Highlights of Ålesund Self-Guided Walking Tour
Located on the west coast of Norway, Ålesund is a town not to be missed. The town is famous for its Art Nouveau architecture and has regularly been voted Norway’s most beautiful city. But it’s beauty arose from devastation; in 1904 a fire devastated the entire city, with almost all the wooden buildings in Ålesund destroyed. Like a phoenix, Ålesund rose from the ashes and is now a lively, thriving community.
This walking guide is designed for people visiting on the coastal ferry but is suited to everyone. The walk starts at the Hurtigruten pier and ends at the hiking path for Mt. Aksla.
The online version is simplified; if you want something with directions, depth and recommendations of things to do, consider buying our downloadable version.
In this article...
The E39 Highway
Ålesund is located on the E39, the main highway along the west coast. You can find my guide to the E39 by clicking the link below.
Norway's Coastal Ferry
Ålesund is a port of call of Norway’s coastal ferry. Find my guide for the coastal ferry by clicking the link below.
Downloadable Version of This Guide
We offer downloadable versions of our self-guided walks on our online store.
Online Guide
- Information about points of interest
- Images of each point of interest
- Historic overview of the neighbourhood
- Directions between points
- Historic photos
Downloadable Guide
- Information about points of interest
- Images of each point of interest
- Historic overview of the city
- Directions between points
- Historic photos
Ålesund Self-Guided Walking Tour
This walk begins at the Hurtigruten pier.
Skateflukaia & Skansekaia
These are two piers that are located between the Hurtigruten pier and the tourist office.
Here you’ll find a national monument commemorating the Shetland Bus, which ran between Ålesund and the Shetland islands between 1940 and 1945. During World War II Ålesund was described as ‘Little London’ because of the illegal resistance activity in town and because so many people managed to escape to England via Ålesund.
The monument was unveiled by Crown Prince Haakon on the 8th of May 1995.
There is another monument here for the fire of 1904. It is a row of four columns with images of the devastation from the fire.
Kongens gate
Kongens gate is where you will see some beautiful examples of the Art Nouveau architecture. Start at the higher numbers and work your way down.
Kongens gate 28
This is home to the Bjørknes School. You can see a difference in architecture compared to number 25. Both were built in the same period after the fire, but number 28 is more inspired by Central European art nouveau, while number 25 is inspired by Old Norse design, and it has taken inspiration from stave church buildings in Norway that fused Norse and Christian religions.
Kongens gate 25
The building burnt down in 1970. The only thing that was intact after the fire was the façade facing Kongens gate. There were discussions about demolishing it, but the town planning manager convinced the owner that it could survive.
Kongens gate 21
Number 21 is inspired by the Norwegian dragon style, which drew its motifs from the Norwegian Viking period.
Kongens gate 18
Kongens gate 18 is interesting because the building is actually a copy of the building that used to stand there. The original building was very dilapidated by the 1970s, so it was torn down and rebuilt as a copy.
Kongens gate 10B
Kongens gate 10B is the most unique building on the street. The shape results from the rebuilding after the fire. It broadens out as it goes back. The building is so narrow that access to the upper floors is via the neighbour’s front door. The architect Karl Norum designed the building. The stone cladding is heritage listed.
The Thousand Steps and Lihauggata
Despite being known as ‘The Thousand Steps’, these 53 steps lead up to Lihauggata, one of the few remaining hills in town.
Many of the original hills have been blasted away and flattened out as Ålesund was developed.
The only victim of the town fire lived here. Ironically enough, she was the next-door neighbour of the fire station, which was also here. She was an older lady who safely escaped the fire, but decided she must take her possessions with her, so she returned to her home.
Kongens gate 6
This is a good example of well-preserved Årt Nouveau where the old style is looked after.
Avisgutten
On Kongens gate you’ll see a statue of a paperboy. It was donated to Ålesund by the newspaper in 1998.
St. Olavs Plass & the Rønneberg Building
At the end of Kongens gate you’ll cross a square called St. Olavs Plass.
Walk out of Kongens gate, cross St. Olavs square and continue towards the Rønneberg Building (Notenesgate 9). The Rønneberg building was built for the Carl E. Rønneberg and Sons company in 1907 by the waterfront and was a trading company. This area is where the most traditional Ålesund companies have been since 1812. The building is clad in local light marble.
