The LasseMaja Detective Agency – a new whodunit tourist attraction
LasseMajas Deckarhus (sometimes translated to English as The Whodunit Detective Agency) will be a new attraction in the Open-Air museum Gamla (old) Linköping. It will be the first of its kind in Sweden and generate a lot of visiting nights in the city. In the style of TV show Fort Boyard’s adventure cells, visitors will find themselves challenged to uncover a villain. The culprit they’re looking for comes from the books of well-known Linköping author, Martin Widmark.
The nearby towns of Vimmerby and Kolmården have destinations such as Astrid Lindgren's World and Bamse's World, and from the beginning of 2023 Linköping can boast its own destination - a tribute to Sweden's most-read contemporary children's and young adults’ writer. Martin Widmark was born and raised in Linköping and regularly tops the library lending list. Twice as often as Astrid Lindgren in fact.
In total, he has sold no less than 15 million books, and of his more than 130 children's books, LasseMaja's Detective Agency is the most popular. So far, 40 different mysteries have been published and these form the basis for the challenges visitors will face at LasseMaja's Deckarhus. The location is an old sugar warehouse (Sockerbruksmagasinet) in the old town of Linköping.
"In groups of three to six people you walk between the seven cells, completing different tasks – both physical and digital,” says Magnus Wetterö, CEO of LasseMajas Deckarhus. “We have taken inspiration from the TV hit Fort Boyard and you have to be a little cunning to uncover the villain in each mystery. It's a good idea to have members of slightly different ages in each group.” he says.
A modern family destination
Visitors will be able to choose from three different mysteries to start with, "The Camping Mystery", "The Castle Mystery" and "The Train Mystery".
"For us, it has always been important to develop an innovative concept, one that’s unique and will stand out,” says Wetterö. “It’s a very modern and enjoyable family destination. You can also buy a memento of your visit in the store, which will sell everything from books and movies, to puzzles and t-shirts. And there will be a café, which you can visit with or without an entrance ticket," he adds.
Tina Karlsson From, Museum Director at Gamla Linköping, and Jörgen Nilsson, who is responsible for the hospitality industry at Visit Linköping, are very proud and happy about the city's new destination.
"It fits perfectly in the environment,” says Karlsson From. “Gamla Linköping is very reminiscent of the small village of Valleby in the books,” she says. “Martin has told us that he has taken a lot of inspiration from here and we are very happy to now host a unique family destination that you can’t find anywhere else.”
"We have really longed for this type of destination in Linköping,” says Jörgen Nilsson. “And LasseMaja as a brand is huge. It feels cool and fun to be the first to offer a physical home for the popular characters. Deckarhuset will mean a big boost for Gamla Linköping, lead to more day visitors, and also more visiting nights for Linköping,” says Nilsson.