Norway’s stave churches: the 2026 visiting season

Norway’s medieval wooden churches are not museums with permanent opening hours. Most of them are cared for by Fortidsminneforeningen — the National Trust of Norway, and each one opens for a defined season, several weeks or months long, after which it closes again until the following year. Anyone planning a trip around them needs the dates, not the map.

Here is the 2026 season, property by property, as published by the Trust. Borgund opened on 15 April and closes on 14 October — the longest season of the year and the bracket within which everything else falls.

The stave churches

• Borgund, Lærdal, Vestland — 15 April to 14 October
• Urnes, Luster, Vestland — 2 May to 30 September (closed 17 May)
• Hopperstad, Vik, Vestland — 18 May to 19 September
• Torpo, Ål, Buskerud — 1 June to 31 August
• Uvdal, Nore og Uvdal, Buskerud — 1 June to 31 August
• Kvernes, Averøy, Møre og Romsdal — 6 June to 6 September
• Nore, Nore og Uvdal, Buskerud — 20 June to 9 August
• Rødven, Rauma, Møre og Romsdal — 20 June to 16 August
• Kaupanger, Sogndal, Vestland — closed for the 2026 season because of building work around the church

Medieval and later churches

• Logtun kirke, Frosta, Trøndelag — 1 May to 15 September
• Hove steinkyrkje, Vik, Vestland — 20 June to 19 August (pre-season weekends, 1 to 16 June)
• Moster gamle kyrkje, Bømlo, Vestland — 22 June to 15 August, closed Mondays
• Rosekyrkja, Stordal, Møre og Romsdal — 17 June to 20 August
• Hustad kirke, Inderøy, Trøndelag — every Sunday, 16 June to 18 August, with a host present
• Sakshaug gamle kirke, Inderøy, Trøndelag — Sundays 13:00–16:00 from 16 June to 18 August, and Tuesday to Friday 11:00–14:00 from 9 July to 2 August
• Kyrkjestuggu i Torpo, Ål, Buskerud — 1 June to 31 August
• Hestad kapell, Gaular, Vestland — 1 to 31 July
• Gaupne gamle kyrkje, Luster, Vestland — Wednesday to Sunday, 1 to 31 July
• Holdhus gamle kyrkje, Bjørnafjorden, Vestland — Saturdays and Sundays in July, otherwise by arrangement

Castles, houses and farms

• Steinvikholm slott, Stjørdal, Trøndelag — 1 July to 15 August; guided visits by arrangement
• Stranges stiftelse, Bergen, Vestland — Saturdays and Sundays in July and August
• Finnesloftet, Voss, Vestland — June to August; group tours must be booked
• Lillingstonheimen, Fjaler, Vestland — not receiving visitors at present

Open all year

Several properties are freely accessible at any time: Tautra and Munkeby monastery ruins (Frosta and Levanger, Trøndelag), the Olav monument at Stiklestad (Verdal), Reins kloster in Indre Fosen (guided tours in weeks 25 to 33), Vøienvolden gård with its garden at Sagene in Oslo, and Abborhøgda near Kongsvinger, a protected Forest Finn smallholding on the Skogfinneleden trail, open during events, with the main house bookable for overnight stays through the Norwegian Trekking Association.

Admission. Members of Fortidsminneforeningen enter free. Opening hours, ticket prices and group tours are listed on the Trust’s page for each individual property.

Where to look: the full season overview is published by Fortidsminneforeningen, which also runs the Urnes World Heritage Centre and an activity calendar of courses and events across the country.

Source: Fortidsminneforeningen — “Sommersesongen 2026”, published 15 April 2026 (all dates and properties); Fortidsminneforeningen — About us (English name of the organisation). Dates are those published by the Trust; check the individual property page before travelling.