One of the world’s largest areas of untouched nature awaits you. In the summer, beautiful colours and contrasts provide the frames for dramatic glaciers, majestic mountain formations, buzzing bird mountains and endless arctic tundra with its diverse fl ora and fauna. Visitors find themselves enclosed by the unparalleled silence on Svalbard.

The light lures us to this unique place in which the midnight sun shines from early spring till autumn. During the winter, the northern lights cast sparkles of light across snow-covered, pointed mountain
peaks and an infi nite landscape. The blue light caught between darkness and light turns reality into a pure
fairytale. The surroundings become works of art. A stay on Svalbard is the perfect vacation if you want
peace, quiet and space for thoughts and dreams.

photo credit: Yukon White Light

Thoughts swell in the encounter with Svalbard’s exciting history and fascinating cultural monuments located
across the archipelago. We move with respect in this vulnerable landscape. For the sake of your safety and to ensure that you get the most out of your stay on Svalbard, we recommend our local tour operators’ diverse selection of organised tours.

photo credit: aliasgrace

Facts about Svalbard

photo credit: thecameo

The archipelago that constitutes Svalbard with its 61 000 square metres is located at 74º – 81º N and 10º – 35º E. The largest islands are Spitsbergen, Nordaustlandet, Barentsøya, Edgeøya and Prins Karls Forland. The
archipelago is governed by Norway and regulated by the Svalbard Treaty. There are multiple settlements on
Spitsbergen, and Longyearbyen is the Norwegian administrative centre with approximately 2000 inhabitants. Of these, about 240 commute to the mining community of Svea. Ny-Ålesund is an international research centre with approximately 40-100 inhabitants (depending on the time of year). Barentsburg is the centre of Russian mining activities and has about 500 inhabitants. In addition, Poland operates a research station in Hornsund with 10-12 inhabitants. There is no road connection between the settlements.

photo credit: Yukon White Light

Short history

In 1194, the ”Svalbarði fundinn” was noted in Icelandic texts, in which Svalbard was referred to as the ”land of cold coasts”. After Willem Barentsz discovered Svalbard in 1596, Svalbard became a site for international whaling (1600-1750), Russian all-winter hunting (1700-1850) and Norwegian all-winter hunting (1850-1973). In 1906, American John M. Longyear established the fi rst mine and named the town Longyearbyen. In 1916, Store Norske Spitsbergen Kullkompani took over the mining activities in Longyearbyen. Almost 40 countries signed the Svalbard Treaty in 1920, and Norway was granted sovereignty in 1925. In 2002, the responsibility for community services and public authority tasks were transferred from the Norwegian government to Longyearbyen Community Council. This Council is an extended local democracy based on a unique model adapted to the local circumstances.

photo credit: Juergen Kurlvink

photo credit: welcome_to_nunavik

Location

Group of islands between 74° – 81° N and 10° – 35° E.
Area 63 000 sq.km.; 60% covered by glacier
Largest islands Spitsbergen, Nordaustlandet, Barentsøya, Edgeøya and Prins Karls Forland
Settlements

• Longyearbyen (Norwegian administrative centre) 2 080 inhabitants
• Barentsburg (Russian mining community) 500 inhabitants
• Ny-Ålesund (Norw. international research centre) 40 inhabitants
• Sveagruva (Norwegian mining community) 210 commuters
• Hornsund (Polish research station) 8 inhabitants

Administration Norwegian sovereignty, regulated by the Svalbard Treaty of 1920.
Transportation By plane from/to Oslo and Tromsø, Norway.
There are no roads connecting the communities on Svalbard.

For more in depth information and brochure’s about Svalbard please visit: Svalbard.net

Hardangervidda is the largest mountain plateau in Northern Europe. In 1981, part of the Vidda became a protected area and called Hardangervidda National Park.

The scenery on Hardangervidda varies a lot. In the east the landscape is open and flat, while in the west and south there are mountain ranges up to 1700 meter high. In the far west, the terrain plunges abruptly down to Sørfjorden.

photo credit: threedots

photo credit: Skygge

Fundamental rock species are to be found in the national park, slate and species originating from lava. In some areas there are long ridges of gravel formed by the melting ice during the Ice Age. The difference in climate and landscape between west and east has an influence on the vegetation of these two areas. The west has a high level of rainfall and even temperatures, ideal for the vegetation. On the eastern side of the Vidda the vegetation is not so luxuriant.

photo credit: -Kj.

