There's a number of attractions in Bergen and the surrounding areas. Surveys do, however, show that most tourists in Bergen find the atmosphere, cultural landscape, and architecture more compelling than the typical sights, so pick a few things to see and spend the rest of your time in Bergen sitting down in a park or café, strolling around the city, enjoying a concert or hiking the mountains. On sunny summer days, stay downtown until late to enjoy the sunset in the north.

Panorama points

Because of its rugged landscape, Bergen has an abundance of panorama points and these give an intense feeling of space, notably Mt Fløyen and Mt Ulriken served by funicular and cable car respectively but also available hiking for the sporty. At lower altitudes, the Fjellveien panorama road and the highest point of Nordnes peninsula are easily available. Sandviksbatteriet just above Sandviken hospital also offers excellent panorama. The Montana residential area likewise gives a nice outlook.

• Fjellveien panorama road, Fjellveien (Uphill from city centre). Runs for several kilometers between Sandviken and Bellevue, largely horizontal and pedestrian.
• Skansen panorama point (Skansen brannstasjon), Blekeveien (Uphill from funicular station). Excellent and easily available panorama point just above the funicular lowest station. Right in front of the old fire outlook, a small white wooden tower, now used by one of the city's buekorps.
• Tippetue panorama point (Hike uphill from city, or downhill from Mt Floyen). 24 h. Panorama point on the Tippetue footpath to Mt Floyen.
• Nordnes panorama, Haugeveien. Lovely place on the highest point of Nordnes peninsula, towards the aquarium.
• Nordnes park (Tip of Nordnes peninsula, beyond aquarium). 24 h. Pleasant park at the very top of the peninsula, towards the sunset late summer evenings. 
• St Johns (Johanneskirken), Sydnesplass. St Johns Church (Johanneskirken) dominates the top of Nygaardshoyden, the hill that hosts the University of Bergen. Nice view of the very center.

Traditional wooden architecture

Traditional small wooden houses, often placed in an irregular pattern around narrow streets and passages, dominated most Norwegian cities during the past centuries. Bergen is one of the few major towns where this traditional style still dominates several neighborhoods downtown. A number of houses have also been relocated to Gamle Bergen (Old Bergen) museum. Some of these are merely pockets of cute little houses between stone and concrete structures; others are wider areas of these dollhouse-like buildings. Show respect for those living there while you walk by. These areas are best seen on a relaxed stroll (although the view from Fjellveien gives a birds-eye view):

• Nordnes on the slopes on both sides of the Nordnes peninsula, towards the aquarium and Verftet, as well as adjacent Nøstet area.
• Fjellsiden neighborhood, øvregaten, Lille øvregate, øvre Blekeveien (streets). Traditional neighborhood on the steep slopes behind Bryggen and around Fløibanen track. 
• Marken, Marken (street). On the flatland just north of the railway station, pedestrian zone, and also in the hills above, around Skivebakken street. 
• Ladegården and upper Sandviken neighborhood, Ladegårdsgaten, Absalon Beyers gate. An area with more regular and wider streets, highly characteristic style. 
• Skuteviken neighborhood, Skuteviksveien. day time. A small traditional neighborhood around a small bay just east of the fortress. 
• Sandviken neighborhood, Sandvikstorget/Sandviksveien. In Lower Sandviken near the small market square, there is a nice collection of traditional white wooden houses. 

