KRISTIANSAND

The city ranks as Norway's fifth largest municipality with 85,000 inhabitants. Kristiansand is the biggest city in the region and is called the capital of Southern Norway.

Kristiansand is strategically located at the Skagerrak, and before the opening of the Kiel Canal area was very important militarily and geopolitically. This led to the site for centuries served as a military stronghold, from Harald Hårfagres royal residence to Denmark-Norway's fortifications and later as a garrison. Kristiansand is a gateway to and from the Continent, with ferry to Denmark and in the country.

Kristiansand is known as "summer city", with a large influx of tourists during the summer months. Especially zoo draws many visitors. The zoo is the second most visited tourist attraction in Norway . In 2011 the park had 750.000 visitors.

Fish Wharf in Kristiansand is very popular in summer months. In the 1990s the area was restored. It was a traditional fish processing, but has now restaurants,bars , docks and wood buildings . The area lies on both sides of the canal, which separates downtown from Odderøya. The channel is a bustling boating in the summer weeks.