{"id":156469,"date":"2026-08-31T17:57:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T17:57:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/156469\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T17:57:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T17:57:14","slug":"inside-the-norwegian-royal-familys-palaces-castles-and-retreats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/156469\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Norwegian Royal Family\u2019s Palaces, Castles, and Retreats"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Estimated4 min read<\/p>\n

Norway has one of the oldest surviving monarchies<\/a> in the world, spanning over a thousand years. The kingdom\u2019s first ruler was Harald Fairhair in the year 885, when the Scandinavian warrior chief united several petty kingships into a single realm. Over the centuries, both the monarchy and Norway alike have gone through many changes\u2014including once being under a dual kingdom system with neighboring Sweden. That arrangement ended in 1905, coinciding with the rise of the House of Gl\u00fccksburg,<\/a> which remains in power today.<\/p>\n

\"NorwegianHandout\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

In this handout photo provided by the Royal Court, Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, Queen Sonja of Norway and King Harald V of Norway pose for an official photograph from the Royal Court on January 15, 2016 in Oslo, Norway.<\/p>\n

The current monarch, King Haakon VIII, ascended the throne on August 28, 2026,<\/a> immediately following the death of his father, King Harald V<\/a>, who had held the title for 35 years. Haakon VIII\u2019s wife, Mette-Marit Tjessem H\u00f8iby, became Queen Mette-Marit of Norway upon the transition. After meeting at a Norwegian music festival in 1999, they wed at Oslo Cathedral in August 2001. They have two children, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus, with the Queen having a 29-year-old son, Marius H\u00f8iby, from a prior relationship. H\u00f8iby is currently<\/a> under house arrest.<\/p>\n

Other members of the royal family have been in the headlines<\/a> lately for a number of reasons, including last year\u2019s Netflix documentary Rebel Royals, which explored the much-discussed union of the King\u2019s younger sister, Princess M\u00e4rtha Louise, and Durek Verrett, a self-styled shaman. The Queen herself has also made headlines<\/a> for her communications with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n

See below for ELLE Decor\u2019s roundup of the places where the royal family lives, works, and hosts official state functions.<\/p>\n

The Royal Palace in Oslo\"OsloPer Ole Hagen\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Royal Palace in Oslo is the king\u2019s official residence.<\/p>\n

The Royal Palace<\/a> is located in the heart of the Norwegian capital and served as the official residence and principal office of the previous monarch, King Harald V. Danish architect Hans Linstow<\/a> designed the 173-room Oslo complex in a restrained Neoclassical style, inspired by the great royal residences of northern Europe, with a pale stucco facade, monumental portico, and a grand public plaza. Commissioned by King Carl Johan<\/a> after Norway entered a union with Sweden and completed in 1849, the palace became the physical symbol of Norway\u2019s restored monarchy during the 19th century. Today, it hosts state banquets and formal ceremonies as well as public visits during the summer.<\/p>\n

Oscarshall\"WhiteHans A. Rosbach \/ Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)<\/p>\n

Oscarshall in Bygd\u00f8y, just outside downtown Oslo.<\/p>\n

With its striking castellated tower, the Neo-Gothic Oscarshall<\/a> was completed in 1852 as a summer retreat for King Oscar I and Queen Jos\u00e9phine. Designed by Danish architect Johan Henrik Nebelong<\/a> and located on Oslo\u2019s Bygd\u00f8y peninsula, the palace features ornate interiors that pay homage to Norwegian history. Owned outright by the Norwegian government and open to the public during the summer, Oscarshall is at the disposal<\/a> of the reigning monarch, who uses the venue for royal receptions and cultural programs.<\/p>\n

Bygd\u00f8 Royal Farm\"HistoricArne Gunnarsjaa \/ Oslo Museum \/ Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)<\/p>\n

Bygd\u00f8 Royal Farm on the Bygd\u00f8y peninsula in Oslo.<\/p>\n

The sprawling Bygd\u00f8 Royal Farm<\/a> dates to 1733 and is the family\u2019s longest-used country house, with roots stretching back to the Middle Ages. The present French Baroque building was constructed in the 18th century on farmland overlooking the Oslofjord, after King Carl Johan<\/a> bought the nearly 500-acre property from the Norwegian government. Today, the compound is back in the hands of the state, and it combines a working agricultural estate (Oslo\u2019s biggest organic milk producer<\/a>) with woodland and formal gardens. It also functions as the official summer residence of the king.<\/p>\n

