Must-see attractions in Southern Norway

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…

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

A walkable 1.5km northeast of Egersund centre, this well-designed museum (squirrelled away in an unprepossessing shopping centre), houses the wares of…

Gaustabanen runs 860m deep into the core of Gausta before a different train climbs an incredible 1040m, alongside 3500 steps at a 40-degree angle, to…

This fairy-tale church is the largest and one of the most beautiful of Norway's 28 remaining stave churches. As always, it's constructed around Norwegian…

The timbered houses, moats, gates and drawbridge of the Fredrikstad Gamlebyen are simply enchanting. The perimeter walls, once defended by 200 cannons,…

This museum, 7km west of Rjukan, is in the Vemork power station, which was the world's largest when completed in 1911. These days it honours the Socialist…

This highly regarded contemporary art gallery is a 15-minute walk from the town centre on the northern reaches of Arendal. One of the largest contemporary…

Crowning the hilltop behind Halden is the 1661 Fredriksten Fortress, which has resisted six Swedish sieges and never been captured. The fortress covers a…

Kaupang, 5km east of Larvik, was a former Viking town built around AD 800 and occupied until 960. It is believed that up to 1000 people once lived here…

The profusion of silver mines in Kongsberg's hinterland is known collectively as Sølvgruvene. The easiest way to visit is with the tours that leave from…

Off the E18, 10km east of Kristiansand, Dyrepark is probably the favourite holiday destination for Norwegian kids. The former zoo is several parks rolled…

This cultural centre is 11km northeast of Fredrikstad. The most intriguing feature is the Ode til Lyset (Ode to the Light), a 'sound sculpture' by Arnold…

Don't miss the imposing Oscarsborg Fortress, which lies on an offshore island and dates back to the 1600s. It was the Oscarsborg batteries that sank the…

The Mølen promontory, around 20 minutes' drive west of Stavern, is Norway's largest beach of rolling stones, and an austere and rather impressive sight…

Author, playwright and so-called 'Father of Modern Drama' Henrik Ibsen was born in Skien on 20 March 1828. In 1835 the family fell on hard times and moved…

Set in a smelter dating from 1844 (the old furnaces survive in the basement), this museum tells Kongsberg's story with relics, models and mineral displays…

Norse sagas mention the 13th-century fortress of Isegran, an islet in the Glomma that became a further line of defence against Sweden in the mid-17th…

Rising above the cape is the evocative Lindesnes Fyr, a classic lighthouse. In two of the buildings you'll pass as you climb to the cape, there are…

Around 9km northwest of Valle, this farm has a unique three-storey storehouse dating to 1590, and an extraordinary collection of 15th-century painted…