Lofoten Islands - the main resorts and areas, excursions and attractions, museums, map and photos, reviews of tourists about the Lofoten Islands.
The Lofoten Islands are an archipelago located north of the coast of Norway, north of the Arctic Circle. The Lofoten Islands rise from the green waters like a wall, the height of the mountains here reaches 1000 m, and the islands themselves are bordered by a white sandy coast. The landscapes are magnificent, with flocks of seabirds scattering the air in search of food, picturesque fishing villages hiding in bays, the northern lights everywhere. Lofoten is an unforgettable experience, but the population of the five main islands is only 25,000.
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| Lofoten Islands Norway |
Norway is suitable for tourists of any profile. There are activities for fans of outdoor activities - hiking, rafting, fishing, horseback riding. At the same time, there are places where you can retire in the bosom of idyllic nature. These include, for example, the Lofoten Islands.
History
People came here relatively recently - 6,000 years ago. In those days, the conditions for life on Lofoten were very favorable - a cool, but generally mild climate, a huge amount of fish in the sea and game in the mountains. Rocky islands today were literally buried in coniferous and deciduous forests. And although the climate changed over time, becoming more severe, people did not leave their not so cozy, but still, home.
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| Lofoten Islands Norway |
The archipelago borrowed the old name of the island Westwogey, which was formerly called Lofoten. Lofoten is translated from Old Norse as "trot leg". Probably, to the inhabitants of that time, the shape of the island resembled the foot of a lynx.
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| Lofoten Islands Norway |
The history of the Lofoten Islands is closely related to fisheries in general and cod fishing in particular. The first fishing houses, or rorbu, were built here in 1120 by order of King Oysten. Despite the wealth of the Norwegian Sea, the locals eked out a miserable existence. The fact is that most of the rorbu belonged to the feudal lords, who during the season rented them out along with tackles and a supply of food. Fishermen paid for the use of rorbu with almost all of their catch, receiving a symbolic payment in return. It was almost impossible to break out of this vicious circle, because there was no question of buying land and building a small hut on it - there would have been to live until next year.
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| Lofoten Islands Norway |
Today, Lofoten fishermen are very wealthy people, and almost everyone has their own rorbu (often more than one). However, the houses are mostly rented to tourists. Moreover, the price for an overnight stay in a Rorbu is an order of magnitude higher than in an ordinary hotel.
Excursions
Among the excursions to the Lofoten Islands, a one-day excursion to the Trollfjord is especially popular: by bus from Svolver via Fiskebol to Stokmarknes and from there - by the Hurtigruten liner along the Trollfjord and back.