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Geiranger is a small tourist village in Sunnmøre region of Møre og Romsdal county in the western part of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
. It is in the municipality of Stranda at the head of the
Geirangerfjorden The Geiranger Fjord ( no, Geirangerfjorden) is a fjord in the Sunnmøre region of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located entirely in the Stranda Municipality. It is a branch off the Sunnylvsfjorden, which is a branch off the Storfjorden ...
, which is a branch of the large Storfjorden. The nearest city is
Ålesund Ålesund () sometimes spelled Aalesund in English, is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal County, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Sunnmøre and the centre of the Ålesund Region. The town of Ålesund is the administrativ ...
. Geiranger is home to spectacular scenery, and has been named the best travel destination in
Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...
by
Lonely Planet Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. Founded in Australia in 1973, the company has printed over 150 million books. History Early years Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 1972, they embarke ...
. Since 2005, the Geirangerfjord area has been listed as a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. The Seven Sisters waterfall is located just west of Geiranger, directly across another waterfall called "The Suitor." Norwegian County Road 63 passes through the village. Geiranger Church is the main church for the village and surrounding area. Geiranger is under constant threat from landslides from the mountain Ã…kerneset into the
fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...
. A collapse would cause a
tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
that could destroy downtown Geiranger. For this reason, sirens have been installed to warn residents if a landslide should occur.


Name

The
Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...
form of the name was . The suffix ''-angr'' ('fjord') is a common element in Norwegian place names (see for instance
Hardanger Hardanger is a traditional district in the western part of Norway, dominated by the Hardangerfjord and its inner branches of the Sørfjorden and the Eid Fjord. It consists of the municipalities of Ullensvang, Eidfjord, Ulvik and Kvam, and is ...
and Varanger). The first element could be the plural genitive of the Norse word ''geiri'' ('piece of land; field in a mountain side') which is related to English ''gore'' ('spear-shaped piece of land'). This would then refer to the several small farms and fields lying in the steep mountain sides around the fjord. (See
Knivsflå Knivsflå is one of a handful of historic mountain farms on the steep mountainsides along the Geirangerfjorden. It is located in Stranda Municipality, Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Actually it was two farms sharing the location, and they ha ...
and
Skageflå Skageflå is one of a handful of historic mountain farms on the steep mountainsides along the Geirangerfjorden. It is located in Stranda Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Skageflå lies approximately above the fjord. The farm i ...
.)


Tourism

This third biggest
cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...
port in Norway, Geiranger receives 140 to 180 ships during the four-month tourist season. In 2012 some 300,000 cruise passengers visited Geiranger during the summer season. The Geiranger Port has a cruise terminal, a Seawalk, and 3–4 anchor positions depending on the size of the ships. Constructed in 2013, the Seawalk is a three-segment articulated floating pier. It is long and wide on 10 pontoons, which moves (like a floatable jetwalk) to accommodate up to 4,000 passengers per hour disembarking from a single ship. Several hundred thousand people pass through the village every summer, and
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...
is the main business for the 250 people who live there permanently. There are five hotels and over ten camping sites. The tourist season stretches from May to early September. Tours of the nearby historic farms of
Knivsflå Knivsflå is one of a handful of historic mountain farms on the steep mountainsides along the Geirangerfjorden. It is located in Stranda Municipality, Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Actually it was two farms sharing the location, and they ha ...
and
Skageflå Skageflå is one of a handful of historic mountain farms on the steep mountainsides along the Geirangerfjorden. It is located in Stranda Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Skageflå lies approximately above the fjord. The farm i ...
are available from Geiranger. Each year in June, the Geiranger – From Fjord to Summit event occurs. It comprises a
half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...
run and a bicycle race, both starting from the sea level at the fjord and ending at the summit of Mount Dalsnibba, near the lake Djupvatnet. Since there is still a lot of snow left in the mountains at that time of year, the race is also called "From Summer to Winter".


Media gallery

Sevensisters.jpg, The seven sisters waterfall over Geirangerfjord Geiranger von der Adlerstrasse.jpg, View of the village of Geiranger Cascadas Storfossen, Geiranger, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 99-104 PAN.jpg, Storfossen falls in Geiranger Geiranger, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 50.jpg, Fishermen houses Geiranger, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 44.jpg, Cabins around Geiranger Fiordo de Geiranger, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 45-48 PAN.jpg, View of the Geirangerfjord Geirangerfjord_2.jpg, The coastal express passes the old fjord farm Lundaneset Flydalsjuvet_Geiranger.jpg, View of the fjord and of Geiranger from Flydalsjuvet Seawalk, Geiranger, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 51.jpg, Geiranger movable Seawalk on pontoons


In popular culture

* Released in August 2015, ''The Wave'' (''Bølgen'') is a Norwegian disaster movie based on the premise of a rock slide from the mountain Åkerneset inundating the town of Geiranger. A sequel,'' The Quake'' (''Skjelvet'') was released in 2018.


References


External links


geiranger.no

Geiranger Fjord
€”David Cartagena print
Destinasjon Geirangerfjord—Trollstigen

Image from Geiranger

Geiranger—From Fjord to Summit

UNESCO World Heritage

Geiranger in 360 degree VR panorama
{{Authority control Stranda Villages in Møre og Romsdal