Millions of Norwegians are officially off for Norway’s long five-day Easter holiday weekend that began on Thursday, with more than half of them out travelling within the country or heading abroad. There’s little sign they’re sacrificing holiday travel out of concern for the climate or the carbon emissions that flying and driving can generate. Oslo’s […]
Tourists steal nails from stave churches
March 26, 2019
Norway’s carefully preserved stave churches have survived for centuries but face threats from thoughtless tourists. The caretaker for one of them in Telemark has found small holes in the wooden walls where nails used to be, taken by tourists who’ve helped themselves to a souvenir. “The tourists want to take something with them from a […]
Ice-mining project wins some support
March 14, 2019
A small company’s plans to slice ice out of an arm of a Norwegian glacier has won support from a planning commission in Meløy. It voted unanimously on Thursday to move forward with plans to start up exclusive ice cube production, but any actual production is still a long way off. The ice cube project […]
Trondheim ready for new food pilgrims
February 19, 2019
The Norwegian city of Trondheim has drawn pilgrims to its Nidaros Cathedral for centuries. Now food worshippers are likely to make pilgrimages as well, after two of its restaurants finally won Michelin stars Monday night. They’re the first Michelin stars for the seaside city that’s surrounded by hills and farmland. They recognize what locals have […]
Hurtiguten’s hybrid ships take form
December 14, 2018
After shipbuilding challenges and lengthy delays that forced cancellation of 10 cruises in the Antarctic, Norway’s coastal voyage line Hurtigruten offered a peek this week at its new hybrid cruiseships, the first of their kind in the world. If all goes well now, the MS Roald Amundsen will start sailing this spring. “With this ship […]
Norway to crack down on Airbnb
December 7, 2018
The Norwegian government is poised to tighten and clarify regulations for short-term rental of residential property, in new legislation sent to Parliament on Friday. The goal is to crack down on what government minister Monica Mæland calls the “pure hotel operations” that have sprung up since online accommodation service Airbnb entered the market. The main […]
Bergen is most future-oriented
December 5, 2018
Norway’s West Coast city of Bergen has preserved its history but also is best equipped to tackle the future, according to a survey of the country’s 71 largest cities. Bergen tops the list, followed by Bryne farther south in Rogaland, and Kongsberg, which has been attracting new businesses for years. The survey, conducted by consulting […]
Coastal town put under preservation
November 30, 2018
The Norwegian government put the central portion of an entire coastal town under historic preservation orders on Friday. Once known as a sailing ship and herring hub, the unique white wooden buildings of Skudeneshavn are now meant to be saved forever. “We want to secure an extremely special and well-preserved coastal town,” said Ola Elvestuen, […]
Rockslides threaten famed ‘Trollstigen’
November 22, 2018
After years of fears that a nearby mountain may come crashing down, geologists and state highway officials have turned their attention to one of Norway’s most well-known highways. “Trollstigen” now appears far more vulnerable to land-and rockslides than earlier thought. “The risk of slides exceeds acceptable risk,” according to a new report delivered to the […]
Calls rise to limit cruiseship arrivals
October 24, 2018
Increasingly fierce opposition to the numbers of large cruiseships docking in Norway in recent years is finally being heard. Officials in Bergen, Norway’s busiest cruise destination, are now asking the state for permission to limit the number of cruiseships to three per day, in an effort to control the hordes of tourists who’ve been inundating […]
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