Things to do
5-
Alta kirke
A parish church of 1858 that survived the German scorched earth retreat of 1944, when almost every other building in the district was burned. It is the reason there is anything old left standing here. Services still run in it, and the churchyard beside it stays open through the day.
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Altaelva
One of the great salmon rivers of Europe, running out of the Finnmark plateau through a canyon that reaches 400 metres deep in places. The fishing is tightly regulated and expensive, and the canyon boat trips from Alta are the way most visitors see it.
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Nordlyskatedralen
A titanium clad spiral rising 47 metres in the middle of the town, finished in 2013 and meant to hold the shape of an aurora. The clad surface throws the low winter light around, which is the whole argument of the building.
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Sorrisniva
The northernmost ice hotel in the world, rebuilt from the river ice every December and melted away each spring, with a year round lodge beside it on the Altaelva. Dog sledding and snowmobile routes leave from the same yard. Rooms are cut fresh each winter, so the layout changes from season to season.
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Verdensarvsenter for bergkunst
The rock carvings at Hjemmeluft are the largest concentration in northern Europe, some 6,000 figures cut between 5,000 and 2,000 BC and the first site in the country on the World Heritage list. Boardwalks run out over the shore rock and the season for seeing them is roughly May to October, when they are clear of snow.
