Nidaros Cathedral — the medieval north

Nidaros Cathedral is the northernmost medieval cathedral in Europe and the burial place of Saint Olav — Olav II Haraldsson, killed at the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030 and canonized within a year. The cathedral grew up over the grave: a wooden chapel first, then the great stone build from 1070 onward, the west front not finished in its current form until 1969 after a century of reconstruction. Several medieval Norwegian kings are believed to be buried here, though the graves’ exact locations were lost long ago.

The Reformation sealed off the medieval pilgrim route in 1537. The 19th-century reconstruction reopened it. The modern Pilegrimsleden walking pilgrimage now runs more than 600km from Oslo to the cathedral door and draws thousands of walkers a year. The west tower opens for guided climbs in summer (172 steps to the parapet).

The Gråhårsklubben (the Oldsters) reach Trondheim on Olsok — the 29th of July, Saint Olav’s own day and the climax of the Olavsfest festival. That is the best and the trickiest day to be here: the city fills, the cathedral holds its great mass late in the morning, and Olavsfest concerts and liturgies run in and around the nave all week. The building is used for worship first and sightseeing second that day, so ordinary nave visits and the tower climb may be shortened, moved, or fully booked. It is the day to come for the atmosphere of the place at its most alive — not to count on a quiet hour with a guidebook.

What we plan to do

Be in the cathedral close for Olsok and let the festival set the pace: check nidarosdomen.no for that day’s visitor hours and any open service, and book the tower climb ahead if it is running. When the nave is given over to worship, the Erkebispegården archbishop’s palace next door — the Crown Regalia and the medieval excavations — is the reliable indoor visit, and the churchyard and west front are worth a slow circle whatever the schedule.