Hello everyone! I hope everyone feels amazing. I am excited to share our travel with you so. As you may already know, Norway is a country famous for its spectacular natural beauty and unique landscapes. But while tourists are often attracted to the capital Oslo or big cities like Stavanger, Bergen, Bodø, the smaller, quieter parts of the country are often forgotten. Here is one of the places worth exploring: Mandal. It's an hours' drive from where we live, and we usually come here for shopping since there are more opportunities here. We sit in the cozy coffee shops in town, drink our coffee and breathe in the beautiful fjord air. Since Mandal is one of our favorite places, we wanted to tell you about it, so let's get started!
Mandal
Town Square
Mandal is famous not only for its natural beauty, but also for its art and culture scene. Mandal is home to the oldest artists' colony in Norway, which means the town has an artistic soul. Many artists are inspired by the beauty of Mandal and therefore the town is full of galleries and workshops. We did not visit the workshops on this trip, but if you, our dear readers, like Mandal, we can make a nice art trip to Mandal for you in the coming days.
The history of Mandal is also interesting. Mandal has been used as an important harbor throughout history and therefore old buildings can still be seen around the harbor. The Mandal Museum is a tourist attraction that allows us to get more insight into the historical background of the town. Its location is easy to find in the square of Mandal. We have been here before, but we did not prefer to enter this time because there is a card for entrance to museums and with this card you can visit 11 museums until the end of 2023 if you buy this card. We were having the dilemma of whether to buy this card or not, if we buy this entrance card to museums, we will definitely visit the Mandal Museum once again for you.
Side Streets
Here reminds me Karakoy district of Istanbul, with cute shops like the ones you see in these photos. You can sit on the street where the coffee shops are and have a pleasant coffee break, while you resting keep continue to look around because the white tone of the buildings on the side streets will impress you a lot.
Harbor & Seaside
When it comes to food, Mandal will not disappoint you. The seafood here is delicious and fresh. Many restaurants by the sea offer menus full of seafood and it is really enjoyable to have dinner here.
In addition to eating, you can take a wonderful walk with the view on this beach. There is a shopping center in the town, it is possible to find many brands in this shopping center. Normally there is not a shopping center in every town in Norway, for example in the Kvinesdal - Liknes region where we live, there is no such opportunity. Therefore, as I said before, we usually prefer Mandal to get our shopping needs. Also, I would like to say something else unrelated to the topic; because logistics are expensive in Norway, stores prefer to sell the products to customers with a discount instead of sending them back to the storage. It is possible to buy a very nice and high quality coat for 100 NOK with 80% discount. In supermarkets, products that are close to their expiration date are also sold cheaply in a separate section. I like this method very much, so that the products are not wasted and people can take advantage of these opportunities. Lastly, I would like to say that second hand stores are very popular in Norway and you can find them in every town. I am planning to create a nice concept about this, I will publish it soon. Stay tuned!
Author's Thoughts
As someone who lives in Norway, I can tell you that Mandal is the perfect place for you if you want to spend time in an unknown tourist destination and want to be surrounded by nature, relax on the beaches, experience art and culture. Whether you want to walk through the historic streets of the town or enjoy the sunshine, Mandal offers you the best of Norway.
If you are looking for a quiet and peaceful vacation, don't forget to add Mandal to your list. As we are approaching winter, it may not be the right time for a vacation, but anyway we recommend that you check the weather forecast for your 2-3 day escapes.
