Drive it Yourself: Norway’s East Side (Rv2 & Rv3)
Explore Norway’s eastern side on this scenic road-trip
The Hidden North
North European travel guide
Population 17,949 / 60.1 degrees north
Kongsvinger, Norway
Nestled along the banks of the Glomma River, just over an hour from Oslo, Kongsvinger is a historic town where nature, culture, and heritage meet. Crowned by its iconic 17th-century fortress and surrounded by endless forests, Kongsvinger offers visitors a unique blend of military history, charming old-town streets, and outdoor adventures throughout the year. Whether you’re exploring the wooden houses of Øvrebyen, hiking in the mythical Finnskogen woods, or simply enjoying riverside tranquillity, Kongsvinger invites you to slow down and discover the richness of small-town Norway, right on the border with Sweden. If you love history, this is the town for you!
About Kongsvinger
Latitude: 60.1 degrees north
Population: 17,949
Kongsvinger Municipality
In this Travel Guide...
Map of Kongsvinger
Uniquely Kongsvinger
Here are some things that you must do and try in Kongsvinger
Old Town
Øvrebyen
The old town of Kongsvinger, known as Øvrebyen, is situated around the fortress. Øvrebyen was designated as an area of special historical interest in 1973. Wooden buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries dominate the Øvrebyen area. Stroll the cobbled lanes, browse little boutiques and galleries, and enjoy cafés nestled in this charming quarter. A must-see here is “Kongesalen”, a viewpoint by the fortress walls, and Rådhus-Teatret, a combined town hall and theatre that hosts concerts and shows year-round.
Things to See & Do
Here’s an overview of some of the best things to see and do in Kongsvinger
Fortress
Kongsvinger Fortress
The star-shaped Kongsvinger Fortress, built in 1681, sits atop a hill guarding the Swedish border and has never been taken by force. Today, the fortress is a museum and hotel, and visitors can walk its ramparts for panoramic views over the river and town.
Museum
Kongsvinger Museum
Kongsvinger Museum is located in the old town, as well as a museum of female emancipation in a building called “Rolighed”, the home of Dagny Juel, the famous author once portrayed by Edvard Munch. The museum is about recording women’s life and working sin Norwegian cultural history.
Museum / "Kvinnemuseum"
Womens Museum
Located in the old town, in the author Dagny Juel’s 1857 childhood villa, this unique museum is Norway’s only museum dedicated to women’s history. It exhibits documents and celebrates the lives and work of Norwegian women from the past to the present. Opened in 1995, the museum’s founding helped rediscover Dagny Juel’s story and showcases themes such as women’s roles, rights (e.g., an exhibit on abortion rights), art, and feminism.
Museum
Norwegian Prison Museum
Up at the fortress, the Norwegian Prison Museum is tucked in an old supply depot, showcasing Norway’s prison history with thousands of artifacts and stories dating back to the 1700s. It’s a small, intimate museum (open in the summer on Thursdays to Sundays) that offers a fascinating and offbeat perspective on justice and prison life in Norway. If you’re interested in guided tours of the fortress grounds, the local “Friends of the Fortress” association offers tours by request.
Historic Church
Vinger Church
Vinger Church (“Vinger Kirke” on GPS) is a historic church from the 17th century with a characteristic onion-domed bell tower from 1855.
Hikes, Day Trips & Experiences
Looking to go for a hike or take part in a unique experience? Here are our recommendations!
Forest
Finnskogan
Kongsvinger lies on the edge of the vast Finnskogen (“Forest of the Finns”), a sprawling pine and birch forest region along the Norway–Sweden border. It’s an outdoor lover’s paradise, featuring easy and beautiful hiking terrain through tranquil bogs, rolling hills, and lakes teeming with wildlife.
You can trek a portion of the Finnskogleden trail – a 240 km long marked trail running through Finnskogen
– or simply enjoy shorter nature walks near the Finnskogen roadside museum at Svullrya. Local guides offer unforgettable wilderness experiences, including moose safaris, evening wolf-tracking tours, birdwatching, and canoe trips on mirror-still lakes.
In the forest, you will also find the Finnskogtoppen Spa, a forest wellness retreat offering yoga and saunas.
Forest
Liermoen
Just 4 km outside town is Liermoen, Kongsvinger’s most popular outdoor recreation area. Here you’ll find well-marked hiking and biking trails (a short Green loop and a longer Red loop) crisscrossing the woods. Come winter, these trails become illuminated cross-country skiing tracks, part of an extensive network of groomed ski trails around Kongsvinger.
You can find information on the hikes using the button to the right.
