Grimstad: Literature, Coastal Trails and Nature

Grimstad brings literary stories together with insights into horticulture, nature and outdoor activities. Knut Hamsun and Henrik Ibsen shape the town’s literary identity, while Raet National Park extends into Grimstad municipality. If you’re looking for a holiday apartment here, you can plan your trip around what matters most: museums and stories about writers, landscapes or active experiences.

Following in the footsteps of Ibsen and Hamsun

The “The Town of Poets” walking tour follows in the footsteps of Henrik Ibsen and Knut Hamsun. Along the way, it tells stories from the time when Grimstad was their home. This offers a literary way to explore the town, with both writers at its heart.

The Hamsun Museum presents Knut Hamsun’s life and work during his time at the Nørholm estate, from 1918 to 1952. The exhibition also includes the courtrooms on the second floor of Storgaten 44, where court proceedings took place. Several pieces of furniture from that period are also on display. These authentic spaces and exhibits add to the picture of Hamsun’s life and work.

The Ibsen Museum can also be part of your literary itinerary. Admission requires a guided tour, so plan your visit as a guided museum experience.

Nature and culture in Grimstad municipality

Raet National Park begins at Hasseltangen in Grimstad municipality and extends from there to Lyngør in Tvedestrand municipality. The landscape encompasses a variety of habitats: visitors can experience deciduous forests, heathland, wetlands, coastal meadows and salt marshes. It also includes marine habitats such as soft-bottom areas, seagrass meadows and kelp forests. The national park therefore offers more than one type of natural environment and provides different ways to explore the landscape and nature.

The Raet National Park Visitor Centre in Grimstad is located in the premises of the Norwegian Horticulture Museum at Dømmesmoen. The museum features exhibitions about horticulture. For those interested in the culture of cultivation as well as nature, it offers another way to explore the municipality.

Bruddet i Fjæreheia offers another connection between landscape and culture: this cultural venue brings together nature, stone, stage and audience. Performances and concerts become part of the landscape. This is a distinct cultural highlight alongside the museums and literary sites.

Exploring on foot or by bike

The Kyststien coastal trail in Grimstad runs from the border with Arendal to the border with Lillesand and is mostly waymarked. If you’re interested in this coastal trail, you can factor its length and route between the municipal borders into your travel plans. You can also take a bike ride along the waterfront in Grimstad.

The “52 sykkelturer” project offers 52 suggested routes on maps with QR codes linking to maps and descriptions. These include routes that start in Grimstad municipality, and the tours vary in difficulty. This gives you several cycling routes to choose from, while the Kyststien offers a different way to explore the area along the coast.

When choosing a holiday apartment in Grimstad, you can start by considering which experiences you’d like to shape your stay: literary sites and exhibitions, nature in Raet National Park, the coastal trail or bike rides. If you’re travelling as a family, you can take different interests into account without everyone needing to focus on the same things.

More places to explore

More places: Fevik, Lunden, Homborsund.

Back to the main travel overview: Grimstad.