city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...

Vestfold og Telemark Vestfold og Telemark (; ) is a county under disestablishment in Norway. The county is the southernmost one of Eastern Norway and consists of two distinct and separate traditional regions: the former counties of Telemark and (most of) Vestfold. T ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and s ...

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and th ...

Gokstad Mound The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and s ...

Whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

Fjord Line Fjord Line is a Norwegian ferry operator offering services between Norway and Denmark; in October 2020 the company announced a scale-back of operations whereby the ferry operations will only serve the ports of Kristiansand, Hirtshals, and ...

European Route E18 European route E18 runs from Craigavon in Northern Ireland to Saint Petersburg in Russia, passing through Scotland, England, Norway, Sweden and Finland. It is about in length. Although the designation implies the possibility of a through jo ...

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

Bjørn Ole Gleditsch Bjørn Ole Gleditsch (born 13 January 1963) is a Norwegian businessperson and politician for the Conservative Party. Since 2003 he is the mayor of Sandefjord. Before this he served several terms in the municipal council.

Etymology

The name Sandefjord, which dates to 1200 A.D., originates from the ancient farm name ''Sandar''.Tore, Sandberg and Cato Arveschoug (2001). ''Sandefjord zoomet inn av fotograf Tore Sandberg''. C. Arveschoug and Magne Helland. p. 6. . The first element is the

genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

of the name of the parish and former municipality of Sandar. The name Sandar derives from the

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

term "sandar", which is the plural form of "sandr", translating to 'stretch of sand' (sandstrekning). The name Sandefjord was first mentioned in chapter 169 of ''

Sverris saga ''Sverris saga'' is one of the Kings' sagas. Its subject is King Sverre Sigurdsson of Norway (r. 1177–1202) and it is the main source for this period of Norwegian history. As the foreword tells us, the saga in its final form consists of mor ...

'' from the year 1200. It was then referring to the fjord which is now known as ''Sandefjordsfjord''.

Coat-of-arms

The

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in i ...

dates from modern times, having been granted on 9 May 1914.Davidsen, Roger (2008). ''Et Sted i Sandefjord''. Sandar Historielag. p. 296. . The

Viking ship Viking ships were marine vessels of unique structure, used in Scandinavia from the Viking Age throughout the Middle Ages. The boat-types were quite varied, depending on what the ship was intended for, but they were generally characterized as bein ...

symbolizes the famous Gokstad ship, which was found in Sandefjord in 1880, one of the best preserved Viking ships known. The whale symbolizes that in the late 19th and early 20th century, Sandefjord was a main home port for whalers operating in the southern oceans. On 1 January 2017, Sandefjord received a new coat of arm after the merge with

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

- and

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

municipalities. The arms has the title: Courage and Strength, and is created in black and gold. The arms was designed by Erik Raastad from Sandefjord, with minor modification by the heraldic expert Jan Eide from Oslo. The decision to get a new coat of arms was made by the merger committee in Andebu on 24 May 2016.

History

Viking history

Sandefjord has been inhabited for thousands of years. Excavations indicate that people have inhabited Sandefjord for around 3,000 years. Rock carvings at Haugen farm by

Istrehågan Istrehågan is an ancient monument at Jåberg on the Sandefjord-Larvik border in Vestfold og Telemark, Norway.Jøranlid, Marianne (1996). ''40 trivelige turer i Sandefjord og omegn''. Vett Viten. Page 123. .Davidsen, Roger (2008). ''Et Sted i Sande ...

in Jåberg are dated to 1,500–500 BCE. Haugen farm is home to Vestfold County's largest

petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

site.Børresen, Svein E. (2004). ''Vestfoldboka: en reise i kultur og natur''. Skagerrak forl. p. 38. . In 1961-1962, 78 rock carvings were discovered at the site. They consist of ships, spiral figures, circular hollows, and much more. The Vikings lived in Sandefjord and surrounding areas about 1,000 years ago, and numerous Viking artifacts and monuments can be found in Sandefjord. One of the most important remains from the

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period The ...

was found at the grave site ''

Gokstadhaugen The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

'' (Gokstad Mound) in Sandefjord. The Gokstad ship was excavated by

Nicolay Nicolaysen Nicolay Nicolaysen (14 January 1817 - 22 January 1911) was a Norwegian archaeologist and Norway's first state employed antiquarian. He is perhaps best known for his excavations of the ship burial at Gokstad in 1880. Viking Ship Museum in Oslo The Viking Ship Museum ( no, Vikingskipshuset på Bygdøy) is located on the Bygdøy peninsula in Oslo, Norway. It will be temporarily closed from September 2021 until 2025/2026. It is part of the Museum of Cultural History of the University of ...

