The best museums Nord-Norge

The museum opened in 1991, on the edge of an area excavated for rock engravings discovered in 1973. This is the largest area of its kind in Northern Europe, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was quickly voted best European museum in 1993, with 3,000 open-air engravings dating from 2,500 to 7,000 years ago. Inside the building, the museum features exhibitions on Finnmark's prehistory, Saami culture and the mysterious Komsa culture, named after the nearby mountain (viewpoint of the midnight sun). Superb.

The Svalbard Museum is a museum of natural and cultural history. Of educational interest, its purpose is to present the Arctic, as well as to highlight its history, beauty and the environmental problems that it faces today. The museum therefore presents several themes, from the discovery of the territory to its mining, until the arrival of current tourism. In 2008, the Svalbard Museum received the prize of the Council of Europe Museum for the best European museum. You are strongly recommended!

The centre offers exhibitions on whales and reports on the research carried out by Norwegian scientists on these fascinating mammals. This is where you can book the 2-hour guided birdwatching tours to the Bird Rock in the Andenes Archipelago (season from¹ June to 20 August). A local fishing boat travels daily to this island where puffins, black-legged kittiwakes and many other seabirds can be seen!

In a listed customs house, there are exhibitions on hunting and scientific research in the polar regions, as well as photos of Amundsen's expeditions. In the summer many activities for children are organized. Go to their website to plan your visit and book places. Permanent exhibition on what Svalbard was like in the 17th and 18th centuries. The museum also organizes temporary exhibitions.

This Museum of Perspective aims to be provocative and full of humanism, respect and open-mindedness through its collections and exhibitions. It offers temporary photo exhibitions on the history of the city of Tromsø, as well as exhibitions of contemporary art, with the aim of presenting history from different angles. Anyone who loves photography will be satisfied. A beautiful black and white exhibition takes you back to Tromsø and Norway in the 1960s. A good introduction to the city, its region and its people, quick and free.

One can follow step by step the destruction of Narvik, the Allied landings, life under German occupation until the end of the Second World War. The museum has recently moved, modernised and is now located in the centre of Narvik, at Kongens Gate, in the same hall as the Library and Tourist Office. The museum is very well detailed and provides a better understanding of the history of the town. There are regular temporary exhibitions...

Unusually, the building was built as a museum. At the time it was simply a museum of the fishing industry, but in 1947 it became a cultural museum. The museum traces the town's cultural history, from the Vikings to the Sami to the daily lives of the Lofoten Islands' peasant-fishing families. In front of the entrance is a Stone Age menhir. A 20-minute film in the small black room traces the history of Bodø before the outbreak of war.

This charming little museum explains the harsh living conditions in these regions where one man in four dies at sea. How, by the way, have we been living at the 71st parallel for 10,000 years? That's what this museum explains. Eiderdown mining on the island of Store Tamsøy ceased after the war, as all the houses in Northern Norway were razed to the ground by the Nazis. From an already fragile economic equilibrium, the situation of the islanders never recovered.

A concept that's part museum, part study center and part theme park, opened in 1998. The architecture is appealing, in the shape of a block of ice, and the attractions - mainly adorable seals - are well designed to bring visitors closer to the wildlife of extreme cold. Seal feeding at 3 p.m. in summer and at 12.30 p.m. from September¹. A great place for the whole family to discover the underwater fauna and flora of the waters of the Far North. You can sponsor the seals to improve their daily lives...

The university museum in Tromsø actually consists of three museums and a botanical garden: the main building of Norges arktiske universitetsmuseum, Polarmuseet, MS Polstjerna and Tromsø arktisk-alpine botaniske hage. All these museums highlight different aspects of the culture and nature of northern Norway, including Lapp culture, archaeology, geology, etc.. The garden can be visited from spring and during the summer.

The museum focuses on the local history of the town and its many transformations following the extraction of steel in the Kiruna mine and its transport by train to Narvik. Discover how this railway was built and its impact on the population over a period of more than 100 years. To this day, this railway line and the extraction of iron at the Kiruna mine are a major economic engine in the region. The museum is located in the former administrative buildings of NSB, the Norwegian railway company, dating from 1902.

The Kvens were Finnish emigrants to Ruija, "the Land of the Sea", settling there as farmers, miners and fishermen. The entire Varanger region still bears the imprint of their culture. Through the various elements of their habitat, the Ruija Museum shows the vestiges of this multicultural region, such as the Tuomainen farm, a typical Kvens farm from 1840; the Esbensen estate; the Kjeldsen fishing hamlet near a bird-nesting rock; and the Vadsøya park with its arctic flora and fauna.

Sheltered in a large glass building is the MS Finnmarkent, the former home of the region's coastal shipping company. At the initiative of a former captain, Sten Magne Engen, this historic ship dating from 1956 has been converted into a museum, enabling visitors to discover the company's history through documents and archive images, as well as tours of completely restored rooms (engine room, bridge, saloon).

The historic centre of Trondenes is a museum of regional history covering a vast period, from the Stone Age to the present day. An important part of the exhibitions are devoted to the Vikings and the Middle Ages. The museum is very interactive. It is situated in an absolutely beautiful setting by the water, 3 kilometres from the centre of Harstad. The place is ideal for a break after the visit; there is a restaurant, a café and a souvenir shop.

In November 2008, the North Pole Expedition Museum opened its doors. It highlights the heroic efforts made by the men, pioneers of aviation, to reach the North Pole. A museum rich in documentation (films, photos, voice recordings and aviation equipment). You will also find a small souvenir shop with many items related to the Far North. A café welcomes you with hot drinks, so try the chai latte!

A small museum explaining the history of the Russian town, its geological appeal and, more generally, the discovery of Svalbard. Please note that the visit is in Russian only! Although the museum is located on Norwegian territory, it belongs to Russia, which built it in 1963. In fact, the place was sold to the Soviet Union by the Dutch in 1932, which is why it is still run by Russia today. The museum was founded to trace the history of the Pomors, the original Russian settlers who lived here and explored the area.

In Hamsund, you can see the small peat-roofed farmhouse where the future great writer spent his childhood. In the family photo album, you can follow Knut Hamsun's life from cradle to grave. All his works are on display, along with numerous personal objects. The barn also houses an exhibition of images taken from the films inspired by his books. A must-see is the Hamsun Museum, a superb modern-architecture building in the midst of nature and rich in content. There's also a small café.

This small local museum provides information on the culture of a fishing civilization, its evolution and the special construction techniques used to build the breakwaters of the Svartoksmoloen harbor jetty. Numerous attempts to secure the harbour had all ended in failure, until a French solution involving the use of concrete tetrapods finally proved reliable. To be combined with the other museums on the coast.

The museum is housed in the former stockfish warehouse of the whaling station Brotkorbbruket. Through several exhibits, the museum presents Gamvik and its surroundings from every angle. From prehistory to the history of the coastal fishing villages, through the Second World War. A visit that is good for the family and that allows you to learn a lot about the history of local fishing and in general. A rich and well documented museum.

At the entrance to the town, this modern museum has a permanent exhibition on the history of World War II and the mining company A/S Sydvaranger. The staging is impressive and very clear. There are many documents. The part dedicated to Lappish history is fascinating to understand this different history, ignoring borders. The network of museums in Norwegian Lapland provides a better understanding of the northern communities.