Notodden

Notodden is a town and municipality (kommune) in Telemark County, in East Norway. The population of the town is 9,000, and that of the whole municipality is 12,000. Heddal is a village in the municipality, not far from the town of Notodden. The town is on the shore of Heddalsvatnet lake. The Tinn (Tinnelva) river runs through the town into the lake, and the Heddøla river runs past Heddal and the airport into the lake. Notodden is along with Rjukan part of the Rjukan-Notodden Industrial Heritage Site on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Get in

By car

Notodden is 113 km from Oslo and the drive time is 1 hour 45 minutes. Follow E 18 out of Oslo (West) until the city of Drammen.Then E 134 forward to Notodden.

By bus

The easiest way to get from Oslo is by bus. TIMEkspressen runs to Notodden every hour around the clock all year. (daytime) It takes about 2 hours 15 minutes. This bus line also run on this route at night, though only every second hour.

Buses run from Bergen to Notodden. It’s a worthwhile trip, as it crosses the Hardanger Plateau with its beautiful natural scenery.

Notodden is a hub for local and regional buses running in all directions in the municipality and further afield, such as to the town of Rjukan.

By plane

Bergen Air has a flight from Bergen to Notodden every day. Airwing has a daily flight from Stavanger. The airport is just west of the town centre.

By train

The Oslo to Bergen train is a bit tricky, but nice. Look up NSB, the national train company. If you arrive by air to OSL (Gardermoen), take the L12 directly from the airport to Kongsberg, continue by bus. Optionally take the Regional 50 from Oslo to Nordagutu, switch to the L52 from Nordagutu to Notodden.

By boat

It is possible to come from the south up the Telemark Canal into Heddalsvatnet lake.

Get around

There are local bus routes departing every hour from the bus hub. For regional bus routes check out Nettbuss and Nor-way Bussekspress.

See
  • The industrial park and several other sites are inscribed on the UNESCO world heritage list.
  • Industrial history museum - Lysbuen (Bedriftshistorisk samling - Hydromuseet).
  • Norsk Hydro: Administrative building - where it all started in 1905.
  • Telemark Art Gallery (Telemarksgalleriet).
  • Notodden church and the church gardens.
  • Heddal Stave Church (Heddal stavkyrkje), Heddal (a few km west from Notodden town centre, past the airport). 9am–6pm, 20 Jun – 20 Aug 2013; 10am–5pm, shoulder season. The biggest stave church (a medieval wooden church) in the world. Guided tours in English are included in the entrance fee. Reservations recommended. 65kr for church and nearby museum, 15 Jun – 15 Aug 2013. 
  • Heddal Bygdetun, 300m from the stave church. Based on a rural village. Includes an exhibition about the church,several stages of medieval norwegian architecture and traditional norwegian clothing. Kafé Olea has meals and souvenirs.

Do
  • Notodden Blues Festival. July/August every year. Aims to be the best blues festival in Europe. Extra train services may be run on the weekend of the festival. 
  • Hiking. Step into nature and enjoy beautiful scenery, fresh air and drinkable lakes wherever you go, ask the tourist information for suggested routes 
  • Bok & Blueshuset. "House of Books & Blues". You will find the house next to the breathtaking lake in the city centre. The house contains a café,library, recording studio, a blues museum and a state of the art cinema. 

Buy

Eat
  • Eyde Restaurant. Steaks, seafood and veggie-dishes. Good food, reasonable price. (updated Sep 2015)
  • Pizza på vei. Fire lit stone oven, great italian pizza. Cozy atmosphere. (updated Sep 2015)
  • Felicia Cafè. A good place to stop for lunch. (updated Sep 2015)
  • Gatebar1. Burgers, pizza and fries. Make sure you try "Ostebolle" - A local speciality! (updated Sep 2015)
  • Oasen Kro. A roadside diner next to the airport, Norwegian and Chinese menu. (updated Sep 2015)

Drink

Sleep
  • Brattrein Hotel. A cozy, high standard hotel in the heart of Telemark, five minute walk from the city centre. Great view of the lake and town. 
  • Notodden Hotel. A city-centre hotel. 

Connect

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