Must-see attractions in Norway

  • Bygdoy Vikingskipshuset.

    Vikingskipshuset

    Aker Brygge & Bygdøy

    Around 1100 years ago, Vikings dragged up two longships from the shoreline and used them as the centrepiece for grand ceremonial burials, most likely for…

  • Trollstigen, Norway, Sunset over the Trollstigen valley road
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    Trollstigen

    The Northern Fjords

    This twisting, sky-topping corkscrew of a road is the most famous stretch of tarmac in Norway. Completed in 1936 after eight years of labour, the Troll's…

  • Magdalenefjord in northwestern Spitsbergen. Norway. Europe.; Shutterstock ID 1222385971; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Magdalenefjord

    Svalbard

    The lovely blue-green bay of Magdalenefjord in Nordvest Spitsbergen, flanked by towering peaks and intimidating tidewater glaciers, is the most popular…

  • Trondheim, Norway - June 6, 2017:  View of the world's northernmost medieval cathedral national sanctuary of Norway, built over the grave of St. Olav. The sculptures and church in romanesque style; 
Nidaros Domkirke

Shutterstock ID 659296807; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Nidaros Domkirke

    Trondheim

    Nidaros Cathedral is Scandinavia's largest medieval building, and the northernmost Gothic structure in Europe. Outside, the ornately embellished, altar…

  • Atlantic Ocean Road, passing through the several small islands in Norwegian Sea, is part of National Tourist Routes of Norway.

    Atlanterhavsveien

    The Northern Fjords

    The eight storm-lashed bridges of the Atlantic Ocean Road buck and twist like sea serpents, connecting 17 islets between Vevang and the island of Averøya…

  • Sitting on Trolltunga rock overlooking the fjord.

    Trolltunga

    Bergen & the Southwestern Fjords

    A slender spur of rock projecting into the void above Lake Ringedalsvatnet, Trolltunga is one of Norway's most-photographed features, and – along with…

  • Ekebergparken Sculpture Park with sea view and the sculpture "Anatomy of an angel" by the artist Damien Hirst.

    Ekebergparken

    Sofienberg, Grønland & Tøyen

    Opened to much controversy in 2013, Ekebergparken cemented Oslo's reputation as a contemporary-art capital and, in particular, one devoted to sculpture. A…

  • Smelthytta in Roros, Norway.

    Smelthytta

    Central Norway

    Built on the site of a former copper-smelting works that burnt down in 1975, this museum brings the town's mining heritage to life. Intricate working…

  • View to the City Hall.

    Astrup Fearnley Museet

    Aker Brygge & Bygdøy

    This private contemporary-art museum resides in an arresting, silvered-wood building designed by Renzo Piano, with a sail-like glass roof that feels both…

  • Alta Museum.

    Alta Museum

    Western Finnmark

    This superb museum is in Hjemmeluft, at the western end of town. It features exhibits and displays on Sami culture, Finnmark military history, the Alta…

  • Kinn Island, Norway.

    Kinn Island

    The Western Fjords

    If you're on limited time, a visit to this little island is a great way of getting a flavour of the coastline around Florø. After a quick boat ride from…

  • Exploration boat in front of Lilliehook glacier in Lilliehook fjord, a branch of Cross Fjord, Spitsbergen Island, Svalbard archipelago, Norway.

    Krossfjorden

    Svalbard

    This 30km-long fjord north of Ny Ålesund is a popular detour for cruise ships, partly for the scenic beauty of Lillehöökbreen (its grand tidewater glacier…

  • Borgund Stave church, Norway.

    Borgund Stave Church

    The Western Fjords

    Some 30km southeast of Lærdalsøyri along the E16, this 12th-century stave church was raised beside one of the major trade routes between eastern and…

  • Aurlandsfjellet panoramic road in Norway.

    Aurlandsfjellet

    Aurland

    This 45km road is one of Norway's most fabulous, climbing from sea level to the desolate, boulder-strewn high plateau that separates Aurland and…

  • The main entrance side of the Northern Lights Cathedral.

    Northern Lights Cathedral

    Western Finnmark

    Opened in 2013, the daringly designed Northern Lights Cathedral, next to the Scandic Hotel Alta, is one of the architectural icons of the north, with its…

  • Saltfjellet Svartisen National Park

    Saltfjellet-Svartisen National Park

    Arctic Highway

    This 2102-sq-km national park is one of mainland Norway's most dramatic landforms. In the west it embraces the rugged peaks of the Svartisen icecap,…

  • 12th century wooden Romanesque Urnes Stave Church, listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest stave churches in Norway.

    Urnes Stave Church

    The Western Fjords

    If you only have time on your itinerary to visit one stave church, the one at Urnes has to figure at the top of the list (along with Borgund). Dating from…

  • Villa of Norwegian violin virtuoso Ole Bull on Lysoen Island, 25 km south of Bergen.

