Steinsland: Cluster Farm and History at Tjeldsund

Steinsland combines the history of a former ferry route with a special insight into the life and culture of Northern Norway. At its heart is Steinsland Cluster Farm, with historic buildings and exhibitions. These include Aronstua, a permanent exhibition on Sámi culture, and an exhibition about the writer Regine Normann. Steinsland is a settlement on the mainland side of the Tjeldsund Strait, in Tjeldsund Municipality.

Historic buildings and exhibitions at the cluster farm

Steinsland Cluster Farm is one of the last surviving cluster farmsteads in Northern Norway. Several buildings and historic traces give the site its cultural and historical character. Aronstua was built before 1845 and served as a schoolroom until 1910. The building is furnished in its original style, with furniture and household items. The cluster farm also includes a dwelling house dating from 1840. The farm mound associated with the site dates back to the Middle Ages.

Behind the barn stands a partly restored granary, said to date from the 18th century. The site also includes a 1939 storehouse on stilts, set up as a small shop where visitors can buy sweets and other treats. The schoolroom, dwelling house and granary point to different aspects of the farm’s history; the medieval farm mound dates back even further.

A barn built in 1922 houses a permanent exhibition on Sámi culture in the former municipality of Skånland. The cluster farm also displays 2,000 objects in an authentic setting from around 1920. Another exhibition is dedicated to the Northern Norwegian writer Regine Normann: objects, stories, texts and pictures bring her life and work to life. For families who enjoy discovering history together, these themes offer plenty to talk about—from school life in the past to literature and Sámi culture.

If you would like to visit the cluster farm, it is best to contact the site in advance to check availability. Enquiries are handled during business hours, Monday to Friday. This allows you to plan your visit around the options available at the time.

Steinsland and Tjeldsund Bridge

Steinsland was once a ferry landing on the road route to Hinnøya. Tjeldsund Bridge, which opened in 1967 on the E10, replaced the ferry service from Steinsland to Lilleeng on Hinnøya. The site’s history is therefore shaped not only by the farmstead but also by the transition from ferry to bridge. Nearby, at Steinsland 3, there are old boathouses as well as traces of a ferry quay and other maritime activity.

Steinsland Cluster Farm is 800 metres past the E10 underpass, beyond Tjeldsund Bridge, on the left-hand side of the road. A new shared pedestrian and cycle path connects Steinsland with Tjeldsund Bridge.

When choosing a holiday apartment, you can consider whether Steinsland’s cultural and historical focus fits your travel plans. If you would like to explore the cluster farm, its exhibitions and the traces of the former ferry route, this is a good reason to include the area in your trip to Norway.

You can also visit the local pages for Skånland, Evenskjer and Grovfjord.

Back to the main travel overview: Skånland.