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NORWAY | Nordland, Norway Travel Guide
Thursday, March 6, 2025
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Sightseeing in Lofoten
Sightseeing in Lofoten
The Rorbu Cottages
When the first fishermen came to Lofoten to fish cod in the winters, they needed somewhere to stay. Thus the cottages here became known as Rorbu (fisherman’s shack) and can be found even today all over Nordland and on Lofoten in particular. Over the years, about 40,000 of these Rorbu cottages have been built on Lofoten but, since most fishermen today sleep on their boats and vessels, the Rorbus are now used mainly for tourists visiting the popular islands. Owners started renting out their cottages in the 1960s and there are about 3,000-4,000 of them left on Lofoten, many of them restored and modernized to better suit visitors. You will recognize a Rorbu cottage quite easily as most are painted red. Red was the cheapest paint in the old days when most of the cottages were built. Some were painted yellow and, if you saw a white Rorbu, you would know that the owner was wealthy, since white was the most expensive color.
The Viking Museum
The Lofoten Islands were popular with Vikings 1,000 years ago, as many archaeological findings have shown. The biggest building from the Viking era ever found by archaeologists was in Borg on the island of Vestvågøy. Today there are only ruins left of the foundation but the house has been reconstructed right next to the ruin and was made into a museum. The museum is on a hilltop between the main road and the Borge Church off the E10 about a one-hour drive west of Kabelvåg and Solvær.
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