Bodo

Bodo sits just north of the Arctic Circle on a peninsula between the Saltfjord and the open sea, and it is the practical hub of the region: the northern terminus of the railway, the ferry port for Lofoten and the Helgeland islands, and an airport that connects the far north. The town was almost entirely destroyed by bombing in 1940 and rebuilt afterwards, so the architecture is postwar with a few newer landmarks including the Stormen library and concert house of 2014. It was European Capital of Culture in 2024, the first city north of the Arctic Circle to hold the title. Around it are Saltstraumen, the world's strongest tidal current, the Keiservarden plateau and the Kjerringoy trading post.

History

The town is named after the old Bodøgård farm on whose land it was built; the first part of the name may mean "sunken rock" or "skerry" and the last part "meadow" or "pasture" (Wikipedia, Bodø Municipality).

What's there

• Stormen - a 2014 library and concert house on the waterfront.
• The Lofoten ferries - departures for the islands from the harbour.
• Saltstraumen - the tidal current thirty kilometres away.
• The Arctic light - midnight sun in summer and aurora in winter.

When to go

June to August for the midnight sun, which shines from early June to mid-July, and for full ferry schedules; September to March for the northern lights. Winter weather is wet and windy rather than deeply cold.

Practical notes

Postwar reconstruction left a functional rather than beautiful town, and the attractions are mostly outside it. Weather here is notoriously changeable and windy. Ferry and flight connections can be disrupted by storms.

Nearby

Saltstraumen and Kjerringoy are short drives; the Lofoten islands lie west across the Vestfjord.

Key facts