Most of St. Olavs Plass and the roads here are built on reclaimed land.
Arbeideren
Arbeideren is the former trade union building that was completed in 1906. The distinctive façade is a mix of Art Nouveau detailing and ornamentation.
It is now one of Norway’s finest public festivity centres and it is an important part of Ålesund’s social and cultural life.
On the other side of the building from where you are you can see ‘Arbeiderforening’ written on the building, which refers to the trade union.
Ålesund Strait
Ålesund is spread out over multiple islands. The islands are interconnected by bridges and subsea tunnels. Ålesund’s town centre is built around the narrow sound Ålesundet, between the islands Åspøya in the west and Nørvøya in the east.
From here you get a good view of the strait that runs through Ålesund. The ‘sund’ in ‘Ålesund’ means ‘strait’.
Art Nouveau Centre
This is the old Swan pharmacy, built as a chemists shop and private residence for the Øwre family. The building was later bought by the Ålesund Savings Bank and was restored externally.
The actual chemist’s shop is still intact inside. The chemist’s shop is one of the oldest institutions in Ålesund. From as early as 1819 there was a chemist here, until it closed in 2001 and the Art Nouveau Centre moved in. The centre has exhibitions spread across three floors. They have art nouveau ads, jewellery, and several multimedia presentations. The cobblestone is from 1915 – before then it was unpaved and quite dusty and muddy.
The Herring Wife
Across the street from the Art Nouveau Centre is a statue of the herring wife – commemorating the role women had here in Ålesund. They were primarily the sellers of the fish.
Ålesund Church
The church was ready to be consecrated in September 1909, so it is not an old church. However, the old Ålesund Church used to stand on the same site.
The first Ålesund Church was built in 1854. It was 50 years old when it burned down. The architectural competition jury received 63 proposals in response to its invitation to tender a new church.
The church is heavily inspired by medieval times and therefore had small windows, making it very dark. The architect combined Norwegian church architecture with Jugendstil.
Nedre Strandgate, Prestbrygge and Storneskaia
This area is where historically the klippfisk (clipfish in English) was loaded onto boats.
Ålesund is one of the biggest export ports in Norway for klippfisk. This is without a doubt the most important basis for Ålesund’s growth as a trading town.
Ålesund Town Hall
Ålesund Town Hall is one of the classic 1970s style office buildings in Norway. It has been voted the second-ugliest building in Norway, and rightly so!
Kaiser Wilhelms Gate
The area here is called Kipervika and is named after the barrel makers who lived here. In the 1950s the sea came up to where the benches are.
The street is named after Kaiser Wilhelm. He often holidayed in the Norwegian fjords on his yacht Hohenzollern and was a great admirer of the west country landscape on the Sunnmøre Fjords. When he heard about the fire in Ålesund he ordered three fully loaded ships carrying food, medicine, building materials and blankets to Ålesund. Help also came from other parts of the world, but the assistance from Kaiser Wilhelm II was magnificent and he stole the show and overshadowed the other providers of assistance.
Ålesund's Old Prison
On the corner of Rådhusgata you’ll see the old prison. The building dates to 1864; during the fire in innards were destroyed but the stone walls survived. The state lion is above the entrance. It was formerly the district Court and prison. 14 prisoners were inside at the time of the fire. When the gaoler realised the prison as going to catch fire, he left them go but told them to come back the next day. Today it’s a prison admin building.
Ålesund Town Park
The park was designed in 1885 with the purpose of being for the pleasure and recreation of the townsfolk, who were beginning to be inconvenienced by the noise of wagons and other racket. The pattern was the English park landscape, with footpaths winding around hillocks and between the verdant trees and flower beds. The park got a major facelift in 2010.
The vegetation is found in other parts of the country. A surprise is the Chilean tree, the monkey-puzzle tree. It was brought to the town from South America by sailors from Ålesund at the beginning of the 1900s.
Thanks for coming!
I hope you enjoyed this walk around Ålesund. Be sure to go and have the best fish and chips in town close to the pier before leaving! You can find more information about Ålesund via our travel guide page.
Norway's Coastal Ferry
Ålesund is a port of call of Norway’s coastal ferry. Find my guide for the coastal ferry by clicking the link below.
