Sigdal: Experience art, culture and nature
Accommodation in Sigdal
Sigdal offers something for a wide range of holiday experiences: museums and artists’ homes introduce you to the region’s cultural history, while hiking trails, water activities and natural areas invite you outdoors. When planning your trip, you can decide whether you’d rather focus on discovering art and history or make time for exercise and scenery.
Artists’ homes and local history
Founded in 1940, the Sigdal Museum is an open-air and cultural history museum in Prestfoss. The museum houses Folkemusikksenteret i Buskerud, a centre of expertise for folk music and folk dance. The outdoor grounds are accessible regardless of whether the museum itself is open; the museum is open year-round by appointment.
Another way to explore art history is through Lauvlia, Theodor Kittelsen’s home, which opened as a museum in 1995. It offers activities designed especially for children, including a children’s trail, painting at an easel and boat-building. Hagan, meanwhile, is one of Norway’s best-preserved artists’ homes from the Golden Age of Norwegian painting. The painter Christian Skredsvig lived there for 30 years. The two places offer different experiences: Lauvlia also has hands-on activities for children, while Hagan is particularly notable as an artists’ home and for Skredsvig’s long association with the place.
Eggedal Mølle also tells the story of hydropower and forestry in Buskerud. The site opened as a museum in 1997. Its buildings include an old sawmill, a watermill, a schoolhouse, a storehouse and a brewhouse. The range of buildings reflects the museum’s broad themes: hydropower and forestry sit alongside structures that show other aspects of everyday life in the past.
Trails, water and nature
The Målargutua, about 10 km long, links Kittelsen’s former home at Sole (1896–1899) and Skredsvig’s former home at Hagan (1894–1924), passing via Eggedal Mølle. Information boards, rest areas and picnic spots are located along the route. This makes it possible to combine the trail with the two artists’ homes and the museum grounds; you can take its length and stops into account when planning your day.
If you’d rather experience Sigdal from the water, Sigdal Aktiv offers rafting for individuals, groups and businesses. Rafting includes an introduction to paddling technique, navigating the raft together, swimming in the river and self-rescue. For a different perspective, take a SUP tour down the Eggedøla River and into the Solevatn Nature Reserve.
At Haglebuvannet, a circular trail winds through old spruce forest and marshland to barbecue areas and a permanent shelter by the water. It is considered suitable for jogging and cycling, as well as for prams and wheelchairs; there are also accessible fishing spots. Canoes and boats for the lake can be rented at Haglebu Feriesenter, where fishing licences are also available.
Trillemarka has a varied natural landscape and lies partly in Sigdal and partly in Numedal. The surrounding area has cycling routes for different ability levels, including routes for families with children. Grøset Seter is in Sigdal near Andersnatten and serves as a starting point for a hike in the Trillemarka Nature Reserve. In summer, visitors can see farm animals there.
Local food and choosing the right holiday focus
Local dishes offer another distinctive experience. At Lauvlia, you can try Sigdalskling, freshly baked waffles with sour cream and homemade raspberry jam, and traditional coffee-time treats such as Bringebærsnipp. At Grøset seter, Rømmegrøt and Sveler are served in summer.
When looking for a holiday home in Sigdal, you can start by considering which of these interests matter most for your trip. If you’d like to visit several cultural sites, you can include the museums and artists’ homes in your plans; if you’d rather spend time outdoors, you can explore the hiking, cycling and water activities described above. You can also visit the pages for Nedre Eggedal and Eggedal.
For the broader travel overview: Buskerud.
More destinations
More places in the same destination:
