7 of the best things to do in and around Lillehammer, Norway

Lillehammer is one of central Norway’s loveliest lakeside towns, arrayed along a wide and beautiful valley. Its pretty, compact core sits above the northern end of Mjøsa lake, beyond which the town climbs the surrounding hillsides, with ski slopes winding between farms and forests.

The 1994 Winter Olympics bestowed this idyllic place with worldwide fame. Today, the former Olympic venues have been artfully transformed into a fascinating collection of sites, many still in use by everyday athletes from the region and across Europe. Lillehammer also has one of Norway’s best open-air museums and an excellent amusement park. 

Roads snake north of Lillehammer through mountain passes to charming towns, gorgeous stave churches and the rugged Jotunheimen National Park, an exciting destination for wilderness hiking.

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In this region, visitors will find a mix of culture and nature, indoor exhibitions and outdoor adventures. These are the best things to do in and around Lillehammer, Norway.

1. Revisit Lillehammer’s Olympic legacy

Lillehammer is rightly proud of its place in sporting history. And its Olympic attractions aren’t just for ardent sports fans: they incorporate history, eye-catching architecture and stellar views.

The Norges Olympiske Museum (Norwegian Olympic Museum) provides an exhilarating introduction to the origins of the Games and Norway’s role as the host of two Winter Olympics: Oslo in 1952 and Lillehammer in 1994. Exhibits, many of which celebrate the achievements of Norwegian athletes, surround an aurora borealis–themed (and small-scale) ski jump display. You can watch stirring Olympic footage aplenty and try out the biathlon simulator (it’s harder than it looks).

After you’ve learned the backstory, walk 1.5km (1 mile) to the Olympiaparken (Olympic Park) to feel even more of the 1994 spirit. The two main arenas are Håkons Hall – much of which sits belowground to maintain a low profile on the landscape – and Eidsiva Arena. Built for the 1994 Games, these facilities are still used for training, sports events and concerts. Drop in to work out or simply have a look inside and peer down into the vast arena.

A trail behind Håkons Hall takes you up a long, slow climb to the vertiginous Lygårdsbakkene Ski Jump. The opening ceremony for the 1994 Games was held here, and the tower for the Olympic flame stands at the foot of the jump. Take the chairlift to the top or – if you have a don’t mind heights and enough stamina – walk up the 936 narrow steps for a ski jumper's panoramic view over Lillehammer and Mjøsa. 

Hafjell Alpine Center, 15km (9.3 miles) north of Lillehammer, served as the venue for alpine skiing events in 1994 and is now Norway’s third-largest ski resort, with 50km (31 miles) of marked slopes. Closer to Ringebu than to Lillehammer, Kvitfjell Alpine Facility hosted cross-country skiers at the 1994 Games; there are several downhill runs here too.

Detour: If you’re willing to wander further, other Olympic venues ripple out across the countryside. Our favorite is the Olympic bobsled track, where you can experience the thrill of a 120km/h (75mph) run down Scandinavia’s only bobsled track. It’s at Hunderfossen, a 10-minute train ride from Lillehammer.

2. Immerse yourself in history at the Maihaugen Folk Museum

The town’s place in the historical record extends well further back than the 1994 Olympics. In an elevated spot near Olympiaparken, Maihaugen Folk Museum first opened in 1904. The institution was the pet project of traveling dentist Anders Sandvig, whose time in Gudbrandsdalen (Lillehammer’s region) inspired him to collect culturally significant artifacts – and even buildings – for posterity. You can easily spend several hours wandering the zones (rural, town and residential) within the scenic 36-hectare (89-acre) grounds and listening to stories told by costumed actors. The spire of the showpiece 13th-century Garmo Stave Church, where summertime services take place, rises above the site.

Local tip: Download the Bolt or ShareBike apps to pick up an on-demand electric scooter or e-bike to bop around town – and enjoy an easier climb up to Olympiaparken.

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3. Take a literary road trip along the Peer Gynt Vegen

When it comes to soulful Norwegian backroads, few carry stronger literary echoes than the Peer Gynt Vegen. This road traces the mythical journey of one Peer Gynt, a country wanderer of Norwegian folklore who’s best known as the title character in the play by literary giant Henrik Ibsen. Peer Gynt Vegen begins in Skei (north of Lillehammer, via the E6 and the Rv254) and meanders 60km (37 miles) to Espedalen, climbing to an altitude of 1053m (3455ft) along the way. The route passes the Solbråsetra farm, where Gudbrandsdalen, Norway’s national cheese, was first made in 1863. It also skirts Gålåvatn lake, where an annual festival celebrates Ibsen’s Peer Gynt with alfresco performances and other cultural programming every August. Read the play before you go – or better still, take it with you and follow the ill-fated hero’s tale during your own journey.

Planning tip: This country road is unpaved, so drive with caution. Along the route, motorists and motorcyclists are subject to tolls, which are collected by automatic readers. Create an account with YouPark to save additional fees for unregistered vehicles.