Downtown

• KODE Art museums (Kunstmuseene), Rasmus Meyers allé 3, 7 and 9 (by Lille Lungegårdsvann), ☎ +47 55 56 80 00, fax: +47 55 56 80 11, e-mail: post@kodebergen.no. 15 May–31 Aug: daily 11:00–17:00. 1 Sep–14 May: Tu–Su 11:00–16:00. One of the largest art museums in the Nordic countries, with art from the renaissance as well as contemporary art. The museum houses several of Edvard Munch's works. 
• The fish market (Fisketorget), Torget, ☎ +47 55 55 20 00, e-mail: post@torgetibergen.no. Jun–Aug: daily 07:00–19:00, Sep-May: M–Sa 07:00–16:00. Bergen's outdoor fish market has a long history, being the historical center for fish trade. Most tourists find their way here, but with locals changing their shopping habits, the fish market today does not compare to what it once was. The fish market is dominated by makeshift souvenir shops and seafood stalls. The seafood is generally of only OK quality as the fishermen no longer deliver their catch directly to the market. Still, you can get a pretty good idea of what the locals eat by having a look at the various fish they sell here and try some of the stranger ones if you feel adventurous. Free samples are usually available of the more common items such as whale, salmon and salmon caviar. Although somewhat crowded, getting around with a wheelchair is fairly easy.
• Fløibanen, Vetrlidsalmenning 21, ☎ +47 55 33 68 00, e-mail: info@floibanen.no. M–F 07:30–23:00, Sa–Su 08:00–23:00. Fløibanen is a funicular which goes up Fløyen, a plateau in the mountain massif north-east of the city center. From here, you get a great view of the city. Accessing Fløibanen and the plateau on Fløyen with a wheelchair is a piece of cake. More than 1.2 million people rode with Fløibanen in 2007, and it has become the attraction that most tourists are content with. Expect queues, but don't worry, they move fast. There are no steps where lifts are not available without assistance, and all doors are wide. 
• The West Norway Museum of Decorative Art (Permanenten), Nordahl Bruns gate 9 (by the music pavilion), ☎ +47 55 33 66 33, fax: +47 55 33 66 30, e-mail: post@vk.museum.no. Tu-Su 12 noon-4 PM. A museum of design and decorative art. Norway's largest collection of Chinese art. 
• St. Jørgen's Hospital (The Leprosy Museum), Kong Oscars gate 59, ☎ +47 55 55 20 00, e-mail: lepra@lepra.no. 21 May–2 Sep: Daily 11 AM–3 PM. St. Jørgen's Hospital is one of very few preserved leprosy hospitals from the 18th century in Northern Europe. The large wooden building in Kalfarveien 31 (Pleiestiftelsen for spedalske) was the largest institution caring for the many leprosy patients in Bergen. This was where Armauer Hansen discovered the bacteria that causes leprosy in 1873. Hansen's discovery was a major breakthrough in medicine as he proved that chronic illness was contagious rather than hereditary. The Leprosy archive was a complete record of all patients and is assumed to be the first patient archive in the world. The Leprosy archive is inscribed on UNESCO list of Memory of the World. The Leprosy Museum tells the story about the disease and its history in Norway, in addition to showing life at the hospital. A visit to the museum is a unique but disturbing experience. The complex in Kong Oscars gate 59 also includes a wooden church. Kr. 40.
• Bergen Aquarium (Akvariet i Bergen), Nordnesbakken 4 (indoor parking available, but usually full in the summer season; walk for 20 minutes from the city center or use bus line 11), ☎ +47 55 55 71 71, e-mail: post@akvariet.no. Daily 10:00–18:00. The aquarium has a nice selection of aquatic life, especially penguins and seals. Typical Norwegian aquatic life is well documented, and there is also a collection of tropical fish and animals and a shark tank with an underwater glass tunnel. Fun for kids. 
• Statsraad Lehmkuhl, usually at Bergen harbor shed 7 – Bradbenken 2 (at the end of Bryggen, across the street from Bergenhus fort), ☎ +47 55 30 17 00, fax: +47 55 30 17 01. A three-masted barque sail training vessel built in 1914, one of the best kept in its kind. Mini cruises (approximately five and a half hours) available a few times a year. Tickets should be bought well in advance. For the more adventurous up to week-long cruises to Europe are available where you live and work as a sailor.
• St. Mary's Church (Mariakirken), Dreggsalmenningen 15 (behind Bryggen), ☎ +47 55 59 32 70, fax: +47 55 59 32 89, e-mail: bergen.domkirke.menighet@bkf.no. Closed for renovation. The oldest remaining building in Bergen, St. Mary's Church was built in the 12th century. It is the best-preserved of the city's three medieval churches and one of the few basilica-shaped churches in Norway. It was originally Romanesque, then enlarged in Gothic style. Having belonged to the German community in Bergen for many centuries, it contains a unique pulpit, one of Norway's most beautiful altarpieces and characteristic twin towers.
• The Theater (Den Nationale Scene), Ole Bull's plass (centre). The main theater is a monumental art nouveau building in a prominent position on Ole Bull's square. As an institution, the theater played a key role. Ole Bull, a major international star on the violin, established the theater and employed the young Henrik Ibsen as an instructor. Later Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, another national icon, worked there. Ole Bull also discovered the young music talent Edvard Grieg. This theater made Norwegian, rather than Danish, into the standard language on stage, and it was long the #1 stage in Norway.

