Golf in the Land of the Midnight Sun
In the Middle Ages, seafaring Vikings ventured south from Norway to pillage throughout Europe, helping themselves to whatever they could. Today, travelers are tracing that journey in the opposite direction, and rather than plundering, they’re leaving stuff behind—including lots of lost golf balls. Norway’s diverse landscape of mountains, glaciers, dense forestland, and a coastline cleaved by dramatic fjords makes it an enchanting place to play. Over 1,100 miles in length, Norway stretches above the Arctic Circle. But thanks to the Gulf Stream, its summer climate is ideal for golf. What’s more, its latitude favors midsummer days with 20 hours of daylight. So you can tee it up both before and after your dinner of reindeer carpaccio and fresh-caught king crab.
Visiting golfers will likely fly into Oslo, situated at the head of the Oslofjord. It’s home to a 13th-century castle, a 17th-century cathedral, the royal palace, and the country’s oldest course, Oslo Golfklubb. A walk-in-nature parkland track that celebrated its centenary in 2024, it features holes that hug the shore of a broad lake and greens that are devilishly diminutive. Hole 14, a sharp dogleg-left that tempts players to drive the green over water, has been labeled one of Norway’s best par fours. Nearby, at Miklagard, the members’ Viking heritage is proudly celebrated. The clubhouse sports a sod roof. The holes are named for Norse gods and kings. And you’ll need a god-like game to conquer this stadium-style course from its 7,200-yard back tees. Further northeast, there’s Kongsvinger, where the sloping fairway corridors are bordered by dense, primordial pine forest. West of Oslo, don’t miss Holtsmark in Sylling—another treelined battlefield epitomized by its closing hole: a tight, uphill, cruelly bunkered par five.
Southwest of Oslo on the Larvik fjord, Larvik Golfklubb has hosted numerous professional tournaments. A more open layout frequently visited by sea breezes, it calls for careful shot placement to avoid its myriad bunkers and water hazards and score well on its six par threes, six par fours, and six par fives. Tracing the North Sea coastline even farther south-west, anchor next at Bjaavann Golfklubb in Kristiansand, which borders Lake Bjaavann and offers rock outcroppings, stands of birch and pine, and dramatic holes like the 178-yard 8th, a downhill par three with the lake as its scrim.
You’ll find more first-rate courses in Norway’s other picturesque regions, but to play its No. 1 course, you’ll need determination. Lofoten Links sits at 68 degrees north, above the Arctic Circle’s southern border, on Gimsøya Island. It’s one of the few places in the world where you can play golf by day and catch the Northern Lights at night. Getting there involves a preposterously scenic, 20-hour drive from Oslo—or a flight to Harstad-Narvik Airport and an equally scenic three-hour trek through a succession of mountain passes. At the end of either journey lies one of the most awe-inspiring settings in all of golf. On one side, the jagged shoreline of the Norwegian Sea, which comes into play several times; on the other, towering mountains and craggy ridges. In between, it’s just magical. Lofoten’s rumpled fairways, pot bunkers, wilderness rough, and ubiquitous granite outcroppings make it every inch a true—and unique—links. On the trio of opening holes, the sea is immediately in play—especially at the do-or-die, par-three 2nd, whose green occupies its own rock-ringed peninsula. The drama only escalates from there. It’s a world-top-100 course, and the chieftain of Norway’s must-plays. Be sure you bring plenty of balls to leave behind in tribute.
