Kristiansund
Kristiansund spreads across four islands connected by bridges and an undersea tunnel in Møre og Romsdal. The city has been the klippfisk capital of Norway since the 1700s. The Atlantic Road starts 30 km west: 8.3 km of bridges across open ocean.
What to see in Kristiansund
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Kristiansund
Atlantic Road (Atlanterhavsveien)
8.3 km of bridges across open ocean, waves crashing over the road
The Atlantic Road (Atlanterhavsveien) opened in 1989 after six years of construction. It connects the island of Averøy to the mainland across a chain of small islands and skerries in the Norwegian Sea. The road replaced a ferry route and was initially a toll road — the toll was paid off in 1999.
Kristiansund
Klippfisk Heritage
300 years of salted cod that fed half of southern Europe
Klippfisk is cod that has been salted and dried on flat rocks (klipper) in the open air. The process preserves the fish for months without refrigeration — critical in the centuries before cold chains. Kristiansund’s geography was perfect: flat coastal rocks, strong winds, and proximity to the rich cod fishing grounds of the Norwegian Sea.
Kristiansund
Grip Island
Norway’s smallest former municipality, 14 km offshore with a stave church from 1470
Grip is a cluster of approximately 80 small islands and skerries 14 km northwest of Kristiansund in the open Norwegian Sea. The main island is tiny — barely 300 meters across — but for centuries it supported a fishing community of up to 400 people living from the cod, herring, and pollock that schooled in the surrounding waters.
Kristiansund
Opera House & Nordic Opera Festival
Norway’s oldest opera tradition outside Oslo, since 1928
Kristiansund’s relationship with opera is unlikely and enduring. The tradition began in 1928 when local amateur performers staged their first production. It has run every year since, through war, rebuilding, and economic change. No other Norwegian city outside Oslo has maintained a continuous opera programme this long.
Plan your Kristiansund trip
Kristiansund is one basecamp. Norway has many. Explore the other cities or head into the fjords and mountains.