. The ''

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and s ...

'', an exact replica of the Gokstad ship, crossed the Atlantic Ocean from

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...

to be exhibited at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, h ...

in Chicago in 1893. A

replica A 1:1 replica is an exact copy of an object, made out of the same raw materials, whether a molecule, a work of art, or a commercial product. The term is also used for copies that closely resemble the original, without claiming to be identical. Al ...

of the Gokstad ship, called ''

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthe ...

'', currently has Sandefjord as home port. Other known replicas include the ''Munin'', (a half scale replica) located in Vancouver, Canada. The Gokstad Ship, Norway's largest preserved Viking ship, was discovered during an excavation at

Gokstad Mound The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

in 1880. The Vikings first settled here due to its speedy route from Sandefjord and along the coast. Viking settlements and grave sites have been discovered in Sandefjord. Sandefjord functioned as a seaport defined by the twin industries of shipping and shipbuilding throughout the 1600s and 1700s. It was formally recognized as a market town by King Oscar in 1845. Its population at the time was 749 residents.

Health resort

The city became known as a world-renowned health resort destination between 1837 and 1939. Royalty and Prime Ministers from throughout Europe visited the town for its spas in the late 1800s. The city gained its reputation as a health- and pleasure community when Sandefjord sulfur spa and resort ("Sandefjord Kurbad") was established in 1837. It was the first spa in town and functioned as a medical institution focusing on the treatment of symptoms for rheumatic diseases. The original bathhouse has been restored and is now a culture house by the city center. It was one of Europe's most visited baths until its closure in 1939. Around 50,000 people, mostly Norwegians, visited the bath from 1837 to 1939. Majority of spa visitors were from Norway, but international guests from Germany,

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and the United States also visited the spas of Sandefjord. Today the bath's building, ''

Kurbadet Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordic ...

'', has been restored and hosts cultural events and various annual activities.

Town fires

Sandefjord has experienced numerous town fires, including a town fire in 1800 which led to most of the town burning down and subsequently having to be rebuilt. An additional fire in 1900 destroyed 56 houses and caused major damage. Sandefjord's most important capital, its ships, and the shipping industry, remained untouched from the major fire of March 1900. The fire, which started on the night before March 16, 1900, led to the entire city center burning down, including important business offices. Both newspapers in town, ''

Sandefjords Blad ''Sandefjords Blad'' is a newspaper published daily in Sandefjord, Norway, except on Sundays. It is available in Norwegian language only. Sandefjords Blad is a private company, owned by Mecom with a circulation of 14,780 copies (2004) and 50 emp ...

'' and ''Vestfold'', saw their offices burnt down. Six jewelry stores, three watchmakers, eight grocery stores, and a variety of other shops were destroyed. The fire started in the factory ''Nordmannen''. The fire caused the loss of 51 buildings for a total value of NOK 1.5 million in addition to NOK 1 million in loss of store items. Sandefjord Church from 1872 also burnt down during the town fire of 1900.Davidsen, Roger (2008). ''Et sted i Sandefjord: lokalhistorisk stedsnavnsleksikon''. Sandar historielag. Page 330. ISBN 9788299456753. A new town fire March 27 and 28 in 1915 led to the death of two people and destroyed seven farms. Large parts of the street Storgata were also destroyed.

Whaling and ships

Sandefjord is perhaps best known as a whaling community. The centre of the world's modern whaling industry was located in town, and Sandefjordians not only made up practically all the crew on the Norwegian whaling fleet, but substantial numbers of Sandefjordians also worked within the whaling industry in nearby countries. For over fifty years in the late 1800s, Sandefjord functioned as the world center for the whaling industry, including the manufacture and equipment of whaling vessels, floating factories, and whale-catchers. The city has also been named the "whaling capital of the world." 25 whaling companies were established in Sandefjord between 1905 and 1914.Schandy, Tom and Tom Helgesen (2012). ''Naturperler i Vestfold''. Forlaget Tom & Tom v/Schandy. Page 170. . During the 1911/12 season, Sandefjord had 27 whaling companies with a total of 115 vessels. This made up over 30 percent of the world's whaling firms. From 1850, a number of ships from Sandefjord were

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

and sealing in the Arctic Ocean and along the coast of

Finnmark Finnmark (; se, Finnmárku ; fkv, Finmarku; fi, Ruija ; russian: Финнмарк) was a county in the northern part of Norway, and it is scheduled to become a county again in 2024. On 1 January 2020, Finnmark was merged with the neighbouri ...

