The precise date at which it was granted the market town status is unknown but it was no doubt at the beginning of the 16th century as by 1543 it had a mayor and a municipal council.

[3] It was in the 18th and 19th centuries that trade and shipbuilding expanded in Svaneke, resulting in the construction of the fine merchants' houses which still line the harbour.

Unlike many of the other towns in Bornholm, Svaneke escaped modernization following the opening of the island's railways at the beginning of the 20th century.

[4] Svaneke owes its current prosperity to tourism, thanks to the well-preserved town centre that earned it the European Architectural Heritage Gold Medal in 1975.

[5] To the west of Svaneke is the Joboland amusement park, which has a waterpark, petting zoo, merry-go-rounds, and rowing boats.

[11] Bechs Mølle, the timbered post mill which stands high above the town on the road to Gudhjem, was built in 1629 making it the oldest preserved windmill in Denmark.

A listed building, it is the island's finest wooden smock mill with its onion cap and cladding of oak shingles.

[13] Svaneke Church stands 18 m above the harbour on the site of a small chapel that appears to have existed for quite sometime before the town received its charter in the 16th century.

In 1881, virtually the whole building was rebuilt by architect Mathias Bidstrup of Rønne, leaving only the tower and a small section of the south wall.