Living in Stavanger means accepting a simple truth: Rainy days are the default, and sunny days are the exception. Luckily, there are plenty of things to do that don’t feel like a compromise but become better on a rainy day.
Sports That Don’t Feel Like a Compromise
Climbing and Bouldering
SIS sports centre just opened a new climbing and bouldering hall. With three floors of bouldering, you will not be bored before you get tired. The main focus is on students, so they offer a fair price and student discounts. There is also an area for children and two kilterboards. Other options are PLAYGROUND at Forus or Sørmarka Arena.
Swimming and Surfing
Indoor swimming pools offer a great escape when the weather is cold and wet. But if you’re set on seeing some sunlight, the outdoor pool at Gamlingen is a good option. For the more adventurous, surfing is a good rainy-day activity. After all, the wetsuit is only warm when it’s wet. In the summertime, the waves are fairly small and suitable for beginners. In the wintertime, the waves become more challenging.
Pub Crawling
Stavanger’s compact city centre transforms into a cosy playground during rainy evenings. The short distances between pubs mean you’ll barely notice the weather as you hop between establishments. Activities to consider are pub quizzes, Shuffleboarding and Indoor Mini Golf. Stavanger Camping, which is confusingly not a camping site, is the place to go for minigolf.
Saunaing
Perhaps the most Scandinavian response to bad weather is to go to the sauna. In recent years, Stavanger’s sauna scene has exploded, with options ranging from traditional wooden saunas to modern facilities with panoramic views of the rain-swept fjords. Popular choices are Book Sauna and Damp, which offer saunas at various locations in and around Stavanger and Sandnes.
Museums
Stavanger offers a variety of museums to choose from. As a start, I would recommend the Oil and Printing / Canning Museum. These two museums together paint a vivid picture of how Stavanger evolved from a fishing port town into an international oil hub. The walk from one museum to the other will take you along ‘the old town’, which is worth a visit in itself.
A Matter of Perspective
The secret to enjoying Stavanger in the rain isn’t finding ways to escape it – it’s learning to embrace it. After all, as the Norwegians say, “Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlige klær” (There’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing). In that respect, doing outdoor activities on rainy days can have its advantages. No photo queue for the Pulpit Rock, for example. And no waiting time for the otherwise very busy Gladmat food festival!
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