Trondheim: 7 Things Worth Doing
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Trondheim rewards a short, honest list over a packed one. Most of what’s worth doing sits inside the compact Midtbyen peninsula or a short walk across the river, which is exactly why two days covers it properly.
1. Nidaros Cathedral and its tower
The world’s northernmost medieval cathedral, built over St. Olav’s grave, with a summer-only tower climb (roughly NOK 70, verify) up 172 steps for a 360-degree view over the peninsula. Entry runs about NOK 120-150; it’s closed to visitors during services, since it’s a working cathedral, not a museum piece.
2. Walk Gamle Bybro into Bakklandet
The 1681 Old Town Bridge is free and takes you straight into Bakklandet’s cobbled, mostly car-free streets. The best photo of the old wharf houses is from the Krana lookout between Nedre Bakklandet 10 and 18.
3. Ride the Trampe, the world’s first bicycle lift
Installed in 1993 at Brubakken near Bakklandet, the Trampe pushes cyclists up a steep 20% grade hill with a footplate, free to use. Even if you’re not cycling elsewhere in the city, it’s worth watching, and it’s a genuinely unique piece of Trondheim engineering.
4. Take the ferry to Munkholmen
A former Viking-age execution site, Norway’s oldest known monastery, a state prison, and a WWII gun position, in that order, reachable by a summer ferry from the Ravnkloa fish market for roughly NOK 95. The ferry runs only from around May/June through August/September, weather-dependent, so check before planning a specific day around it.
5. Tour Stiftsgården
One of the largest wooden palaces in northern Europe, and the royal family’s official residence when they visit Trondheim. Guided tours run roughly hourly, 10:00-15:00 (Sundays from 12:00), about 45 minutes, for roughly NOK 100-150.
6. Pick one museum: Rockheim, Ringve, or Sverresborg
Rockheim covers Norwegian pop and rock history in a converted grain warehouse; Ringve holds 2,000-plus instruments on a country estate with its own botanical garden; Sverresborg is an open-air folk museum built around the ruins of Norway’s oldest medieval castle. A combined Rockheim/Ringve ticket runs roughly NOK 230-245 if you want both.
7. Ride the Gråkallbanen tram to Lian
The world’s northernmost tram line, opened in 1924 and extended to Lian in 1933, climbs out of the center into the Bymarka forest in about 21 minutes. There’s a small trolley museum at Lian, and it’s the easiest way into Bymarka’s hiking trails without a car.
| Activity | Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nidaros Cathedral + tower | ~NOK 120-150 entry, ~NOK 70 tower | Summer-only tower climb |
| Gamle Bybro + Bakklandet | Free | Best photo from the Krana lookout |
| Trampe bicycle lift | Free | World’s first, 1993 |
| Munkholmen ferry | ~NOK 95 | Runs roughly May/June-Aug/Sept only |
| Stiftsgården tour | ~NOK 100-150 | ~45min, hourly |
| Rockheim/Ringve combo | ~NOK 230-245 | Two museums, one ticket |
| Gråkallbanen to Lian | Standard AtB fare | World’s northernmost tram |
Read more: for the honest 2-day version of this list built into a schedule, see the 2-day itinerary .
One concrete move: do the Trampe and the Gråkallbanen tram back to back on the same afternoon. They’re both short, both cheap or free, and both give you a very different, quirkier side of the city than the cathedral circuit.