Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
2,600m (8,530 ft.). Today the ruins are used for concerts and plays in summer.
Adjoining is an archaeological museum displaying artifacts found in the area,
and also an open-air folk museum featuring 18th- and 19th-century houses. In
an organic garden you can see nearly 400 different types of herbs.
Strandveien 100.
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62-54-27-00.
Admission 70NOK ($9.95) adults, 30NOK ($4.25) children, 175NOK ($25)
family ticket. May 18-June 15 Tues-Sun 10am-4pm; June 16-Aug 18 daily 10am-5pm; Aug 19-Sept 8
Tues-Sun 10am-4pm.
Kirsten Flagstad Museum
If you've never heard the music of Norway's
greatest opera diva, Kirsten Flagstad (1895-1962), it's worth it to come here and
listen to her operatic recording in a special room. This museum of Flagstad
memorabilia lies 46m (150 ft.) from the marketplace and a 10-minute walk
from the rail station. On the ground floor you can purchase records, books
about the star, and souvenirs. A special costume room is of particular interest
because the Metropolitan Opera contributed some of the gowns that Kirsten
wore in her most famous performances. Memorabilia and photographs, includ-
ing the star's private albums, letters, contracts, and magazine and newspaper
publicity, round out the exhibit. The collection of recordings here is the largest
Flagstad trove in the world, covering her entire career from her first recordings
in 1914 to her last memorable recordings in San Francisco.
Kirkegate 11.
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62-53-32-77.
Admission 50NOK ($7.10) adults, 30NOK ($4.25) children. June 24-Aug 20
Tues-Sun 11am-4pm. Closed Aug 21-June 23.
NSB Jernbanemuseet (National Railway Museum)
This museum, estab-
lished in 1896 on the shores of Lake Mjøsa, collects and displays bits of Nor-
wegian rail history dating from its beginnings in the 1850s. Vehicles include
models from 1861 to 1950, among them three royal coaches and several steam
locomotives weighing up to 150 tons. There is a museum park with several sta-
tion buildings, railway tracks, and other exhibits, as well as a “dining car” serv-
ing snacks and refreshments. A small train travels along the grounds of the
amusement park.
Strandveien 163.
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62-51-31-60.
Admission 70NOK ($9.95) adults, 40NOK ($5.70) children. July to mid-
Aug daily 10am-5pm; June and mid-Aug to Sept 18 daily 10am-3:30pm. Closed Sept 19-May. Take bus no.
1 from the railway station or walk 30 min. from the town center going north along the shore of Lake Mjøsa.
WHERE TO STAY
First Hotel Victoria
Set between the edge of the lake and the town's main
pedestrian shopping street, this hotel originated in the 1850s as a small inn and
grew over the years into the seven-story, modern-looking, gray-sided chain hotel
you'll see today. Parts of it are rather grand, especially some of the paneled, big-
windowed public rooms whose deep sofas evoke a well-upholstered room in a
private home or social club. Three of the rooms sport a frilly decor that the staff
defines as “feminine-looking.” The remainder are soothing, contemporary,
monochromatic, and favored by (usually male) business travelers from other
parts of Scandinavia. Most of the bathrooms have tile tub/shower combinations;
about half have only showers.
The hotel restaurant, large, contemporary, attractively formal, and outfitted
with large windows, is open daily for lunch and dinner.
Strandgata 21, N-2317 Hamar.
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62-02-55-00.
Fax 62-53-32-23. www.first-hotel-victoria.no. 115 units.
Mon-Thurs 1,253NOK ($178) double, 1,700NOK ($241) suite; Fri-Sun and mid-June to mid-Aug daily
853NOK ($121) double, 1,500NOK ($213) suite. Rates include breakfast. AE, DC, MC, V.
Amenities:
Restau-
rant; bar; limited room service; laundry service/dry cleaning. In room: TV, minibar.
