Dark Stories of the Past: Bergen by Night

Explore Bergen at night and hear about crime, witches, and legends in what was once one of Northern Europe's most overcrowded and unsafe cities.

Bergen was founded in 1070 as Scandinavia's first commercial city. Until the 16th century, it was the largest city in Northern Europe. Thousands of people, mostly sailors and merchants, came from all over Europe to trade here. They lived on a diet of beer (safer than water at the time), and were known for getting into fights. In fact, in the 1600s Bergen had a crime rate comparable to New York City during prohibition.

Sex work was prevalent in Bergen from the beginning of the city until the early 20th century, and today the oldest collection of wooden buildings in the city are the old brothels. Their stories reveal the struggles these women went through. Not to mention the witch trials that took place in Scandinavia throughout the 16th and 17th centuries; Bergen had some famous witch burnings too.

This tour tells these stories of Bergen's underbelly. What was it really like here in the old merchant days? We'll walk through the old sailors neighbourhood and pass old cemeteries, witch burning sites, the famous hanging site, the brothels and the prisons. The tour will finish in front of Bryggen. While Norwegians don't have many ghost stories, we will pass a couple spots believed to be haunted.

This tour isn't designed to be theatrical or to scare you, like some ghost tours are. Rather, it's a tour full of stories that you won't hear on our daytime tours!

Group sizes are small to ensure we do not disturb the residents in the evening and get into some truely unique places.

Information:

This tour is not suitable for children. Teenagers can participate if joined by an adult.

Meeting point:
We meet outside the Bergen Aquarium. Please note that it is at the end of the Nordnes Peninsula, about a 15 minute walk from the Tourist Information office. It is clearly marked on Google Maps, but I recommend walking along Strandgaten all the way to the end and then turning left.

The tour ends at:
We finish in front of Bryggen.

We walk on cobblestone and we use stairs to go down a couple steep hills. Additionally, in winter it will be dark. Good and comfortable walking shoes are recommended.

On the tour, you will see important landmarks like the aquarium, Nordnes Park, Klosteret, some narrow wooden alleys, the theatre, the city hall, St. Mary's Church and, of course, Bryggen. However, this tour is not designed to take you past the most famous sites - unless they are part of a story!

Because this tour group size is small, you can ask endless questions about anything and everything related to Norway. It gives an opportunity to learn about what it’s really like to live in Bergen.

Duration:
The tour lasts 2 hours

Language:
The tour is done in English

Maximum number of participants: 10

Booking: The tour must be booked online at least 2 hours before departure.

Cancellation Policy:
- To receive a full refund, travelers may cancel up to 7 days before the experience start date in the local timezone. The full payment will be returned to the traveler. 
- A cancellation fee of 50% applies to cancellations made less than 7 days in advance.
- A cancellation fee of 100% applies for cancellations made less than 24 hours in advance.
- A cancellation fee of 100% applies for no-shows.
- In the case of the company cancelling the tour, a 100% refund is given
- There are no refunds due to tour disruptions from extreme weather. The tour will be rescheduled. If extreme weather is forecast, the company will contact travelers well in advance to select another time or day. The tour runs on rainy days.