Hardangervidda is known for its rich plant and animal life, and is the most southern area in Norway where arctic flora and fauna can be found. Over 500 plant species are registered, as well as 100 species of birds and 21 different mammals in the central Vidda. There are also many lakes, streams, rivers and bogs on the Vidda, which is renowned for its good fishing. Northern Europe’s largest stock of reindeer can be found on Hardangervidda.

More information about Hardangervidda: The Norwegian Trekking association | Visit Norway

Your stay in Geiranger will bring you in touch with helpful, friendly and not least multi-lingual people who all share a common purpose: To make your visit to Geiranger a memorable one. We wish you a warm welcome to Geiranger!

photo credit: rimantux

The most beautiful scenery in the world?

Geiranger – magnificent, wild and beautiful. The Geiranger Fjord, the falls and the majestic, sheer mountains have all made the village one of Norway’s most visited tourist venues.

If you want to see Geiranger from the finest view-points, you can drive up to Ørnesvingen, Flydalsjuvet or Dalsnibba (toll road). Or you can walk up to Vesteråsfjellet or Skageflå.

The Geiranger Fjord is called the most beautiful fjord in the world. Here you will find scenery that will leave you breathless. Take a fjord cruise and see it all. Then you will also get to know more about how life was on the abandoned farms along the fjord’s banks, such as Skageflå, Knivsflå and Blomberg.

photo credit: Juergen Kurlvink

photo credit: sigkyrre

Active open air adventure…

If you enjoy wandering through beautiful scenery, there are many sign-posted walks of varying degrees of difficulty. Here, you can enjoy he peace and quiet and the impressive natural beauty at your leisure. Free maps and descriptions of walks are available from the tourist information office or your hotel/guest house.

The Geiranger Fjord is Mother Earth at her most beautiful. Tourists have been impressed and awed with this magnificent scenery ever since the first cruise ship glided into the fjord in 1869. If you would like to see the”most beautiful fjord in the world” in your own time, you may hire your a boat and plan your own trip.

photo credit: lecu_lillas

f you are a keen angler, there are excellent opportunities both in the Geiranger Fjord and the lakes and rivers in the surrounding district.

Should you prefer ball games, you and your friends will have a thoroughly enjoyable time at “Bingen”. The ball-play site is free of charge and is ideal for “five-a-side” football, handball and basketball.

More info about Geiranger can be found here: Geiranger.no

The Pulpit Rock (Preikestolen) is no doubt the best known tourist attraction and has been a magnet for tourists for over 150 years. The characteristic mountain shelf 604 metres over Lysefjord has been visited by hundreds of thousands throughout the years.

Image gallery:

From the Preikestolhytta, a 7 km traiI climbs the rest of the 350 metres to the top. Good shoes and physical health are necessary for the 3 – 4 hour hike.
In June – August there are daily buses from the ferry quay at Tau to the cabin. You can also enjoy the Pulpit Rock and the Kjeragbolt from the ferries and express boats on the fjord.

The Kjerag mountains rise majestically 1000 metres above the innermost part of the Lysefjord, offering a stupendous view of Lysebotn and the fjord.

photo credit: Helico

One attraction is Kjeragbolten, a boulder wedged into a crack in the mountain.

The trail from Øygardsstøl by Lysevegen road above Lysebotn is demanding. Allow 4 – 6 hours for the 1O km hike, which climbs 570 metres.

Good shoes and physical health are advised. The truly adventurous climb up the precipitous rock faces or parachute from the top.

photo credit: Dany_Sternfeld

The new Lysebotn road has become another great tourist attraction, almost through coincidence; it was built as part of the power station project and not with tourists in mind. The road has 27 hairpin curves and a drop of 950 metres. The last section of road passes through a 1100 metres tunnel and on the top a cafe called Øygardsstøl.

photo credit: Kai Mengel

Innermost in the magnificent Lysefjord lies the village of Lysebotn, the perfect base for exploring the fjord and nearby mountains. Lysebotn power station, experience at close hand how Lysefjord´s waterfalls are turned into electrical energy. In Lysefjorden centre presents the history of the Lysefjord – how it was created and it´s culture throughout the ages – all organised in an exciting, exhibition and adventure centre.

