Norway travel guide
Trondheim is Norway’s third largest city, and it is a lively place with lots of university students. There is a lot to see and do here. The port’s fish market is the place to grab a couple of fish cakes (a must!), look at boats and people watch. There are lots of museums in town, and the 12th century cathedral – Nidaros Domkirke, Scandinavia’s largest medieval building – is its biggest draw card. If old buildings are your thing, Trondheim also has Scandinavia’s largest wooden palace, which is now the official royal residence. Pleasant and beautiful, if architecture and fish cakes isn’t enough to entice you to come for a visit, the fact that you will have been in a city founded by a Viking king more than one thousand year ago might just do it.
Surfing in Arctic waters is a thing in Lofoten. The great wave conditions lurk surfers from around the world into the cold sea. Of course they are dressed in the thickest wetsuits, but it is nevertheless brutally cold. There is a whole surf community in the small village of Unstad with surf schools and hostels.
Of Norway's 28 remaining medieval stave churches, only Urnes is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was built around 1130, making it the oldest stave church, but it's also the most richly decorated. You can only visit the interior on a guided tour.
Uvdal Stave Church is one the smaller ones of Norway's 28 remaining medieval stave churches. It was probably built around 1168. It's located on a steep grassy hill among other historical wooden buildings. When you arrive along road 40 from the west, you will first come across the impressive Uvdal Church, and although it's wooden and looks like a medieval stave church with dragon heads on the crest, it was built in 1893. Follow the signs for the proper medieval one, which is about 5 km up road 122.
Valsøya is a small island along Route E39. There isn’t much to do here, but its position is enviable – fjord views in every direction – and there is enough to justify a stop-over if driving through. Good fishing from the shore, perfect BBQ spots and a nice place to go for a stroll or pitch a tent.
The drive along the Varangerfjord, whether it's the south or north shore, is just spectacular. Long sections of the road clings to the shoreline with unspoiled views of the fjord and the soft mountains. There are many minor sights along the way, like old pyramid racks for drying fish, churches with dramatic settings, and historical sites. The pictured stone is at the Sami prehistoric site of Ceavccageađge, Mortensnes Cultural Heritage Area.
Vøringsfossen is perhaps the best known waterfall in Norway. Here the water plunges 182 down from the Hardangervidda plateau to the Måbødalen Valley below. There is a network of platforms at the top with the most hair-raising views. The network includes a bridge which crosses Bjoreio River right before the drop.
You can also hike to the base at the waterfall from either Fossatromma (3.7 km one way) or Storegjel (1.7 km one way) along the old road.
You can also hike to the base at the waterfall from either Fossatromma (3.7 km one way) or Storegjel (1.7 km one way) along the old road.
Norway is in general very beautiful and their tourist slogan "powered by nature" is spot on. But the West Fjords are so dramatic and spectacular that they have become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The World Heritage Area comprises two areas; Geirangerfjord (pictured) and Nærøyfjord (which includes Aurlandsfjord). They are some of the longest, deepest, and most narrow fjords in the world. Flanked by mountains towering to 1760 m, Nærøyfjord is 17 km long and only 250 m wide at its narrowest point. The Nærøyfjord area has a great variety of landscape, ranging from naked peaks around the Fresvik glacier to sheltered bays with woodland. Geirangerfjord is by far the most popular, but do yourself a favor and visit both fjords.