Bergenhus fortress

• Bergenhus fortress (Bergenhus), Bergenhus (past bryggen), ☎ +47 55 54 63 87. Once the seat of the king, Bergenhus fortress is one of the oldest and best-preserved forts of Norway. The oldest surviving buildings are from the mid 13th century, but the area was a royal residence from the late 11th century. The fortress is situated close to the international ferry terminal. The royal hall, Håkonshallen, (Haakon's Hall), named for King Haakon Haakonsson, was built sometime between 1247 and 1261. It is used today for royal galas, as a banqueting hall for the city council, and other public events. The roof is reconstructed after a blast during World War II. The nearby Rosenkrantz tower has the same appearance as it had in the 16th century. The oldest part of the tower dates back to the 1270s, a few decades after Håkonshallen. It was expanded in the 1560s by the governor, Erik Rosenkrantz, to its present shape. The rest of the medieval buildings in the fortress have been replaced or demolished over the centuries, with some ruins still visible. Among these is the medieval cathedral, the Church of Christ, which was used for the coronation and as a royal burial site in the 13th century. A memorial marks the site of the high altar. Guided tours of the royal hall and the tower start every hour between 10 AM and 4 PM every day from 15 May to 31 Aug in the royal hall. From 1 Sept to 14 May tours are only available between noon and 3 PM on Sundays. A small cafeteria with coffee, tea, and basic snacks is open from June to August. The fortress grounds serve as a city park; you can hang out here and eat that fish you just bought at the nearby fish market - or just enjoy the sunshine and the view. The park is popular among locals and tourists, but usually not crowded. It is normally not a problem to find a good spot for your picnic or a round of Frisbee. There is a very good view of the bay. The use of open fire, including barbecues, and the drinking of alcoholic beverages are forbidden. Unlike in many other parks, the prohibition of alcohol is enforced strictly here, as the fort is still a military area with occasional military guards on patrol.

Bryggen

• Bryggen, Bryggen (north side of the bay). Between 1350 and 1750, this area used to be a Hansa dock, trading, and processing area. The wooden houses at Bryggen today were built after the devastating city fire of 1702, but are probably very similar to the buildings that were there before. Despite neglect and fires (Norwegian cities had a habit of burning down because everything is made of wood), a considerable number of buildings have survived and are now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you enter some of the alleyways between the storefronts, you really get a feel of what Bergen must have been like in the Middle Ages. There are a few museums on the history of Bergen and of Bryggen, but the most interesting aspect is probably that almost all of the buildings are still in use. One example is the restaurant Bryggen tracteurste, serving food and drinks in a building first opened for this purpose in 1708. Wandering about on Bryggen is possible with a wheelchair, but getting in and out of buildings can be very difficult.

Museums

• Bryggens Museum, Dreggsalmenningen 3 (by St. Mary's church and Radisson SAS Royal Hotel), ☎ +47 55 58 80 10, e-mail: bryggens.museum@bymuseet.no. M-F: 11 AM-3 PM. Sa: 12-3 PM. Su: 12-4 PM. After the fire in 1955, when a lot of Bryggen burnt down, remains of the first settlement on Bryggen were discovered. The museum is built over these up to 900 years old wooden building foundations, giving a unique insight in Bryggen's architectural history. It contains the world's largest collection of medieval runic inscriptions, mostly inscribed on wooden items, but only a small number of these are on display. It also hosts themed exhibitions. If you are not a student and would like to also visit the Hanseatic Museum, it is cheaper to buy a ticket for the guided tour (and skip it if you want).
• The Hanseatic Museum and Schøtstuene, Finnegårdsgaten 1 A and Øvregaten 50 (museum: the first building on Bryggen when walking from the fish market, Schøtstuene: the street behind Bryggen, a little bit towards Bergenhus from the Hanseatic Museum), ☎ +47 55 54 46 90, fax: +47 55 54 46 99, e-mail: hanseatisk@museumvest.no. The Hanseatic Museum: 15 May–15 Sep: Daily 9 AM–5 PM. 16 Sep–14 May: Tu–Sa: 11 AM–2 PM. Su: 11 AM–4 PM. Schøtstuene: 15 May–15 Sep: Daily 10 AM–5 PM. 16 Sep–14 May: Su: 11 AM–2 PM. The Hanseatic Museum and Schøtstuene are the only places on Bryggen where the original interior is preserved or restored. A tour of The Hanseatic Museum gives you a good introduction to the Hanseatic Bergen and the Hansa life, as you walk around an authentic Hanseatic merchant's house from the early 1700s. The building was in use until the late 19th century, when it was converted into a museum. In Schøtstuene, buildings from other parts of Bryggen are rebuilt to show where people ate, celebrated and held meetings. Neither the museum nor Schøtstuene is accessible for those using a wheelchair. Schøtstuene is closed until December 2014. 
• Theta museum, Bredsgården 1 D (entrance from the front of Bryggen, by Enhjørningsgården), ☎ +47 55 31 53 93. Tu Sa Su 2 PM-4 PM. During the first half of World War II, the Theta group, formed by people between the ages of 19 and 22, established radio contact with London and reported movements of the German fleet in Norway. The group headquarters and radio station was located in the heart of occupied Bergen but remained active for two years before it was discovered and raided by the Nazis. In the 1980s, the small room was reconstructed to its original state by orders of the Directorate of Cultural Heritage. It is now probably the country's smallest museum, displaying radio equipment and the Theta group's own security system. Not accessible with a wheelchair.

