Arcing out into the Skagerrak between the Oslofjord and Stavanger, Norway’s south coast may have little of the imposing grandeur of other, wilder parts of the country, but its eastern half, running down to Kristiansand, is undeniably lovely. Speckled with islands and backed by forests, fells and lakes, it’s this part of the coast that attracts Norwegians in droves, equipped not so much with bucket and spade as with boat and navigational aids – for these waters, with their narrow inlets, islands and skerries, make for particularly enjoyable sailing.
Hundreds of Norwegians have summer cottages along this stretch of the coast and camping on the offshore islands is very popular too, especially as there are precious few restrictions: you can’t stay in one spot for more than 48 hours, nor light a fire either on bare rock or among vegetation, and you must steer clear of anyone’s home, but other than that you’re pretty much free to go and come as you please. Leaflets detailing further coastal rules and regulations are available at any local tourist office.
The first part of the south coast, down to Kristiansand, is within easy striking distance of Denmark and as such has always been important for Norway’s international trade. Many of the region’s larger towns, Larvik and Porsgrunn for instance, started out as timber ports, but are now humdrum, industrial centres in their own right. In contrast, several of their smaller neighbours – Risør, Lillesand and Grimstad are the prime examples – have dodged (nearly) all the industry to become pretty, pocket-sized resorts, their white-painted clapboard houses providing an appropriately nautical, almost jaunty, air. Larger Arendal does something to bridge the gap between the resorts and the industrial towns and does so very nicely. There’s also amenable Sandefjord, which may well be the first stop on your itinerary as it has its own international airport – Oslo Torp.
Anchoring the south coast is Norway’s fifth largest city, Kristiansand, a bustling port and lively resort with enough sights, restaurants, bars and beaches to while away a night, maybe two. Beyond Kristiansand lies Mandal, an especially fetching holiday spot with a great beach, but thereafter the coast becomes harsher and less absorbing, and there’s precious little to detain you before Stavanger, a burgeoning oil town and port with a clutch of historical sights and a full set of first-rate restaurants. Bergen may lay claim to being the “Gateway to the Fjords”, but actually Stavanger is closer with the splendid Lysefjord and its famous Preikestolen rock leading the scenic charge.
Right along the south coast, accommodation of one sort or another is legion, with all the larger towns having at least a couple of hotels, but if you’re after a bit of social bounce bear in mind the season is short, running from the middle of June to August; outside this period many attractions are closed and local boat trips curtailed.
STAVANGER HARBOURFRONT
Highlights
1 The Clarion Hotel Tyholmen Occupying a brace of handsome wooden buildings looking out to sea, Arendal’s top-flight hotel is one of the finest places to stay on the whole of the south coast.
2 M/B Øya Take a delightful three-hour cruise along the coast between Lillesand and Kristiansand on this pocket-sized ferryboat.
3 Mandal One of the prettiest ports on the south coast, Mandal boasts the country’s finest beach, a long and wide sandy expanse with forested dunes immediately behind.
4 Gamle Stavanger The prettiest part of the city, comprising a network of lovely old clapboard houses with picket fences and immaculate gardens.
5 Stay in a lighthouse A string of south-coast lighthouses offer simple lodgings in wild locations. Best of all is probably storm-battered Feistein.
6 Preikestolen A geological oddity near Stavanger, this great hunk of rock offers staggering views down to the Lysefjord on three of its sides.
7 Kjeragbolten Not for the faint-hearted, this rock is snagged between cliffs high above the Lysefjord – walk on it if you dare.
GETTING AROUND: THE SOUTH
By train There are regular NSB trains (
nsb.no) from Oslo to Kristiansand and Stavanger, but the rail
line runs inland for most of its journey, only dipping down to the coast
at the major resorts, which makes for a disappointing ride with the sea
mostly shielded from view. Note also that many main-line train stations
are some way inland, meaning you’ll need to take another connecting
journey by local bus or train to get to the smaller seaside resorts.
Kristiansand, on the other hand, has its own main-line bus and train
stations.
By bus The main long-distance bus company is Nor-Way Bussekspress ( nor-way.no), whose express
buses connect Oslo with Kristiansand and Kristiansand with Stavanger. As
with the train, long-distance buses tend to take inland routes, dropping
passengers at rural bus stops from where connecting local buses run to
the smaller resorts – Risør is a case in point.
By car Like the train line, the main road–the E18/E39 – sticks stubbornly inland for most of the 330km from Oslo to Kristiansand (E18) and again for the 240km on to Stavanger (E39). You’re much better off with your own vehicle if you’re after visiting most of the smaller places unless you are infinitely diligent with bus and rail timetables.
Sandefjord to Lillesand
The fretted shoreline that stretches the 200km southwest from Tønsberg to Lillesand is home to a series of small resorts that are particularly popular with weekenders from Oslo. The most interesting is Grimstad, with its Ibsen connections, the liveliest is Arendal, and the prettiest are Lillesand and Risør. All four have decent places to stay, but only a fifth resort, pint-sized Kragerø, has an HI hostel. Many of the resorts, including Lillesand, Kragerø and Arendal, offer boat trips out to the myriad islets that dot this coast, with trippers bent on a spot of swimming and beach – or at least rock – combing. The islands were once owned by local farmers, but many are now in public ownership and zealously protected from any development. Most of the resorts also offer longer cruises along the coast during the summer, the prettiest being the delightful three-hour trip from Lillesand to Kristiansand.
GETTING AROUND: SANDEFJORD TO LILLESAND
By bus Fast and frequent express buses scuttle along the E18 from Oslo and/or Tønsberg to Kristiansand and these connect with local buses that run from the main road to individual resorts.
By train A train line runs just inland from the coast, but it’s not a particularly useful service – of the places described here only Arendal and Sandefjord have their own train stations.
Sandefjord
SANDEFJORD, some 120km south of Oslo, is best known as an international ferry port and as the site of Oslo (Torp) airport. It’s an amiable, low-key kind of place, whose wide and open waterfront culminates in a spectacular water fountain – the Hvalfangstmonumentet (Whalers’ Monument) – in which, amid the billowing spray, a slender rowing boat and its crew ride the tail fluke of a whale. This is perhaps as good as it gets, but the town does rustle up a quartet of other/lesser attractions.
Kurbadet
Thor Dahls gate • sandefjordkurbad.no
Sandefjord’s former thermal baths, the Kurbadet, are housed in a distinctive wooden complex built in a Viking-inspired dragon style in 1899; the baths closed at the beginning of World War II and have come close to being demolished on several occasions, but they have managed to hang on and are now in use as a cultural centre. The complex is located a couple of minutes’ walk from the Hvalfangstmonumentet – to the right as you face inland.
Hvalfangstmuseet and the Southern Actor
Hvalfangstmuseet Museumsgata 39 • May–Aug daily 11am–5pm; Sept daily 11am–4pm;
Oct–April Mon–Sat 11am–3pm, Sun noon–4pm • 75kr Southern Actor Late June to Aug daily
11am–5pm • Same ticket as Hvalfangstmuseet • 
94 79 33 41, hvalfangstmuseet.no
The town’s best museum is the Hvalfangstmuseet (Whaling Museum) which, like the Hvalfangstmonumentet, also trumpets the town’s whalers. The local whaling industry built up a head of steam at the end of the nineteenth century, peaking in the early 1950s, when as many as three thousand local men were dependent on whaling for their livelihoods. The museum’s forte is its large collection of photographs of whalers at work, rest and play.
If the museum whets your interest, there’s more whaling paraphernalia back down on the waterfront in the Southern Actor, a 1950s’ whaling vessel that managed to end up moored in the harbour.
Bjerggata
Running roughly parallel to – and one block east of – Museumsgata is the oldest and prettiest part of town, a narrow wedge of old clapboard buildings which ramble along the narrow confines of Bjerggata. Here you get the real flavour of what Sandefjord was like until the 1950s, with many of the houses built around rocks that were too difficult to move or extract.
North of the centre: Gokstadhaugen
Open access • Free
It’s just a couple of kilometres northeast from the town centre along Highway 303 to the Gokstadhaugen, the grassy mound which marks the spot where the Gokstad Viking longship was unearthed in 1880. The vessel is now on display in Oslo, but information plaques displayed here add some context.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: SANDEFJORD
By plane Oslo (Torp) airport is about 10km northeast of Sandefjord. The Torp-Ekspressen bus links the airport with Oslo and there are also airport buses to Sandefjord Torp train station, just one stop along the line from Sandefjord station (hourly; 7min) – and a little under 2hr from Oslo S.
By train and bus From Sandefjord’s train and neighbouring bus station, it’s about 900m to the waterfront, straight down Jernbanealleen. Destinations by train from Sandefjord include Oslo (every 1–2hr; 1hr 50min) and Tønsberg (every 1–2hr; 20min); there are also buses to Oslo (5–7 daily; 4hr; change at Skien).
By ferry Regular Color Line car ferries ( colorline.com) link
Sandefjord with Strömstad in Sweden. The ferry dock is at the
foot of the town, close to the centre.
Tourist office In the Kurbadet at Thor Dahlsgate 7, just back from the
waterfont (July to late Aug Mon–Fri 9am–5.30pm, Sat 10am–5pm,
Sun 12.30–5pm; rest of year Mon–Fri 9am–4pm; 33 46 05
90, visitsandefjord.com).
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
HOTELS AND B&BS
Hotel Kong Carl Torggata 9 33 46 31 17, kongcarl.no.
This is Sandefjord’s most distinctive hotel, located in an
old timber building right in the centre of town. The 25
guest rooms are each kitted out with a potpourri of old
furnishings – pleasant if not exactly stunning.
1495kr, sp/r 1095kr
Lisbet’s Guesthouse Bjerggata 33 45 24 00 02, 
lisbe-ti@online.no.
There are a couple of attractive B&Bs in the old part of
town, notably this homely little place where there is one
room to rent in the annexe with a two-bed bunk and a shower.
450kr
Rica Park Hotel Strandpromenaden 9 33 44 74 00, rica.no.
This large, chain hotel in a big, modern tower block just
back from the waterfront is one of Sandefjord’s more
appealing places to stay. The rooms lack distinction, but
they are proficiently modern. 1300kr
RESTAURANT
Mathuset Solvold Thor Dahlsgate 9 33 46 27 41, smak.no.
This well-turned-out café-restaurant, located between the
tourist office and the main square, offers a wide-ranging
menu – from pasta to mussels – with main courses averaging
around 250kr.
Mon–Sat 5pm–1am, kitchen till 10pm.
Kragerø
Around 70km south of Sandefjord along the E18 you reach the first of several turns that lead down to the seashore at KRAGERØ, one of the busiest resorts on the coast, whose narrow harbour is spanned by a dinky little bridge. Kragerø has a tiny centre, its cramped lanes and alleys rising steeply from the harbourfront, and makes a good living as a supply depot for the surrounding coves and islets, where the Norwegians hunker down in their summer cottages. Kragerø was founded as a timber port in the seventeenth century and later boomed as a shipbuilding centre, its past importance recalled by its clutch of handsome old houses. The port was also a fashionable watering hole in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and it was here that Edvard Munch produced some of his jollier paintings.
Kittelsenhuset
Theodor Kittelsens vei 5, off Storgata • Mid-June to mid-Aug Mon–Sat
noon–5pm • 70kr • telemarkmuseum.no/museum/kittelsenhuset
A middling painter but superb illustrator, Theodor Kittelsen (1857–1914) defined the popular appearance of the country’s folkloric creatures – from trolls through to sirens – in his illustrations for Asbjørnsen and Moe’s Norwegian Folk Tales, published in 1883. A native of Kragerø, Kittelsen spent many of his summers here and his family home, in the centre of town just west of the harbour, is now the bright and breezy Kittelsenhuset. The lively little museum celebrates the artist’s life and times with a smattering of his paintings and a few family knick-knacks.
