Bergen

Bergen is a city built between mountains, fjords and the North Sea, with weather that seems determined to remain part of the architecture. Its most recognisable landmark is Bryggen, the UNESCO-listed row of colourful timber merchant houses recalling the centuries when Bergen was a major Hanseatic trading port. But the city offers more than postcard Norway: narrow hillside streets lined with wooden houses, grand 19th-century buildings and a strong tradition of Scandinavian Modernism sit alongside increasingly confident contemporary architecture. Seven mountains surround the compact centre, while some of Norway’s most spectacular fjords begin almost at the city limits. Here, urban culture and wilderness aren’t opposites; they’re neighbours.

Food naturally looks towards the sea. Bergen’s historic fish market reflects a city built on maritime trade, while cod, halibut, shellfish and other cold-water seafood remain central to its restaurants. Western Norway also brings lamb, game, berries and excellent dairy, and a generation of chefs has transformed these ingredients into one of Scandinavia’s more interesting regional food scenes. Michelin-level dining sits comfortably beside seafood counters, bakeries and relaxed neighbourhood restaurants, while Norway’s formidable coffee culture provides somewhere warm to retreat when Bergen demonstrates exactly why everything surrounding it is so beautifully green.

Bergen’s most interesting hotels range from historic harbour addresses and converted buildings to contemporary design hotels and smaller properties with a distinctly Norwegian sensibility. The city also works as the gateway to extraordinary stays deeper in the fjord landscape, where architecture increasingly uses timber, glass and minimal intervention to connect guests with nature. At DNA Hotels, we curate the places where architecture, food, maritime history and Norway’s spectacular west coast come together—hotels that make Bergen worth more than simply passing through on the way to the fjords, raincoat firmly within reach.