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Alesund: Norway’s most beautiful city
The town of Ålesund is young at heart, but with an unusually dramatic story to tell. One stormy night a hundred years ago, the whole town centre burned to the ground. Only a few houses remained, and ten thousand people were made homeless. A new town rose phoenix-like from the ashes – in the distinctive Art Nouveau style. Today, Ålesund is a modern, pulsating town with a varied cultural scene, exciting cafés and restaurants and a rich assortment of shops.
Ålesund & Sunnmøre is an excellent area to explore interesting nature or culture-based activities. You can join a guided walk, go on a sightseeing trip, go fishing or hiking, go scuba diving, cycle on idyllic islands or watch a teeming bird life. Ålesund is the perfect starting point for excursions to some of Norway's best-known tourist attractions such as the famous Geirangerfjord, the beautiful Hjørungfjord or the dramatic Trollstigen Road.
The Times May 23, 2009
This elegant port city was ravaged by fire in 1904 but it rose like a phoenix amid icy islands and snowy peaks
Norman Miller
The Norwegians have a saying: “I haven’t seen anything like it since Ålesund burnt down.” Since this charming port city invariably tops national polls as the most beautiful town in Norway, it was clearly some rebuilding job.
The destruction of Ålesund in a fire on a stormy January night in 1904 led to an international relief effort, with the French staging what was perhaps the world’s first charity concert at Sarah Bernhardt’s theatre in Paris.
The ever-practical Germans, however, sent architects who were eager to use Ålesund as a blank canvas to showcase the style of the day — Art Nouveau (also known as Jugendstil).
The result is a townscape of graceful gables, pointy turrets and countless ornate flourishes across pastel-hued façades. The Art Nouveau Centre, carved out of a period pharmacy, chronicles the fire and its aftermath, as well as exploring the style’s wider imprint, from Mackintosh’s Glasgow to Gaudí’s Barcelona. The Ålesund Museum, just above Kipervikgata, provides complementary displays
