Aktivitetstype: Local Culture

Prehistoric ceramics have been found across Finnmark, including Alta that sits on rich clay deposits, perfect for truly local craft. Step into our cozy studio and get hands on with local clay: hear stories from regional history, discover the oldest paint we know, and see how Alta’s iron-rich clay is related to it.

After a quick but rich overview of ceramic basics, it’s your turn to decorate your cup with natural materials, inspired by local motives. This activity doesn’t require any experience, anyone can participate! After you’re done, you leave it to us, we fire your mugs overnight. You will get your ready creation the next day, bringing a little piece of Alta home. We keep it sustainable: materials sourced here in Alta and minimal waste. Welcome to our studio!

NOTE:
Your cup will be ready in 24 hours time (might be a few hours quicker). The cups can be picked up at the Tourism office or at the port.
If needed, we can ship the cup to your home country for NOK 200,- extra + shipment fee that you pay when receiving package.

Have you ever wondered why slate has been a cornerstone in the history of the Alta community? Take a trip up to Pæskatun!

Pæskatun, the only slate museum in Alta located right in the heart of the slate quarries, just 20 minutes from downtown Alta. Here, you’ll encounter not only the world’s finest slate but also breathtaking views and a rich cultural history that will make your visit truly unforgettable!

• Visit the Souvernir shop and Panorama cafè for FREE
• Visit the Museum, slate cabins and slate workshop
• Make your own unique slate souvenir with slate scissors
• Daily guided tour at 13:00 h that takes you on a journey through the fascinating world of Alta slate! Our guide will share interesting information about the slate industry and provide you with a unique demonstration of how the traditional slate scissors were used – a true journey back in time. But that’s not all – your ticket also includes access to our museum and cabins, where you can immerse yourself in the history and culture that have shaped the Alta community   over the centuries. An experience you won’t want to miss! 

If you are a little bit afraid to throw yourself into one of our long trips, and just want a taste, this is the perfect trip for you.

We start by entering the pasture and pick ourselves a horse, bring them back to the farm and start grooming them. When we are all done, we head out into the woods.

You decide the speeds, and we do not have to go fast if you don’t want to, that’s all up to you guys. The horses are as safe as they can be, and you will receive helmets from us. The perfect trip for beginners. We end the trip with a coffee and something to bite on, at the farm porch

Try out this short and easy horse-riding experience. We start with meeting our horses that already have their saddle on. From here we will enter the arena where we show you how to handle the horse.

We Will go through every step with you, from how to mount the horse to how the breaks and start work.
If this is handled good and you feel safe, we will take a short ride in the forest, where you get to put your freshly learned skills at test. We will end up back at the ranch, time to say goodbye top the horses.

Our tour follows the traces of the fish farming culture in Vesterålen. Along the Sortlandsundet and the famous Eidsfjord we experience the impressive landscape of Vesterålen. Here the mountain ridges drop directly into the sea. Old trading centres point to the region’s former wealth. But how did people live here in the past? And why do we have the MV Vesterålen, an old Hurtigruten ship, on display in a glass house? All these questions and more will be answered on this trip.

Time on the day for this tour : –
Requirements : –
Equipment : –
Level of difficulty : easy
Wheelchair accessible : yes
Distance to walk : –
Tour length : 3,5 h
number / intervals of tours : 4 busses at the same time,
next bus-groups earlyest after 1,5 hours, better to reuse same
busses. Or every 30 min one bus in the same direction
Photo stop : 1-2

About the tour:
An easy tour where we share the culture of Vesterålen. Our route takes us through a very scenic area. There are 1–2 photo stops (depending on the weather) where the guests can also stretch their feet. The tour can be driven clockwise or counter-clockwise. If two (or four) busses are used, the next bus group may leave after 1.5 hours at the earliest, otherwise the photo stops will overlap. We will visit the Hurtigruten museum before we are driving home again.

Included / not included:
Entry to the museum is not included. Busses are not included in this offer.

Group size: min. 1 / max. full bus.

Nyksund is perhaps one of the most well known places in Vesterålen. Situated offshore, it was once the most prosperous place in Vesterålen, then abandoned and later again rebuilt. Today, Nyksund is a witness of the great fishing era of the last century.

After a guided tour, where we learn about the secrets of this place, there is plenty of time to explore the village yourself and perhaps meet some of the locals, who are always happy to chat. Coffee and cake in a coffee shop of your choice is included in the tour price. On the way there and back, we will pass beautiful landscape.