    Ole Bull Museum

    Bergen

    This beautiful estate was built in 1873 as the summer residence of Norway’s first musical superstar, violinist Ole Bull. Languishing on its own private…

  • Oslo, Norway - July 22, 2014: Henrik Ibsen statue. The statue stand in front of the museum of Henrik Ibsen.; Shutterstock ID 603752813; Your name (First / Last): Gemma Graham; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: BiT Destination Page Images

    Ibsen Museet

    Oslo

    While downstairs houses a small and rather idiosyncratic museum, it's Ibsen's former apartment, which you'll need to join a tour to see, that is…

  • Juhls Silver Gallery, a museum for scandinavian arts and traditional silver jewelry.

    Juhls' Sølvsmie

    The Far North

    This wonderful building, all slopes and soft angles, was designed and built by owners Regine and Frank Juhls, who first began working with the Sami over…

  • Traveling over Kylling bridge.

    Rauma Railway

    The Northern Fjords

    A classic Norwegian train ride that railway buffs definitely won't want to miss, the 114km-long Rauma Railway clatters from Åndalsnes and Dombås, high in…

  • Steilneset Memorial in Vardo, Norway, commemorating the trial and execution of people for witchcraft.

    Steilneset Memorial

    The Far North

    This stunning monument, a collaboration between French artist Louis Bourgeois and Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, is dedicated to the 91 people executed…

  • Rockheim, a national museum for popular music in Trondheim, Norway.

    Rockheim

    Trondheim

    This terrific museum is devoted to pop and rock music, mainly Norwegian, from the 1950s until yesterday. It's a dockside temple to R&B, where a huge…

  • Spaceship Aurora

    Spaceship Aurora

    Vesterålen

    Around 1km south of the town entrance along the road to Bleik, this innovative space centre has a widescreen 16-minute movie and other exhibits about the…

  • Norway, Oslo, Vigeland Sculpture Park / Monoliten Statue (by Gustav Vigeland)

    Vigelandsparken

    Oslo

    The centrepiece of Frognerparken is an extraordinary open-air showcase of work by Norway's best-loved sculptor, Gustav Vigeland, and is home to 212…

  • Nesseby church

    Nesseby Church

    The Far North

    Along one of the prettiest stretches of the E75 (a designated National Scenic Route; see www.nasjonaleturistveger.no), the lovely white church of Nesseby…

  • Henrik Ibsen museum in Grimstad.

    Ibsenhuset Museum

    The Coast

    Norway's favourite playwright, Henrik Ibsen, washed up in Grimstad in January 1844. The house where he worked as a pharmacist's apprentice, and where he…

  • Stegastein in Norway.

    Stegastein

    Aurland

    Projecting out high above the fjord at an altitude of 630m, this marvel of modern engineering is one of Norway's great viewing points. Clad in pine and…

  • Norwegian Glacier Museum, designed by the famous Norwegian architect Sverre Fehn. It is next to Boyabreen Glacier.

    Norwegian Glacier Museum

    The Western Fjords

    You can't miss this striking museum: it's a concrete wedge marooned among a sea of grass on the way into Fjærland, and even has a couple of model woolly…

  • Bryggen

    Bergen

    Bergen's oldest quarter runs along the eastern shore of Vågen Harbour (bryggen translates as 'wharf') in long, parallel and often precariously leaning…

  • Torghatten Mountain, Norway

    Torghatten

    Nordland

    A dramatic local landmark rears up from Torget island, some 15km south of Brønnøysund. The peak, pierced by a hole 160m long, 35m high and 20m wide, is…

  • Sorlandets Kunstmuseum, the art museum in Kristiansand.

    Sørlandets Kunstmuseum

    Kristiansand

    This exceptional regional art museum focuses on both fine and craft-based practices, and the collection includes some particularly strong contemporary…

  • The fishermen's houses close to river Vefsna, in Sjogata, Mosjoen, Norway.

    Sjøgata

    Arctic Highway

    A stroll around the Sjøgata area, with over 100 listed buildings, takes you past galleries, coffee shops, restaurants and private homes in attractively…

  • Snohetta viewpoint interior.

    Snøhetta Viewpoint

    Central Norway

    This arresting building of rippled timber and mirrored glass was commissioned by the Wild Reindeer Foundation as an educational centre and observation…

  • Exterior view of Norveg museum in Rorvik.

    Norveg

    Trøndelag

    Architecturally exciting and resembling a sailing ship, Norveg recounts 10,000 years of coastal history through a variety of media, including an…

  • Lofotr Viking Museum

    Lofoten

    In 1981 at Borg, in the heart of Vestvågøy, a farmer's plough hit the ruins of the 83m-long dwelling of a powerful Viking chieftain, the largest building…

  • Hamsunsenteret

    Arctic Highway

    Around halfway between the E6 and the ferry crossing to/from the Lofoten Islands at Skutvik, along the Rv81, the Hamsunsenteret is a must for anyone with…

  • KODE

    Bergen

    A catch-all umbrella for Bergen's art museums, KODE showcases one of the largest art-and-design collections in Scandinavia. Each of the four buildings has…

  • Jugendstil Senteret

    Ålesund

    The city's unique architectural heritage is documented in a former pharmacy, the first listed Jugendstil monument in Ålesund. Apart from the building's…

  • Glasshytta

    Lofoten

    A 4km side trip signposted from the E10 at Vareid, north of Flakstad, brings you to Vikten and the showpiece gallery of the glass-blowing Tangrand family…

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