Atlanterhavsparken is Ålesund's aquarium, and one of the largest saltwater aquariums in northern Europe. It sits on the coastline at Tueneset, about 3.5 kilometres west of the town centre.
The aquarium actually goes back to 1951, when it started as a small operation. In 1967 it moved into the basement of the Fiskernes Hus, the Fishermen's House, near Brosundet in the centre. But the big moment came on the 15th of June 1998, when King Harald V opened the current building during Ålesund's 150th anniversary. Construction had cost around 65 million kroner.
That this city has an aquarium makes sense. Ålesund was built on fish. For centuries, this was the centre of the klippfisk trade, salted and dried cod that was shipped to Spain, Portugal, and South America. From 1835 onwards, Spanish schooners would sail directly to Ålesund to pick up their cargo. You could find 20 or 30 of them waiting in the harbour at any given time. That tradition shaped the entire economy here.
The main attraction inside is the Atlantic tank, 36 metres long and 17 metres wide, holding 4 million litres of unfiltered seawater pumped directly from the ocean outside, from 45 metres deep. The viewing windows weigh 30 tonnes each. Outside, there are harbour seals, otters, and a colony of Humboldt penguins. In 2014, the seal enclosure opened and it is one of the largest of its kind in Europe. In 2019, the government gave Atlanterhavsparken official status as Norway's first marine science centre.
The aquarium welcomes around 200,000 visitors a year. Allow at least two hours for a visit, and check the feeding schedule online beforehand, as the seal and penguin feeds are worth timing your visit around.
The aquarium actually goes back to 1951, when it started as a small operation. In 1967 it moved into the basement of the Fiskernes Hus, the Fishermen's House, near Brosundet in the centre. But the big moment came on the 15th of June 1998, when King Harald V opened the current building during Ålesund's 150th anniversary. Construction had cost around 65 million kroner.
That this city has an aquarium makes sense. Ålesund was built on fish. For centuries, this was the centre of the klippfisk trade, salted and dried cod that was shipped to Spain, Portugal, and South America. From 1835 onwards, Spanish schooners would sail directly to Ålesund to pick up their cargo. You could find 20 or 30 of them waiting in the harbour at any given time. That tradition shaped the entire economy here.
The main attraction inside is the Atlantic tank, 36 metres long and 17 metres wide, holding 4 million litres of unfiltered seawater pumped directly from the ocean outside, from 45 metres deep. The viewing windows weigh 30 tonnes each. Outside, there are harbour seals, otters, and a colony of Humboldt penguins. In 2014, the seal enclosure opened and it is one of the largest of its kind in Europe. In 2019, the government gave Atlanterhavsparken official status as Norway's first marine science centre.
The aquarium welcomes around 200,000 visitors a year. Allow at least two hours for a visit, and check the feeding schedule online beforehand, as the seal and penguin feeds are worth timing your visit around.