Scandinavian Heritage Association — Attraction in Minot

Didn't live up to they hype, but not terrible. The young lady in the gift shop was WONDERFUL. She's majoring in history with a minor in communications and she was perfect - fun, knowledgable, and friendly. After that everything went downhill though. The worst was the part we were most excited about - the Stave Church. History has been re-written enough, I certainly don't need it there. The bitter truths were skipped over and I got a christian religious lesson instead.

Of course it didn't help that as I rolled in (I'm in a wheelchair), one of the workers looked at me and asked what I'd had "done". Excuse me? Done? I told her I've been in my chair for about 13 years and she was visibly shocked - like the idea of a handicap person was so alien she never imagined it before. Worst case of abelism in my life.

I tried to change the subject and mentioned about how I'd been reading about the place for over 30 years. She told me it hadn't been there that long. More assumptions - turns out she had decided I could only be talking about that church and not the park itself. I told her the park got started in 33 years ago. I'd read an article about it and wanted to come see it ever since. She continued to argue with me and rattled off a list of memorized dates until she got to the park opening in 1990. I smiled and told her, "yes, 1990 was 33 years ago." I laughed because that's part of aging - suddenly things that feel like a little while ago are decades back. It's a constant funny shock; but she just left without saying another word to me - even interupting a conversation I was having to tell someone else something. RUDE!

For 33 years I wanted to come see this place and I travelled across the US to do it. I've already told all my friends to not bother. "Antique IKEA" is all it is. At least I didn't waste any money though. I would have donated considerably if it had gone well - so...

Wonderful, unique place to learn about the cultures of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and Finland. We recently visited there with my husband's parents and our children.It's so fun to look for trolls, and our youngest enjoyed roleplaying the Three Billy Goats Gruff across the bridges! I love the natural wood smell inside the Gol Stave Church - and the carvings are intricate and beautiful. It's a very peaceful place, and the volunteers I've met there have been very friendly and knowledgeable. One of my favorite statues is the one of Hans Christian Andersen. You can see some hints of his stories in the statue, like a duckling and a pair of scissors. Sometimes the sauna door is open so you can see the sunlight streaming through the beautiful stained glass windows. Don't forget to check out the Heritage House a short walk down the road from the cabin - I overlooked it the first time I visited the park. The gift shop area is fairly small, and doubles as the Visitor's Center for Minot, but there is still a great variety of trinkets, t-shirts, gifts, books, and treats. Definitely check out the toffee chocolate bar from Iceland; it's one of the most expensive chocolate bars I've ever bought, but soooooo very worth it! (Actually, don't - if there's more demand the price will go up and I'll only be able to get it...

This park was so beautiful and serene, even when it's super cold and gray outside! Tina was absolutely wonderful to our family when we went inside the Visitor's Center to check out what was in the Minot area and gift shop. She spent SO much time speaking with us candidly. We are considering moving to the area and she shared personal experiences and recommendations based on us having a very young child and our interests. She was one of the most kind people we met during our week-long trip and she was so sweet to our son. She never rushed us and offered to take our photo with a really charming hand-carved troll bench.

Thanks so much for everything, Tina! You really made this park and experience so much more special and...