North Cape (Norway)

Transport

The North Cape is reached by European route E69 highway through the North Cape Tunnel, an undersea tunnel connecting the island of Magerøya to the mainland. The EuroVelo bicycle routes EV1, EV7 and EV11 connect the North Cape to Sagres, Portugal, Malta and Athens, respectively.

Several cruise ships visit the North Cape every year. Honningsvåg is one of the main stops of the Havila Kystruten and Hurtigruten coastal ships.

Regular buses run from the nearby town of Honningsvåg to the North Cape (33 km (21 mi)), and coaches meet the many cruise ships that call at the port of Honningsvåg.

The nearest airport is Honningsvåg Valan Airport (HVG), which offers several flights to and from Tromsø Langnes International Airport (TOS).

Winter

It is possible to visit the North Cape during winter, but there is often heavy snow and wind and the last stretch of road is only open for convoys at certain times. Before this, E69 was the only winter-closed E-route in Europe.

History

The North Cape was named by the Englishman Steven Borough, captain of the Edward Bonaventure, which sailed past in 1553 in search of the Northeast Passage.

Early tourism

The North Cape became a popular tourist destination during the last decades of the nineteenth century, especially after King Oscar II's visit in 1873. Regular coastal steamer routes from Germany to Northern Norway established in this period facilitated these visits, and Thomas Cook & Son began arranging tours to the destination as early as 1875. Tourists who climbed the cape would often do so using a path equipped with wired ropes from Hornviken. They would often celebrate the visit with the writing of postcards, so-called "Cape cards", gazing at the midnight sun.

Monuments and buildings

A granite column was erected commemorating the visit of King Oscar II of Norway and Sweden in 1873 and the visit of German Kaiser Wilhelm II (in 1891) was also marked with a memorial. In 1891–92, an octagonal wooden building was erected on top of the cape, later named "Stoppenbrinck's" (or "Stoppenbrink's") "Champagne Pavilion".

World War II

In 1943, the Battle of the North Cape was fought in the Arctic Ocean off this cape, where the German battleship Scharnhorst was eventually sunk by gunfire from the British battleship HMS Duke of York and torpedoes from the Norwegian destroyer HNoMS Stord, and other ships of the British Navy.

Road access

A road to the North Cape was first built in 1956.

Admission fee

In July 2026, the office of the County Governor of Troms and Finnmark handed down its decision that money shall not be charged, for entering the plateau at North Cape; furthermore, the practice of charging money from those entering the plateau, has to cease immediately.

Admission fee courtcase

As of Q3 2022, the justice system has decided that money will not be charged for parking [on the parking lot] at the North Cape; the government has won the case in the appellate court also; the defendant has appealed to the supreme court, as of Q3 2022. (The courtcase started in 2021.)

As of 2022, admission to the North Cape visitor centre cost 310 kr per adult [16 years and older] - and 90 for child between 7-years old and 15-years old. Often there is fog (since the plateau is above the common cloud base), which obscures the view. There is no discount for this situation, but the full price ticket is valid for multiple entries within 24 hours.

In 2000, and again in 2011, the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment responded to pressure from interest groups and asked Nordkapps VEL, the company that maintains the site, to reduce the admission fee to the plateau. Nordkapps VEL responded that the 8,000 daily visitors and distant location places great demands on the operations, maintenance, and security of the facilities and natural features of the large site. Visitors arriving by foot, bicycle, or other non-motorized vehicles are nowadays offered free entrance.

Sport and leisure

The 2009 Trans Europe Foot Race started in Bari, Italy and finished at North Cape. The total distance was 4,485 kilometres (2,787 mi).

The NorthCape4000 is a bicycle race that finishes at the North Cape. The total distance is around 4,200 kilometres (2,600 mi).

The first stage of the 2014 Arctic Race of Norway was held on the North Cape on 14 August 2014. The bicycle race started in Hammerfest, finishing on the North Cape and was won by Norwegian, Lars Petter Nordhaug for Visma–Lease a Bike in a time of 4 hours 51 minutes 3 seconds.

Norge På Langs is a 2,533 kilometres (1,574 mi) classic ski route, which stretches from Lindesnes, the most southerly tip of Norway to Nordkapp in the far north. The record of cycling this distance is 4 days, 22 hours, and 18 minutes which was performed by a group of five men from Rye in Oslo, in July 2003.

The E1 European long distance path begins in the North Cape and extends for 7,114 km south to the Mediterranean Sea.