A little known corner of Norway offering wilderness and hidden beaches
Have you heard of my hometown, Stavanger? Probably not unless you are in the oil and gas industry, have a penchant for Nordic cruises, enjoy base jumping or have watched State of Happiness – the BBC Four drama, which depicts how, in the Seventies, this religious fishing community turned into an oil boom town. But Norway’s fourth most populous city, located close to the sandy stretches of the south-west coast and on the doorstep of the world-famous Lysefjord, has a lot more to offer than oil.
The city is charming, compact, nestled round several harbours and easy to explore in two days. In Old Stavanger, you will find 250 protected, whimsical fishing cottages, dating from the late 18th-century, lining narrow cobbled streets. Elsewhere, the city’s more modern injections include a bold, angular concert hall and the Norwegian Petroleum Museum (the city’s best cultural attraction). An architectural quirk is the Eilert Smith Hotel, overlooking the harbour mouth, where the Nazis overran Stavanger in April 1940. This seductively curved art deco building has recently been transformed into a 12-room boutique hotel. Pared-back luxury rules with bespoke oak joinery, travertine-clad bathrooms and minimalist Scandinavian furniture. It is a great base from which to explore the region and its knowledgeable local staff can arrange personalised trips, including city and hiking guides.
The building is topped with an incredible, glass-encased penthouse and tailed with the two Michelin-starred restaurant Re-Naa, known for its seasonal Nordic dishes. For cocktails, we usually head to the Hotel Victoria, which has recently undergone a smart makeover, or to Øvre Holmegate, a bustling street of brightly painted cafés and bars. Pedersgata is packed with small, independent restaurants including our favourite family-run Italian, Casa Gio. And the vegan restaurant Bellies is a must, located in the once industrialised, now regenerated, architecturally dynamic and artist-strewn Stavanger Øst district.
In Stavanger, your eye is always drawn outwards to nature and wild excursions lie tantalisingly close. A car offers the most freedom and you can orientate yourself at Ullandhaug Tower, where the 360-degree view shows how Stavanger is sandwiched between coast and mountains. Viking buffs can visit Sverd I Fjell, where three gigantic bronze swords pierce the rocks of Hafrsfjord to commemorate the battle of 872 that saw Norway united under one crown.
Heading south, rolling countryside overlooks glorious and oft-deserted beaches. Ølberg, close and relatively sheltered, has a café with sinfully good triple-fried chips; or venture further to the Jæren beaches, where towering sand dunes border the protected shore. You can walk for miles along the signed coastal path or brave the North Sea at surf school. To the north of Stavanger, the coastline fragments into small, rural islands with many hidden bays. On Mosterøy stands Utstein Monastery, once a royal seat and a rare survival from the Middle Ages.
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The mountains, sculpted into majestic fjords by ice-age glaciers, can be reached from Stavanger through the recently completed Ryfast – the longest undersea road tunnel in the world at almost nine miles in length. This is followed by a jaw-droppingly beautiful drive along the E13 to Preikestolen, the shelf-like rock that juts out 604 metres above the near-vertical granite cliffs of Lysefjord.
Unfortunately, in summer, the four to five-hour return hike to the top can be a conga line of tourists. We prefer an alternative walk to Hatten, which provides very similar views. Stay nearby at The Bolder Sky Lodges, two ultramodern cabins overlooking the fjord or, down at water level on the other side of the fjord, at Dørvika Badestrand, a delightful beach and safe swimming spot with free camping. In fact, wild camping is permitted almost anywhere in Norway as long as the country’s allemanns retten (right to roam) rules are followed.
The 26-mile-long Lysefjord promises adventure for all. At Flørli, you can climb the 4,444 steps up the mountain – the world’s longest wooden stairway – or hire canoes and equipment to fish in both the fjord and highland lakes. Mad hikers who reach the top of the fjord’s highest peak, Kjerag, can stand on a boulder wedged in a mountain crevice and peer at the deadly 1,000-metre drop below. The opportunities for walkers are endless. The Norwegian Trekking Association has a fantastic website available in English and also an app detailing marked trails, plus a network of remote overnight cabins such as Skåpet on Lysefjord.
Cabins are a big part of Norwegian culture and Airbnb and Finn offer fantastic accommodation options. Many boat and coach excursions also depart from Stavanger. For a truly bespoke experience, the owner of Private Cruise, Helge Ljones, will take you close enough to the waterfalls of Lysefjord for you to feel the spray. You can add a helicopter ride to the itinerary and even include an overnight stay at the 18th-century Ramsvig Trading Post, tucked away on Kyrkjøy, one of the region’s 1,000 or so small islands. There is so much beauty surrounding Stavanger that it is easy to find yourself alone amid monumental scenery. Living here, I feel constantly connected to nature, yet humbled by this utterly awesome world.
Ways and means
Double rooms at Eilert Smith Hotel in Stavanger cost from 3,790 NOK (around £320), B&B. SAS flies direct from London Heathrow to Stavanger.
1/8In June, the sun rises over Lysefjord at about 4.30am and sets just before 11pm.
2/8The coastline south of Stavanger is lined with picturesque sandy beaches, including those at Jæren.
3/8The view as you approach Preikestolen along a path that skirts the cliffs of Lysefjord.
4/8Only the bravest hikers step out onto the boulder at Kjerag.
5/8Hengjanefossen Waterfall plunges 400 metres into Lysefjord.
6/8The village of Lysebotn at the end of Lysefjord can be reached by ferry or by Lysebotnvegen, a road 18 miles long, over 900 metres high and with 27 hairpin
bends.
7/8The Bolder Sky Lodges are perched on the granite edge of Lysefjord.
8/8Guests at the self-service Skåpet lodges can also enjoy a sauna with lake views.