Jomfruland
Ferries: 4 daily; 1hr; 70kr each way; 40 00 58
58, fjordbat.no
The most popular jaunt out from Kragerø is the ferry to Jomfruland, a long and slender island stuck out in the Skagerrak beyond the offshore skerries. The island, which is just 8km long and never more than 900m wide, is very different from its rocky neighbours, its fertile soils supporting deciduous woodland and providing good pastureland. The flatness of the terrain, plus the abundant bird life, attracts scores of walkers, who wander the island’s network of footpaths. For many, the beach is the main target, rough and pebbly on the island’s sea-facing side, more shingle and sand on its sheltered side with the best bit generally reckoned to be Øitangen in the north. The ferry docks about halfway along the island, an easy stroll from the island’s two lighthouses – one old, from 1839, the other new, from 1937 – which stand side by side.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: KRAGERØ
By bus Long-distance express buses linking Oslo and Kristiansand
stop at Tangen, from where there is a connecting local bus
service on to Kragerø; the journey from Tangen takes 25min.
Kragerø bus station is a stone’s throw from the northern tip
of the harbour. Sørlandsekspressen services (#190; nor-way.no) run
from Tangen to Kristiansand (every 2hr; 2hr) and Oslo (every
2hr; 3hr).
By train The nearest train station is at Neslandsvatn, on the Oslo–Kristiansand line. There is a connecting bus service from Neslandsvatn to Kragerø (1hr), but note that buses do not meet all the trains – check with NSB before you set out. There are services from Neslandsvatn to Kristiansand (2–4 daily; 1hr 50min) and Oslo (2–4 daily; 2hr 40min).
Tourist office Torvgata 1 (mid-June to mid-Aug Mon–Fri 9am–7pm, Sat
9am–6pm, Sun 10am–5pm; rest of year Mon–Fri 9am–4pm;
35 98 23 88, visitkragero.no). The tourist office is a stone’s
throw from the northern tip of the harbour, and also just a
couple of minutes’ walk from the Jomfruland ferry
dock.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Tollboden Restaurant P. A. Heuchs gate 4 35 98 90 90, tollboden.org.
Popular waterfront café-restaurant with a large open-air
terrace that spreads a wide gastronomic net from pizzas
through to seafood. Pizzas begin at 170kr; main courses –
both meat and fish – are around 250kr in the evening, less
at lunchtime.
June–Aug Mon–Sat noon–9pm, Sun 1–9pm; check website for out-of-season hours.
Victoria Hotel P.A. Heuchs gate 31 35 98 75 25, victoria-kragero.no.
This is Kragerø’s most agreeable hotel, occupying a
good-looking, brightly painted harbourside building right in
the centre of town. Each of the hotel’s 33 guest rooms are
individually decorated in browns and creams and the best
have balconies overlooking the harbour. They also offer
massage sessions and bike rental. 1050kr
Risør
RISØR, spreading round the head of a gentle
promontory about 45km from Kragerø, is a good-looking town, its genial array
of old and white timber houses winkling back from its wide and deep harbour.
The town rustles up a string of summer festivals, from bluegrass in July
( risorbluegrassfestival.no) to chamber music in June ( kammermusikkfest.no), and
is something of a centre for arts and crafts, but it’s the general flavour
of the place that appeals rather than anything specific.
Risør started out as a small fishing village, but the Dutch fleet began dropping by for timber in the 1570s and the port boomed until, by the 1880s, one hundred sailing vessels – and one thousand seamen – called the place home. A fire destroyed the bulk of the town in 1861 but it was quickly rebuilt, and most of the wooden houses that survive date from this period. Risør’s marine economy collapsed in the 1920s and today it looks like a rather conservative small town, but – surprise, surprise – in 2007 its citizens elected Knut Henning Thygesen, a member of the Red Party, a fusion of the Workers’ Communist Party (AKP) and the Red Electoral Alliance (RV), as their mayor.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: RISØR
By bus Long-distance express buses linking Oslo and Kristiansand stop
at Vinterkjaer, from where there is a connecting local bus
service on to Risør (25min). Risør bus station is on the main
street just a few metres from the harbour. Sørlandsekspressen
services (#190; nor-way.no) run from Vinterkjaer to Kristiansand
(every 1–2hr; 1hr 40min) and Oslo (every 1–2hr; 3hr
20min).
Tourist office Torvet 1, down by the harbour (early June & late Aug
Mon–Sat 10am–4pm; late June to mid-Aug Mon–Fri 10am–6pm; rest of
year Mon–Fri 11am–3pm; 37 15 22 70, risor.no). Can advise on
all things local.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Bakgården Kragsgate 3 90 17 79 90.
In the town centre just back from the harbour, this cosy little
café serves tasty salads and snacks. It also doubles up as an
art gallery and performance venue for theatre and live music.
Core hours: Tues–Fri 11am–5pm, Sat 11am–6pm.
Det Lille Hotel Storgata 5 37 15 14 95, detlillehotel.no.
Among the town’s several hotels and guesthouses, the most
individual is this hotel whose twelve suites, each of which is
decorated in a pleasing rendition of period style, are
distributed between two old buildings, one in the centre, one by
the harbour. 1800kr
Arendal
South from Risør, it’s about 45km to the bustling town of ARENDAL, one of the most appealing places on the coast, its sheltered harbour curling right into the centre, which is further crimped and cramped by the forested hills that push in from behind. The town’s heyday was in the eighteenth century when its shipyards churned out dozens of the sleek wooden sailing ships that then dominated international trade. The shipyards faded away in the late nineteenth century, but there’s an attractive reminder of the boom times in the striking medley of old timber buildings that make up the oldest part of town, Tyholmen, which rolls over the steep and bumpy promontory just to the southwest of the modern centre. To explore Tyholmen’s every nook and cranny, sign up for one of the tourist office’s guided walking tours.
Gamle Rådhus
Rådhusgaten
Tyholmen’s architectural highlight is the Gamle Rådhus (Old Town Hall), Norway’s tallest wooden house, a handsome, four-storey structure, whose classical symmetries overlook the Tyholmen waterfront. The house was built as a private residence in 1815, but the Danish merchant who owned the place died twelve years later and his widow sold it to the council, who turned it into the town hall, a role it performed until 2004.
Trefoldighetskirken
Kirkebakken
Perched on a rocky knoll overlooking the town centre at the northern edge of Tyholmen, the massive and massively ugly red-brick Trefoldighetskirken (Church of the Trinity) was meant to celebrate the town’s economic success as well as its godliness. Instead, it almost ended up in farce and fiasco: Arendal hit the financial skids in 1886 and, although the church had been finished, there was no money left to equip the interior and the altar was only installed twenty years later.
Kulturhus and Pollen
The town centre’s most conspicuous building is the glassy, modern
Kulturhus, on Sam Eydes plass ( arendalkulturhus.no),
which hosts conferences, public meetings and concerts to suit (almost)
every musical taste. From here, it’s a couple of minutes’ walk east to
Pollen, the short, rectangular inner
harbour, which is flanked by pavement cafés and bars.
The Bomuldsfabriken
Oddenveien 5 • Tues–Sun noon–4pm • Free • 37 01 31 43, bomuldsfabriken.no • Signposted off Highway 410, one of the
main approach roads into Arendal from the E18
The district’s largest contemporary arts gallery, the Bomuldsfabriken, is housed in a former textile factory around 2km north of the centre. The gallery hosts half a dozen exhibitions of contemporary art every year with Norwegian work to the fore, though Swedes and Danes get regular outings here too. One recent exhibition featured the talented Sverre Malling (b.1977), whose precise and intricate work is magic realism at its unsettling best.
Merdø island
Passenger ferries (30min) leave from Pollen • June to late Aug daily every hour, on the hour (10am–5pm); rest of year sporadic service – details from the tourist office • 50kr
Among the scattering of islands lying just offshore from Arendal, the most diverting is Merdø, a fairly flat, lightly wooded islet, whose safe anchorages, orchards and fresh water made it a popular haven for sailing ships right up until the end of the nineteenth century. Footpaths network the island, and there’s a shingle beach and a summertime café. Merdø’s one and only village is a pretty affair that spreads along the foreshore, and it’s here that you’ll find the Merdøgaard Museum (late June to mid-Aug Mon–Fri noon–4pm; 20kr), a brightly painted eighteenth-century sea captain’s house, complete with original fixtures and fittings.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: ARENDAL
By train On a branch line from Nelaug train station, Arendal train station is on the north side of town, a 5–10min walk from the main square, Torvet: go to the roundabout close to the station and then either proceed up and over the steep hill along Iuellsklev and then Bendiksklev, or (more easily) stroll through the tunnel (signed: P-Torget). Torvet is metres from the inner harbour, Pollen.
Arendal to: Nelaug (2–4 daily; 35min).
Nelaug to: Kristiansand (2–4 daily; 1hr); Oslo (2–4 daily; 3hr 20min); Stavanger (2–4 daily; 4hr 30min).
By bus Arendal bus station is in the centre of town beside the
Kulturhus on Vestre gate, just west of Torvet. Local buses
( 177, nettbuss.no) link the bus station with neighbouring
points along the coast, including Grimstad (hourly; 30min),
Kristiansand (hourly; 1hr 30min) and Lillesand (hourly; 50min).
For places further afield, including Oslo (every 2hr; 3hr
45min), long-distance express buses, principally Nor-Way
Bussekspress’s Sørlandsekspressen (#190; nor-way.no), drop and
pick up passengers on the edge of town, just off the motorway at
the Harebakken kiosk and bus station, from where you’ll need to
take a local bus into town.
Tourist office Kulturhus complex, Sam Eydes plass 1 (Mon–Fri 8.30am–4pm, plus
mid-June to mid-Aug Sat 11am–4pm & July Sun 11am–4pm;
37 00 55 44, arendal.com). They
issue free town maps and have oodles of local
information.
ACCOMMODATION
Clarion Hotel Tyholmen Teaterplassen 2 37 07 68 00, choicehotels.no.
This smashing hotel occupies a matching pair of warehouse-style
buildings right on the Tyholmen quayside: full marks to the
architects, who designed the second, newer block to blend in
seamlessly with its older neighbour. The guest rooms are
resolutely modern, with blues and whites throughout, and most
have splendid sea views. 1400kr, sp/r 1000kr
Thon Hotel Arendal Friergangen 1 37 05 21 50, thonhotels.com.
This straightforward, modern chain hotel is in the centre just
off the west side of Pollen. Browns and creams predominate and
there are wooden floors throughout. 1300kr, sp/r 1000kr
EATING AND DRINKING
In the summertime, Arendal hums at night with a clutter of busy cafés, bars and restaurants lining up along and around Pollen – quite enough to keep the punters going till the wee hours of the morning each and every weekend.
Blom Restaurant Langbryggen 9 37 00 14 14, blomrestaurant.no.
Smart, modern restaurant with an outside terrace overlooking
Pollen. An inventive menu features the likes of grilled reindeer
with pear cooked in cassis, creamed celeriac and rosemary sauce
(325kr).
Daily 4–11pm.
Café Det Lindvedske Hus Nedre Tyholmsvei 7b 37 02 18 38.
Upstairs in an old building just to the south of Pollen, the
grooviest place in town is a laidback, arty sort of place
serving light meals – pastas, salads and so forth. Mains start
at around 80kr and the kitchen closes at 9pm, whereupon it’s
over to the drinking.
Mon–Fri 11am–11pm, Sat & Sun 1–11pm.
Grimstad
Some 20km south from Arendal along the E18, GRIMSTAD is a brisk huddle of white timber houses with orange- and black-tiled roofs stacked up behind the harbour. Nowadays scores of yachts are moored in the harbour, but at the beginning of the nineteenth century the town had no fewer than forty shipyards and carried on a lucrative import–export trade with France – an economic boom that hooked in a young Henrik Ibsen.
