Known for
Bergen's role as the gateway to Norway's western fjords
Must-see landmarks
Bryggen, Bergenhus Fortress, Fløibanen and Bergen Fish Market
Best time to visit
May to September, when the days are longest
Free to visit
Bryggen's wharf, Bergenhus Fortress grounds and the city's parks
Bergenhus Fortress guards the harbour mouth and its grounds are free to enter, open from 07:00 to 23:00 for walking and recreation. Inside stand Håkonshallen, the stone hall King Håkon Håkonsson built between 1247 and 1261 as a royal feasting hall, and the Rosenkrantz Tower, whose core dates to the 1270s. Bryggen is a 9 minute walk south.
Bryggen's row of gabled wooden warehouses stands on foundations laid in the 12th century; the district was rebuilt after the 1702 fire but kept its medieval layout. The German Hanseatic League ran a trading office here from 1360 for around 400 years. Narrow passageways hold craft shops and the Bryggens Museum. The fish market is an 8 minute walk.
Fishmongers have traded at this harbourside market since the 1200s, when fishermen rowed in from outside the city to sell the day's catch. The indoor Mathallen hall, open year round since 2012, houses permanent seafood counters and restaurants; outdoor stalls run seasonally from May. The Fløibanen base station is a 6 minute walk.
The Fløibanen funicular has climbed Mount Fløyen since 1918, reaching 320 metres above sea level in six minutes. From the summit the city, the Vågen harbour and the fjord beyond spread out below, and marked trails, a troll-themed forest and a playground fill the plateau. Bergen Cathedral is a 6 minute walk from the base station.
Bergen Cathedral traces its origins to around 1150 as a church dedicated to St Olav, and survived fires in 1248, 1270, 1463, 1488, 1623 and 1640 before a thorough restoration in the 1880s by architects Christie and Blix. Mass is held every Sunday at 11:00. Torgallmenningen is a 7 minute walk.
Torgallmenningen is Bergen's main pedestrian square, a wide east-west avenue between the harbour and the hills, lined with shops, cafes and street life. Byparken and the lake are a 4 minute walk.
Byparken wraps around Lille Lungegårdsvannet, the small lake at the heart of the city centre, its paths and fountain framed by the surrounding hills. It makes a quiet place to finish the day before heading back towards the harbour for dinner.
Ost & vin fra Jura med Merete Bø - Ekstrasmaking plays Bergenhus Snekkerbrakken on 8 September at 17:30.
Susanna Wallumrød & Juhani Silvola (FI) plays Lille Ole Bull on 8 September at 20:00.
The old wharf is free to walk at any hour of the day; exhibitions inside its historic trading houses, such as the Bryggens Museum, charge their own admission.
Walking the grounds around the harbour mouth is free from 07:00 to 23:00; only stepping inside the medieval hall or climbing the tower requires a ticket.
Wandering the harbourside fish market is free, both at the seasonal outdoor stalls that run from May through summer and inside the year-round Mathallen hall; visitors pay only for what they choose to buy.
No ticket is needed to sit, browse the shop windows or watch the city go by on this open square that links the harbour to the hills behind it.
There is no charge to spend time by the water here, whether that means a slow loop past the fountain or a picnic on the grass with the hills as a backdrop.
Skansen, just above Fløibanen's lower station, is a free panorama point over the harbour and Bryggen, with no funicular ticket needed for the view from here.
Nordnes Park occupies the tip of the peninsula past the Aquarium, a free green space looking out to the harbour mouth and a popular spot to watch the sun go down on late summer evenings.
Bergen is Norway's second-largest city and the country's gateway to its western fjords, built where a deep harbour reaches inland between seven surrounding mountains. Wooden houses climb the hillsides above the water, and the funicular up Mount Fløyen puts the whole layout on display in six minutes. Its Hanseatic Bryggen wharf is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the surrounding fjords rank among the most dramatic things to see in europe.
Vågen, the old harbour, splits the centre between Bryggen's Hanseatic wharf on one side and the fish market and Torgallmenningen on the other, with the Nordnes peninsula reaching out past the aquarium to open water. Steep streets climb in almost every direction, and heading downhill from any of them usually leads back to the centre.
South of the centre, reached by the Bybanen light rail, Fantoft's rebuilt stave church and Troldhaugen, composer Edvard Grieg's lakeside home, make an easy half-day away from the harbour. Bergen is also the usual starting point for cruises and day trips into the Sognefjord and Hardangerfjord.
Most visitors come between May and September, when the longer days suit walking the centre and riding up Fløyen; a rain jacket is worth packing whatever the forecast says, since Bergen's weather can turn quickly. A single day covers Bryggen, the fortress and the funicular at an easy pace, and a second allows time for the fish market, the art museums or a trip out to Fantoft or Troldhaugen.
The centre is compact enough to walk between Bryggen, the fish market and Torgallmenningen in minutes, while the Bybanen light rail reaches the outer districts and Fantoft. Bergen Airport at Flesland lies south of the city, connected to the centre by the light rail and airport buses rather than by train.