnings (MSI) are broadcast on NAVTEX and VHF.

Local rules

In the Port of Gothenburg, leisure boats must keep at least 25 m from port facilities and ships moored there (except where the fairway runs closer), and may not sail under sail alone east of the Älvsborg Bridge without the harbour authority's permission. Boats crossing the river must give way to vessels travelling along it.

Kosterhavet National Park (northern Bohuslän): no mooring, beaching or anchoring within 50 m of sandy beaches from 15 May to 31 August, and no mooring or anchoring in the same spot for more than two days. Marked bird and seal sanctuaries are closed to all traffic from 1 March to 31 August.

Sweden's drink limit afloat is 0.2 per mille blood alcohol, for boats that can do at least 15 knots under power or are at least 10 m long.

Hazards

The Gothenburg fairway is being deepened by dredging (Skandiaporten project, estimated August 2026–February 2028). Leisure boats are only marginally affected; dredging stops during the summer boating season.

Hospital and medical

The adult emergency department at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, is open 24 hours; fractures and other orthopaedic injuries go to the emergency department in Mölndal instead.