Maihaugen — Attraction in Lillehammer

Our group of 9 attended a wonderful guided tour of a historial Norwegian farm, which is smaller than a town but larger than a one family living area. The typical home includes a centrla fire area in a wooden structure. The schoolhousr is several school benches with long writing desks for students of all ages where they learned religion and reading. The central church is closed today. The excellent guide even gave us a school lesson on the small blackboards. As we headed to the interior museum, we passed by a gift shop with scarves, Norway souvenirs, journals with Norway decor, and of course, Trolls, trolls, and more Trolls. JaBaDaBaDo toys are 5% off. The inside museum shows the history of the resilent Norwegian throughout history. A special exhibit open until November highlights dance in Norway, including folk dances, swing dance, ballroom, tango, rap, hip hop with a don’t-be-shy interactive opportunity. The attention to historic events and their role in Norway’s path to a stronger nation. The years of German occupation, changing relations with other Scandinavian nations, and immirgation are summed up in displays and videos. All videos and signs are in Norwegian and many in English. Signs are legible and readble. The section that pays tribute to UNESCO sites is impressive with intention to preserve the world’s environment. Excellent museum that gives a memorable summary of Norway...

Nice place with wasted potential. I'm comparing this to Folkemuseet at Bygdøy. In that regard, Maihaugen is lacking in modern museum design. Where are the modern information posters at the building? A simple qr code could help us that is actually interested in the history. The total experience is not planned as a whole, but some random placed efforts are very nice. The guides / actors are a nice touch, and friendly. We enjoyed the 90's House with an actor dressed up and talked about the items. But like when I visited in the 90's, (and all the other times after) the 70's house and others have jail bars in front of the rooms. No glass, so you would get the feeling of looking back in time. Just bars that obstruct the view partially. No signage of what you are seeing or any story. Navigating the park is a guesswork, as outdoor signage is also lacking. The total experience is only partially recommended. If you have to choose between the Folkemuseet and Maihaugen, choose the...

WONDERFUL PLACE! So thoughtfully put together. Three distinctive parts: old farm houses and village dwellings (of course Stave Church), then town buildings, including pharmacy, stores, bakery and the post ( I guess in a high season all of these places are open to go in and may be buy something), and the last is the area with the houses of every era in the 20th century, starting from 1915 and then every decade. If one is interested in history, it is very easy to spend several hours just in the first part of this open air museum, looking into the old houses, noticing the furniture and interior design. We very lucky with the weather, so we could enjoy just the walk between the buildings. The museum is several small lakes and you can just wonder around with no time restrictions. There is a decent cafeteria and a souvenir shop in the entrance. Parking is paid, but cheap. The entrance ticket are reasonable as well NOK 145 per person....