Kragerø
Municipality · Telemark
About Kragerø
The white skerry town where Edvard Munch painted The Sun, and the lighthouse island of Jomfruland National Park.
What to do and where to stay in Kragerø
Places to stay are run locally, with no hotel or campsite chain behind them.
1Jomfruland National ParkNature
A 117 km² park that is 98% sea, with a pebble beach nearly 7 km long on Jomfruland, old oak woods and a bird station that has logged 318 species.
Jomfruland and Stråholmen, outer skerries off Kragerø · Half day to full day · All year; ferry from Kragerø (more departures in summer); wood anemones in spring, migrating birds spring and autumn
2Jomfruland's two lighthouse towers (Gamletårnet)History & culture
The 1839 brick tower, now a small summer lighthouse museum, stands beside the 37 m iron tower of 1939 that replaced it; Norway's first machine-driven foghorn sounded here.
Middle of Jomfruland, walk up from Tårnbrygga ferry pier · 30–45 min · Old tower usually 1 June – second Sunday in August, Mon–Sat 12–16, Sun 12–18; groups by arrangement
3In the footsteps of Edvard Munch and the Skrubben statueHistory & culture
Signposted walk past the views Munch painted in 1909–1916, ending at Skrubben, where he found the motif for The Sun and a 1998 statue of him now stands.
Starts at the town hall, Torvgata 1, Kragerø; Skrubben is west of the centre · 1.5–2 h · All year
4Berg-Kragerø MuseumHistory & culture
The Homann family's country house on the Hellefjord, left for museum use in 1927, with exhibitions on Munch's Kragerø years and the ice trade in a park of nearly 700 decares.
Berg, by the Hellefjord, Kragerø · 1–2 h · Park all year; house tours in summer (check Telemark Museum's opening hours page)
5Gunnarsholmen coastal fort and bathing spotSwim
A restored 18th-century fort on an islet by the guest harbour, whose guns drove off an English frigate in 1808; now a sandy beach with a children's seawater pool.
Beside Kragerø guest harbour, short walk from the centre · 30 min – 2 h · Fort all year; swimming June–August
6Skåtøy churchHistory & culture
Called the 'skerry cathedral': an 1862 log church with about 600 seats, among Norway's largest wooden churches, on the biggest island in the archipelago.
Skåtøy island, ferry from Kragerø to Skåtøyroa · 30 min (plus ferry) · Exterior all year
7Korset on SkåtøyHistory & culture
A former pilot station and herring harbour at the far end of Skåtøy, with old pilots' houses and few visitors.
Far end of Skåtøy · 1 h · May–September
8Island hopping by bike: Skåtøy to JomfrulandActivity
A car-free day of about 22 km on National Cycle Route 1: ferry to Skåtøy, ride its island road, taxi boat to Jomfruland and pedal through oak woods to the ferry home.
Kragerø ferry quay – Skåtøy – Jomfruland · Full day · June–August (ferry and taxi-boat schedules)
9KittelsenhusetHistory & culture
The childhood home where painter and illustrator Theodor Kittelsen was born in 1857, now a small summer museum about his life and work.
Th. Kittelsens vei 5, Kragerø centre · 45 min · Summer: 20 June – 16 August 2026, 11–17, closed Mondays
10Øitangen beach, JomfrulandSwim
The northern tip of Jomfruland, a protected spot with a white sand beach and thrift flowering on the shore.
North end of Jomfruland · 1–3 h · June–August