Discover Havnnes

Havnnes brings together a preserved historic trading centre with insights into life and work in the north. At the museum, in a photography exhibition and beside a large historic engine, you can encounter different facets of the area’s history. There are also fjord trips and cycling routes on Havnnes and Uløya. You can shape your trip according to whether you want to focus on discovering the culture or spending time outdoors.

Trading history in historic buildings

Havnnes Handelssted is a preserved historic trading centre that is still in operation today. Gammelbrygga was built in 1893 and was a central part of the trading operation. In 1942, Norway’s Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Riksantikvaren, placed five of Havnnes’s 15 old buildings under protection. These figures give the historic building stock a tangible scale: this is not a single building, but several structures with different preservation statuses.

Gammelbrygga houses a museum with ship models, antique cash registers, original shop fittings and packaging for goods once sold at the trading centre. If you are interested in the everyday life of trade in the past, you can look at both individual objects and the fittings of a shop here. At the stockfish warehouse at Havnnes Handelssted, visitors can also enter the warehouse and see the large quantities of stockfish destined for the Italian market.

Photographs and an engine at the harbour

The Annie Giæver photography exhibition documents the people, landscapes and traditions of Nord-Troms. It also offers the chance to see one of the earliest colour photographs taken in Norway. In this way, it complements the story of the former trading operation with images that focus on the people and landscape of the region.

Another glimpse into history awaits in the old shrimp factory on the opposite side of the harbour: a preserved 90 hp Bolinder semi-diesel engine from 1928 is on display there. It is about a 2–3-minute walk from the museum’s main building. If you visit the exhibitions, you can plan this short walk as a separate part of your visit.

Fjord trips and routes on Uløya

For fishing trips or explorations on the fjord, 19-foot Kværnø aluminium boats are available to rent in Havnnes. A boat trip offers a different focus from a tour of the trading history: it takes you out onto the fjord, while the museum and historic buildings provide insights at the settlement. When planning your trip, consider which of these experiences matters most to you.

You can also make your trip active by cycling. Havnnes and Uløya have cycling routes with options for different durations and difficulty levels, and an offline map is available to download. Electric bicycles are also available to rent in Havnnes, allowing you to explore Uløya on day trips. This lets you plan your tour around the route options provided and your preferred mode of transport.

You can explore the numbered historic buildings at your own pace. This suits a visit where you choose individual stops for yourself and view the buildings one after another. So, when looking for a holiday apartment in Havnnes, you can first consider whether the history of the trading centre, a fjord trip or cycling tours on Uløya will shape your stay.

Getting there and other destinations

Car ferries connect Havnnes with Rotsund on the E6 on the mainland, as well as with Uløybukta on the eastern side of Uløya. These two connections provide specific reference points for planning your journey. Check which connection suits your planned route before putting together your accommodation and excursions.

If you would like to include other places in your travel plans, you can also find Storslett, Sørkjosen and Rotsund.

For the broader travel overview: Nordreisa.