Liermoen is also home to Kongsvinger Golf Club, a highly regarded 18-hole golf course that has been ranked as Norway’s best course multiple times. Even if you don’t golf, the club’s café (open in golf season) makes a nice rest stop, and the surrounding pine forest is ideal for berry picking and mushroom foraging in late summer.
A large free parking area and trail maps at Liermoen make it easy to access.
Day Trip
Magnor Glassworks
Magnor, at the Norway-Sweden border, is home to Magnor Glassverk, one of Norway’s most famous glass factories. Established in 1896, the glassworks offers guided demonstrations where you can watch master glassblowers shape glowing molten glass into art – it’s mesmerising “magic with sand and fire.” There’s an outlet store selling beautiful glassware at factory prices, and you can even create your glass souvenir in the on-site workshop (available on select days).
Next door is The Plus, an architectural marvel – opened in 2022, it’s an ultra-modern furniture factory/experience centre designed by BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group). This climate-positive factory, built from timber and glass, features a visitor centre where you can learn about sustainable design, as well as a 300-acre park with art installations and picnic spots. Together, Magnor Glassworks and The Plus make for a fun mix of industrial heritage and cutting-edge design – and yes, you can secure some great bargains at the factory outlet before heading back.
Magnor Glassworks is located approximately 30 minutes’ drive south on E16 (about 35 km) or via a regional bus to Eidskog/Magnor.
Day Trip
Charlottenberg, Sweden
Why Go: Pop over to Sweden for a day of cross-border shopping and small-town exploring. Charlottenberg is known for the Charlottenbergs Shopping Centre, a large mall located just across the border, where Norwegians flock to buy cheaper sweets, meats, and alcohol due to Sweden’s lower prices – it’s a cross-border shopping haven. Beyond the mall, you can visit Charlottenberg’s local museum, the Eda Museum, which features exhibits on the region’s history, including the 1814 Swedish Norwegian conflicts. There’s also a cozy pedestrian street with Swedish cafés and bakeries – be sure to enjoy a classic Swedish “fika” (coffee and pastry) break. If you have kids, Charlottenberg has a small moose park (Eda Älgpark, open in summer) where you can see moose up close. While a day trip to Charlottenberg is mainly about a taste of Sweden’s culture (and candy aisle!), It’s pretty fun to say you had breakfast in Norway and lunch in Sweden on the same day.
Charlottenberg is located 40 minutes by car east (35 km via Route 2/E16 through Magnor), or 45 minutes by direct train (when available) to Charlottenberg station.
Canoeing
Canoe Tour on the Glomma River
Outdoor Finnskogen offers unique nature and cultural experiences in the mythical Finnskogen, both through courses and social events. Experience the silence, the mastery, the presence, the togetherness, the sensation and the mystique while simultaneously learning something new.
Road-Trips
Follow our road-trip guides for scenic trips around Kongsvinger
Norway's East Side: The Rv2 & Rv3
The eastern side of Norway alongside the Swedish border is known for its large forests, remote settlements, and moose population. Not many tourists make it this far east, but for those that do, they are rewarded with charming historic and industrial settlements as well as beautiful stretches of highway through dense pine and oak forests.
Self-Guided Walks
Kongsvinger on YouTube
Watch our YouTube videos featuring Kongsvinger
History of Kongsvinger
It’s believed that the town has been an important place since the Viking Age, and several finds from the Stone Age have been found in the area. Viking chieftains reached Sweden by boat from Kongsvinger. In the 17th century, the Kongsvinger fortress was constructed by King Christian V of Denmark-Norway to protect the city from attacks from Sweden. The city was redesigned into a grid layout by Johan Caspar de Cicignon, who also designed the street layout for Trondheim. Below the fortress is Øvrebyen, the oldest part of the city and many of the houses were built around the same time the fortress was established.
When Norway entered into a union with Sweden in 1814, Kongsvinger became an important rest stop for travellers between the two countries. The fortress was more or less shut down in 1823. Railway development reached Kongsvinger in 1862 with the construction of the Kongsvinger Line between Lillestrøm and the Swedish border.
Kongsvinger played an important role in the Norwegian resistance against the Nazis by being a gateway to Sweden. Norway’s highest decorated citizen, Gunnar Sønsteby, frequently passed through Kongsvinger in his work to sabotage the Nazis’ installations in Norway. Some of the busiest escape routes for refugees also went through Kongsvinger to Sweden.
Kongsvinger Today
Today, Kongsvinger is a small but vibrant town of approximately 18,000 residents, serving as the regional centre of the Glåmdal district in southeastern Innlandet.
