Explore North Cape, Europe’s northernmost point

Experience the beautiful scenery on this very tip of northern Norway

Midnight sun at North Cape (Visitnorway.com)

The world’s ultimate cul-de-sac is the European highway E69. It is the northernmost road that is part of a bigger route system. While there are roads closer to the North Pole, notably in Svalbard, the difference with the E69 is that if you wished to, you could drive here from the southern tip of mainland Spain.

However, it's easier to choose a different approach, whether the Hurtigruten ship or a Widerøe plane to Honningsvåg. One of several contenders in these parts for the title of northernmost city in the world, it is actually a pleasant fishing village in the south-east of the island of Magerøya.

Reindeer herders

Get to know the Sami culture of northern Norway (Visitnorway.com)

The isle is part of Norway’s northernmost county, Finnmark, which is home to a significant community of Sami people, nomadic reindeer herders who have roamed the far north for millennia.

On a two-dimensional map, the shape of the island of Magerøya bears a pleasing resemblance to antlers. In the raw reality of three dimensions, the landscape comprises brooding hills rising from the ink-black ocean.

This being Norway, there is a good, reliable bus service that will take you along the E69 as it swerves through this austere magnificence. All through the year, bus 211 departs from outside the tourist office in Honningsvåg at 11.45am. Forty-five minutes later, it arrives at Europe’s dramatic northern climax.

Nordkapp, or North Cape, is not technically the northernmost point - a lonely peninsula a few miles west holds that honour. But it’s a startlingly beautiful location that has been inspirationally embellished to allow you to appreciate fully the experience.

Latitude and altitude

North Cape Hall (Alamy)

Along with extreme latitude comes a large helping of altitude: the bus drops you close to the edge of a 1,000-foot cliff. The earth ends abruptly, crumbling into a seething Barents Sea that seems intent on claiming more land. The elemental majesties of earth, wind and water revel in their power. And, depending on when you visit, fire may be supplied by a sun peeking above the horizon, illuminating a massive metal globe on a concrete plinth and a collection of tall bronze discs resembling giant medals that reward your sense of adventure.

At the far north of Europe there is always plenty of weather around, and with this in mind an interior has been created. The impressive North Cape Hall (admission included in your bus fare) includes an exhibition, a restaurant and a cinema. More intriguingly, a tunnel has been hewn into the rock, leading down to the cliff face, complete with a chapel.

When you visit, you may find you are sharing the company of a surprising number of people from Thailand. The King of Siam put North Cape on the map when he visited in 1907, and his countrymen have made it something of a pilgrimage destination, despite Bangkok being 5,000 miles away. London is just 1,500 miles — or rather longer if you drive.

Midnight mission

An alternative to a day visit is the Midnight Expedition to the North Cape, where you join a snowmobile expedition, arriving at the North Cape just before midnight for hot soup, before spending the night in the North Cape Hall — waking for a local breakfast, and exploring the location before the rest of us arrive.

For more inspiration go to North Cape and to book your break to Norway, visit visitnorway.com

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