During the summer season, there are daily guided tours across the glacier between the Norwegian Mountain Hiking Association cabins of Fonnabu and Holmaskjær. It is also possible to take blue ice tours on some of the offshoots of the glacier.

Image Gallery

More information at the Tourist Information Office or www.folgefonni-breforarlag.no

photo credit: Henke.

photo credit: bananeman

photo credit: bananeman

This waterfall is set in the Municipality of Etne, specifically it sits in Fjaera. Etne contains about 4,000 people and is a popular little tourist locale in the summer. Well-known for their country markets and fishing festivals, not to mention the waterfall itself. On the land opposite river that the waterfall Langfoss enters is a small rest area and visitor’s kiosk. Tourists are often found, necks craned in awe of the spilling waterway.

photo credit: liknes

Langfoss pours down the mountainside in a rich tumultuous froth of water from top to bottom. It is diverted around large rocky outcroppings that would bring to a painful halt any courageous or silly enough to attempt extreme white water rafting down this waterfall. One or two particularly large rocky outcrops are known to host a few frail conifers that have managed to take seed in the thin soil and have more than enough water flowing around them. Though they are stunted in growth they offer a small sense of comfort that this roiling waterway isn’t entirely dangerous to all life. On the sides of the waterfall the rocks slowly give way to a thick layer of mature conifers that are attempting to fill in the bald spots on the mountainside.

photo credit: sirispj

Year round tourists can visit Norway and find that the flow of water from Langfoss is at the height of its flow. It is a perennial waterfall which means that unlike some waterfalls, such as Victoria Falls it is unaffected by changing conditions in the seasons. The volume of water issuing forth from Victoria Falls is dramatically reduced during the dry seasons on the African continent, whereas Langfoss maintains the same flow year round.

Although many waterfalls in Norway have been utilized by the building of Hydroelectric plants in their waterways, Langfoss has not been altered in such a manner. Naturally any such plant would divert much of the volume of water from the waterfall and greatly diminish its flow down the mountainside to a mere trickle. However, Langfoss and a few other waterfalls in Norway have been lucky to escape utilization and remain preserved in their natural state to continue their work eroding the cliff faces and mountainsides they issue forth from.

This beautiful fjord arm extends almost all the way up to the glacier tongues that reach down to the village of Fjærland. From 1 May to 30 September the voyage between Leikanger, Hella, Vangsnes, Balestrand and Fjærland on the car ferry “Fjærlandsfjord” gives you the chance to experience one of the most scenic fjord branches.

If you take the ferry from Vangsnes you will get an excellent view of the gigantic 21-metre-high Fridtjof statue, a gift from the German Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1913.

photo credit: eworm

When the ferry calls at Balestrand you will see some of the unique architecture in this picturesque village, such as the Kvikne’s Hotel and many Swiss-style villas.

The narrow Fjærlandsfjord with its steep and forested mountainsides leads you to the outskirts of the Jostedal Glacier. Along the fjord there are many hamlets and farms. Most of these farms are deserted, and they now serv as reminders of people’s toil and challenges in former times. At the head of the fjord you find interesting attractions such as The Norwegian Glacier Museum and The Norwegian Book Town.

photo credit: ReverendMungo

From the ferry quay at Mundal it is a short drive by car or bus up to the Supphellebreen and Bøyabreen glaciers – two branches of the main Jostedal Glacier.

More info: Sognefjord

Synnøve Finden, one of the most famous cheese producers in the country, was born and raised here. Nowadays new generations at Finden make a living partly based on farm tourism.

photo credit: ReverendMungo

The vertical mountainsides create a unique atmosphere when you reach the end of the fjord at Finnabotn, where the sounds of nature give you peace of mind and time for reflection.

In recent years people have returned to the deserted farm at Finnabotn and settled down there.

More info: Sognefjord.com

The Nærøyfjord is 17 km long and the narrowest point is only 250 m wide. The passage through Nærøyfjord is one of the most dramatic fjord trips in Europe.

