Norway
Kirkenes
Kirkenes: King Crab and Wartime History by the Russian Border
- Port traffic
- QuietNext 30 days
Good to know
Where Ships Dock
Hurtigruten coastal-route ships end their run at Kirkenes and tie up at the town's quay. Your daily program gives the time ashore for the call.
- On any other cruise, your cruise line confirms where your ship ties up.
Kirkenes on Your Own
Kirkenes is a small town, and its wartime shelter and memorials are right in the middle of it. Check the time ashore in your daily program, then choose between the town center and the Borderland Museum, about 1 km beyond it.
- Andersgrotta: The air-raid shelter in the town center was dug out from autumn 1941 and named after Anders Elvebakk, the engineer in charge. It has daily guided tours and a nine-minute film in Norwegian, English or German.
- The war memorials: Two monuments raised after the Second World War stand in the town center, the Russian Monument and the War Mothers' Monument.
- The Borderland Museum: Grenselandmuseet, at Førstevannslia, is about 1 km from the town center. It opens daily from 9:00 to 15:00, until 17:00 from 20 June to 20 August, and closes on public holidays.
- Getting back on time: Be back at the ship by the time posted on board. It will not wait for passengers who are ashore on their own.
King Crab
King crab is the food Kirkenes is known for.
- King crab safaris run from the town in winter, so ask on board what is offered on your call.
- Elsewhere on Norwegian menus, look for stockfish, which is dried cod.
Tipping and Currency
Norwegian bills generally include service, so a tip is a choice rather than an obligation.
- For a taxi, rounding the fare up or leaving a small amount is enough.
- In a restaurant where the service stood out, about 5 to 10 percent, or rounding up, is a common guide.
- Norway's currency is the krone (NOK).
Border Country
Until the present border with Russia was fixed in 1826, this was a district shared by Norway and Russia. The town also has a Northern Sámi name, Girkonjárga, and a Kven one, Kirkkoniemi.
- Signs around Kirkenes are in more than one language, because the town sits so close to the borders with Finland and Russia.
- Most Norwegians speak English.
- Tap water is safe to drink everywhere in Norway.
History
Kirkenes grew from a church headland into an iron-ore port, and in the Second World War it became a German base that was bombed hundreds of times. It was rebuilt after the war.
- A name from a church: Kirkenes, meaning church headland, took its name from the church built here in 1862.
- Iron ore: Ore from the mines at Bjørnevatn, 12 km to the south, was carried to the port by railway, and at their peak the mines employed 1,500 people. Mining by AS Sydvaranger stopped in 1996.
- A German base: After Germany attacked the Soviet Union in June 1941, Kirkenes became a supply port for the German front at Murmansk.
- Under the bombs: The town was bombed more than 300 times during the war.
- Liberation: The burning of Kirkenes began on 21 October 1944, and the Red Army liberated the town on 25 October. Only 13 houses survived the war.
- Town status: Kirkenes was a village until 1998, when it became a town.
- Storskog: Storskog is the only public crossing on the border with Russia.
- To learn more ashore: Grenselandmuseet, the Borderland Museum at Førstevannslia, covers the history of the border district.
With Children
With children, Kirkenes works best as a short day in town: the wartime shelter in the center and the Borderland Museum just beyond it. A visit to the snow hotel outside town needs booking and transport.
- Younger children: The Borderland Museum has a café inside and, outside, benches, a playground and, in summer, a maze to explore.
- School age: The guided tour of Andersgrotta goes underground into the shelter where townspeople took cover from the bombing, and its short film runs in English.
- All ages: Snowhotel Kirkenes, at Bjørnevatn south of town, is open all year and stays at a constant minus 4 °C inside. Its operator runs guided visits with transport, which were priced from 1,185 NOK in October 2026. Check before you go.
- Teenagers: A king crab safari, a winter outing from the town, is worth asking about on board.
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