Things not to Miss

written by Rough Guides Editors

updated 9/19/2019

#01 Geirangerfjord

Shadowed by rearing mountains, the S-shaped Geirangerfjord is one of Norway’s most stunningly beautiful fjords.

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#02 Wildlife Safaris in
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#07 Whale-watching,
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#09 The
#10 Urnes stave church
#11 The Oseberg Longship
#12 The Northern Lights
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#16 Cross-country skiing
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#22 Stay in a lighthouse
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© Nikiforov Alexander/Shutterstock

#02 Wildlife Safaris in Svalbard

From polar-bear spotting to birdwatching to husky drives, the vast, glaciated landscapes of this gorgeous Arctic archipelago offer a spectacular range of wildlife safaris.

© Ritesh Chaudhary/Shutterstock

#03 Vigelandsparken

Before his death in 1943, Gustav Vigeland populated Oslo’s favourite park with his fantastical, phantasmagorical sculptures.

© FrauTori/Shutterstock

#04 The Flåmsbana

A ride on the Flåm railway from high up in the mountains to the fjords way down below is one of the most dramatic train journeys in the world.

© Alex Jackson/Shutterstock

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#05 Bergen

Norway’s second city is an eminently appealing place with a clutch of fine old buildings, great restaurants and top-notch art galleries.

© Mikhail Varentsov/Shutterstock

#06 Ålesund

Nudging out into the ocean, beguiling Ålesund boasts a wonderful coastal setting and a platoon of handsome Art Nouveau buildings.

© Andrew Mayovskyy/Shutterstock

#07 Whale-watching, Andenes

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Pilots, minkes, humpbacks and sperm whales show themselves in all their glory during summertime excursions off the Vesterålen coast.

© Kjersti Joergensen/Shutterstock

#08 Nidaros Domkirke, Trondheim

Trondheim’s vaunted Gothic and neo-Gothic domkirke (cathedral) is the largest medieval building in Scandinavia – and one of northern Europe’s finest religious structures.

© May_Lana/Shutterstock

#09 The Jostedalsbreen glacier

Take a guided hike out on to this mighty ice plateau as it grinds and groans, slips and slithers its way across the mountains behind the Nordfjord.

Nigardsbreen is a glacier arm of the large Jostedalsbreen glacier © Nicram Sabod/Shutterstock

#10 Urnes stave church

Perhaps the finest of Norway’s stave churches, Urnes is distinguished by the frenzied intricacy of its woodcarving.

© Dmitry Naumov/Shutterstock

#11 The Oseberg Longship

Of the handful of Viking longships that have survived, the Oseberg is the best preserved – and was unearthed complete with a rich treasure-trove of burial goods.

© Dmitry Reznichenko/Shutterstock

#12 The Northern Lights

At once eerily disconcerting and bewitchingly beautiful, the aurora borealis flicker across northern Norway’s winter firmament at irregular and unpredictable intervals.

Ken Phung/Shutterstock

#13 Edvard Munch

Munch’s unsettling, highly charged paintings appear in several of the country’s museums, most memorably at the Nasjonalgalleriet in Oslo.

Bjørvika and the New Edvard Munch museum by night in Oslo © Morten Normann Almeland/Shutterstock

#14 Alta Rock Carvings

Simple in design but complex in their symbolism, Alta’s striking prehistoric rock carvings offer insight into the beliefs of the region’s earliest inhabitants.

© itociotola/Shutterstock

#15 Henningsvær

The Lofoten islands are peppered with with scores of picture-postcard fishing villages, of which Henningsvær is among the most arresting.

© ChrisNoe/Shutterstock

#16 Cross-country skiing

Norway’s meadows, moors and mountains boast thousands of kilometres of powdered runs just waiting for adventuresome skiers.You might choose to start at Lillehammer.

© canadastock/Shutterstock

#17 The Norsk Fiskevaersmuseum, Å

Hanging on for dear life between the mountains and the sea, the tiny village of Å has preserved many of its nineteenth-century buildings within the Norwegian Fishing Village Museum.

© rweisswald/Shutterstock

#18 The Oslofjord

The islands of the Oslofjord are great for swimming, sunbathing and walking – and they are just a short ferry ride from the city centre.

#19 Værøy's sea-bird colonies

This remote Lofoten island is renowned for its profuse birdlife, which includes puffins, cormorants, kittiwakes, guillemots and even rare sea eagles.

#20 Hjørundfjord

Wild and windswept, the deep, dark waters and icy peaks of this distant fjord make it one of Norway’s most elegiac.

#21 The Hurtigruten

See Norway in all its scenic splendour on the Hurtigruten coastal boat, which sails north all the way from Bergen to Kirkenes.

#22 Stay in a lighthouse

Glued to a storm-battered islet, Ryvingen Fyr, near Mandal, is one of several lighthouses that make for fabulous places to stay.

#23 Juvet Landscape Hotel

One of Norway’s most delightful hotels, with freestanding rooms carved out of spruce, is set smack in a verdant river canyon – staying here is like watching an IMAX documentary from your bedroom.

#24 Walking in the Jotunheimen mountains

One of Norway’s most celebrated hiking areas, the Jotunheimen National Park is crisscrossed with trails and includes northern Europe’s two highest peaks.