IBSEN CUTS HIS TEETH IN GRIMSTAD
Born in the hamlet of Skien, Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) left his home at the tender age of sixteen, moving to Grimstad, where he worked as an apprentice pharmacist for the next six years. The ill-judged financial dealings of Ibsen’s father had impoverished the family, and Henrik’s already jaundiced view of Norway’s provincial bourgeoisie was confirmed here in the port, whose worthies Ibsen mocked in poems like Resignation, and The Corpse’s Ball. It was here too that Ibsen picked up first-hand news of the Paris Revolution of 1848, an event that radicalized him and inspired his paean to the insurrectionists of Budapest, To Hungary, written in 1849. Nonetheless, Ibsen’s stay on the south coast is more usually recalled as providing the setting for some of his better-known plays, especially his Pillars of Society.
Ibsen-museet
Henrik Ibsens gate 14 • Early June & late Aug Sat 11am–5pm, Sun noon–5pm, plus guided tours Mon–Fri – contact Grimstad tourist office; mid-June to mid-Aug Mon–Sat 11am–5pm, Sun noon–5pm • 80kr
The small house where Henrik Ibsen lived and worked as a pharmacist is now the Ibsen-museet, located just up from the harbour in the centre of town. The alley that serves as the entrance to the museum and much of the ground floor beyond has been returned to an approximation of its appearance when Ibsen lived here, complete with creaking wooden floors and narrow-beamed ceilings. Upstairs, there’s a detailed display on Ibsen the dramatist plus an assortment of original letters and documents and, best of all, a glass cabinet of Ibsen memorabilia – his glasses and their case, an inkstand, a ruler and even a piece of the great man’s hair.
Reimanngården
Vestregate
Signposted off Storgata, once the town’s main street, near the harbourfront is the Reimanngården, four replica eighteenth-century buildings. One of these is a reconstruction of another pharmacy where Ibsen worked – the original building was demolished in the 1950s. The Reimanngården is now home to the town’s art society.
Grimstad Kirke
Kirkegata • No fixed opening times • The church is a short, steep hike north of the Ibsen House
The Grimstad Kirke is a large, late nineteenth-century wooden church on a high hill above the harbour. Many of its original fittings have survived, including some heavy-duty wrought-iron lamps and candelabras, plus a tapestry of the Resurrection by the font.
Skjærgårdspark
Contact the tourist office for information and advice on boats
Many of the myriad islands that guard the seaward approaches to the town are protected within the Skjærgårdspark, and have public access moorings, as well as picnic and bathing facilities. One or two of them can be reached by water taxi, but mostly you’ll have to rent a boat.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: GRIMSTAD
By bus Local buses ( 177, nettbuss.no) link
Grimstad bus station, at the south end of the harbour, with
neighbouring points along the coast, including Arendal (hourly;
30min), Kristiansand (hourly; 1hr) and Lillesand (hourly; 1hr).
For places further afield, including Oslo (every 2hr; 4hr
15min), long-distance express buses, principally Nor-Way
Bussekspress’s Sørlandsekspressen (#190; nor-way.no), drop and
pick up passengers on the edge of town, just off the motorway at
Grimstad Øygardsdalen.
Tourist office Storgata 1, by the harbour in the centre of town around 200m
from the bus station (late June to late Aug Mon–Fri 9am–6pm, Sat
& Sun 10am–4pm; rest of year Mon–Fri 8.30am–4pm; 37
25 01 68, visitgrimstad.com). They supply free town maps and
have lots of information on the Skjærgårdspark.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Apotekergården Skolegata 3 37 04 50 25, apotekergaarden.no.
The liveliest place in town, this informal café-restaurant has a
wide-ranging menu, featuring everything from pizzas and burgers
to meat and fish dishes – try the braised beef (245kr).
Mon–Thurs & Sun 11am–midnight, Fri & Sat 11am–2am.
Rica Hotel Grimstad Kirkegaten 3 37 25 25 25, rica-hotels.com.
The best hotel in town, occupying an old and cleverly converted
clapboard complex among the narrow lanes near the Ibsen Museum.
One hundred well-appointed guest rooms. 1900kr, sp/r 1300kr
Lillesand
Bright and cheery LILLESAND, just 20km south of Grimstad, is one of the most popular holiday spots on the coast, the white clapboard houses of its tiny centre draped prettily round the harbourfront. One or two of the buildings, notably the sturdy Rådhus of 1734, are especially fetching, but it’s the general appearance of the place that appeals, best appreciated from the terrace of one of the town’s waterfront café-bars.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: LILLESAND
By bus Local buses ( 177, nettbuss.no) pull into
the centre of Lillesand, pausing at the bus station at the
southern end of the harbour, footsteps from the tourist office;
local buses serve Arendal (hourly; 1hr 30min), Kristiansand
(hourly; 30min) and Grimstad (hourly; 1hr). However,
long-distance express buses, principally Nor-Way Bussekspress’s
Sørlandsekspressen (#190; nor-way.no) to Oslo (every 2hr; 4hr 30min), drop and
pick up passengers on the edge of town, just off the E18
motorway at Lillesand Gaupemyr.
Tourist office Havnegata 10, in the centre (late June & early Aug Mon–Sat
10am–6pm & Sun noon–4pm; July daily 10am–6pm; 37 26
17 50, lillesand.kommune.no).
CRUISING THE BLINDLEIA
Lillesand’s nautical highlight is the three-hour cruise aboard
M/B Øya (July to early Aug Mon–Sat
daily at 10am; 255kr one-way, 420kr return; 95 93 58
55, blindleia.no), a dinky little passenger ferry which
wiggles its way south to Kristiansand in part along a narrow channel separating the
mainland from the offshore islets. Sheltered from the full force of
the ocean, this channel – the Blindleia – was once a major trade route, but today
it’s trafficked by every sort of pleasure craft imaginable, from
replica three-mast sailing ships and vintage tugboats to the
sleekest of yachts. Other, faster, boats make the trip too, but the
M/B Øya is the most charming.
If the sailing schedule of the M/B Øya does not suit, contact Lillesand tourist office for details of a wide variety of local boat trips, from fishing trips and cruises along the coast to the summertime badeboot (bathing boat), which shuttles across to Hestholm bay on the island of Skauerøya, where swimmers don’t seem to notice just how cold the Skagerrak actually is.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Hotel Norge Strandgata 3 37 27 01 44, hotelnorge.no.
Lillesand’s one first-rate hotel occupies a grand old wooden
building metres from the harbour. Refurbished in attractive
vintage style, the interior holds some charming stained-glass
windows with rooms named after some of the famous people who
have stayed here – the novelist Knut Hamsun and the Spanish king
Alfonso XIII for starters. It also has the town’s best
restaurant (June–Aug daily noon till 11pm; out of season, call
ahead for hours), a smart affair where they serve delicious meat
and fish dishes (mains around 250kr) – try the butter-roasted
halibut with seasonal vegetables. 1500kr, sp/r 1200kr
Tingsaker Familiecamping Øvre Tingsaker 37 27 04 21, tingsakercamping.no.
Well-equipped and very popular lakeside campsite with
self-catering facilities, canoe rental, a pool and cabins with
en-suite facilities, two bedrooms and a mini-veranda. About 1km
northeast of the centre – to get there, take Storgata and keep
going. May–Sept. Tents 185kr, cabins 990kr
Kristiansand
With 82,000 inhabitants, KRISTIANSAND, some 30km west along the E18 from Lillesand, is Norway’s fifth-largest town and a part-time holiday resort – altogether a genial, energetic place which thrives on its ferry connections with Denmark, busy marinas, passable sandy beaches and, last but not least, its offshore oil industry. In summer, the seafront and adjoining streets are a frenetic bustle of bars, fast-food joints and flirting holidaymakers, and even in winter Norwegians come here to live it up.
Like so many other Scandinavian towns, Kristiansand was founded by – and named after – Christian IV, who saw an opportunity to strengthen his coastal defences here. Building started in 1641, and the town has retained the spacious quadrant plan that characterized all of Christian’s projects. There are few specific sights as such, but the place is well worth a quick look around, especially when everyone else has gone to the beach and left the central pedestrianized streets relatively empty. The main historic attraction, however, is a few kilometres out of town at the Kristiansand Kanonmuseum, the forbidding remains of a large coastal gun battery built during the German occupation of World War II.
Domkirke
Kirkegata • Sept–June Mon–Sat 11am–2pm, plus Fri 9.30pm–midnight; July Mon–Sat 10am–4pm; closed Aug; services only on Sun • Free
Neat and trim, the gridiron streets that make up Kristiansand’s compact centre hold one architectural highlight, the Domkirke (Cathedral), an imposing neo-Gothic edifice dating from the 1880s, whose spire pokes high into the sky at the corner of Kirkegata and Rådhusgaten. The interior of the cathedral is sombre-serious, but there is one notable decorative feature, the large painting above the main altar showing a post-Resurrection scene – the breaking of bread at Emmaus – by Eilif Petterssen (1852–1928), a prominent portrait-painter and illustrator.
Sørlandets Kunstmuseum
Skippergaten 24 • Tues–Sat 11am–5pm, Sun noon–4pm • 60kr • skmu.no
The pick of the town’s several museums is the Sørlandets Kunstmuseum (Sørlandet Art Museum), whose well-appointed premises are used for a lively programme of temporary exhibitions with contemporary art to the fore. The museum’s permanent collection is quite small – though there are ambitious plans to expand it – but it does hold examples of the work of many of Norway’s leading nineteenth-century painters, including two works by Johan Dahl, a Munch, and Christian Krohg’s earthy Admonition. There are also several paintings by Amaldus Nielsen (1838–1932), a largely forgotten Norwegian Romanticist whose smooth and glossy landscapes are best exemplified by the beatific Morgen i Ny-Hellesund.
Christiansholm Festning
Strandpromenaden • Mid-May to mid-Sept daily 9am–9pm • Free
As a point of interest, the cathedral’s main rival is the Christiansholm Festning (Christiansholm Fortress), a squat fortress whose sturdy circular tower and zigzagging earth-and-stone ramparts overlook the marina in the east harbour. Built in 1672, the tower’s walls are 5m thick, a defensive precaution that proved unnecessary since it never saw action. These days it houses various arts and crafts displays.
Galgebergtangen
If you fancy a swim, one option is to head off to Galgebergtangen (Gallows’ Point), an attractive rocky cove with a small sandy beach, 2km east of the town centre. To get there, go over the bridge at the end of Dronningens gate, take the first major right at the lights – Kuholmsveien – and follow the signs.
Kristiansand Kanonmuseum
Feb to mid-May, Oct & Nov Sun only noon–4pm;
mid-May to mid-June & mid-Aug to Sept Mon–Wed 11am–3pm, Thurs–Sun
11am–5pm; mid-June to mid-Aug daily 11am–6pm • 60kr • kanonmuseet.no • Take Highway 456 out of Kristiansand, then
Highway 457 for the last 3km
Despite the inveigling of the German admiralty, who feared the British would occupy Norway and thus trap their fleet in the Baltic, Hitler was lukewarm about invading Norway until he met Vidkun Quisling in Berlin in late 1939. Hitler took Quisling’s assurances about his ability to stage a coup d’état at face value, no doubt encouraged by the Norwegian’s virulent anti-Semitism, and was thereafter keen to proceed. In the event, the invasion went smoothly enough – even if Quisling was soon discarded – but for the rest of the war Hitler overestimated both Norway’s strategic importance and the likelihood of an Allied counter-invasion in the north. These two errors of judgement prompted him both to garrison the country with nigh on half a million men and to build several hundred artillery batteries round the coast – a huge waste of resources even by his standards.
Work began on the coastal battery that is now conserved as the Kristiansand Kanonmuseum, at MØVIK 10km south of Kristiansand along the coast, in 1941, using – like all equivalent emplacements in Norway – the forced labour of POWs. Around 1400 men worked on the project, which involved the installation of four big guns and the construction of protective concrete housings. The idea was to make the Skagerrak impassable for enemy warships at its narrowest part, and so complementary batteries were also installed opposite on the Danish shore; only a small zone in the middle was out of range, and this the Germans mined. The Kristiansand battery once covered 220 acres, but today the principal remains hog a narrow ridge, with a massive, empty artillery casement at one end, and a whopping 38cm-calibre gun in a concrete well at the other. The gun, which could fire a 500kg shell almost 55km, is in pristine condition, and visitors can explore the loading area, complete with the original ramrods, wedges, trolleys and pulleys. Below is the underground command post and soldiers’ living quarters, again almost exactly as they were in the 1940s – including the odd bit of German graffiti.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: KRISTIANSAND
Note the distinction between Kristiansund in the north and Kristiansand in the south: to make things easier, on timetables and in brochures they are often written as Kristiansund N and Kristiansand S.
By train The train station is beside Vestre Strandgate, on the edge of the central town grid.
Destinations Arendal (2–4 daily, change at Nelaug; 2hr); Kongsberg (3–5 daily; 3hr 20min); Oslo (2–4 daily; 4hr 30min); Stavanger (4–6 daily; 3hr).
By bus Buses, like international ferries, arrive close to the train station by Vestre Strandgate. Nor-Way Bussekspress’s Sørlandsekspressen (#190) runs to Oslo (7 daily; 5hr) and the Sør-vest ekspressen (#300) to Flekkefjord (3–4 daily; 2hr) and Stavanger (3–4 daily; 4hr). Local buses link Kristiansand with Mandal (3–4 daily; 50min).
By car The main car parks are along Vestre Strandgate and, although spaces can be hard to find at the height of the season, they remain your best bet as on-street parking in the rest of the town centre is strictly limited. Moving on from Kristiansand, the most obvious – as well as most pleasant – journey is to Stavanger; it’s certainly a lot more pleasant than the dreary 240km haul north up Setesdal on Highway 9 to the E134.
By boat If you’re travelling north towards Oslo in July and early Aug, it might be worth considering the 3hr cruise up to Lillesand on the M/B Øya. Boats depart from Quay 6, down on the waterfront.
INFORMATION
Tourist office Rådhusgaten 6 (mid-June to Aug Mon–Fri 8.30am–6pm, Sat 10am–6pm,
Sun noon–6pm; Sept to mid-June Mon–Fri 8.30am–4.30pm; 38 12
13 14, visitkrs.no). The main regional tourist office, in the
centre of town, will issue free town maps and public transport
timetables, assist with accommodation and has information on local
boat cruises, island bathing and beaches.
GETTING AROUND
By foot The best way to explore the town centre is on foot – it only takes about 10min to walk from one side to the other.
By bike For outlying attractions, including the best beaches, you might
want to rent a bike at Kristiansand Sykkelsenter, about 800m
northwest of the tourist office, just off Highway 9 at Grim Torv 3
( 38 02 68 35, sykkelsenter.no).
ACCOMMODATION
Kristiansand has a good range of accommodation with a fair sprinkling of hotels, a guesthouse or two, and a nearby campsite. Note, however, that vacant rooms can be thin on the ground in high season, when you should reserve ahead.
Centrum Budget Hotel Vestre Strandgate 49 38 70 15 65, budgethotel.no.
Hard by the train station, this hostel-like hotel provides frugal,
modern and very clean lodgings at budget prices. Doubles are in the
form of bunk beds, and all rooms are en suite. Breakfasts are served
close by in a neighbouring café. 550kr
Frobusdalen Rom Frobusdalen 2 91 12 99 06, gjestehus.no.
Undoubtedly the best place in town, this delightful guesthouse is a
family-run affair occupying a good-looking mansion built for a
ship-owner in 1917. The interior has been sensitively restored, with
individually decorated, en-suite rooms and public areas sprinkled
with period antiques. It’s just a 5–10min walk from the train
station, but is a little hard to find: on foot, head north up Vestre
Strandgate, go straight on at the roundabout by the flyover (signed
Evje), then take the path immediately to your right; Frobusdalen is
10m along on the left. Drivers should head north along
Festningsgata; turn left onto Tordenskjolds gate; and then watch for
the short right turn that leads to a narrow bridge spanning the E18;
the far side of the bridge is a few metres from the guesthouse.
Breakfast is not provided, but there are self-catering facilities.
600kr
Rica Hotel Norge Dronningens gate 5 38 17 40 00, rica.no.
No prizes for architectural charm, but this large chain hotel is
right in the centre of town and its 170 guest rooms are decorated in
attractive modern style. Has its own spa too. 1600kr, sp/r 1300kr
Roligheden Camping Framnesveien 38 09 67 22, roligheden.no.
Large campsite 3km east of the town centre behind a car park, which
itself edges a yacht jetty. To get there, drive over the bridge at
the end of Dronningens gate, turn right along Marviksveien, then
right again near the end, following the signs. Open June–Aug. Pitch
140kr
Scandic Kristiansand Markensgate 39 21 61 42 00, scandic-hotels.com.
The enterprising Scandic group, with its first-rate environmental
policy, has about a dozen hotels in Norway and this one occupies a
large modern block in the heart of downtown. The rooms are
immaculate, all pastel shades and unfussy furnishings and fittings,
and the breakfasts are top-notch. 1400kr, sp/r 1000kr
EATING AND DRINKING
There are lots of cafés and restaurants in the centre of Kristiansand, with a particular concentration in the Fiskebrygga, a huddle of mostly modern timber houses set around a small harbour just off the eastern end of Vestre Strandgate. Standards are, however, very variable, so it pays to be selective. Kristiansand also has a fairly active nightlife based around a handful of downtown bars, which stay open until 2 or 3am.
Drømmeplassen Cnr Skippergaten/Kirkegata 38 04 71 00, drommeplassen.no.
Part clothes shop, part bakery, part café, this attractive little
place sells an excellent range of bread as well as tasty coffee and
the freshest of snacks.
Mon–Fri 7am–6pm, Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10am–5pm.
FRK Larsen Markensgate 5, cnr Kongens gate 38 07 14 13.
It’s something of a surprise that this resolutely alternative
café-bar has survived for so long – but here it is in all its
retro-New Age glory. Cocktails from 8pm and occasional live acts.
Mon–Thurs & Sun 11am–midnight, till 3am Fri & Sat.
Glipp Rådhusgaten 11 38 02 96 20, glipp.com.
Popular, sometimes slick café-bar that does a reasonably good line
in pastas and pizzas, though its main pull is its outside terrace,
which looks out over the spacious main square.
Daily 11am–11pm.
Sjøhuset Østre Strandgate 12a 38 02 62 60, sjohuset.no.
In an old converted warehouse by the harbour at the east end of
Markensgate, this excellent restaurant serves superb fish dishes at
250–350kr – less if you stick to the bar menu. Nautical fittings and
wooden beams set the scene and there’s an attractive outside terrace
with sea views too.
Mon–Sat 3–11pm, plus (as café-bar) April–Aug daily from 11am.
Vaertshuset Pieder Ro Gravane 10 38 10 07 88, pieder-ro.no.
Many locals swear this is the best seafood restaurant in town – and
it certainly does have a lively atmosphere. It occupies an ersatz
traditional timber building down in the Fiskebrygga complex, and
it’s so popular that reservations are advisable at all times. Main
courses average 250kr, less at lunchtimes.
Lunch Mon–Fri 11.30am–6pm; dinner daily 4–11pm.
Mandal to Stavanger
West of Kristiansand lies a sparsely inhabited region, where the rough uplands and long valleys of the interior bounce down to a shoreline pierced by a string of inlets and fjords. The highlight is undoubtedly Mandal, a fetching seaside resort with probably the best sandy beach in the whole of Norway, but thereafter it’s a struggle to find much inspiration. The best you’ll do is the old harbour town of Flekkefjord, though frankly there’s not much reason to pause anywhere between Mandal and Stavanger.
The E39 weaves its way west for 240km from Kristiansand to Stavanger, staying a few kilometres inland for the most part and offering only the odd sight of the coast. The train line follows pretty much the same route – though it does, unlike the E39, bypass Flekkefjord – until it reaches Egersund, where it returns to the coast for the final 80km, slicing across long flat plains with the sea on one side and distant hills away to the east.
Mandal
Pint-sized MANDAL, just 40km from Kristiansand along the E39, is Norway’s southernmost town. This old timber port had its salad days in the eighteenth century, when pines and oaks from the surrounding countryside were much sought after by the Dutch to support their canal houses and build their trading fleet. The timber boom fizzled out decades ago, but Mandal has preserved its quaint old centre, a narrow strip of white clapboard buildings spread along the north bank of the Mandalselva River just before it rolls into the sea, and it also possesses an enjoyable museum.
Vest-Agder Museum i Mandal
Store Elvegate 5 • Late June to mid-Aug Mon–Fri 11am–5pm, Sat & Sun noon–5pm • 50kr
Occupying an antique merchant’s house overlooking the river, Mandal’s rambling Vest-Agder Museum (Town Museum) holds a varied collection, from agricultural implements to seafaring tackle, as well as a small but enjoyable collection of nautical paintings. Outside in the garden there’s also a statue of the Viking chieftain Egil Skallagrimsson by the town’s most famous son, Gustav Vigeland. The central character of Egil’s Saga, Skallagrimsson is a complex figure, sometimes wise and deliberate, at other times rash and violent. Vigeland has him putting on a horse’s head, presumably a reference to his family’s reputation as shape-shifters or shape-changers, with the ability to change form: it was a power that the Skallagrimssons shared with several Norse gods, including Odin himself.
Sjøsanden and Furulenden
Mandal’s popularity as a holiday spot is down to its fine beach, Sjøsanden. An 800m stretch of golden sand, backed by pine trees and framed by rocky headlands, it’s touted as Norway’s best beach – and although this isn’t saying a lot, it’s a very enjoyable place to unwind for a few hours. The beach is about 1km from the town centre: walk along the harbour, past the tourist office to the end of the road and keep going through the woods on the signed footpath.
You can also explore Furulunden, a tiny wooded peninsula directly to the west of the beach, where a network of paths winds through the trees and rocks to reveal hidden sand and shingle coves; pick up a map at the tourist office.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: MANDAL
By bus There are no trains to Mandal, but there are regular local buses to and from Kristiansand (3–4 daily; 50min) and Stavanger (3–4 daily; 3hr 30min), which pull in at the bus station by the bridge on the north bank of the Mandalselva River. From the bus station, it’s a brief walk west along the riverbank to the old town centre and around 200m more to the tourist office.
Tourist office Bryggegata 10, facing the river (June–Aug Mon–Fri 9am–7pm, Sat
& Sun 10am–4pm; Sept–May Mon–Fri 9am–4pm; 38 27 83
00, lindesnesregionen.com).
ACCOMMODATION
First Hotel Solborg Neseveien 1 38 27 21 00, firsthotels.com.
Medium-sized chain hotel in an odd-looking but somehow rather
fetching modern structure with every mod con, including a pool;
it’s on the west side of the town centre, a good 10min walk from
the bus station, tight against a wooded escarpment. 1300kr
Kjøbmandsgaarden Hotel Store Elvegate 57 38 26 12 76, kjobmandsgaarden.no.
Handy and affordable hotel which occupies an old timber house in
a street of antique buildings across from the bus station. All
the dozen or so rooms here are spick-and-span and the decor is
bright and cheerful, albeit a little staid. 1200kr
Ryvingen Fyr Ryvingen 95 73 16 86, ryvingenfyr.no.
There’s been a lighthouse out in in the Skagerrak on the rocky
islet of Ryvingen since 1867, though the first version was far
from universally popular – local fishermen wrote to the local
newspaper by the dozen complaining that it was so bright it
scared the fish. The present lighthouse, a sturdy red and white
structure, is glued to a large shank of rock with the churning
ocean down below. The old lighthouse keeper’s quarters have been
pleasantly modernized and a handful of cheerfully bright rooms
can be rented from late June to late Aug. Guests are responsible
for their own food, water and bed linen. From Mandal, the return
boat trip costs about 1600kr and the tourist office will make
all the necessary arrangements. Per person per night: 200kr
Sjøsanden Feriesenter Sjøsandvei 1 38 26 10 94, sjosanden-feriesenter.no.
