Bergen, Tromsø and the Lofoten Islands
Hanseatic City of Bergen
With 290,000 inhabitants, Norway’s second-largest city nestles on the coast of the province of Vestland. At first glance, it may seem somewhat provincial, but a closer look reveals a dynamic metropolis with a high quality of life. Seven mighty mountain peaks surround the port city like a rocky necklace of pearls, which merges with photogenic grace into a breathtaking fjord landscape.
The waterfront promenade is lined with colorfully painted wooden houses. The Bryggen district is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as an example of Hanseatic architecture in Norway. Although goods of all kinds have been handled here since 1360, the export of stockfish and fish was the city’s economic lifeline for centuries. Bryggen can be discovered by taking a leisurely stroll through the charming alleyways. Artists and craftspeople, as well as a number of cafés and restaurants, have set up shop in the old district.
Bergen’s fishing heritage is still alive today at the fish market. Freshly caught treasures from cold Nordic waters are offered here and served in numerous restaurants. The importance of fish in Bergen goes back centuries. The fish market has therefore always been one of the most important places for trade between fishermen, farmers, and the inhabitants of the city. In addition to the merchants who offered their goods for sale on the shore, boats were also sold from the quay in front of the fish market.
As European Capital of Culture (1999), Bergen offers a wide range of high-quality concerts, theater performances, and impressive museums. If you have a little more time, you can discover not only the urban diversity but also the overwhelming nature and wilderness surrounding the attractive harbor city.
Spectacular Views and Street Art
Fløiberg is one of the seven mountains that rise up around the southern Norwegian port city. The popular tourist attraction is a mountain plateau 320 meters above the city center. The Fløibahn electric funicular takes just six minutes from the city center to the popular viewing mountain. On a clear day, the view over the city, the extensive forest areas and mountains, bays, archipelago, and fjord landscapes is breathtaking.
Although most of the sights are within walking distance, a bicycle is an ideal way to get around – especially to explore the thriving street art scene. Bergen has been home to creative street artists for some time now. If you are interested in Dolk, Bergen’s answer to Banksy, you will find one of his works at the Bergen Cinema and another behind a fence at the live music venue Stereo. Other productive districts for street art include Nygårdshøyden, Kong Oscarsgate, and the area around Sentralbadet, the former municipal swimming pool at the main ferry terminal, which has been converted into a cultural center.
Art and Cultural Heritage
KODE encompasses five museums: in addition to the Edvard Grieg Museum, the Harald Sæverud Museum, and the Ole Bull Museum, the Bergen Art Museum and the West Norwegian Museum of Decorative Arts are part of this illustrious collection. In total, KODE holds over 43,000 works of art, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, installations, and videos, as well as furniture, handicrafts, and design.
This unique institution boasts some impressive art collections, with the spectacular collection of Edvard Munch paintings being perhaps the best-known art treasure. In the city center, KODE consists of four buildings lined up along the Lille Lungegaardsvann lake.
The many museums and attractions are a tribute to Bergen’s history and the industries that have helped the city prosper. They range from the Maritime Museum to the Fantoft Stavkirke, a replica of the stave church originally built of wood around 1150, to the municipal art gallery, one of Norway’s most comprehensive institutions for contemporary art.
Bergen is an exciting city, both historically and culturally, where education and art have always been important to the people, alongside the continuing influence of the sea, and still are today.
Tromsø – The Gateway to the Arctic
As if the sixth-largest city in Norway wanted to live up to its name as the gateway to the Arctic, even in June there is still – or already again – snow on the mountain peaks around Tromsø. The city, with its colorful wooden houses and maritime flair, is surrounded by the sea on the island of Tromsøya. The town is connected to the mainland by a sweeping prestressed concrete bridge. Built in 1960, the arched road connection supported by slender columns served as a model for subsequent bridges throughout Norway. Alongside the Arctic Ocean Cathedral, the Tromsø Bridge is the city’s most striking structure.
At almost 70 degrees north latitude, the polar night lasts from mid-November to mid-January. The sun is not visible for two months. Nevertheless, the locals know no winter depression because they have made their city livable and inviting. The town center, with its mix of modern glass and steel buildings and cozy wooden houses, is a place where people come together. As energy is relatively cheap in Norway, the glittering lights along the city streets and squares are in a seemingly eternal duel with the winter darkness. The foothills of the Gulf Stream and the island of Kvaløya, which shields Tromsø, keep the harbor ice-free all year round.
