Things to do in Stavanger
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Stavanger
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Spring, long bright evenings, lowest rainfall, trails opening and prices below summer.
Summer peak, 15 to 20C, daylight to about 22:30 in late June, all boats and surf schools running.
Autumn, September can be superb for quiet trails, October brings storms and early darkness.
Winter, dark and wet with about 6 hours of daylight in December, museums and restaurants carry the trip.
What's on
- MaiJazz Usually early May
Stavanger International Jazz Festival fills venues citywide.
- Constitution Day 17 May
Parades, bunads and ice cream, the most Norwegian day of the year, book hotels early.
- Gladmat Usually July
Scandinavia's largest food festival takes over Vagen, best and most crowded week of the year.
- Nuart street art activity late summer, dates vary
Street art activity peaks late summer, murals are year round.
- Christmas markets and lights December
Christmas markets and lights around Torget and Gamle Stavanger in December.
Best things to do in Stavanger
Gamle Stavanger
173 white wooden houses on cobbled lanes, lived in rather than staged, and the best free walk in the city.
Norwegian Petroleum Museum
Interactive museum in a harbour building shaped like an oil platform explaining how oil remade Norway.
IDDIS Norwegian Canning Museum and Norwegian Printing Museum
Working sardine cannery and printing museum in Gamle Stavanger showing the labels Stavanger exported worldwide.
Stavanger Cathedral
Norway's oldest cathedral still in use, a quiet medieval stone church between the harbour and Breiavatnet lake.
Fargegaten
Short street where every building is a different saturated colour, lined with cafes, shops and summer terraces.
Lysefjord Sightseeing Cruise
Quiet electric boat cruise up Lysefjord under Preikestolen, past waterfalls and the Vagabond's Cave.
Flor & Fjære
Boat trip to island gardens of palms and koi ponds, ending with lunch or dinner in the greenhouse restaurant.
Sverd i fjell
Three ten metre bronze swords planted in rock at Mollebukta, best paired with a swim and picnic on the beach.
Where to stay in Stavanger
Vagen / City Centre
first trip, all-round base
Walk to fjord boats, Gamle Stavanger, Fargegaten, museums, bus and train stations.
Gamle Stavanger
romance and atmosphere
Stay inside the white wooden house settlement, quiet and beautiful and minutes from everything.
Pedersgata / Storhaug
food-led visitors, best value in the centre
Stavanger's food street with dense independent restaurants, generally cheaper than the harbour front.
Eiganes / Valand
quiet, families
Villa district around Mosvatnet and the Archaeology Museum, quieter and cheaper but a longer walk in.
Sola
beach, surf and golf with a car
By the airport and Solastranden, perfect for Jaeren days but a commute for city and Preikestolen trips.
Think twice about
- Hillevag / Mariero
Not unsafe, just dull and badly located for a visitor without a car.
- Forum / Tjensvoll conference zone
Not unsafe, just dull and badly located for a visitor without a car.
Best restaurants in Stavanger
RE-NAA
Three-star tasting counter of about 20 courses built almost entirely from Rogaland produce.
Sabi Omakase
Ten seat one star sushi counter serving Norwegian fish by Japanese Edomae tradition over about 18 servings.
Sabi Sushi
Casual sibling to Sabi Omakase next door and the fallback when the ten seat counter is fully booked.
Tango
Intimate set menu modern Norwegian dining on the harbour, without RE-NAA's price or waiting list.
Egget
Small open kitchen restaurant where you trust the chef on cod and whatever Jaeren delivered that morning.
Bellies
Vegetable forward sharing plates mixing global flavours with Norse ingredients, plus wood oven pizza.
Fisketorget
Fish market restaurant on the water where locals still order the creamy fish soup and summer prawns.
Casa Gio
Handmade pasta and regional Italian cooking with Rogaland produce, small and warm, evenings only.
Best bars in Stavanger
Lervig Local
Brewpub of Stavanger's craft brewery Lervig with fresh on site brews and good food, better value than harbour bars.
Bøker og Børst
Fargegaten institution that is coffee by day and bar by night, with board games and mismatched furniture.
Best coffee in Stavanger
Kaffelade
Downtown cafe recommended locally for cakes, sandwiches and pizza in the cheap coffee and cake tier.
Kokko Kaffebar
Roastery cafe in a multi level Nordic design space, famous for its cheesecake.
Outdoor things to do in Stavanger
Preikestolen
Granite plateau 604 metres above Lysefjord with no fence, reached by a well marked Sherpa built trail.
Kjeragbolten
Demanding chain assisted hike to a boulder wedged in a crevasse high above Lysefjord, for fit hikers only.
Lysefjord RIB Safari
Two hour high speed RIB trip to waterfalls, the Vagabond's Cave and beneath Preikestolen, suits provided.
Flørli 4444
The world's longest wooden staircase, 4444 steps up a pipeline above a roadless fjord village reached by boat.
Borestranden
Three kilometres of dune backed sand that is the region's surf centre, with rental and lessons in season.
Solastranden
Long airport side beach for swimming, kiting and sunsets, with strong undercurrents so follow flags and advice.
Ølbergstranden
Pale sand Jaeren beach on the coastal route linking beaches, lighthouses and wartime bunkers.
Vigdelstranden
Quieter Jaeren sand beach for walking and swimming on the coastal path south of the city.
Best hotels in Stavanger
Eilert Smith Hotel
Twelve room design boutique above RE-NAA, discreet and adult leaning, making Stavanger's most luxurious night.
Hotel Victoria
Grand hotel since 1900 at the harbour edge of the old town, with harbour view rooms and old school service.
Sola Strand Hotel
Historic beach hotel directly on Sola beach with spa and pool, for surf weekends or a pre flight decompress.
Home Hotel Skagen Brygge
Harbour front hotel where rates can include breakfast, afternoon fika and a light evening meal, rewriting daily costs.
Thon Hotel Stavanger
Renovated central chain hotel near Breiavatnet with a strong breakfast and a walk everywhere location without bar noise.
Scandic Royal Stavanger
Central hotel with indoor pool, sauna and spa, genuinely welcome after a wet Preikestolen day.
Radisson Blu Atlantic Hotel
Large harbour icon hotel with conference grade reliability, best in a harbour or Breiavatnet view room.
Vander Aparthotel
Design aparthotels on the food street with kitchen and laundry, smart for longer stays and drying hiking gear.
Is Stavanger expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | NOK 1,300 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | NOK 2,600 a person |
| Splurge | NOK 5,200 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Flor & Fjære: weeks ahead
- Preikestolen: a few days ahead
- Kjeragbolten: weeks ahead
- Lysefjord RIB Safari: a few days ahead
- Flørli 4444: a few days ahead
- Lysefjord Kayaking: a few days ahead
- Stavanger Golf Club: a few days ahead
- Sola Golf Club: a few days ahead
- RE-NAA and Sabi Omakase need weeks to months.
- Flor and Fjaere seasonal days sell out, book with your flights.
- Preikestolen guided hikes and RIB safaris need 3 to 7 days ahead in June to August.
- Norway shuts on Sunday, buy wine and spirits at Vinmonopolet by Saturday.
Is Stavanger safe?
- Among the safest cities a traveller will visit, no neighbourhood avoidance needed.
- Real risks are cliff edges, cold swift water, fast changing mountain weather and icy trails October to April.
- Drink driving enforcement is absolute with a 0.02 percent limit and severe penalties.
- Emergency numbers are 113 medical, 110 fire and 112 police.
Stavanger travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Guided city highlights bus tours whose stops are all free and walkable or bus accessible.
- Prime Skagenkaien terraces for dinner, drink for the view and eat on Pedersgata.
- Preikestolen at midday in July with a cruise ship in, go sunrise, late afternoon or in rain.
- Booking Stavanger for northern lights, at 59N with coastal cloud it is only an occasional bonus.
Getting around Stavanger: public transport and more
- Walk the centre, everything in the city sights is within 15 minutes.
- Kolumbus buses and local ferries use app ticketing bought before boarding, including bus 16 to Sverd i fjell.
- Airport coach or Kolumbus bus 42 from Stavanger Airport Sola, taxi costs about NOK 400 to 550.
- Hire a car only for Jaeren, Kjerag and Manafossen days, centre parking is about NOK 200 plus per day.
Who Stavanger suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Good |
Make Stavanger your trip
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