Nygårdshøyden and Møhlenpris (southern downtown)

• Bergen Museum – The Cultural History Collections (Kulturhistorisk museum), Haakon Sheteligs plass 10, ☎ +47 55 58 31 40, e-mail: post@bm.uib.no. Tu–F: 10 AM–3 PM, Sa Su 11 AM–4 PM. Bergen Museum is a part of the University of Bergen and is in the heart of campus. It is divided into two collections, the Cultural History Collections, and the Natural History Collections, located in two different buildings. The Cultural History Collections include archeology, anthropology and art- and culture studies sections. Among other things, the museum has a large collection of Norwegian folk art and national costumes. It is notable for its unique exhibition of Norwegian medieval church art, including painted altarpieces, crucifixes, and portals from demolished stave churches, all in wood. 
• Bergen Museum – The Natural History Collections (Naturhistorisk museum), Muséplass 3, ☎ +47 55 58 29 20, e-mail: post@bm.uib.no. Closed for renovation. The Natural History Collections include botany, geology, and zoology. The zoology exhibitions are preserved more or less as they were when they were put up almost a hundred years ago. Enormous whale skeletons suspended from the ceiling in the exhibition halls are visible through the windows from the outside. The geology exhibition is modern and varied and contains samples from most part of the world, in addition to a nice local collection. Around the museum is a garden which is at its finest in spring and summer. There is also a greenhouse where you can enjoy tropical plants. 
• Vilvite (Bergen Science Center), Thormøhlensgate 51, ☎ +47 55 59 45 00, e-mail: post@vilvite.no. Tu-F 9 AM-4 PM, Sa Su 11 AM-6 PM. Sponsored by the state and the city in addition to some of the largest industrial companies in Norway, this all-new science center features interactive exhibitions of science, technology, and mathematics. It targets children and young people with the intention to inspire them to learn more about science but is popular also among adults. It has special exhibitions about the weather, the ocean, and energy, with altogether 75 different interactive machines and experiments.
• Bergen Maritime Museum (Bergens Sjøfartsmuseum), Haakon Sheteligsplass 15, ☎ +47 55 54 96 00, fax: +47 5 554-9610, e-mail: bergens.sjofartsmuseum@bsj.uib.no. All week 11 AM-3 PM. closed on holidays, Christmas eve, new year's eve and the 17th of May. This traditional maritime museum is in the middle of the campus of the University of Bergen. Exhibitions of maritime history, shipping history, the Vikings, naval warfare, maritime archeology, and more. 
• Nygårdsparken. Always open. This is a very nicely landscaped park laid out in the late 1800s after English patterns. The park is a popular picnic place for families, and in the summer there are always several groups of students and young people having barbeques. You are very welcome to step on the grass, and it's a nice place to play frisbee, kubb or croquet. If you want to save a few kroner on food and drink stop by a local grocery store to pick up some ingredients to a picnic, bring along a blanket and a few beers and spend a cheap and relaxing afternoon in this park. It's highly unlikely that the police will bother you for drinking in public in this park as long as you behave. It's also one of the places where it's rather easy to get in contact with the locals. There's no public toilet here, but pop over the road to Vilvite and use their facilities for free. If you arrive from Nygårdshøyden, don't be scared by drug addicts hanging out in the upper part of the park, just walk past them, and you will find the lower and beautiful part after a few meters. 

