Alesund: the town so magical, they’re keeping it secret
We wonder why more people haven’t heard of this place. I guess the Nords have been keeping it to themselves. Fair enough. Why would you share?
‘Look, look,” say the excited children in the seats near us, pressing their noses to the aircraft windows as we fly over Norway’s Jostedalsbreen National Park. Jostedalsbreen itself – Europe’s largest glacier – sparkles in the morning light, its icy face shining like millions of diamonds.
It could be the surface of the Moon, really, for that’s how alien this arctic wonderland appears from the sky, the sheets of ice wedged between prehistoric mountains we had never even imagined. Even on this midsummer’s day the glacier retains its glassy visage, its icy trenches impervious to the impact of cool northern suns above it.
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- Why 2nd arrondissement is the No 1 place to stay
- Dip into this brilliant heritage hotel to find some astonishing 1930s secret
- The perfect Tuscan villa does exist
“It is a beautiful day for flying,” the flight attendant says cheerfully in her lilting Norwegian accent that gives us Frozen vibes and makes the children giggle. She’s right though, for the landscape is mesmeric, astonishing even, and by the time the plane touches down outside Alesund, 370km north-west of Oslo, the children have stopped laughing, rendered awestruck by the overload of majesty. Can this place be real?, we wonder stupidly as we alight onto Vigra, the ridiculously scenic island on which Alesund airport is located, one of dozens of islands that nature has tossed around this part of Norway’s western coastline. And we wonder why more people haven’t heard of this place. I guess the Nords have been keeping it to themselves. Fair enough. Why would you share?
All this happens before we have even set out to see Alesund itself, the Art Nouveau marvel that anchors this far-flung region of the northwest. The town is a 10-minute drive from the airport, but a million miles from wherever it is you have arrived from.
Dating back to the Viking times, Alesund was no more than a speck on the map until the mid-1800s when cod fishing became a big thing in the Norwegian Sea and the region boomed, rising from a population of 485 in 1835 to 11,000 in 1900. But in 1904, a fire razed Alesund, and left the entire population homeless. (Norway has a history of significant fires due to the fact its buildings were traditionally constructed from pine rather than stone, utilising the nation’s abundant pine forests). In a weird twist, Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm, who had a soft spot for Norway, having visited on summer vacations, sent stonemasons for the rebuild. The stonemasons reconstructed Alesund from scratch in the Art Nouveau style of the time, and it remains perfectly preserved today, give or take a few modern buildings on the fringes.
We are staying at Hotel Brosundet, often featured on scenic postcards of Alesund given its prominent position on the Alesundet canal and beautiful arched Nouveau facade.
The building started life as a warehouse for the salted cod that was destined for export, but in 2008 was repurposed as a boutique hotel. Wander through the lobby to see the original beams that hold up the vast structure, as well as its extraordinary central fireplace that warms the building. Guests gather around the fire to meet, chat and eat; it’s communal and fun.
From the hotel, explore the cobblestone laneways, and in summer and the warmer months (relatively speaking – the July average is 14 degrees) dine along the canal in one of the many bustling restaurants and cafes that line the waterway. It’s less touristy than its sister city of Bergen, 240km to the south, another fairytale seaport dating back a millennium.
One of the best things about Alesund is its proximity to some of Norway’s most beautiful fjords, forests and mountains. From here, it’s an hour’s drive to Geiranger Fjord, a spot of immense beauty and peace. Stay at Storfjord Hotel, Skodje, in the Sunnmore Alps, to experience a genuine Scandinavian lodge complete with grassy rooftop. Our room has windows onto a whispering pine forest, while breakfast and dinner are taken overlooking the Storfjord, a deep, slow-moving passage of water so gorgeous it makes you feel giddy.
On our last night in Alesund we meet some well-travelled Americans who, like us, are just back from Skodje. “How great is Norway?” they enthuse as they emerge from a chilly dip into the Alesundet canal. “I can’t believe more people don’t know about it.”
I suspect the Norwegians like it that way.
Checklist
Getting there: Although we have flown in from Bergen (flights also arrive from Oslo daily), many more arrive here on the cruise liners that glide up and down Norway’s western fringes on their way to remote destinations including Hjorundfjord and Trondheim, or, perhaps even more exotically, Tórshavn, in the Faroe Islands, or Iceland’s Reykjavik. We haven’t come as far as the Arctic Circle — another 600km or so north — but we feel close. Cruise Traveller works with cruise lines including Hurtigruten and Silversea to book cruises along this extraordinary part of the world; cruisetraveller.com.au
Stay: Hotel Brosundet (brosundet.no) is a 47-room boutique hotel that has a lighthouse as part of the offering. The lighthouse is a five-minute walk from the hotel and breakfasts are delivered. Regular hotel rooms are simple and unpretentious; try to book a room with a canal view. Rates from $210. The Stopfjord Hotel is an exquisite 30-room boutique that’s a genuine Nordic escape. Every room has either a fjord or forest view and features beautiful Scandinavian design. It’s a short walk through the pine forest to Smeltevika inlet, a glorious place. Rates from $650 including breakfast; storfjordhotel.com. Storfjord is part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World network and there are special rates and offers for members. slh.com