Visit Holmenkollen

Winter sports, and skiing in particular, are Norwegians’ pride and joy. In addition to the downhill and cross-country kinds of skiing that most people can have a crack at, there’s the more daunting ski jumping sport, which differs a lot from the tiny jumps you can find in normal slopes for people to play on.

Ski jumping is a massive sport, where the athletes quite literally soar through the air wearing only skis, a jumping suit, a helmet and goggles for protection. Ski jump towers themselves are a work of architectural art, and if you want to see for yourself just how high up the athletes start their runs, head to Holmenkollen, Norway’s most famous jump tower.

Holmenkollenski jump was first constructed in 1892 out of trees and branches, and the jumpers would reach between 15 and 21 metres. Since then, it has been rebuilt 19 times and been used for Olympic Games (in 1952) and multiple World Cups and championships, and today’s jump tower is one of the most iconic sports venues in Norway. It’s the only steel jump in the world, and the current record of the longest jump is 144 metres, set by Norwegian jumper Robert Johansson in 2019. Holmenkollen is also a venue for other winter sports, such as slalom, cross-country skiing and biathlon tournaments, and the roar of the Holmenkollen crowd is so legendary it’s got a name of its own, Kollenbrølet (‘the Kollen roar’).

The jump tower is open to the public every day, and if you’re feeling extra brave you can use a zipline to get from the top and straight back down to the bottom of the hill (open between March and October). The Holmenkollen museum is located at the foot of the jump tower, and there’s even a ski simulator for those who’d like a risk-free glimpse into what an actual jump feels like.