The North Cape

When you go to the globe at the North Cape Visitors Center on the North side of Magerøya you are told that this is the Northernmost point of continental Europe. This is a deception in two ways. First, when you arrive at the Honningsvåg harbour you may remember that you got there by sailing South of Magerøya - the alleged Northernmost Point of Continental Europe is located on an island. The Northernmost point of Continental Europe is further East, on the Kinnarodden NNW of Mehamn.

But even if you accept that the point is somewhere on Magerøya now there's a tunnel between the island and the mainland, the North Cape Plateau is not even the Northernmost point on the Magerøya island. When you stand next to the globe on the North Cape plateau, look West. The peninsula West of the North Cape plateau is called Knivskjellodden, and it reaches a full kilometer further North than the North Cape plateau. This has been known since the 17th. century, but like the Polar Circle illusion, the North Cape Plateau is considered more photogenic, and the Norwegians stick to the deception to this day.

This is the main hall of the visitors center. You see the souvenirshop under the blue sign to the left, the post office is the little red booth in the center and the globe is outside to the right. Visitors come in from the left and exit to the right to go to the globe and the viewpoint.

The point of the North Cape Hall is not entirely clear. It has a large panorama window showing nothing, really. A view of a portion of the sea, that's it. If it had existed on December 25 1943 then visitors would have had front side seats to a sea battle in which the German battleship Scharnhorst was sunk, and only 36 of the crew of 1,934 men on board were rescued. Next to the hall is an ecumenical chapel which boasts of being the Northernmost chapel in Europe. Given its location on the North Cape Visitors' Center this is pretty obvious - the restrooms in the visitors' center are also the Northernmost ones in Europe, but this is not mentioned anywhere.

This is a special treat - on the visit in April 2004 there was actually sunshine during the visit to the North Cape! As a tourist guide mentioned during the visit in 2006, seeing a Norwegian sight in sunshine and with a blue sky is like winning the lottery.

Next to the visitor center is a monument titled Children Of The World. It depicts a woman and her child looking a 7 disks, each with a drawing made by a child from a different country. The relevance to the location is unclear, but it's there and part of the experience. A fact which is of great importance to visitors arriving in their own vehicle to the North Cape visitors center - parking costs NOK 195.

Going to the North Cape and back, you pass Sami-Niels a bit North of Honningsvåg. If you're in a tourist bus you will get to visit Sami-Niels, his reindeer and his souvenirshop with his wife behind the counter either going up or back. This is a nice photo opportunity about things sami and reindeer. Be prepared to check out the souvenirshop quickly, the stop for bus passengers usually only lasts some 5-10 minutes.