Lysøen Estate

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Lonely Planet review

The beautiful Lysøen Estate , on the island of the same name, was built in 1873 as the summer residence of renowned Norwegian violinist Ole Bull. After the death of Ole Bull's French-born wife, Felicité Villeminot, Bull purchased the 70-hectare Lysøen island, about 20km south of Bergen. Between 1872 and 1873, he and architect Conrad Fredrik von der Lippe constructed the fantasy villa 'Lysøen'.

This 'Little Alhambra' took much of its extravagant inspiration from the architecture of Moorish Granada and integrated not only intricate frets and trellises, but also onion domes, romantic garden paths, Italian marble columns and a high-ceilinged music hall of Norwegian pine. When Bull died at Lysøen in August 1880, about 10,000 mourners accompanied the funeral procession to the Assistentkirkegården near Bergen's old City Gate. The grounds are crisscrossed with 13km of leisurely walks and there's a small café. From Bergen's bus station, take the Lysefjorden bus (No 566 and 567, from platform 19 or 20 to Buena Quay, where there's a passenger ferry (hourly noon to , to Sun) to Lysøen.