Gamle Bergen Museum

About the museum

Gamle Bergen Museum opened in 1949 and is built around the pleasure estate Elsesro, which the shipbuilder Rasmus Rolfsen built for his wife Elsebe. The property was owned by the Rolfsen family from 1784 to 1903, and here the family established a shipyard, a pleasure estate and later a park after the model of old English gardens. The foundation Gamle Bergen gradually made the museum a refuge for older houses in Bergen that were in danger of being demolished.

The houses at the museum came here between 1945 and 1981. Today the open-air museum has 55 wooden houses, most of them originally from central Bergen. In the 19th century Bergen was Europe’s largest timber-house town, with dense development, busy streets, squares and alleys, and the museum shows this urban environment with lanes (smau), squares (torv) and interiors.

At the museum the doors stand open to exhibitions and historic interiors, and signs inside the houses give brief information about their history. Actors take part outside and inside, and visitors can meet the civil servant’s family of 1826 and the merchant’s family of 1886. On the square short plays are performed throughout the day, and there is a café in the Repslagerhuset and a grocery shop with old-fashioned sweets (kolonial). The park is freely accessible, and Sandviken Sjøbad (the Sandviken bathing place) is nearby.

Highlights

• 55 wooden houses from the 18th and 19th centuries
• The civil servant’s family in 1826 and the merchant’s family in 1886
• Actors and short plays on the square
• Café in the Repslagerhuset and a grocery shop
• Park in English style and Sandviken Sjøbad next door

Permanent exhibitions

• Embetsmannsfamilien anno 1826 – Historic interior showing how a civil servant’s family lived around 1826.
• Kjøpmannsfamilien anno 1886 – Historic interior from a merchant’s family in 1886.
• Trehusbyen Bergen – 55 wooden houses with exhibitions and interiors showing the built environment of the town in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Founded

1949

Operated by

Stiftelsen Bymuseet i Bergen

Admission & discounts

Free admission for members of Bymuseet (membership and volunteer card) and for holders of the Bergenskort.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: not available
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Not wheelchair-friendly: there is no wheelchair access to the houses, and the streets are cobbled. Only certified guide dogs are permitted inside the houses.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

The whole family can stroll between the houses, feed birds, climb trees and join in games. Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.

Getting there & parking

From the city centre it is a 40-minute walk or a 10-minute bike ride.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Café in the Repslagerhuset on the square with buns, cakes and coffee, and a grocery shop with old-fashioned sweets. The museum shop sells entrance tickets, gifts, cards, coffee, ice cream and soft drinks.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit