The town Fredrikstad in the county of Østfold, Norway, has 69,867 inhabitants as of January 1., 2004. It straddles the river Glomma where it meets the sea.

Fredrikstad was built at the mouth of Glomma after Sarpsborg (15 km upstream) had burnt down. It was founded in 1567 by king Frederik II, and later even Sarpsborg was rebuilt at its original place.

The town centre is situated on the west bank of Glomma, while the old town on the east bank is northern Europe's best preserved fortified town.

Fredrikstad used to have a large sawmill industry and was an important harbour for timber export, then later on shipbuilding, until the main yard was closed in the 1980s. The main industries are currently various chemical plants and other light industry.

Østfold

Aremark | Askim | Eidsberg | Fredrikstad | Halden | Hobøl | Hvaler | Marker | Moss | Rakkestad | Rygge | Rømskog | Råde | Sarpsborg | Skiptvet | Spydeberg | Trøgstad | Våler

Municipalities of Norway | Norway

In 2005, Fredrikstad is a host port for the Tall Ships' Race.

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From the book "40 trivelige turer i Fredrikstad og omegn" – "40 nice walks around the Fredrikstad area" by Svein Åstrøm, published by Vett & Viten :

When there were no more possibilities to expand on the eastern side of the river Glomma, a suburb grew on the other side of the river on the grounds of the noble estate Nygaard. As time went by, this became the town of all towns.The community in the Old Town lived on, but the frames got too tight. The pulsating life moved over to the Suburb. Today it is the western side of Glomma which is the town centre of Fredrikstad. The original town is known as the Old Town.

We start off at Fredrikstad Bibliotek; a beautiful library from the early 1920s which has played a central part of the cultural life in Fredrikstad.. We move on with the Church-Park on our right hand side. We pass the Flora-park. To our right, beautifully placed in the park, we can see Fredrikstad Domkirke. This church is made from bricks and was inaugurated in 1879. Follow the avenue further on. Notice the luxurious building on a hill to your right hand side.. This is Lykkeberg, once J. N. Jacobsen’s villa. He was a member of the so-called "plank-nobility" who became very wealthy in the years after 1860 when the timber mill privileges were abolished. It was during this period the town got the name Plankebyen; The Plank Town. In Lykkeberg today, Fredrikstad council have some of their offices. We pass the cinema "Blå Grotte"; The Blue Grotto, which was opened in 1938. After the war The Grotto experienced competition from other cinemas such as Røde Mølle; the Red Mill at Trara. Today The Blue Grotto is the only movie theatre in town, with three cinemas in one.

Soon we enter the pedestrian precinct, Nygårdsgata, a typical shopping area with a rich selection of shops and stores. It’s crowded on good days, and sometimes there’s not much room between stalls, musicians and groups of youth who meet up in Nygårdsgata after school. Fredrikstad is rumoured to be an attractive shopping-town which satisfies even the most picky one when it comes to selection of goods and price levels. The pedestrian precinct ends by Det Glade Hjørnet; The Happy Corner. To our right we can see Torvbyen, a popular shopping mall. But we turn left and walk down to the market place. In earlier days the town had four different markets, but today all trading is gathered here. We now cross the street Storgata and walk down to the river. Once a charming fishmarket, but demolished in the early 1990s. Our trip continues along the strand, in the direction of the Kråkerøy bridge. This part of the town used to be marked by small-scale industry and shops. Today the riverbank is renovated, and offers a wide variety of cafés and restaurants. In warm summer nights it’s almost like being in southern parts of the world. Then you can enjoy outdoor serving way past midnight. The river is also full of life. Along the river bank there’s a guest harbour.

The rest of our walk takes us through an area with car parks and gas stations. We pass under the Kråkerøy bridge, which was opened for traffic in 1956. On the left side of Tordenskioldsgate we see a majestic wooden building. It is Turnhallen; the Gymnasium Hall, constructed just before 1900. Soon we can see the chestnut trees around the library. Our little stroll around town is over. We’ve got a glimpse of the town that so many are connected to by love. Visitors come again. And those who are born and raised here, hesitate to leave.

Bryggepromenaden; The Pier Promenade The town has opened up towards the river Glomma. Along the strand it gets crowded on beautiful summer days. People eat, drink and enjoy life. There are a huge variety of restaurants. You can have anything from a cup of coffee to a fine dinner. In the end of the Pier Promenade, by the Kråkerøy bridge you find Fredrikstad Guest Harbour. It has approx. 200 places for guests, freshwater, WC, shower, washingmachine, telephone, dumpster, petrol, gas, tourist information, grocery, pharmacy, liquor store, post office, bank and more. Water depths: 2.5 – 5 metres.

Where the river Glomma makes a turn Past the Guest Harbour and the Kråkerøy bridge, where Glomma turns, you see Østfold fylkesbibliotek in locations called (The Hamburg Shed) which used to be a warehouse for the shipping traffic to and from Hamburg in Germany. Right across the Hamburg Shed you'll find Fredrikstad Library, which was renovated in September 1999.

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