South of the city center

• Fantoft Stave Church (Fantoft stavkirke), Fantoftveien 46 (about 6 km (4 mi) from the city center, bus line 2 from the front side of the exhibition shopping center, or light rail ("Bybanen"). Get off at the Fantoft stop and walk.), ☎ +47 55 28 07 10. Stave churches are built in a distinctive style using the logs of trees as pillars, by the early Christians. This is a reconstruction of a church originally built in Fortun, by the Sognefjord, around 1150. On the 6 Jun 1992, the church was totally destroyed by arson, but a perfect copy has since been constructed. The inside of the stave church has no wall paintings and the altar is quite austere. If you have seen the stave church in the Norsk Folkemuseum in Oslo, then save yourself a few kroners and skip this one.
• Gamlehaugen, Gamlehaugveien 10 (about 10 minutes by car from the city center, southbound bus lines 525, 60 over Fjøsanger, 20–24, 26, 560 and 620–630 from the bus station), ☎ +47 55 92 51 20, fax: +47 55 92 51 33, e-mail: post@gamlehaugen.no. Villa open for guided tours only. Guided tours Tu-Su at 12 PM, 1 PM and 2 PM in Jun-Aug. Tour at 12 PM will be given in English if necessary, other tours will be given in Norwegian only. The villa at Gamlehaugen, built to resemble a castle, was the home of Christian Michelsen, former prime minister who helped free Norway from the Swedish rule through the peaceful dissolution of the "union" in 1905. Nowadays, the villa is the royal family's residence in Bergen. There is a large and very popular park around the villa. Bathing possibilities. 
• Siljustøl Museum, Siljustølveien 50 (about 20 minutes by car from the city center, southbound bus lines 23 and 26 from the bus station), ☎ +47 55 92 29 92, fax: +47 55 92 29 93. Museum open 24 Jun-23 Sep: Su 12 noon-4 PM. The home of the composer Harald Sæverud, famous for late romantic and neo-classicist works now houses a museum with occasional concerts. The somewhat mystic park around the house is open for the public.
• Troldhaugen, Troldhaugveien 65 (about 15 minutes by car from the city center, southbound bus lines 20–24, 26, 560 and 620–630 from the bus station), ☎ +47 55 92 29 92, fax: +47 55 92 29 93, e-mail: info@troldhaugen.com. May-Sep: Daily 9 AM-6 PM. Oct-Nov: M-F 10 AM-2 PM, Sa Su 12 AM-4 PM. Dec: Closed. Jan-Mar: 10 AM-2 PM. Apr: M-F 10 AM-2 PM, Sa Su 12 AM-4 PM. This is the house of the famous composer Edvard Grieg, who wrote the Peer Gynt suite and is Norway's national composer. His country house (just outside the town center of Bergen) has been preserved in the state it was in when he died in the late 19th century. You can also see his grave; he was buried on his own estate. There is a museum devoted to Grieg and his work, and a concert hall with regular concerts.
• Ulriksbanen, Ulriken 1 (southbound bus lines 2, 31 and 50 from the front side of the Xhibition shopping center to Haukeland hospital). Cable car to the top of Mt. Ulriken, the highest of the mountains surrounding the city. Re-opened May 2009 with a new restaurant at the top.

North of the city center

• Gamle Bergen (Old Bergen), Nyhavnsveien 4 (half an hour by walking; a few minutes by bus or car from the city center, northbound bus lines 9, 20-29, 50, 71, 80, 90, 280, 285), ☎ +47 55 39 43 00, e-mail: gamle.bergen@bymuseet.no. A reconstructed town with about 50 wooden houses from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. It is a beautiful place to stroll on a sunny day. The more cultural traveler will enjoy a guided tour of the area and the houses. 
• The Norwegian Knitting Industry Museum (Norsk Trikotasjemuseum), Salhusvegen 201 (by car, drive north on the motorway E39/E16 until Åsane senter. when you're off the motorway, drive west and later north-west on RV 564. eventually, the signs should start pointing to Salhus. by bus, take northbound line 280), ☎ +47 55 25 10 80, fax: +47 55 25 10 99. T-Su 11 AM-4 PM (June 1 - August 31); T-F 11 AM-3 PM and Su 12 PM-4 PM (September 1 - May 31). Located in the buildings that used to house the first fully mechanized knitwear factory in Norway. The machinery is still in working condition and is used. 

West of the city center

• Alvøen (twelve kilometers west of the city centre by road; follow the signs towards Sotra, and then to Alvøen a while after the end of the dual-lane carriageway, westbound bus line 42), ☎ +47 55 58 80 10, e-mail: alvoen.hovedbygning@bymuseet.no. An old and picturesque formerly industrial community situated on the west coast of the Bergen peninsula. The manor building at Alvøen has been converted into a museum with several exhibitions.
• Damsgård Hovedgård (Damsgård Manor), Alléen 29 (just across the fjord south-west of the city center, walk or drive across the Puddefjord bridge, then turn right and keep going for a kilometer, the manor is visible from the road on your left hand side), ☎ +47 55 94 08 70, e-mail: damsgard.hovedgard@bymuseet.no. This 18th century manor is the most splendid of the many country retreats built by Bergen's aristocracy in the past centuries. The roccoco main building is surrounded by several beautiful gardens.