You can camp very close to the western end of the Sjøsanden
beach at this holiday centre, though note that the access road
to the camp detours round the back of the woods, which back onto
the beach; it’s well signposted. They also rent out two-bedroom
cabins that can sleep 6. Pitch 100kr; cabins 1250kr,
sp/r 950kr
EATING AND DRINKING
Hr.Redaktor Store Elvegate 23A 38 27 15 30, red.no.
In the centre of town, this groovy restaurant-cum-bar has a
lively and inventive menu – fried redfish with tomato fennel and
olive compote as a main, for example (300kr). After 10pm, the
place morphs into a busy bar.
Mon–Thurs noon–midnight, Fri & Sat noon–2.30am; kitchen closes at 10pm.
Jonas B Gundersen Store Elvegate 25 38 27 15 00, jbg.no.
Popular pizzeria and bar in the town centre across from the old
water fountain. Serves filling food at affordable prices with
pizzas from 120kr.
Mon–Fri 11am–11pm, Sat 11am–3am, Sun 1–10pm.
STAYING IN A LIGHTHOUSE
The rocks and reefs of the south coast prompted the Norwegians to construct a string of lighthouses and now, with the lighthouse keepers long gone, a number of them offer simple, hostel-like accommodation during the summertime. Lighthouse lodging is inexpensive (averaging around 200kr per person per night), though you’re almost always responsible for your own food, water and bed linen – and getting there and back can cost anything up to 2000kr. Furthermore, arranging it all can be difficult unless you speak Norwegian, though the local tourist office will help fix things up. Of the lighthouses offshore from Mandal offering summer accommodation, Ryvingen Fyr is the most enticing, though best of all perhaps is Feistein Fyr, near Stavanger.
Lindesnes
To the west of Mandal Highway 460 leaves the E39 to snake its way the 15km south to Spangereid at the start of Lindesnes (literally “where the land curves round”), a chubby promontory that juts out into the Skagerrak. Formidable seamen they may have been, but the Vikings feared the cape’s treacherous waters to such an extent that they cut a canal across the base of the promontory at Spangereid to avoid the vagaries of the open sea. In honour of this nautical achievement, a new canal was cut here in 2007.
Lindesnes Fyr
Mid-April to mid-June & mid-Aug to
mid-Oct daily 11am–5pm; mid-June to mid-Aug daily 10am–8pm; rest of
year Sat & Sun 11am–5pm • 50kr • 38 25 54 20, lindesnesfyr.no
At Norway’s most southerly point, 10km south of Spangereid, a sturdy red-and-white lighthouse – Lindesnes Fyr – perches on a knobbly, lichen-stained headland. There has been a lighthouse here since the seventeenth century, but today’s structure and its assorted outhouses mostly date from 1916. The history of the lighthouse and its keepers is explored in a modest museum, which has been cut into the rock of the headland, and the tower is open to the public too. The most dramatic time to visit is during bad weather: the headland is exposed to extraordinarily ferocious storms, when the warm westerly currents of the Skagerrak meet cold easterly winds.
Flekkefjord
With a population of 6000, FLEKKEFJORD, 70km from Mandal, has a tiny centre with old and picturesque timber houses strung along the banks of a short (500m) channel that connects the Lafjord and the Grisefjord. Flekkefjord boomed in the sixteenth century on the back of its trade with the Dutch, who purchased the town’s timber for their houses and its granite for their dykes and harbours. Later, in the 1750s, the herring industry was the main money-spinner, along with shipbuilding and tanning, but the Flekkefjord economy had pretty much collapsed by the end of the nineteenth century when sailing ships gave way to steam.
The oldest and prettiest part of Flekkefjord – known as Hollenderbyen after the town’s Dutch connections – is on the west side of the channel, and only takes a few minutes to explore, though you can extend this pleasantly enough by visiting the nearby nineteenth-century period rooms of the Vest-Agder-museet Flekkefjord, Dr Krafts gate 15 (Flekkefjord Museum; mid-June to Aug Mon–Fri 11am–5pm, Sat & Sun noon–5pm; 50kr).
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: FLEKKEFJORD
By bus Buses pull in on Jernbaneveien, just south of the main drag
and about 250m east of the central waterway. Nor-Way
Busekspressen’s Sør-Vest ekspressen services (#300; nor-way.no) run to
Kristiansand (3 daily; 2hr) and Stavanger (3 daily; 2hr
20min).
Tourist office Elvegata 3, on the waterway’s west side (mid-June to mid-Aug
Mon–Fri 10am–6pm, Sat 10am–4pm, plus Sun in July 11am–4pm; rest
of year Mon–Fri 9am–4pm; 38 32 80 81, regionlister.com).
ACCOMMODATION
Maritim Fjordhotell Sundegata 9 38 32 58 00, fjordhotellene.no.
There’s no pressing reason to overnight in Flekkefjord, but if
you do want to stay, the best bet is this unassuming, fifty-room
hotel in a four-storey block overlooking the east side of the
central waterway. 900kr
Jøssingfjord
At Flekkefjord, the E39 turns inland, threading its way over the hills and down the dales bound for Stavanger, 120km away. Alternatively, you can take the more southerly, but slightly longer (30km or so), Highway 44 which offers occasional glimpses of the sea, most memorably when it wiggles across the narrow Jøssingford, the scene of dramatic events in World War II. In February 1940, the German supply ship Altmar was transporting 300 Allied POWs to Germany, when it was spotted by a British destroyer, HMS Cossack. The destroyer gave chase, trapped the Altmar here in the Jøssingfjord and freed the prisoners. At this time in the war, this was a rare British success and it prompted those Norwegians who were opposed to the Germans – the vast majority of the population – to call themselves “Jossings” throughout hostilities.
Sogndalstrand
From the Jøssingfjord, it’s about 5km to Hauge, a modest little town which is itself just a couple of kilometres north of the sailing port of SOGNDALSTRAND, a lovely little spot, its narrow main street meandering down towards the pretty little harbour. If you want to break your journey hereabouts, this is a good place to do it – and there’s an attractive hotel here too.
ACCOMMODATION: SOGNDALSTRAND
Sogndalstrand Kulturhotell Strandgaten 22, Sogndalstrand 51 47 72 55, sogndalstrand-kulturhotell.no.
This appealing hotel occupies half a dozen old buildings, and
has fifteen cosy and intimate guest rooms. There’s also a very
good restaurant (Mon–Sat 10am–10pm), where they feature local
ingredients – try the salmon when it is in season. 1490kr
Egersund
Around 25km from Sogndalstrand, EGERSUND is a port and minor manufacturing centre that spreads over a jigsaw of bays and lakes at the end of a deep and sheltered ocean inlet. Apart from an assortment of old timber houses in the centre, along Strandgaten, there’s no real reason to hang around and Egersund’s transport links are the main reason why you might pass through – the town is on the Kristiansand to Stavanger train line.
Stavanger and around
STAVANGER is something of a survivor. Unlike a flotilla of Norwegian coastal towns that have fallen foul of the precarious fortunes of fishing, Stavanger has diversified and is now the proud possessor of a dynamic economy, which has swelled the population to over 125,000. It was the herring fishery that first put money into the town, crowding its nineteenth-century wharves with coopers and smiths, net makers and menders. Then, when the fishing failed, the town moved into shipbuilding and now it makes its money through oil – Stavanger builds rigs for Norway’s offshore oilfields and refines it as well – backed up by a profitable sideline in tourism as witnessed by the mammoth cruise ships that regularly pull into its harbour.
Much of central Stavanger is strikingly modern, a jingle and a jangle of mini- and not-so-mini tower blocks that spreads over the hilly ground abutting the main harbour and surrounding the decorative, central lake, Breiavatnet, the most obvious downtown landmark. None of this may sound terribly enticing, but in fact Stavanger is an excellent place to start a visit to Norway: all the town’s amenities are within easy walking distance of each other; it has excellent train, bus and ferry connections; and it possesses an especially attractive harbour, a couple of enjoyable museums, a raft of excellent restaurants plus several lively bars. The town is also – and this comes as a surprise to many first-time visitors – nearer to the fjords than Bergen, the self-proclaimed “Gateway to the Fjords”: within easy reach of Stavanger are the Lysefjord and the dramatic Preikestolen rock formation.
ANTONY GORMLEY IN STAVANGER
Stavanger has no fewer than 23 sculptures by the contemporary British sculptor Antony Gormley (best known for his Angel of the North in England) and together they constitute Broken Column, whose aim is to illustrate the many facets of the city and, for that matter, life (and death) itself. Each and every sculpture is a blank-faced human figure made of cast iron and 195cm high, the same height as – and apparently modelled on – Gormley himself, though some are partly sunk into the ground. This sinking is, as you might expect from Gormley, not at random: each location has a predetermined height quota and the last one in the series, which is stuck out on a rock in the harbour, is mostly (149cm) under water. One of the sculptures is beside the Domkirke, a second is beside Torget’s covered fish market. Work began on Broken Column in 1999 and the project was completed four years later.
Domkirke
Haakon VII’s gate • June–Aug Mon–Sat 11am–7pm, Sun 1–7pm; Sept–May Tues–Sat 11am–4pm • Free
The principal relic of medieval Stavanger is the Domkirke (Cathedral), whose pointed-hat towers signal a Romanesque church dating from the early twelfth century, though it has been modified on several subsequent occasions. Inside, the squat pillars, dog-tooth arches and rough stonework of the narrow, three-aisled nave are the Romanesque heart of the church, but the choir beyond, with its curling tracery and pointed windows, is Gothic, the work of English masons who were brought here in the 1270s. This was far from unusual: the Norwegians had little experience of building in stone, so whenever they decided to build a stone church they imported skilled craftsmen, mainly from England and Germany. The ornate seventeenth-century pulpit is the most distinctive feature of the nave along with a set of conspicuous memorial tablets that hang on its walls – sombre-serious family portraits surrounded by a jumble of richly carved cherubs, angels, crucifixes and apostles.
Torget
From the top of Torget, the main square, there is a fine view of Stavanger’s principal harbour, Vågen, a tapering finger of water that buzzes with cruise ships, yachts, ferryboats and catamarans. Sharing the view is a statue of the author Alexander Kielland (1849–1906), one of the city’s most famous sons, looking decidedly pleased with himself in his top hat and cape. Born into a rich merchant family, Kielland was a popular figure hereabouts, praised for his novels and plays and for his (relatively) generous treatment of the workers in his factory. He also set about building a political career, becoming burgomaster of Stavanger in 1891, but it was food – not his political rivals – that did for him: Kielland loved food and, to all intents and purposes, ate himself to death.
Stavanger Sjøfartsmuseum
Nedre Strandgate 17 & 19 • Mid-June to Aug daily 11am–4pm; Sept to mid-June
Sun 11am–4pm • 60kr • 51 84 27 00, stavanger.museum.no
The mildly diverting Sjøfartsmuseum (Stavanger Maritime Museum) occupies two former warehouses facing the west side of the harbour, metres from Torget. The museum’s interior is jam-packed with all things nautical, from charts and drawings and replica workshops, through to archeological finds, paintings of ships, model boats and, perhaps best of the lot, scores of old photos drawn from a huge permanent collection.
Gamle Stavanger
On the western side of the main harbour is the city’s star turn, Gamle Stavanger. Though very different in appearance from the modern structures back in the centre, the buildings here were also the product of a boom. From 1810 until around 1870, herring turned up just offshore in their millions, and Stavanger took advantage of this slice of luck. The town flourished and expanded, with the number of merchants and shipowners increasing dramatically. Huge profits were made from the exported fish, which were salted and later, as the technology improved, canned. Today, some of the wooden stores and warehouses flanking the western quayside hint at their nineteenth-century pedigree, but it’s the succession of narrow, cobbled lanes behind them – along and around Øvre Strandgate – that shows Gamle Stavanger to best advantage. Formerly home to local seafarers, craftsmen and cannery workers, the area has been maintained as a residential quarter, mercifully free of tourist tat: the long rows of white-painted, clapboard houses are immaculately maintained, complete with picket fences and tiny terraced gardens. There’s little architectural pretension, but here and there flashes of fancy wooden scrollwork must once have had the curtains twitching among the staunchly Lutheran population.
The Norsk Hermetikkmuseet
Øvre Strandgate 88 • Mid-June to Aug daily 11am–4pm; Sept to
mid-June Tues–Sun 11am–4pm • 60kr • 40 72 84 70, stavanger.museum.no
In the heart of Gamle Stavanger, the Norsk Hermetikkmuseet (Norwegian Canning Museum) occupies an old sardine-canning factory and gives a glimpse of the industry that saved Stavanger from collapse at the end of the nineteenth century. When the herring vanished from local waters in the 1870s, the canning factories switched to imported fish, thereby keeping the local economy afloat. They remained Stavanger’s main source of employment until as late as 1960: in the 1920s there were seventy canneries in the town, and the last one only closed down in 1983.
A visit to an old canning factory may not seem too enticing, but the museum is actually very good. Downstairs the assorted drying racks, canning trays, smokers and other paraphernalia set the scene, but the highlight is upstairs in the museum’s collection of sardine tin labels, called iddis in these parts from the local pronunciation of etikett, the Norwegian for label. A couple of hundred labels have survived, in part because they were avidly collected by the town’s children, though this harmless hobby seems to have worried the town’s adults no end – “Label thefts – an unfortunate collection craze”, ran a 1915 headline in the Stavanger Aftenblad newspaper. The variety of label design is extraordinary – anything and everything from representations of the Norwegian royal family to surrealistic fish with human qualities. Spare a thought also for a Scottish seaman by the name of William Anderson: it was his bearded face, copied from a photograph, that beamed out from millions of Skippers’ sardine tins, a celebrity status so frowned upon by shipowners that Anderson couldn’t find work, though fortunately the story ended happily: Anderson wrote to the cannery concerned to complain and they put him on the payroll for the remainder of his working life.
The museum smokes its own sardines on the first Sunday of every month and every Tuesday and Thursday from mid-June to August – and very tasty they are too.
Skagen
After years in the doldrums, Skagen, the bumpy promontory on the east side of the main harbour, is on the up, its old, bright-white wooden houses now holding some of the city’s best bars and cafés, though the clumsily modern Kulturhus, at the centre of affairs, is still a noticeable blotch. Skagen’s mazy street plan is the legacy of the original Viking settlement, but there is nothing else to recall them and the only sight as such is the spiky Valbergtårnet (Valberg tower), a nineteenth-century firewatch sitting atop Skagen’s highest point and offering sweeping views of the city and its industry.
The Norsk Oljemuseum
Kjeringholmen • June–Aug daily 10am–7pm; Sept–May Mon–Sat
10am–4pm, Sun 10am–6pm • 100kr • 51 93 93 00, norskolje.museum.no
The intricate workings of the offshore oil industry are explored in depth at the excellent Norsk Oljemuseum (Norwegian Petroleum Museum), a sleek modern building beside the waterfront on the far side of Skagen. The first tentative searches for oil beneath the North Sea began in the early 1960s and the first strike was made in 1969. Production started two years later and has continued ever since with Norway making an enormous fortune from its vast oil and gas reserves – easily enough to transform what had once been one of Europe’s poorer countries to one of the richest. The museum is not especially large, but it is a little confusing unless you pick up a free plan at reception.
There are introductory displays on North Sea geology, explaining how the oil was created, and on how much money Norway is making from its oil and gas, but you’re soon into the offshore section with scale models of oil rigs, explanations as to how oil wells are sunk, and a few mechanical bits and pieces – drill bits, diving bells and so forth. There’s also a small section on the Alexander Kielland disaster of 1980, when the eponymous oil rig collapsed in heavy seas, killing 123 oil workers, Norway’s worst offshore disaster by a mile. The museum has a mini-cinema, showing a film about the industry, plus several hands-on exhibits, notably a mock-up of a drilling platform with an emergency exit chute. Embedded in the museum are nuggets of social commentary: women were only allowed to work offshore from the late 1970s and soon after their arrival the oil companies had to bring in more toiletries for the men, who suddenly started to shower (more). A further section is devoted to the divers who work on the sea bed, their endeavours illustrated with a remarkable short film on the laying and repairing of a stretch of underwater pipeline.
Incidentally, the large yellow bridge-like structure outside the museum was retrieved from the Frigg oilfield, when it closed down in 2004 after 27 years of production. Frigg was a joint operation between the UK and Norway and this particular piece of kit, built to link two oil installations far out in the ocean, actually crossed the international frontier – as the surviving signage illustrates.
From the museum, the most agreeable way to return to the centre is by walking west along Øvre Holmegate, one of Skagen’s prettiest streets, lined with old wooden buildings.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: STAVANGER AND AROUND
By plane Stavanger’s international airport is 14km southwest of the city
centre at Sola. A Flybussen (every 15–30min: Mon–Fri 8am–midnight,
Sat 9am–11pm, Sun 10am–11pm; 20–30min depending on traffic; 95kr
one-way, 150kr return; flybussen.no) links the airport with the city centre,
stopping at several downtown hotels, including the Radisson Blu Atlantic, as well as the Fiskepiren ferry
terminal and the bus and train stations.
By train Stavanger’s train station is on the southern side of Breiavatnet.
For train information contact NSB ( 51 56 96 10, nsb.no).
Destinations Egersund (hourly; 1hr 10min); Kristiansand (4–6 daily; 3hr); Oslo (2–4 daily; 8hr).
By bus Stavanger’s bus terminal is adjacent to the train station. Inside
the bus station, Kolumbus Rogaland Kollektivtrafikk operates an
information centre (Mon–Fri 7am–7pm, Sat 10am–3pm;
177, kolumbus.no), which provides comprehensive details of
buses, boats and trains in the city and surrounding area. Nor-Way
Busekspressen ( nor-way.no)
runs the following services:
Sør-Vest ekspressen (#300) to: Flekkefjord (3 daily; 2hr 20min); Kristiansund (3 daily; 4hr 15min).
Kystbussen (#400) to: Bergen (every 1–2hr; 5hr to 5hr 30min); Haugesund (every 1–2hr; 2hr)
By domestic ferry Most domestic ferries from the islands and fjords around
Stavanger, including both Hurtigbåt passenger express boats and car
ferries, dock at the Fiskepiren terminal, a short walk to the
northeast Breiavatnet – and about 800m from the train and bus
stations. Kolumbus has a second information centre here (Mon–Thurs
7am–4.30pm, Fri 7am–6pm, Sat 8am–1pm & Sun 10am–noon &
3.30–5.30pm). You can also pick up Hurtigbåt passenger express boat
tickets for the trip north to Haugesund (1–4 daily; 1hr 25min) and
Bergen (1–2 daily; 4hr) at the Flaggruten information office here
( 055 05, flaggruten.no).
By international ferry There are no international car ferries into Stavanger, but
Fjordline ( 815 33 500, fjordline.com) operates
a car ferry service from Hirstals in Denmark to Tananger, about 12km
west of the city.
By car There’s a 20kr toll on all roads leading into Stavanger, but you
won’t be asked to stop as it’s levied electronically. On-street
parking is difficult, but not impossible; otherwise, there are
several city-centre car parks, one of the more convenient of which
is just a few metres to the west of the Fiskepiren ferry terminal.
In the centre car rental is available from - Hertz/Europcar, Olav
V’s gate 13 ( 51 53 82 02). Also at Stavanger airport
are Europcar ( 51 65 10 90) and Hertz ( 51 65 10
96).
GETTING AROUND
By taxi Stavanger Taxi 51 90 90 90.
By bike The tourist office rents bikes at 250kr/day, and issues free cycling maps.
INFORMATION AND TOURS
Tourist office Domkirkeplassen 3 (June–Aug daily 9am–8pm; Sept–May Mon–Fri
9am–4pm, Sat 9am–2pm; 51 85 92 00, regionstavanger.com). Stavanger tourist office publishes
a useful and free guide to Stavanger, and provides local bus and
ferry timetables.
Tours The tourist office can make bookings on guided tours both on land and sea. The most popular excursions are to the Lysefjord and Preikestolen with some trips departing from the Fiskepiren terminal, others from Skagenkaien, beside the main harbour, Vågen.
ACTIVITIES
Hiking The DNT-affiliated Stavanger Turistforening in the underpass at
the top of Olav V’s gate (Mon–Wed & Fri 10am–4pm, Thurs
10am–7pm, Sat 10am–3pm; 51 84 02 00, stavanger-turistforening.no) will advise on local hiking
routes and sells a comprehensive range of hiking maps. They maintain
around 900km of hiking trails and run more than thirty cabins in the
mountains east of Stavanger, as well as organizing ski schools at
winter weekends. They also offer general advice about local
conditions, weather and so on, and you can obtain DNT membership
here too.
ACCOMMODATION
There’s no shortage of accommodation in Stavanger. A string of hotels is dotted around the town’s compact centre and although prices are fairly high, all of them offer substantial weekend discounts. Alternatively, you can opt for a no-frills guesthouse, an HI hostel and a campsite, with a lighthouse as a further choice, though this is a good way out of town.
HOTELS AND B&BS
Best Western Havly Hotel Valberggata 1 51 93 90 00, havly-hotell.no.
Neat and trim, medium-sized hotel occupying a rather bunker-like
modern building squeezed into a narrow side street off
Skagenkaien. Forty spick-and-span modern rooms. 1760kr,
sp/r 880kr
Clarion Collection Hotel Skagen
Brygge Skagenkaien 30 51 85 00 00, skagenbryggehotell.no.
A pleasing quayside hotel, built in the style of an old
warehouse but with lots of glass and great views over the
harbour. The rooms are modern and unfussily decorated, the
buffet breakfast very good and mid-afternoon nibbles are free.
The only quibble concerns the noise from outside: if you are a
light sleeper, either take potluck (summer weekends are
noisiest) or a room at the back. Recently incorporated into the
Clarion Collection chain, so the website may change. 1800kr,
sp/r 1100kr
Myhregaarden Hotel Nygata 24 51 86 80 00, myhregaardenhotel.no/hotel-stavanger.
Housed in part of a large and really rather grand late
nineteenth-century building, this hotel has a handy location and
53 guest rooms with the comfiest of beds. The decor is bright if
a tad spartan with the attic rooms especially pleasant. Great
breakfasts too. 1900kr, sp/r 1000kr
Radisson Blu Atlantic Hotel Olav V’s gate 3 51 76 10 00, radissonblu.com/atlantichotel-stavanger.
There was a time when this was the
place to stay in Stavanger, hosting every celebrity who ever set
foot in the city from Paul Gascoigne to Fats Domino. The hotel
looks a tad jaded now – and it certainly occupies a big bruiser
of a modern block – but the rooms are large and spacious and
most offer attractive views over the central lake. 2095kr,
sp/r 1200kr
Stavanger Bed and Breakfast Vikedalsgaten 1a 51 56 25 00, stavangerbedandbreakfast.no.
This friendly, hostel-like B&B has 22 simple and
straightforward modern rooms, most of which have showers and
sinks (but shared toilets). Every night at 9pm, guests gather in
the dining room for the complimentary coffee and waffles – and a
very sociable affair it is too. The B&B is in a residential
area just 5min walk from the train station. A real snip, even if
some of the inter-room walls are paper-thin. 890kr
Thon Hotel Maritim Kongsgata 32 51 85 05 00, thonhotels.com.
