Møre og Romsdal

Møre og Romsdal packs some of Norway's most famous landscapes into a compact area: the Geirangerfjord with its waterfalls, the switchbacks of the Trollstigen, and the bridges of the Atlantic Road arching over the open sea. A vacation in Møre og Romsdal is a road trip between fjords, mountains, and coastal towns.

Sights in Møre og Romsdal

The Geirangerfjord is a UNESCO World Heritage Site: steep rock walls, abandoned mountain farms, and waterfalls such as the Seven Sisters line the ships' route all the way to the village of Geiranger. From the Dalsnibba viewpoint, about 1,500 meters (roughly 4,900 feet) up, you look down on the fjord. The Trollstigen climbs a rock face in eleven hairpin turns, and in the Romsdal valley the Troll Wall rises up, Europe's tallest vertical rock face. The Atlantic Road between Molde and Kristiansund hops across eight bridges from skerry to skerry and is a thrilling experience in a storm. Hiking trails lead to abandoned farms such as Skageflå high above the Geirangerfjord, and in Åndalsnes a gondola takes you up the Nesaksla.

Towns by the Sea

Ålesund burned down almost completely in 1904 and was rebuilt in the Art Nouveau style with German help; from the town mountain Aksla you look out over turrets, bay windows, and islands. Nearby lies the bird island of Runde, home to puffins. Molde, the "Town of Roses," offers a panorama of more than 200 peaks from the Varden viewpoint and hosts a well-known jazz festival in July. Kristiansund spreads across several islands and was a center of the clipfish trade. In Ålesund, the Art Nouveau Center tells the story of the rebuilding, and the Atlanterhavsparken is one of the largest saltwater aquariums in Northern Europe. In Kristiansund, the little ferry Sundbåten has been shuttling between the town's islands since 1876.

Food, Getting There, and the Best Time to Visit

Clipfish, salted and dried cod, is the region's specialty; in Kristiansund it is prepared as bacalao with tomatoes and bell peppers, a legacy of trade with Spain and Portugal. The airports in Ålesund, Molde, and Kristiansund have domestic connections, the Hurtigruten coastal ferry calls at Ålesund, and the Rauma Line train runs through the Romsdal valley to Åndalsnes. The best time to visit is June through September; the Trollstigen and the road to Geiranger are closed in winter. The car ferries across the fjords are part of the road network and run regularly.