Fredrikstad

Fredrikstad is a city and municipality in Østfold county in Norway, home to around 85,000 people (2023). Its old town is Northern Europe's best preserved fortified town.

Understand
The city of Fredrikstad was founded and named in 1567 by King Frederick II of Denmark-Norway. The oldest part of the city was built as a fortified town behind protective walls. The city's location is at the estuary of Glomma, the largest river in Norway and not far from the Swedish border. The river was used for transporting timber. The city still has a significant wood processing industry. The main settlement is along the river banks. Today, the city has an important trading business and is a popular tourist city.
 * Fredrikstad city website

By train
Fredrikstad is served by the Norwegian State Railway on the Oslo-Halden line. Also some trains to Gothenburg and onward connections, and almost as long (plus waiting time in Oslo) between the airport and the central station of Oslo to Fredrikstad.

By plane
There are two main airports serving eastern Norway, the larger one is Oslo Gardermoen (OSL), which is 50 km north of Oslo while Fredrikstad is about south of Oslo. Nevertheless, there is a bus service (line FB11 between Fredrikstad and the airport taking slightly over two hours.

Some people find a good deal if they fly to Gothenburg instead, and take the train or drive from there.

About 230 km to the south, Gothenburg airport Landvetter is even further from Fredrikstad than OSL is (though the difference in driving time is less than an hour), but sometimes the tickets might be better there.

By bus
Hourly to Oslo via Moss by TimEkspressen. Several daily to Strømstad in Sweden, corresponding with a ferry to Sandefjord.

Get around
It is fairly easy to get around the city as public transportation in form of bus is frequent and goes around town and to the suburbs in all directions from the centre of downtown.

Taxi is available from the main taxi central in downtown, just opposite of the main walking street.

There is a ferry from downtown to the old town which is quite frequent. It is an affordable and scenic means of transportation, and you get to see the city from a different view as well, as the river offers a unique view of town. It also goes to the neighboring suburb Gressvik.

If you have a rental car, traffic is usually unproblematic, but there may be some traffic jams in the main entry roads to town around 16:00-17:00 (rush hour).

Old Town
The old fortified city, founded in 1567, and Kongsten fortress.



Activities

 * Go swimming. There is a plethora of swimming south of downtown just waiting to be discovered.

Drink
There are three coffee shops in the city centre that make very good coffees, milkshakes, smoothies etc. One is Verdensspeilet (World Mirror) right opposite the cinema. The second is Syversen Tea and Coffee and the third is Malenki, next to the cinema. All three have friendly staff and great coffee, and are great for a quick bite. If you want to stay a little longer, maybe have a beer and play a board game then Verdenspeilet is the best choice.

The riverwalk has a lot of restaurants and bars, and in the summertime, especially, it is a very busy area where people go to eat, drink a beer in the sunshine by the water and in general have a good time. People also come by boat, staying directly at the guest pier.

Stay safe
Norway is a fairly safe country in general, and Fredrikstad is no exception.

Go next

 * Oslo - The capital of Norway
 * Bohuslän - Cross the border into Sweden
 * Gothenburg - The second largest city in Sweden