Ann Helen and Erlend moved to Davik
Two social workers swapped the city for the Davik fjord.
Norway · Vestland · Nordfjord
Bremanger
From the sea to the glacier.
B remanger is a coast worth moving to, from the open sea to the glacier. The municipality sits on the border between Nordfjord and Sunnfjord, where around 3,400 people live spread across a string of small communities — from the Atlantic islands in the west to the ice of Ålfotbreen in the east. Industry, fishing and spectacular nature are its hallmarks. You may have heard of Hornelen, the rock carvings at Vingen, or the white sand of Grotlesanden. The practical version: there is room here, and a community ready to make space for you.
Bremanger at a glance
Population ~3,400
Area 786 km²
Coast to glacier 0–1,385 m
County Vestland
Centre Svelgen
Signature Hornelen 860 m
Glacier Ålfotbreen
Get to know Bremanger
A coast that runs from sea to glacier
Where the open Atlantic and a mountain glacier share the same municipality.
Bremanger sits on the border between Nordfjord and Sunnfjord. People here speak of outer and inner Bremanger, from coast to mountain — the island villages of Botnane, Bremangerbygda, Berle and Kalvåg out west, Davik and Ålfoten on the Nordfjord side, and Svelgen, the largest, as the municipal centre. Around 3,400 people share 786 square kilometres of island, fjord and mountain.
The steep mountains feed the rivers and the glacier that make this one of Norway’s renewable-energy municipalities, and they hold some of the most dramatic nature on the west coast. Hornelen rises 860 metres straight out of the fjord, the highest sea cliff in Europe. On the shore beneath it lies Vingen, with around 2,000 rock carvings cut into the stone up to 6,000 years ago. In the east sits the Ålfotbreen glacier; out west, the white sand of Grotlesanden. None of it is kept behind glass.
The shape of it
Islands, fjords, mountains and a glacier, in one municipality
786 km² of coast and mountain between the open Atlantic and Ålfotbreen. The map plots the villages, the largest local employers, and the natural landmarks the area is known for. Click any marker to read more; use the legend to toggle layers.
Boundary
Click a marker for details
What you get
Bremanger puts real money behind the move
Around 10 million kroner a year goes into making the move worth it — and a real share of it is yours from the day you arrive.
200 000 kr Housing grant
25 000 kr / yr Student-debt write-off
30 000 kr / yr New-staff bonus
Free Kindergarten
… and free leisure cards for the kids, plus a flexible staffing pool for nurses who would rather commute.
See the full package — and calculate yours
Relocation Simon and Henriette chose Berle
They packed up the children and moved from Bergen to Berle, at the very foot of Hornelen. Now they are settling into life in Bremanger.
Read
From abroad Georgia came from Oxford
From Oxford to Hauge on Bremangerlandet. Georgia found a slower pace and a community that made room for her.
Read
Culture 6,000 years on the rock
On the shore below Hornelen, the carvers of Vingen left around 2,000 figures in the stone — one of the largest rock-art fields in Northern Europe.
Read
Food & drink The kitchen at Knutholmen
Martine trained in an Oslo gourmet kitchen, then came home to run the stoves at Knutholmen in Kalvåg.
Read
History When Bremanger crossed the Atlantic
Thousands left this coast for America. The municipality still marks the emigration that shaped families on both sides of the ocean.
Read
Relocation Mats and Ida built in Ålfoten
Both grew up in Nordfjord. They came back to build a house where the glacier meets the fjord.
Read
Outdoors Up the witch mountain
Hornelen rises 860 metres straight out of the sea. People have climbed it since the Middle Ages, and you still can.
Read Young family Eirik and Ronja moved to Kalvåg
A young couple choosing the coast. In Kalvåg they found space, neighbours, and the childhood they wanted to give their own.
Read Keep reading
More stories from Bremanger
Relocation, culture, history and the outdoors, from across the municipality.
Michelle and Magnus settled in Kalvåg
The recruitment package tipped the family north to Kalvåg.
Vilde and Leif Erik restored an old house
A biologist and a building inspector bringing an old farm back to life.
A season of art at Øyratunet
Exhibitions and culture life in Bremangerbygda.
Young culture meets at Realen
Svelgen’s culture house and a European volunteer programme.
The power that built Svelgen
A century of hydropower behind the silicon smelter.
Kayaking the Frøysjøen
Sheltered water and open sea between the islands.
The coastal table in Kalvåg
Lobster, lamb and local fish at Knutholmen.
The villages
One municipality, many places
Spread across islands, fjord arms and the mainland.
Svelgen is the industrial centre and municipal seat. Out on the islands lie Kalvåg, Bremangerbygda, Berle and Botnane; on the Nordfjord side, Davik and Ålfoten. People here often speak of outer and inner Bremanger — from the open coast to the foot of the glacier.
Svelgen
The industrial centre and municipal seat, where sport and the power stations shaped the town.
Kalvåg
A restored fishing village around Knutholmen, where art and the open sea set the pace.
Bremangerbygda
On the road to Grotle and the white sand, past culture house and café life.
Berle
Through the Berle gate to the foot of the witch mountain, Hornelen.
Davik
Active boat life on the fjord, with Davik Fjordparadis as the stage for local culture.
Ålfoten
Where glacier meets fjord, and neighbours still meet on the trail and at the farm.
Rugsund
The old trading post on the Bergen to Nordfjord route; from Leirgulen the boat still runs to Bergen.
Botnane
A historic community with its own poets’ trail and 3,000-year-old burial cairns.
Working here
From silicon and salmon to stone and hospitality
A small municipality with a broad working life. Heavy industry, a global aquaculture company, pelagic seafood, coastal quarrying and tourism all keep people employed here — alongside the schools, care and services run by the municipality itself.
Industry · Smelter
Elkem Bremanger
The municipality’s industrial anchor in Svelgen, producing silicon materials for a global market. Around 300 people work here.
Read →
Seafood · Pelagic
Pelagia Kalvåg
Freezing and processing the pelagic catch landed on the Kalvåg quays, one of the largest private workplaces on the coast.
Industry · Stone
Bremanger Quarry
Quarrying anorthosite from the coastal rock at Seløren and shipping it out by sea to industry across Europe.
Aquaculture · Salmon
Mowi Bremanger
Salmon farming in the clean, deep fjord water, part of one of the world’s largest seafood companies.
Hospitality · Hotel
Bremanger Fjord Hotell
The hotel and gathering place in Svelgen, host to conferences, celebrations and visitors to the coast.
Public sector
Bremanger municipality
The largest single employer, with around 700 people across schools, care, technical services and administration.
Workplaces and headcounts from the Brønnøysund Register Centre (Enhetsregisteret).
Welcome
Safe, beautiful and looking forward
Bremanger is not a place you pass through. It is islands and fjords and a glacier, a working coast with room to breathe, and a community that genuinely wants new neighbours.
From the open sea to the ice. You can be one of us.
Living here What life on the coast is like Housing, schools, getting around the islands and fjords, and what a week in Bremanger actually looks like. How to move From abroad Moving to Norway If you are coming from an EU/EEA country — registration, ID number, healthcare, schools, the order to do things in. Read the guide Talk to us Start with a conversation Ask a question, request a no-strings conversation, or get notified when a job that suits you comes up. Free Freysta profile, no commitment. Create profile