Hotels in Haugesund, Norway

A little about Haugesund...

Haugesund is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway. Haugesund was separated from Torvastad as a city and municipality of its own in 1855. The rural municipality of Skåre was merged with Haugesund January 1, 1958. Haugesund is a small municipality, only 73 km². The population is 31,738, giving the municipality a population density of 459 people per km².

The city is situated at a strategically important sound through which ships could pass without heavy sea. In the early years the coastal waters of Haugesund were a huge source of herring, and the city grew accordingly. Despite being a young city, king Harald Fairhair lived on Avaldsnes, very close to the modern city. In the last decades, the city, like its neighbours, has been turning towards the petroleum industry, the herring being long gone.

Haugesund is a cultural centre for its region, and is home to several festivals, the largest being the Norwegian International Film Festival and Sildajazz.

The city has a coastline with the North Sea, however, the island of Karmøy and the archipelago Røvær shelter most of the city from the rough waters of the ocean. The the sound of Karmsund, located between Karmøy and Haugesund used to be very strategically important, since ships could pass without having to sail through heavy sea. Haugesund's city centre has a distinctive street layout, similar to those found in Kristiansand and Oslo. Haugesund has a typical maritime climate with mild winters, cool but pleasant springs, and mild summers lasting untill the end of september. Montly 24-hr average range from 1.1°C in February to 14°C in August. Mean annual precipitation is 1520 mm, with september - december as the wettest period.

Haugesund's city hall was built in 1931, celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2006. The pink city hall, designed by Gudolf Blakstad and Herman Munthe-Kaas, is one of the finest neo-classical buildings in Norway, and has been elected the most beautiful building in Haugesund. The building may not be altered in any way without permission from the national preservation agency, and is surrounded by a large park which was inaugurated on August 28, 1949.

The city has during the last 20 years established its position as the main trading centre for Haugaland and southern parts of Hordaland. It has several relatively large shopping centres, considering the size of the city. However, this has led to a decline of the trade and shopping activity in the city centre.

Transport: Haugesund Airport, located on the island of Karmøy to the southwest of Haugesund, is connected to Oslo (operated by Scandinavian Airlines System, 7 flights a day), Bergen, Fagernes, Sandefjord, Copenhagen and London (operated by Ryanair, three flights a week), as well as some destinations in Southern Europe in the winter. The Norwegian airline Cost Air is based at Haugesund airport.

Haugesund is connected to Stavanger and Bergen by catamaran and bus services, and to Oslo by bus. Local bus transport is provided by Kolumbus. The city is connected to Utsira, Røvær, Feøy, Randaberg, Hanstholm in Denmark and Newcastle in the United Kingdom by ferry. The road connection to Stavanger is ferryless, while taking the ferry from Sandvikvåg in Fitjar to Halhjem in Os is needed if going to Bergen by road.