Surrounded by rolling forests and bordering Sweden to the east, it retains a close-to-nature character, with forestry and agriculture as key pillars of the economy. Timber, wood products, and some light manufacturing provide jobs, and many residents also commute to larger centres like Oslo (which is about 1 hour away). The town’s location on the Glomma River and the international railway line also makes it a local transport hub. There is a noteworthy Norwegian Army base and defence logistics centre located just outside town (at Rusta), reflecting that its strategic location remains an asset. Kongsvinger notably hosts one of Norway’s prisons as well – in fact, the fortress itself once housed prisoners, and a modern prison lies nearby, although it is off the typical tourist path.
The town recently opened a modern public library and civic square in the centre, creating a new gathering spot for community events. There are a handful of museums that preserve local history and also highlight national themes, such as women’s history. Kongsvinger’s Rådhus-Teatret is a combined city hall and 300-seat theatre that regularly stages plays, concerts, and film screenings, fostering a lively local arts scene. Each summer, the fortress courtyard transforms into an outdoor venue for concerts and a summer musical (in 2024, it hosted a family musical called “Oberst Krebs and the Scottish Spies” within the fortress), attracting visitors from around the region. Sports are another big part of local life – the town’s football club KIL Toppfotball has a loyal following and plays at Gjemselund Stadium (when KIL periodically makes Norway’s top division, the whole town turns out in red and white to cheer). There are also popular annual events, such as the city festival “Kongsvingerdagene” in August, featuring street markets and outdoor concerts, and a pre-Christmas market in Øvrebyen’s historic streets.
The town’s demographics are a mix – comprising many families and seniors, as well as an increasing number of immigrants (particularly from Eastern Europe and elsewhere), who are drawn by the affordable living. This adds to the town’s diversity. You’ll find a mix of cozy cafés alongside shopping malls (like Kongssenteret) and all the essentials of a modern Norwegian village. In summary, contemporary Kongsvinger is a pleasant small city that values its heritage, with its fortress and old town preserved, while looking forward, as evident in its new cultural venues and growing community spirit.
Travel Information
Getting Here
Fly: The closest airport is Oslo Airport.
Drive: Kongsvinger is located approximately one hour from Oslo Airport by car. Nor-Way runs a service from Oslo Airport to Kongsvinger a few times a day.
Train: Trains connect Kongsvinger to Oslo. The journey is about 1 hour and 20 minutes long. The trains between Oslo and Stockholm stop in Kongsvinger.
Ferry: No ferry access
Getting Around
The town centre is compact and walkable. You can stroll from the train station through the main shopping street (Brugata) to the riverfront and up to the fortress trail in 15–20 minutes. Taxis are available at the station and can be called for local trips (useful if you’re going to the golf club, which is ~5 km outside the centre, or returning from a late-night restaurant). If you plan to explore the region (Finnskogen forest, Magnor, etc.), having a car or bike is ideal.
Kongsvinger recently introduced bike-share eBikes (available at a couple of stands downtown) – cycling is a lovely way to get around in summer. Roads to major sights are well signposted. In winter, sidewalks and streets are ploughed, but having traction cleats for your shoes can be wise when walking to the fortress or around hilly parts of town after snowfall.
Shops
Half an hour from Kongsvinger is Magnor Glassverk, one of the most famous glassworks in Norway. There’s a factory outlet store here.
Just outside town is Skarstad Gartneri, a family-run vegetable farm with an on-site shop and cafe. In the season (May-October), the farm market is stocked with the daily harvest, and you can buy local farm products like jam, free-range eggs, and fresh bread.
Places to Eat
Cafes & Bakeries
Cafe Bohem is in the heart of the old town and is perfect for lunch or an afternoon snack. From Thursday-Saturday they stay open late and offer pizzas for dinner.
Quick Bites
Reasonable Restaurants
Manis is the local pizza and bar hangout. It has earned the reputation of having the best pizza in town.
High End & Unique Eats
Castrum Spiseri is a top-rated restaurant known for its diverse menu.
Places to Stay
Camping, Cabins & B&Bs
Budget
Kongsvinger Budget Hotel is located about 2km from the centre and overlooks the river. Check in is self-service with keycodes and there are guest kitchen facilities, free wifi, and private bathrooms.
Chains & Mid-Range
Vinger Hotell & Spa is located by the Glomma River, approximately 1km from the downtown area. The hotel is located by the golf course and has an on-site restaurant.
High End & Unique Properties
Kongsvinger Castle Hotel and Resort is located in the old commander’s residence from 1683. The fortress has been renovated into a modern high-end hotel with 28 rooms.
Finnskogtoppen Spa and Wellness Hotel.
PAN tree top cabins.
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