No points for architectural style – this chain hotel occupies a
glum-looking modern block – but the interior has been nicely
remodelled. It’s in a quiet, central location, and the upper
floors overlook the city’s dinky little central lake,
Breiavatnet. 1800kr, sp/r 1000kr
HOSTEL, SELF-CATERING AND CAMPING
Feistein Fyr Feistein 51 42 98 00 or 95 00 94 74, klepp.kommune.no/artikler/feistein-fyr.
On a rocky, sea-buffeted offshore islet, the old lighthouse
keeper’s quarters of Feistein lighthouse have been turned into
an appealing guesthouse with 15 beds and a self-catering
kitchen. A wonderful setting it is – but The
Ritz it isn’t: they provide pillows and duvets, but
you bring your own sheets/sleeping bag; it can get very cold, so
bring lots of warm clothes; and there’s no hot water. Overnight
accommodation is inexpensive but you also have to add on the
price of the boat trip out to the island (250kr return). The
ferry dock is at Sele marina, off Highway 510, beyond the
airport and about 25km from Stavanger. Rate is per person per
night. 250kr
Stavanger Camping Mosvangen Tjensvollveien 1b 51 53 29 71, stavangercamping.no.
On the south side of lake Mosvatnet, just 3km from the centre –
and not far from the HI
hostel – this large and well-equipped campsite
has space for tents and caravans as well as a selection of
cabins for up to six people. Open April to Sept. Tent pitch
120kr, cabin 450kr
Stavanger Vandrerhjem Mosvangen Henrik Ibsens gate 19 51 54 36 36, hihostels.no.
This no-frills, chalet-meets-barracks HI hostel stands on the
south side of Mosvatnet lake, a 3km walk from the centre. The
hostel has self-catering and laundry facilities, and the 45
rooms hold between one and five bunk beds each with en-suite
doubles costing 645kr; advance reservations are advised. The
nearest you’ll get by public transport is on bus #4 from the bus
and train stations – get off at the start of Ullandhaugsveien
(or at least ask the driver to put you off) on the southeast
side of the lake. Open early June to late Aug. Dorms 225kr,
double 595kr
EATING
The centre of Stavanger’s restaurant and café-bar scene is down by the harbour, where a gaggle of places line up along Skagen and neighbouring Skagenkaien. Standards vary enormously and you’ll almost certainly pay top-dollar, so by and large you’re better off in the more reasonably priced places in the narrow side streets of the Skagen district, on the promontory immediately to the east of the main harbour.
CAFÉS AND CAFÉ-BARS
Bøker & Børst Øvre Holmegate 32 51 86 04 76, bokerogborst.com.
Charming café-bar where the decor really does set the tone –
from the vintage posters and Oriental bric-a-brac through to the
jam-packed bookshelves that seem to fill out every spare corner.
There’s a pavement terrace at the front and a mini-courtyard at
the back plus an oh-so relaxing soundtrack. The drinks – both
soft and alcoholic – are the main event, but they do sell snacks
and there are live gigs here too.
Daily 10am–2am.
Godt Brød Sølvberggata 51 84 40 80, bakeverksted.no.
One of a large chain, this inexpensive, modern café sells a good
range of freshly baked bread as well as inexpensive sandwiches.
Opposite the Kulturhus in the middle of Skagen.
Mon–Sat 7am–6pm, Sun 10am–5pm.
Hansen Hjørnet Skagen 18 51 89 52 80, hansenhjornet.com.
When the sun is out, this harbourside café-bar has the prettiest
outside terrace in town – decorated with flowers and protected
by a wind-break – though you my struggle to find an empty chair.
Mon–Sat 11am–midnight, Sun 1–11pm.
Ostehuset Hospitalsgata 6 51 86 40 10, ostehuset.no.
Attractive modern café in airy premises, where the speciality is
pizza: the basic model costs 100kr and then you choose from a
delicious range of extra toppings for 25–35kr each. There’s also
a daily menu featuring the freshest of local ingredients with
mains from about 120kr plus sandwiches, baguettes and large-size
salads (from 165kr).
Mon–Fri 8am–9pm, Sat 8am–6pm.
Sjokoladepiken Øvre Holmegate 27 47 20 19 84, sjokoladepiken.no.
This lovely little place sells the best coffee in town, but the
real highlights are the chocolates and the cakes, all handmade
and earth-shatteringly tasty. This tastiness doesn’t come cheap
– a slice of cake costs 90kr – but the pleasure easily outweighs
the financial pain.
Mon–Wed 11am–10pm, Thurs–Sat 11am–midnight & Sun noon–9pm.
RESTAURANTS
Hall Toll Skansegata 2 51 51 72 32, hall-toll.no.
Down on the harbour, in the capacious former toll house, this
restaurant-cum-bar and club is one of the busiest places in
town, its restaurant combining a sushi bar with a more
conventional area whisking up tasty Norwegian dishes. Mains
average 200kr.
Mon–Fri 4.30pm–1.30am, Sat 12.30pm–1.30am; kitchen till 11pm. Club Fri & Sat 11.30pm–3am.
Nye La Piazza Rosenkildetorget 1 51 52 02 52, nyelapiazza.no.
By the main harbour, just off Torget, this long-established
Italian restaurant may be a tad staid, but the pizzas are large
and tasty as are the meat, fish and pasta dishes. Pizzas begin
at 150kr, other main courses 260kr.
Mon–Sat noon–midnight, Sun noon–10pm.
Thai Cuisine Kirkegata 41 51 86 07 88, thaicuisine.no.
Sociable and very popular restaurant in trim modern premises
that serves the best Thai food in Stavanger. The menu, which
covers all the classics and then some, has main courses from
around 200kr.
Daily 11am–11pm.
Timbuktu Nedre Strandgate 15 51 84 37 40, herlige-restauranter.no/timbuktu.
Smooth and slick restaurant-bar down by the harbour with some
striking 1960s-style design features. It does a great line in
Asian fusion cuisine, with mains averaging around 220kr.
Mon & Tues 6pm–midnight, Wed–Sat 6pm–3am; kitchen till 10pm.
DRINKING AND NIGHTLIFE
Stavanger is lively at night, particularly at weekends when a rum assortment of oil workers, sailors, fishermen, executives, tourists and office workers gathers in the bars and clubs on or near the harbour to live (or rather drink) it up. Most places stay open until 2am or later, with rowdy – but usually amiable – boozers lurching from one bar to the next.
BARS AND CLUBS
Café Sting Valberget 3 51 89 38 78, cafe-sting.no.
Right next to the Valbergtårnet tower, this laidback café-bar
attracts a youthful, vaguely arty crew. The food is filling and
inexpensive and the place also doubles as an art gallery and
live music venue, hosting anything from indie to rock.
Mon–Thurs noon–midnight, Fri & Sat noon–3am, Sun 3pm–midnight.
Nåloyet Nedre Strandgate 13 51 84 37 00, herlige-restauranter.no/naloyetbar.
Dark and funky bar which heaves on the weekend with a wide range
of domestic and foreign beers the main alcoholic pull.
Daily 8pm–2am.
Taket Nattklubb Nedre Strandgate 15 51 84 37 00, herlige-restauranter.no/taket.
The best club in town, strong on house music with great
cocktails too; don’t be surprised if you have to queue. It’s
above Timbuktu, just west of Torget.
Wed–Sun midnight–3.30am.
ENTERTAINMENT
CLASSICAL MUSIC
Stavanger Konserthus Nedre Strandgate 89 51 53 70 00 (tickets), stavanger-konserthus.no.
The city’s sparklingly new concert hall hosts regular
performances by visiting artists, from pop to classical and
theatre, and is home to the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra ( sso.no). It’s located north
of the centre, on the waterfront just beyond the main Cruise
Ship terminal.
CINEMA
SF Kino Kulturhus Sølvberggata 2 820 00 100, sfkino-stavanger.no.
Stavanger has several cinemas and this one, inside the
Kulturhus, is one of the handiest. Shows the latest
blockbusters, both international and Scandinavian.
SHOPPING
Vinmonopolet Lars Hertevigs gate 6. State-run liquor and wine outlet in the Straensenteret shopping centre, just west of Torget. Mon–Fri 10am–6pm, Sat 10am–3pm.
DIRECTORY
Internet Internet access is free at the main library, inside the Kulturhus at Sølvberggata 2 (Mon–Thurs 10am–7pm, Fri 10am–5pm, Sat 10am–4pm, plus Sept–May Sun noon–4pm).
Laundry Renseriet, Kongsgata 40, on the east side of Lake Breiavatnet
( 51 89 56 53). Coin-operated machines.
Left luggage Coin-operated lockers at the Fiskepiren terminal (Mon–Fri 6.30am–11.15pm, Sat 6.30am–8pm, Sun 8am–10pm); at the train station (Sun–Fri 6am–11pm, Sat 6am–6pm); and at the bus station (daily 7am–10pm).
Pharmacy Among many, there is a Vitusapotek at Olav V’s gate 11 (Mon–Fri 8.30am–11pm, Sat 9am–11pm, Sun & hols 10am–11pm).
Post office The main post office is on Lars Hertevigs gate, just a few metres from Haakon VII’s gate (Mon–Fri 9am–6pm & Sat 10am–3pm).
Around Stavanger: Lysefjord and Preikestolen
Stavanger sits on a long promontory that pokes a knobbly head north towards the Boknafjord, whose wide waters form a deep indentation in the coast and lap against a confetti of islets and islands. To the east of Stavanger, longer, narrower fjords drill far inland, the most diverting being the blue-black Lysefjord, famous for its precipitous cliffs and an especially striking rock formation, the Preikestolen. This distinctive 25m-square table of rock boasts a sheer 600m drop to the Lysefjord down below on three of its sides.
Getting to Preikestolen by ferry and bus is comparatively straightforward, but cruising the Lysefjord by ferry requires a little forethought – best with the help of Stavanger tourist office, who sell the boat tickets. Note also that no matter what the publicity hype says, you do not get a decent view of Preikestolen from the waters of the Lysefjord.
GETTING AROUND: LYSEFJORD
There are no roads along the length of the Lysefjord, so although the fjord can be reached by car at three points – one at the west end, one at the east and one in the middle – you’ll need to take a boat trip to appreciate its full dimensions.
Hurtigbåt passenger express boat The fastest trips are by Hurtigbåt passenger express boat
(May, June & Sept 1 daily; July & Aug 2 daily; Oct–April
1 weekly; 3hr; 390kr; 51 89 52 70, rodne.no), but these
round-trip excursions, which depart from Stavanger’s
Skagenkaien, only go halfway up along the Lysefjord and the
views from the boat are not nearly as good as they are from a
car ferry.
Car ferry A regular car ferry runs from the Fiskepiren terminal in
Stavanger to Lysebotn, at the far end of the Lysefjord; advance
booking is recommended (3 weekly; 1hr 45min; passengers 115kr,
car and driver 400kr; 177, kolumbus.no).
Tourist car ferry From late May to late June, Norled tourist car ferries (4hr;
passengers 210kr each way; driver & car 400kr each way;
51 86 87 80, norled.no) run between
the Fiskepiren terminal and Lysebotn (1 daily each way); from
late June to late August they run to Lysebotn from Lauvvik, much
closer to the west end of the Lysefjord (2 daily each way) –
there’s a connecting bus from Stavanger for foot passengers.
From Lysebotn, drivers can head off into the mountains and/or
return to Stavanger, but note that vehicle owners are strongly
advised to make advance ferry reservations at least a day ahead.
Passengers often hang around Lysebotn and then come back along
the same route, though the return ferry journey can be a bit of
a drag.
