The routes

In the Nordic countries, the pilgrimage traditions reflect the local Christian heritage. To the magnificent cathedral in Nidaros you can walk with the Viking king and saint St. Olav on one of many trails. From the Oslo direction you will find the Gudbrandsdal trail, the Tunsbergs trail and the Borg trail. Along the Norwegian coast from the south runs the Kystpilegrimsleia. The Österdals trail and the Rombo trail enter Norway from central Sweden and from Selånger runs the St. Olav’s trail.

Several other pilgrimage routes on the Swedish side connect to this trail system, such as the Saints’ trail, the Kårböle trail, the Jämt-Norway road, the Viking trail and the Indals trail. From Turku, you can take a boat across the Åland archipelago via St. Olav’s waterways and then take one of the routes towards Nidaros.

From the Swedish west coast, the Norwegian trails connects with the Göta älv trail via Dalsland and Värmland, and from the south, trails from Skåne, Blekinge and Halland. In Denmark, the Haervejen runs through Jutland towards Norway and Nidaros. From Uppland you can also walk with Olof Skötkonung’s daughter Ingegerd, who was once St. Olav’s betrothed and eventually became queen of the Kiev-Rus kingdom and canonized as St. Anna. Her route connects Stockholm Cathedral with Uppsala Cathedral and Ingegerd’s hometown of Sigtuna. Her trail is the most well-known of the trails in Mälardalen, but there is also the Maria trail, the S:t Eriks trail and others. Many find their way to St. Birgitta’s Abbey Church in Vadstena. Birgitta, who is the most well-known pilgrim in the Nordic countries during the Middle Ages, visited all the major pilgrimage destinations.

Local trails

In addition to these larger trail systems, there are many other trails in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. Some of these are more local, others are less well developed – but still well worth exploring. Some examples in Sweden are the trails on Gotland and the Dag Hammarskjöld Trail in Abisko, the northernmost of all pilgrimage routes in Scandinavia. In Denmark, there are local trails on some of the islands, such as Mön, and in Norway and Finland, for example, there are the Röldals trail and Saint Henry’s way.

In Iceland, Shetland and the Faroe Islands, there is a vibrant pilgrimage life, but so far no established pilgrimage routes. In Orkney and in Scotland, on the other hand, there are many trails. In the Baltic States, Poland and Germany, we find an abundance of pilgrimage routes, several of which are linked to the Nordic ones.