Stiftsg\u00e5rden\"StiftsgardenGeography Photos\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Stiftsg\u00e5rden in Trondheim.<\/p>\n

Completed in 1778, Stiftsg\u00e5rden<\/a> is one of Scandinavia\u2019s largest wooden palaces and mixes late Baroque with Rococo influences that defined much of Norwegian society architecture in the 18th century. Built as the lavish townhouse for wealthy widow Cecilie Christine Sch\u00f8ller, a member of the privy council, it became state property in 1906<\/a> and gradually evolved into an important royal residence, hosting four coronations<\/a>. Whenever the monarch visits Trondheim\u2014Norway\u2019s fourth-largest city\u2014Stiftsg\u00e5rden serves as the official royal accommodation.<\/p>\n

Gamlehaugen\"Capitols\"Morten Falch Sortland\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Gamleaugen in Bergen, Norway\u2019s second-largest city.<\/p>\n

Constructed at the turn of the 20th century in Norway\u2019s second-largest city, Gamlehaugen<\/a> was designed in a romantic Scottish Baronial style, complete with towers, battlements, and picturesque gardens overlooking Bergen\u2019s waterfront. It was originally commissioned by Christian Michelsen<\/a>, the statesman who became the nation\u2019s first prime minister following the dissolution of the union with Sweden in 1905, and was later purchased by the Norwegian state after his death. Since 1927, the estate has served as the royal residence in the coastal city, and members of the royal family stay there during official visits to western Norway. The surrounding English-style gardens and much of the house are also open to the public.<\/p>\n

Ledaal\"HistoricJulio J. Gonz\u00e1lez-L\u00f3pez \/ Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)<\/p>\n

Ledaal in Stavanger.<\/p>\n

Built in the early 19th century, Ledaal is located in Stavanger, the country\u2019s third-largest city, and was designed for merchant and shipowner Gabriel Schanche Kielland. The Neoclassical manor features a \u201clate-Empire red\u201d<\/a> exterior defined by symmetrical proportions and Dutch brick construction. Since 1930, the custodian of the estate has been Museum Stavanger<\/a> (MUST), which allows public access, although Ledaal also serves as the Norwegian royal family\u2019s official residence when they\u2019re in Stavanger. It\u2019s also used for state functions such as gala dinners.<\/p>\n

The Royal Yacht\"DENMARK-NORWAY-DIPLOMACY-POLITICS-ROYALS\"MIKKEL BERG PEDERSEN\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Royal Yacht Norge.<\/p>\n

The Royal Yacht, named Norge,<\/a> was constructed in 1937 by renowned British shipyard Camper & Nicholsons as the luxury yacht Philante before being presented to King Haakon VII in 1947 as a gift from the people of Norway.<\/a> Following its acquisition, architect Finn Nilsson revamped the interiors in an elegant Scandinavian style. Now owned by the monarch and maintained by the Royal Norwegian Navy,<\/a> the 263-foot ship docks in Oslo and continues to serve as the royal family\u2019s official yacht for state visits, county tours, ceremonial engagements, and private cruises.<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Geoffrey Montes is an associate editor at ELLE Decor with a serious love for all things real estate and design. Before that, he worked at Architectural Digest, Galerie, and Preservation magazines, covering everything from jaw-dropping listings to world-famous architects and design events like Salone del Mobile and Homo Faber.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"4 min read Norway has one of the oldest surviving monarchies in the world, spanning over a thousand…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":156470,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[85],"tags":[1539,73476,1541,38273,2134,157,156,31544,73475,59875],"class_list":["post-156469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oslo","tag-content-type-default","tag-contentid-11bc1d4e-9c7e-4af3-8067-34848bd69f50","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-issyndicated-false","tag-locale-us","tag-norway","tag-oslo","tag-read_time-5","tag-shorttitle-inside-the-norwegian-royal-familys-palaces","tag-sponsored-false"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@dk\/117191419265511543","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156469","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=156469"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156469\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/156470"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=156469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=156469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=156469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}