Tours You can liven up the standard Stavanger–Lysebotn itinerary by
opting for the“Fjord and Mountain” excursion (late June to late
Aug 1 daily; 8hr; 590kr) run by Norled ( 51 86 87
80, norled.no), which involves a bus ride over the
mountains from Stavanger to Øygardstøl, the dramatic hairpin
drive down to Lysebotn and then the car ferry along the
Lysefjord back to Stavanger. The brave can also ramp up the
stakes by taking Norled’s “Hiking tour to Kjerag from Stavanger”
(late June to late Aug 1 daily, early Sept 3 weekly; 10hr;
490kr), which follows the same itinerary as the “Fjord and
Mountain” trip except that you get off the bus at Øygardstøl for
a guided hike to the Kjeragbolten, after which you return to
Stavanger.
Stavanger to Lysebotn
Heading out from Stavanger, both the regular and the tourist Lysefjord car ferries chop through raggle-taggle islands before turning into the Lysefjord between Oanes, on its northern shore, and Forsand to the south. Before long the ferry passes the base of Preikestolen, though from this angle the rock hardly makes any impression at all. It then nudges on up the fjord with mighty cliffs to either side before reaching Flørli, one of several request stops, where a scattering of houses hugs the shore in sight of the old power station – the new one is actually inside the mountain. A remarkably long wooden stairway leads up the mountainside here and, even more remarkably, the occasional visitor actually gets off the boat to clamber up it.
Lysebotn
Lysebotn, at the far end of the Lysefjord, is the neatest of villages, a tiny little place built to house hydroelectric workers in the middle of the twentieth century. It’s also extremely popular with base-jumpers, who hunker down here before heading off into the mountains nearby.
ACCOMMODATION: LYSEBOTN
Lysefjorden Vandrerhjem 94 82 66 02, hihostels.no.
Housed in a modern building, this well-equipped hostel
has a café serving breakfast, lunch and dinner,
self-catering facilities, common rooms and an outdoor
area. There are 49 beds in 22 rooms, with en-suite
doubles available. Rates include breakfast. Mid-June to
Aug. Dorms 260kr, doubles
815kr
Lysebotn to Stavanger via Øygardstøl and Kjeragbolten
Leaving the Lysefjord behind, the narrow road up from Lysebotn (closed in winter) offers spectacular views as it wiggles and wriggles its way up the mountainside. Eventually, after 7km, just above the last hairpin, the road arrives at the Øygardstøl café, which has panoramic views back down towards the fjord. Øygardstøl is also the starting point for the hiking trail which leads west to the Kjeragbolten, a much-photographed boulder wedged between two cliff faces high above the ground. It’s a tough route, so allow six hours for the round trip – and steel your nerves for the dizzying drops down to the fjord below.
Beyond Øygardstøl, the road crosses a stunningly beautiful mountain plateau, a barren, treeless expanse of boulder and loch whose wide vistas are intercepted by the occasional cabin. Eventually, the road meets Highway 45, which slices west between the bulging mountains of Øvstabødal on its way back to Stavanger.
Preikestolen
Lysefjord’s most celebrated vantage point, Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock), offers superlative views, though on sunny summer days you’ll be sharing them with lots and lots of others. How much you enjoy it depends on your vertigo: the bold/foolhardy dangle the odd limb over the abyss, the more cautious stay away from the edge – and there are no fences or barriers. From the car park at the end of the road, where you’ll also find a hostel and a mountain lodge, it’s a four-hour hike there and back to Preikestolen along a clearly marked trail. The first half is steep in parts and paved with uneven stones, while the second half – over bedrock – is a good bit easier. The change in elevation is 350m and you should take food and water; the hike is not feasible in winter unless you really know what you are doing.
Hikes from the Preikestolen car park
The DNT-affiliated Stavanger Turistforening have details of hikes around Preikestolen, and sell an excellent English-language hiking guide to the area
From Preikestolen car park, a short sharp hike leads down to Refsvatn, a small lake encircled by a footpath which takes three hours to negotiate, passing birch and pine woods, marshes, narrow ridges and bare stretches of rock. It also threads through Torsnes, an isolated farm that was inhabited until 1962. The lake footpath connects with a rough path that careers down to the Refsa quay on the Lysefjord.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: PREIKESTOLEN
By ferry and car To get to Preikestolen by car, take the ferry east from
Stavanger to Tau (every 30min–1hr; 40min; passengers 43kr,
car and driver 129kr; norled.no) and then drive south along Highway 13
until, after about 14km, you reach the signed side road
leading to Preikestolen.
By ferry and bus Ferry and bus deals covering the Stavanger–Tau–Preikestolen route are available throughout the season; timetables are available from Stavanger tourist office (mid-April to mid-May & late Sept Sat & Sun 6 daily; mid-May to mid-Sept 6 daily; bus journey 35min; 200kr return).
ACCOMMODATION
Preikestolenfjellstue 51 74 20 74, preikestolenfjellstue.no.
Operated by the Stavanger branch of DNT, the Norwegian
hiking association, this large and comfortable mountain
lodge is a handsome wood and glass structure that blends in
well with its environs. It’s well equipped too, with a
restaurant and spacious common areas. The rooms, all of
which are en suite, are priced according to the view – those
offering panoramic views are the most expensive, those
looking out into the forest are the cheapest. Substantial
discounts for YHA and DNT members (doubles from 795kr).
Located close to the Preikestolen car park. Open all year.
995kr
Preikestolen Vandrerhjem 51 74 20 74, hihostels.no.
Right by the Preikestolen car park, this first-rate HI
hostel perches high on the hillside with great views over
the surrounding mountains. Built on the site of an old
mountain farm, it comprises a small complex of turf-roofed
lodges, each of which has a spick-and-span pine interior.
There are self-catering facilities, and a café serving
breakfasts, lunches and simple evening meals; reservations
are advised as the place is popular with school groups. Open
April–Oct. Dorms 280kr, en-suite
doubles 740kr
STAVANGER TO BERGEN
With great ingenuity, Norway’s road builders have cobbled together the
E39 coastal road, the Kystvegen ( kystvegen.no), which
traverses the west coast from Stavanger to Haugesund, Bergen and
ultimately Trondheim with eight ferry trips breaking up the journey. The
first part of the trek, the 180km haul up from Stavanger to Bergen,
includes two ferry trips and sees the highway slipping across a string
of islands, which provide a pleasant introduction to the scenic charms
of western Norway – and hint at the sterner beauty of the fjords beyond.
Perhaps surprisingly, this region is primarily agricultural: the
intricacies of the shoreline, together with the prevailing westerlies,
made the seas so treacherous that locals mostly stuck to the land, eking
out a precarious existence from the thin soils that had accumulated on
the leeward sides of some of the islands.
Haugesund
There is no overpowering reason to break your journey between Stavanger and Bergen, but HAUGESUND, a lively industrial town 100km north of Stavanger – via the E39 and the Mortavika–Arsvågen ferry (see Stavanger to Bergen) – has its moments. Now a major player in the North Sea oil industry, Haugesund once thrived on its herring fisheries, whose whopping profits funded the series of large and imposing, early twentieth-century stone buildings that dot Smedasundet, the bustling main harbour.
Specific sights are perhaps thin on the ground, but a stroll along the
harbourfront is an amiable way to spend half
an hour and the tumbling water fountains of adjacent Torggata lead up towards the town’s prettiest church, Vår Frelsers Kirke, a slender brick affair of
1901 whose neo-Gothic design is enlivened by some Jugendstil flourishes. Haugesund may be light on sights, but
it does do well for festivals, the prime examples being the Sildajazz Festival ( sildajazz.no) and the first-rate Norwegian
International Film Festival ( filmweb.no/filmfestivalen), both of which are held in August. The
town’s other claim to fame is as the hometown of the baker Edward Mortenson,
who emigrated to the USA, where he almost certainly fathered Norma Jean,
otherwise Marilyn Monroe.
Haraldshaugen
The first ruler of a united Norway, Harald Hårfagre (Harald Fair Hair; c.880–930), is thought to have been buried up along the coast just 2km to the north of Haugesund – and a grand granite obelisk, the Haraldshaugen, now marks his presumed resting place, sitting pretty just off Highway 47. Hårfagre defeated a coalition of local chieftains at the battle of Hafrsfjord just south of Stavanger in about 885, thereby cementing his control of the fjordland, an achievement that, according to legend, released him from a ten-year vow not to cut his hair until he had united the country. In a nationalist flush, the Norwegians erected the Haraldshaugen monument to celebrate Hårfagre in 1872, but very little is known about Hårfagre’s rule or the extent of his real power. The most detailed evidence comes from several of the sagas, which insist that Harald “kept a sharp eye on the landed men and rich farmers”, so much so that many fled west to settle in Iceland and the Faroes, though this does not entirely match with the facts – the move west began earlier.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: HAUGESUND
By plane Haugesund’s pocket-sized international airport is some 14km
southwest of the centre. From the airport, there is a regular
Flybussen service to Haugesund (25min; 70kr one-way, 110kr
return; flybussen.no), with departure times linked to flight
arrivals.
By bus Long-distance buses pull into Haugesund bus station, an inconvenient 20min walk from the harbourfront. The taxi fare from the station to the harbour is about 80kr.
Destinations Nor-Way Bussekspress’s Kystbussen (#400) runs to Bergen (every 1–2hr; 3hr 15min) and Stavanger (every 1–2hr; 2hr), and its Haukeliekspressen (#180) to Oslo (1–2 daily; 9hr).
By ferry Hurtigbåt passenger express ferries from Bergen (2–3 daily; 3hr) and Stavanger (2–3 daily; 1hr 40min) stop on the harbourfront right in the centre of town.
By car Moving on up the coast from Haugesund, drivers can either continue north on the E39 to Bergen, or branch off east along the E134 towards either Odda and the Hardangerfjord or Oslo via the wild and woolly Haukelifjell mountain pass.
Tourist office Strandgata 171, one block in from the main harbour (May–Aug
Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat & Sun 10am–3pm; Sept–April Mon–Fri
10am–4.30pm; 52 01 08 30, visithaugesund.no).
ACCOMMODATION
Clarion Hotel Amanda Smedasundet 93 52 80 82 00, choicehotels.no.
On the main harbourfront, this medium-sized hotel occupies a
good-looking, early twentieth-century stone building; the rooms
are large and comfortable, and have benefited from a recent
upgrade. An evening buffet meal is included in the price on
weekdays. Sauna, steam room and bike rental too. 1800kr,
sp/r 1000kr
Rica Maritim Åsbygaten 3 52 86 30 00, rica.no.
The town’s plushest hotel is located in a large, ultramodern
block on the harbourfront. All the rooms here are decorated in
crisp, modern style and most have harbour views. 1600kr
Røvær Vandrerhjem Røvær, 10km to the west of Haugesund 52 71 80 35, vandrerhjem.no.
For something more distinctive than Haugesund’s chain hotels,
take the ferry to the green, fairly flat and car-free little
island of Røvær ( visitrovar.no), where there’s a no-frills HI hostel
in a distinctive timber building metres from the ferry dock, as
well as easy rambling and a beach or two. Passenger ferries
leave from Haugesund’s harbourfront (6–7 daily; 25min; 50kr each
way) and dock a short walk from the main village. Open late June
to late Aug. Dorms 220kr, doubles 590kr
EATING AND DRINKING
Café Moody Strandgata 152 52 72 74 20.
One block up from the harbourfront, near the corner of Torggata,
this is the best café in Haugesund by a long chalk, a laidback
sort of place with secondhand furniture and modern art on the
walls. The café attracts a student crew and serves up tasty,
filling sandwiches and snacks from 70kr and up.
Mon & Tues 11am–11pm, Wed–Fri 11am–1.30am, Sat noon–1.30am; closed Sun.
Lothes Mat & Vinhus Skippergata 4 52 71 22 01.
The pick of the town’s several restaurants, located in a cosy
huddle of old timber buildings just up from the harbourfront.
The wide-ranging menu features a whole raft of Norwegian
favourites, with main courses costing in the region of 300kr.
When the kitchen closes at night, the place morphs into a bar
till 1 or 2am.
Kitchen Mon–Sat 11am–10pm.