A man in a Stockholm cafe prepares to accept a call, possibly from a random foreigner via "The Swedish Number." Photo by William Perugini/Shutterstock.com

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, April 7 (UPI) -- A tourism initiative in Sweden has given the country "its own phone number" for foreigners to call and chat with a random Swede.

The Swedish Tourist Association announced "The Swedish Number," an initiative allowing people anywhere outside of Sweden to call the designated number -- 46 771 793 336 -- and be connected with a random Swede who volunteered for the project via the association's app.


"The call will be charged as an international call. Actual cost of calling Sweden depends on your phone provider and a number of factors such as individual calling plans and time of day. Please check with your provider before you dial," the project's official website states.

However, there are variants of the hotline people in various countries can use at the cost of a local call (for the United States, it's 301 276 0600).

"We want to show a unique and genuine Sweden -- a country worth visiting, with the right to roam, sustainable tourism and a rich cultural heritage," said Magnus Lind, CEO of the Tourism Association. "We also want to create pride and knowledge about Sweden, nationally as well as internationally."

The Tourist Association said the launch of The Swedish Number was timed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of Sweden becoming "the first country in the world to introduce a constitutional law to abolish censorship" in 1766.