Bodø - The gateway to Arctic wonders

The city of culture. The nature city. The sports city. The smart-city. There are many arguments in favor of each of these labels for the city of Bodø.

Bodø is known for producing a large number of artists and has been awarded status as European Capital of Culture for 2024. Not a small feat for a small city (pop. 55759 in 2019)! The city is home to one of the country’s most modern cultural buildings, Stormen («The Storm»), and festivals like Parkenfestivalen (Rock, Pop, Hip-Hop etc.) and Nordland Musikkfestuke (classical) are instrumental in putting the city on the cultural map.

After the bombing during WWII left the city in ruins, «beautiful» hasn’t been a description tagged on Bodø too often. However, with its proximity to natural pearls as the world’s largest maelstrom, Saltstraumen, the local beach of Mjelle and picturesque Kjerringøy, Bodø makes for an excellent home base for exploring the unique nature of northern Norway. You don’t need to travel far to encounter excellent mountain hiking options.

Other athletes from Bodø will have to excuse us, but sports and Bodø is usually spelled Bodø/Glimt - the local football club. The team has achieved several milestones throughout its history, including winning the cup finals in 1993. The crowning achievement was taking the league title in the 2019/20 season with a style of football that brought accolades from even outside of Norway’s borders. Visiting the stadium Aspmyra during a home match is certainly two hours well spent for those with an interest in the sport.

The project of constructing a new airport in Bodø has opened up a new area and opened up for rethinking urban spaces. The rather high ambition is to create a «world-class future-city». New construction on a grand scale has opened the door for a smart-city project in which smart-tech and sustainability are to be the joint foundation for urban development. The goal is that anything from transport to care for the elderly will be driven by green smart-technology.

We could easily have added labels like «the food city» or the «bar city» for Bodø as there’s a fair amount of good restaurants, bars and clubs in the area surrounding the city’s famous «glass house» in the center of town.

Many pass through Bodø to travel on to the world-famous Lofoten Islands. We think it is a shame not to plan for some extra time here, or even make Bodø the destination of the journey with everything the place has to offer. No reason to be putting it off for «the future»!