4. Cruise Mjøsa lake on a steamer built in 1856

Take to the water in grand style by boarding Skibladner, the world’s oldest operating paddle steamer, with three departures per week in the summer. This vessel takes its sweet time – almost four hours – to cross Mjøsa between Hamar and Lillehammer (via Gjøvik). This grand old boat came off the assembly line in Sweden in 1856. Though it’s been modified over the years, it offers a real taste of the golden age of paddle-steamer travel. During your cruise, expect to pass low hills of deep green; on clear days, you’ll see higher massifs in the distance. In an age when everything happens in a hurry, such a journey feels like a calm corrective to contemporary life.

Planning tip: Time your Mjøsa outing to the second week of June for Hamar’s Medieval Festival, when locals dress up in period costume and sing Gregorian chants in the striking glass-enclosed cathedral.

5. Visit what might be Norway’s loveliest church

You could drive through Ringebu, an hour from Lilliehammer, and easily miss one of central Norway’s most enchanting buildings. Nestled in a meadow high above the road, Ringebu Stave Church has been here since 1220 (an earlier version of the church occupied the site after the arrival of Christianity in the 11th century). The current building dates to the 17th century, which is when the red tower was attached.

More than the traditional curlicue details, the beauty of this simple church derives from its perfect proportions and the earthy reds and browns silhouetted against the piercing blue sky and deep greens of the surrounding forest. Stroll about the manicured grounds with stone gravestones for free and admire the church’s exterior from every angle. Then purchase a ticket to step into the almost claustrophobic gloom of the interior and see if you can make out the statue of St Lawrence and the runic inscriptions on the walls. 

A few hundred meters up the hill from the church is another treasured building, the Ringebu Samlingene, which was built in 1743 and served as the vicarage as recently as 1991.

Planning tip: Concerts of Norwegian folk music sometimes take place in the church in summer; check Ringebu’s town website for dates.

6. Make a culinary pilgrimage to tiny Lom

At first glance, Lom, a village 2.5 hours north of Lillehammer by car, makes for an unlikely culinary heavyweight, yet savvy foodies have turned the town into a true gourmet destination. Norwegian celebrity chef Arne Brimi lives in the region, pursuing his vision of farm-fresh cuisine and traditional preparations with passion. (He’s even dubbed the region “Brimiland.”) In the hills above Lom, Brimi Fjellstugu, Brimi’s mountain lodge, is the chef’s home kitchen, with a cafe, deli and nightly grill sessions that show off his amazing talents.

You can also sample a simpler version at Brimi Sæter, a reinvention of a rural mountain farm with evening meals. The Brimi connection continues in Lom itself at BrimiBue, which is swathed in glass and wood in the best Scandi style. Here, Dan-Robin Leirvåg and Tina Brimi (Arne’s daughter) run a highly regarded restaurant, specializing in reinventions of Norwegian classics that change with the seasons.

But there’s more to Lom’s reputation for excellence than the Brimi family. Master baker Morten Schakenda runs a bakery known for natural breads, wood-fired pizzas and (of course) superb pastries, freshly baked baguettes and sandwiches. We would – without exaggeration – drive across Norway and wait hours just to taste those cinnamon twists again.

Planning tip: In between meals, take in some of Lom’s other attractions. The Fossheim Steinsenter is a remarkable (and free-to-visit) collection of rare rocks, minerals and fossils from some of the most remote corners of the world. And at the center of town is Lom Stavkyrkje, another charming (and, unusually, double-naved) stave church.

7. Hike the high passes of Norway’s premier trail

If you go on one hike in Norway, make it Besseggen, about 3.5 hours north of Lillehammer by car. This celebrated route, which lies within the wild Jotunheimen National Park, has been beloved by generations of Norwegians, stretching back to Ibsen, who wrote that Besseggen “cuts along with an edge like a scythe for miles and miles.”

In total, Besseggen involves a six-hour day hike from Memurubu lodge to Gjendesheim. Along the way, you’ll reach an altitude of 1743m (5719ft). The hike also involves a ferry crossing aboard the MS Gjende.

Almost as soon as you leave Memurubu, the well-signed trail begins to ascend steeply, leading to a plateau where there’s some respite from the climb. Meandering across the plateau, you’ll pass Bjørnbøltjørn, a small glacial lake. From here, there are superb views down to a much larger lake, Gjende, whose vivid colors come from the 20,000 tons of glacial silt that funnels into it every year. The trail continues to climb gradually; a couple of hours after reaching the plateau, you begin the steepest part of the hike. If you’re tempted to turn back, don’t – the best views lie just ahead.

Gasping in the thin air, you’ll suddenly find yourself on the Besseggen Ridge. The walk along this ridge gives Besseggen its fame – and it’s not for the fainthearted. You need to do a lot of scrambling and have a head for heights. Rest assured that the trail is wider than it looks.

On the ridge’s gentle upward trajectory, the trail traverses scree slopes all the way up to the Veslefjellet Plateau. From there, the trail’s summit, you’ll want to soak in the sheer magnificence of the views before starting on the relatively easy walk back down to Gjendesheim.

Planning tip: Jotunheimen usually has a much shorter hiking season than the rest of Norway, since the snow often remains until June and returns in September. This means that many routes are only possible in July and August.

This article was adapted from Lonely Planet’s Scandinavia guidebook, published in July 2025.