A passenger boat between Gudvangen-Aurland-Flåm is running all year.
In winter 1x a day. Rest of the year: 3-5 x daily.
The car ferry between Gudvangen-Kaupanger-Lærdal is running from the
1st of May to the 30th of September. 1-4 x daily.
You’ll also see charterboats and large cruiseship coming and going in the fjord area.

photo credit: kennymatic

photo credit: kennymatic

More info: Alr.no

The landscape around the Lusterfjord is very picturesque, and many great artists have been inspired by the unique beauty of its scenery.

The Lusterfjord is the innermost arm of the Sognefjord, which, from Skjolden at the head of the fjord to Solund at the coast, is all of 204 km long. This picturesque fjord arm is surrounded by the glaciers and high mountains of the Jotunheimen National Park and the Jostedalsbreen National Park, and most of the year the Lusterfjord is a beautiful bright green colour because of the meltwater from the glaciers that flows into the fjord. Along both shores of the fjord there are villages and lush cultural landscapes where fruits and berries are grown on small, idyllic farms.

photo credit: Ryther

In the old days, travelling on the fjord was the main way of getting around, and boats sailed between Skjolden and Bergen several times a week. From all over the Gudbrandsdalen valley a steady stream of travellers made their way across the Sognefjell mountains to the coastal villages of Sogn and all the way down to Bergen. Now, there are roads along both sides of the fjord, and there is a ferry connection between Urnes and Solvorn.

More about the Lusterfjord:

The southern shore – the Romantic Road
The narrow road along the southern shore of the Lusterfjord is called the Romantic Road because it winds its way through small, idyllic villages set in a beautiful, scenic landscape. This area has a fascinating history, and you can visit unique tourist attractions several places along the fjord.

photo credit: lokha

The most famous tourist attraction is Norway’s oldest stave church, the Urnes Stave Church, which is included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

During the first half of the 19th century many of Norway’s best known painters were frequent visitors to the area, staying at the Munthehuset (“the Munthe Villa”) in Kroken to work and find inspiration in the unique natural surroundings. The villa has now been renovated and is open to visitors by appointment. Vetle-Kroken Sea Kayaking (Moreld) in Kroken offers kayak tours on the fjord and guided walks in the remote mountain areas.

Norway’s leading jam and juice producing company, Lerum, originally started production at Sørheim, where it built a small factory in 1909, but as the business expanded it had to move to Sogndal, partly because ice on the fjord made transportation difficult during the winter months. Today, the small factory at Sørheim known as Safthuset (“the Juice House”) is a museum open to groups on request.

photo credit: color line

Between Sørheim and Kroken you will find the majestic Feigumfossen waterfall, which has a free fall of 218 metres and is among Norway’s highest waterfalls. The walk up to the fall only takes about 30 minutes.

The northern shore – the National Tourist Route
On the northern shore of the Lusterfjord lies the small, idyllic village of Solvorn, with many well-preserved buildings and an old historic hotel called the Walaker Hotel, where you can visit the special art gallery called Galleri Walaker 300.

Gaupne is the administrative centre of the Luster area from which it is only a short drive up to the Nigardsbreen glacier, where you can join a guided glacier walk on the blue ice. Gaupne Old Church, which was built in 1647 and contains parts of an older stave church, is open to visitors during the summer season. The National Tourist Route over the Sognefjell mountains to Lom starts in Gaupne and runs alongside the Lusterfjord to Skjolden.

photo credit: gari.baldi

In the village of Luster there is a distinctive stone church built around 1200, called Dale Church. The architecture is Gothic and the church contains frescoes dating from the 15th century.

The National Tourist Route and the Romantic Road meet in the beautiful village of Skjolden, at the head of the Lusterfjord. The Fjordstova centre has a climbing wall, swimming pool, library, arts and crafts shop, changing exhibitions and a cafeteria with a fabulous view of the fjord.

The world-famous Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein lived and worked in Skjolden for periods in the early 1900s and wrote some of his most important works in the village. In a letter to a friend in 1936 he wrote the following about Skjolden: “I can’t imagine that I could have worked anywhere as I do here. It’s the quiet and, perhaps, the wonderful scenery; I mean, its quiet seriousness”.

More info: Sognefjord.no