Things to Do in Norway: City Guides & Audio Tours

Norway is a country of long coastlines, deep fjords, northern landscapes and more than a thousand years of history. From Oslo’s museums and architecture to the Arctic setting of Longyearbyen, there are plenty of things to do in Norway—but the country’s story is also found in its churches, harbours, food traditions and living Sámi culture. Neywo offers free audio guides for 12 cities in Norway, with 719 narrated places in total and narration in 11 languages.

What to see and do in Norway

Norway stretches across the western and northern parts of the Scandinavian Peninsula. Its shores face the Skagerrak, the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea, while the country also includes Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The landscape changes with latitude and location: coastal areas are influenced by the Gulf Stream and prevailing westerly winds, while inland winters are colder and drier. Svalbard has an Arctic tundra climate.

The country’s fjords are among its most recognisable natural features, but Norway’s identity is not only about scenery. Its history includes the creation of a unified kingdom in 872, long unions with Denmark and Sweden, peaceful independence in 1905, and German occupation during the Second World War. Today, Norway is a constitutional monarchy, and the Sámi people have a measure of self-determination through the Sámi Parliament and the Finnmark Act.

Oslo: Norway’s capital and a major cultural centre

For many travellers, Oslo is the natural starting point for exploring Norway. Neywo’s guide to Oslo includes 330 narrated places, making it the largest city collection in the country. Among its highlights are the Oslo Opera House, the Viking Ship Museum, Oslo Domkirke and the MUNCH building.

Oslo is also a useful place to encounter several sides of Norwegian culture at once. The country’s long traditions of seafaring, woodcraft, literature and visual art are represented across its cultural institutions and historic buildings. Its modern identity sits alongside the history of a country that developed through kingdom, union, occupation and independence.

Bergen and the western coast

Bergen has 60 narrated places in the Neywo guide. Its most prominent places include Bryggen, Nonneseter Abbey, Bergenhus Fortress Museum and Nonneseter klosterkapell.

The city is a strong introduction to Norway’s coastal character. Seafaring and the sea have shaped the country’s history and food traditions, while the surrounding western landscapes provide some of the country’s most dramatic scenery. Bergen is also a good place to explore the relationship between urban life, historic buildings and the natural setting that defines much of Norway.

Stavanger and the traditions of the southwest

Stavanger’s 79 narrated places include Stavanger Cathedral, Utstein Church, Ledaal and Hesby Church. These sites offer different perspectives on the area’s religious and architectural history, while also connecting with Norway’s long tradition of building in wood.

Wood has played an important role in Norwegian culture, supported by the country’s extensive forests. Farm life has also remained influential, both in everyday culture and in the nineteenth-century romantic nationalist movement that shaped language and media.

Trondheim and Trøndelag

Trondheim is one of the most extensive city guides in the country, with 123 narrated places. The collection includes Nidaros Cathedral, Haltdalen Stave Church, Trondheim Maritime Museum and Byneset Church.

The city’s sights bring together religious history, maritime traditions and Norwegian wooden architecture. To explore more of the surrounding area, the Trøndelag page also connects with Levanger and Røros. Levanger has 13 narrated places, including Alstadhaug Church, Ytterøy Church, Levanger Church and Skånes skanse. Røros has nine, with Røros Church, Brekken Church, Glåmos Church and the Glomma among its featured places.

Northern Norway: Tromsø, Narvik and Svolvær

Northern Norway combines distinctive cultural traditions with a landscape shaped by the country’s northern setting. Tromsø has 50 narrated places, including Tromsø Cathedral, the Arctic Cathedral, Elverhøy Church and the Arctic University Museum of Norway.

Narvik’s guide contains 18 narrated places. Its featured sites include Ankenes Church, Narvik Church, Ballangen Museum and Narvik itself. Further west, Svolvær has 15 narrated places, among them Vågan Church, the Lofoten War Memorial Museum, Lofotmuseet and Lofotakvariet.

Northern Norway is also particularly important for Sámi culture. Sámi languages are traditionally spoken by the Sámi people, especially in this part of the country, and Sámi political institutions provide influence and self-determination in traditional territories.

The coast and smaller Norwegian cities

Norway’s maritime traditions are especially visible in places such as Kristiansund. The city has 12 narrated places, including Kvalvik fort, Arnulf Øverlands galleri, Mellemværftet and Nordmøre Museum.

Drøbak has six narrated places, with Drøbak Church, Avistegnernes hus, Follo museum and Frogn Church among them. The town offers another way to encounter the country’s local history, alongside the larger urban collections in Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim.

Røros and Norway’s inland heritage

Røros has nine narrated places and gives the Neywo guide a strong inland perspective. Its featured places include Røros Church, Brekken Church, Glåmos Church and the Glomma.

The contrast with Norway’s coastal cities is part of the country’s appeal. The mainland has four distinct seasons, and inland conditions differ from those on the coast. Across these different environments, Norwegian traditions remain connected to farming, woodcraft, language and local communities.

Longyearbyen and the Arctic

Longyearbyen is the northernmost destination in the Norwegian city collection, with four narrated places: Svalbard Museum, Spitsbergen Airship Museum, Svalbard Church and Mine No 1, Adventdalen.

Svalbard’s Arctic tundra climate makes it distinct from mainland Norway. Its remote setting adds another dimension to a journey through the country, whose territory extends beyond the peninsula to the Arctic archipelago.

Norwegian culture and food

Norwegian culture reflects farm life, seafaring, woodcraft and language. Norwegian has two official forms, Bokmål and Nynorsk, while Sámi languages are also traditionally spoken in parts of the country. Norwegian literature reaches back to pagan Eddaic poems and skaldic verse from the ninth and tenth centuries, and the music of Edvard Grieg is known internationally.

Food brings the landscape and these traditions together. Seafood is central, including salmon, herring, trout and codfish. Farming and dairy traditions appear in cheeses such as brunost, Jarlsberg cheese and gamalost. A Norwegian meal can therefore combine the country’s maritime and agricultural heritage on the same table.

Download Neywo and explore Norway at your own pace

Download Neywo’s free Norway audio guide to explore 12 cities through 28 walking tours and 719 narrated places in total. Narration is available in 11 languages. The app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule.