Bodø

Bodø is the seat of Nordland county in Norway. With 50 000 citizens, it is the second largest city in Northern Norway. Bodø is located on a peninsula facing the open sea, and infamously windy.

It is a gateway to the Arctic, being the northern end station of the Norwegian railway network (except the short connection from Narvik to Sweden), and an important ferry station.

Understand

In the Viking Age, the province was known as Hålogaland, and famous for shipmaking. In 1663, Bodø was mentioned as a village with postal service. In the 19th century, fish canning became an important industry for Bodø, and made the city grow. As Nazi Germany invaded Norway in 1940, they bombed Bodø on May 27, destroying most buildings. The city was rebuilt after the war, and therefore looks remarkably modern.

In 1960, the American spy plane U-2 heading for Bodø was shot down by the Soviet Union, and Soviet leader Nikita Chrushchev threatened to bomb Bodø.

Bodø has a university, and a young and rapidly growing population.

See and do

Museums

• ⊙Norwegian Aviation Museum (Norsk Luftfartsmuseum), Olav V gate. Located in the shopping centre area, a 20-minute walk from the city centre, you can visit a quite large museum and experience the history of aviation and highlights from the Cold War. Bodø is one of the airfields used for U-2 high-altitude recon and ozone monitoring.  
• ⊙Bodø friluftsmuseum (Bodø open air museum) (South of the Bodø camping). Open 24h. The inside of the houses can only be visited by appointment. Various traditional house styles from Bodø. Free. 
• Kjerringøy handelssted. Kjerringøy trading post is a 19th-century trade centre typical for Northern Norway. It's a museum, and you can get guided tours. Kjerringøy is a peninsula with beautiful scenery and many tourist activities. Busses from Bodø 

Churches

• ⊙Bodø Cathedral (Bodø domkirke), Torvgata 12. Modern with a separate bell-tower and a beautiful window.  
• ⊙Bodin Kirke (Bodin Church) (In the South part of Bodø). One of the oldest churches in Norway, built around 1240. Free entrance.  

Useful

Inside the range of 4 km:

• ⊙   Bodø Turistinformasjonskontor, Tollbugata 13, Bodø