Mount Carmel Norwegian Christian Heritage Tour

August 14-28, 2025

We are happy to present this unique tour to Norway, together with Mount Carmel Ministries in Alexandria, MN, and Pastor Tim and Donadee Peterson. Tim Peterson has served as Pastor for the American Lutheran Congregation in Oslo, Norway, and has traveled to Norway many times. Tour Manager is Erling Hansen. He was born and raised in Norway, in the "lay Christian movement", that can trace its roots from Hans Nielsen Hauge. He has lived several years in Wisconsin, and resides now between Rennebu, Norway and Rochester, Minnesota.

On this tour we will visit many of the most popular tourist sites in Norway, including the beautiful Norwegian fjords. But we will have a special emphasis on celebrating Norway's Christian heritage. We will be visiting churches. We will be talking with and worshiping together with Norwegian Christians. Tim will be teaching about the history of Christianity in Norway, with a special emphasis on St. Olaf and the revival movements starting with Hans Nielsen Hauge. We hope that the trip will be a time when our faith is encouraged and renewed.

Tentative Schedule for the Mount Carmel Norwegian Christian Heritage Tour

Thursday, August 14, 2025

We are expecting that most of our group will be flying together from Minneapolis. It would be possible for you to fly to Trondheim from other cities or to go earlier and meet us in Trondheim.

We are planning to have our first gathering at the Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church in south Minneapolis. This is the only American congregation that is still using the Norwegian language in worship every Sunday. We will tour the building and meet with members of the congregation. We will also be touring Norway House, the Norwegian cultural and business center that is located next to the church.

Afternoon/evening: Departure for our overnight flight to Trondheim, Norway.

Friday, August 15, 2025

Arrival in Trondheim. Depending on our arrival time, we may have the chance to have a walk around the city.

Saturday, August 16

We take a bus tour to Stiklestad, the place where Saint Olaf was killed. The Stiklestad Church is a stone church built in 1180. We will visit the Stiklestad National Cultural Center.

In the evening we are hoping to attend a contemporary Norwegian worship service at Salem Norkirken in Trondheim.

Sunday, August 17

We will attend Sunday morning worship at Norway’s National Cathedral, Nidaros.

In the afternoon we will visit the Thamspaviljongen in Orkanger. This was the Norwegian pavilion for the 1893 World Fair in Chicago. It was then moved to a tourist site called Little Norway in Horicon, Wisconsin. When Little Norway was closed, the building was moved to Orkanger. It is designed to look like a Norwegian stave church.

We will then visit the Rennebu Church and go to a prayer house (bedehus) for a meal together with local members of the Mission Society (Normisjon).

That evening we will stay at a Mission Society retreat center called Imi Stølen.

Monday, August 18

On Monday we will drive to the western coast of Norway and start our tour through “Fjord Country.” In the afternoon we will arrive in Ålesund.

The city is often considered to be the most beautiful in Norway, largely down to the distinctive Art Nouveau style of architecture of the buildings, set on a canvas of several small islands, against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains dropping sheer to the fjords below. 

Tuesday, August 19

After breakfast, we will drive towards Geiranger. This will include a drive on Trollstigen, a road that twists through eleven hairpin bends as it rises from the Romsdalen Valley to a mountain pass.

As this tour is being written (Aug 2024), the Trollstigen road have been closed for the whole summer season of 2024. It is not yet confirmed that the road will reopen for the 2025-season. If it is not opened, we will take a different road to Geiranger

From Trollstigen we will continue on to the town of Geiranger. A dizzying view of steep mountainsides, towering waterfalls, deep fjords and lush valleys makes this stretch of road one of Norway's most dramatic and often-visited attractions. When we arrive in Geiranger we will go on a fort cruise on the famous Geirangerfjord. We will stay at the 4-star Union Hotel in Geiranger. This hotel hosted the Royal wedding between Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verret (from the USA) in August 2024. In the evening we will enjoy a huge dinner buffet at the hotel.

Wednesday, August 20

We will continue our drive alongside fjords, across mountains, through tunnels and by glaciers. In the evening we will arrive in Balestrand, a town on the Sogneford, Norway’s longest and deepest fjord. We will stay at the historic 4-star Kviknes Hotel in Balestrand.

Thursday, August 21

We will leave Balestrand and drive to the Borgund Stave Church (stavkirke). Old Norwegian wooden churches have a unique architecture, where the church is built around wooden pillars that are called staves. At one time Norway is thought to have had a thousand stave churches. Now there are 23 left and the one at Borgund is one of the most famous ones. There is an exact replica of the Borgund Church in the Black Hills in Rapid City, South Dakota.

We will then drive to Flåm where we will take the Flåm train (Flåmbana) for a trip up the side of the mountain to Myrdal. The Flåm train is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Norway. On the way the train stops at a popular waterfall, Kjosfossen.

From Myrdal we travel on to Bergen, where we will stay two nights.

Friday, August 22

We will take a tour of the city of Bergen with a local guide. The tour will end at Fløibanen, the funicular (cable railway) that goes to the top of Mount Fløien.

Saturday, August 23

We will take the train that goes across Norway from west to east, from Bergen to Oslo. We will enjoy the spectacular view as the train travels along the fjord, climbs the mountain to the Hardanger plateau, and then comes down on the other side of the mountain traveling through the Hallingdal valley.

Sunday, August 24

10AM – We hope to arrange a visit to see Frogner Church.

11AM – We will attend worship at the American Lutheran Congregation, followed by a fellowship time with the people of the church.

Afternoon – We will visit Frogner Park, which is the site of the Vigeland Sculpture Park.

Monday, August 25

Morning – We will visit the Norwegian Folk Museum. This is a large outdoor museum that has buildings from many di􏰀erent parts of Norway and many di􏰀erent time periods.

Afternoon – We will hike in the woods on Frognerseteren. Norwegians love hiking in the woods. We are hoping to arrange a hike together with members of the American Lutheran Congregation. We will have options for those who want a longer walk or a shorter walk. Frognerseteren is on a hill overlooking Oslo and has a beautiful coffee shop/restaurant.

Tuesday, August 26

We will take a tour bus to the city of Fredrikstad.

In the morning we will visit the museum in the house where Hans Nielsen Hauge was born. We will have a presentation on the importance of Hans Nielsen Hauge in starting the Norwegian Revival, and also his importance in developing Norway’s economy.

In the afternoon we will visit Old Fredrikstad, a medieval city surrounded by a moat.

Wednesday, August 27

In the morning we will have a guided tour of downtown Oslo.

At noon we will attend worship at the Oslo Cathedral (Domkirken). This church has a short worship service at noon on Wednesdays, followed by a light luncheon in the church basement, which we will attend.

The afternoon will be flexible. Spend some time shopping. Visit one or more museums. Take a ferry across the Oslo harbor to an island called Hovedøye which has the ruins of an ancient monastery.

In the evening we will have a farewell banquet.

Thursday, August 28

We will take our flight home to the United States.