The Havila Voyages and Hurtigruten ships dock at the edge of the city center. They sail the legendary route along the entire Norwegian Atlantic coast from Bergen to Kirkenes and dock several times a week. The University of Tromsø is part of Norway’s Arctic University. Fifteen thousand young people study at the eight faculties of the world’s northernmost university.
Local Mountain with a View
Storsteinen (big rock) rises 420 meters above sea level. A cable car leads to Tromsø’s local mountain. From here, you have the most spectacular view of the city center below and its surroundings. The bold architecture of the Ice Sea Cathedral and the elegant arches of the Sandnessund and Tromsø bridges are unmistakable. Towards the west, an alpine-looking mountain range on the island of Kvaløya rounds off the panoramic view like a stage set.
Scandinavia is known for its „blue hour.“ During dawn or dusk, as long as the sun is below the horizon, the blue light spectrum dominates the sky. From Storsteinen, this phenomenon is just as impressive as the view during the phases of the midnight sun, when countless lights in the city also sparkle and lend the scenery a very special magic.
The Ishavskatedralen, or Ice Sea Cathedral, is an overwhelming structure. With its unique architecture, it towers high above the surrounding buildings in the suburb of Tromsdalen. On the outside, the eleven lamellar triangles and the light-colored exterior resemble piled-up ice floes. The church houses the largest glass mosaic in Europe. Though not a bishop’s see and therefore not technically a cathedral, the relaxed locals are hardly bothered by such details and prefer to go about their everyday lives.
Insular Wonderland Lofoten
The Lofoten Islands are a group of islands located north of the Arctic Circle, belonging to the province of Nordland. Most of the 80 islands are connected to each other by road and thus also to the mainland. In recent years, impressive bridges have connected numerous islands, making the region more accessible not only for locals. Many travelers use the Lofoten Islands as a stopover on their way to the North Cape. Due to their magical beauty, it is worth allowing enough time for a visit.
From Narvik on the mainland, a continuous route leads via the main town of Svolvær to the extreme southwest of the archipelago. The spectacular road connections through this insular polar world are popular with self-drivers who explore the region in motorhomes or rental cars. However, many travelers to Norway also pass the Lofoten Islands during a sea voyage along the Norwegian coast on their way from Bergen to Kirkenes or back.
Most of the Lofoten Islands look like mountains that waded into the ocean ages ago. Some of the oldest rock formations in the world can be found here. They have been carved into bizarre shapes by countless ice ages and today rise defiantly from the warm waters of the Gulf Stream. As if created by magical hands, the geological brutality of the jagged mountains conceals small bays, almost Caribbean-like sandy beaches, fjords cut deep into the rock, offshore skerries, green valleys, and plains with lush vegetation and fields. The Lofoten Islands are a rare and unique world of cod, colorful fishing villages, local art, culture, and bewilderingly beautiful landscapes.
Venice of the North
The 500-soul village of Henningsvær is located on eight islets, which are connected by bridges. Although the small town is a typical Lofoten fishing village, it has been nicknamed the „Venice of the North“ because of the small canals between the islands and the bridges. If you walk through the village, you will come across ubiquitous drying racks on which cod is air-dried as „stockfish.“ Henningsvær is one of the most important starting points for the fishing boats that leave in late winter. The entire Lofoten region revolves around cod, as it is home to some of the largest stocks in the world.
For thousands of years, fishing has secured the livelihood of the coastal population, not only as a source of food but also as a commodity. In addition to fishing, the village also caters to tourists with cozy cafés, stores, and small art galleries. Tourism is the second most important economic pillar of the region. The population has access to facilities such as stores, hotels, restaurants, and schools.
Thanks to social media, part of the public infrastructure has succeeded in making Henningsvær known all over the world, as the local football pitch is said to be the most beautifully situated in the world. When National Geographic published a drone image of the pitch a few years ago, the whole world suddenly knew about the small village on the edge of the Lofoten Islands.
But the fishing village of Reine has also established itself as an internet darling. With its famous yellow and red wooden houses, which stand on stilts on the rocky coast like pile dwellings, Reine has become a social media star.