Time of the day for this tour : –
Requirements : –
Equipment : –
Level of difficulty : easy
Wheelchair accessible : yes (in winter, depending on weather condition)
Distance to walk : 1 km
Tour length : 4 h
number / intervals of tours : 2 busses at the same time, next group of busses after 90 min
Photo stop : 1 (beside the visit of Nyksund)

About the tour:
An exciting tour to experience the history and culture of Vesterålen up close. The paths in Nyksund are not paved but easy to walk on. In winter it can be very slippery. Due to the parking situation and the acceptance of the locals, no more than 2 busses are recommended at the same time. Between mid-June and mid-August there should be no busses sent to Nyksund between 12:00 and 16:00. At that time Nyksund is very busy, there is hardly any parking space and on the narrow road busses tend to cause traffic jams which can lead to a delay of up to 60 minutes.

Included / not included:
Busses are not included in this offer. Coffee and cake can be booked. For visits to the off-season we can guarantee that there will be open toilets and at least one open restaurant in Nyksund for an extra charge of NOK 1000,- per bus.

Group size: min. 1 / max. full bus.

Explore Sortland by foot. We will visit different shops and look at typical Norwegian products. Our journey goes from grocery shops to fashion shops, pharmacies, sports shops and so on. What is the typical Norwegian food, what traditions do we have and how do we dress for what occasions.

What products can we get here that you can’t get anywhere else? What is the infrastructure of small towns in the north of Norway and what is it like to live there? Of course we will not miss out on a taste test in a local cafe.

A slow walk through the city with many stops. No uphill slopes and easy terrain for wheelchair users or other people with walking difficulties. Shopping centres have escalators.

Requirements : –
Equipment : –
Level of difficulty : easy
Wheelchair accessible : yes
Distance to walk : 2 km
Tour length : 2 h
number / intervals of tours : a following tour can earliest start 1 hour after the first tour

Included / not included
Transport is not needed
Coffee & cake are included for the guests

Group size : min. 5 / max. 15

Rather than demanding that our reindeer follow our own seasons, we carefully tune our life to the reindeer. That’s why the Sámi count eight seasons, and that is why they follow the reindeer’s natural migration between inland and coastal pastures.

Meet the reindeers and experience the exotic, native Sami culture.

You will be able to meet and greet the reindeers before going into the Sami Lavvo for a warm drink (coffee or tea) and stories.

The Sami Siida is open for drop-in the season (Monday to Thursdays) from 10:30-14:00. It is suggested that you arrive 30 minutes before feeding time, which is 11:30 and 13:30.

Included/not included:
Transport is not included

This excursion will take you by bus southward from Bodø, along the national coastal scenic route, towards the Holandsfjord in Meløy. The tour continues by ferry across the fjord to Engen jetty. Amidst fjords and steep mountains, the Svartisen Glacier, North Scandinavia’s largest glacier, is located.

The glacier tongue Engenbreen, has been a tourist destination for a long, long time, as it is the glacier in Europe closest to the sea and hence conveniently accessible. This glacier is located in picturesque surroundings which never cease to impress, not even to those who reside permanently by its side. Many hikers enjoy the area for walks, and some join a mountaineer guide for walks on the glacier, however this requires a full day. At Brestua Lodge by the glacier lake, lunch is served for you. The tour also includes a short, guided walk in the vicinity of the lodge, where you will learn and observe how the landscape has been shaped by the glacier. On the way back to your ship, you can enjoy the coastal landscape while the guide introduces you to local culture and stories.

A visit to northern Norway`s best preserved trading post is a journey back in time. Here you can feel the past, with “Jektefart” (the ships that transported fish to Bergen) and fish trading, and the daily life in northern Norway coastal communities in the 19^th century.

Kjerringøy Trading Post is a unique example of coastal heritage set in magnificent scenery. It consists of 15 old buildings retaining many of their original contents. It is one of the country’s most important collections of buildings from the nineteenth century.

The slideshow “Anna Elisabeth of Kjerringøy” gives a good insight and provides an excellent introduction to the visit. The guided tour in the main building gives an insight in the wealth and daily life of The Upper Class. Most visits end in the Old Shoppe and  you may enjoy refreshments in the Café or in the garden. Occasionally various crafts are demonstrated in the buildings.

You will also gain an insight into the daily lives of the fishermen and smallholders on the coast. The golden age of the trading post was at the end of the nineteenth century when the Merchant enjoyed profitable business in the fish trade, coastal shipping, exports and imports. In time Kjerringøy grew to become the wealthiest trading centre in North Norway.

Travelling to Kjerringøy, we get close to the Sjunkhatten National Park, an area of outstanding beauty. The National Park is mainly intended for children and young people. It consists of a large, continuous mountain area surrounded by fjords and coastal landscapes. The area is varied with sharp peaks, deep valleys, rounded mountains and wetland areas.