. The first whaling expedition from Sandefjord to the

Antarctic Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-small ...

was sent in 1905. Towards the end of the 1920s, Sandefjord had a fleet of 15 factory ships and more than 90 whalers. In 1954, more than 2,800 men from the district were hired as crew on the whalers, but from the mid-1950s whaling was gradually reduced. The number of southbound expeditions rapidly decreased during the 1960s, and the 1967/68 season became the last for Sandefjord. In 1971, the city’s last whale processing vessel was sold to Japan. The shipping industry was gradually readjusted from whaling to other ship types during this period. The local

Framnæs Mekaniske Værksted Framnæs shipyard (Framnæs mekaniske Værksted) was a former Norwegian shipbuilding and engineering firm headquartered in Sandefjord, in Vestfold county, Norway. Originally strongly linked to the whaling industry, in later years it entered into mor ...

and Jotun Group Private Ltd. had major roles in this business. Sandefjord Southern Actor

Today, the memories of this important period of the city's history are kept alive at the Whaling Museum (''Hvalfangstmuseet''). This museum is the only museum in Europe specializing in whales and the history of whaling. The history of the whalers can also be explored at the Museum's Wharf with a visit aboard the

whale-catcher A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Jap ...

''

Southern Actor ''Southern Actor'' is a former whale catcher, currently a museum ship based in Sandefjord, Norway and owned by Sandefjord Museum. It is the only whale catcher from the Modern Whaling Epoch still to be in its original working order. Over 100,000 h ...

''.

Whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

is considered to be the industry which made Sandefjord the richest city in Norway. Sandefjord also has shipping traditions of tall sailing ships and steam ships. The full-rigged sailing ship ''

Christian Radich ''Christian Radich'' is a Norwegian full-rigged ship, named after a Norwegian shipowner. The vessel was built at Framnæs shipyard in Sandefjord, Norway, and was delivered on 17 June 1937. The owner was The Christian Radich Sail Training Foundat ...

'', three-masted

barquentine A barquentine or schooner barque (alternatively "barkentine" or "schooner bark") is a sailing vessel with three or more masts; with a square rigged foremast and fore-and-aft rigged main, mizzen and any other masts. Modern barquentine sailing ...

''

Endurance Endurance (also related to sufferance, resilience, constitution, fortitude, and hardiness) is the ability of an organism to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from an ...

'',

whale catcher A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Jap ...

''

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek Greek mythology, mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was marri ...

'' and

Viking ship Viking ships were marine vessels of unique structure, used in Scandinavia from the Viking Age throughout the Middle Ages. The boat-types were quite varied, depending on what the ship was intended for, but they were generally characterized as bein ...

replica ''

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and s ...

'' were some of the many ships built by

Framnæs Mekaniske Værksted Framnæs shipyard (Framnæs mekaniske Værksted) was a former Norwegian shipbuilding and engineering firm headquartered in Sandefjord, in Vestfold county, Norway. Originally strongly linked to the whaling industry, in later years it entered into mor ...

.

Hans Albert Grøn Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi a ...

of Sandefjord established the first whaling station in the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic archipelago, island group and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotlan ...

in 1894, which was located at Gjánoyri on the island of

Streymoy Streymoy ( da, Strømø) is the largest and most populated island of the Faroe Islands. The capital, Tórshavn, is located on its southeast coast. The name means "island of currents". It also refers to the largest region of the country that also i ...

. As of 1903, half of all whaling companies in the Faroe Islands were operated out of Sandefjord. Furthermore, Sandefjord was the headquarters of the

South African Whaling Company South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

(SAWC), which was established in 1908 and managed by shipowner

Johan Bryde Johan Bryde (June 1858 – May 1925) was a Norwegian businessperson, ship owner and whaler. He helped establish the first modern whaling station in the country of South Africa. The Bryde's whale (''Balaenoptera brydei'') is named after him. Biogra ...

of Sandefjord. Sandefjordian whaling firms were also established on the coast of Africa, in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

,

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

,

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...

, among other places.

Antarctic expeditions

Towards the beginning of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Norwegian whaling spread throughout the world, most and foremost from Sandefjord. Expeditions from Sandefjord went as far as

Norwegian Bay Norwegian Bay (french: Baie Norvégienne) is an Arctic Ocean waterway in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. Amund Ringnes Island is to the northwest (separated by the Hendriksen Strait from Cornwall Island), and Axel Heiberg Island is t ...

in Australia,

Stewart Island Stewart Island ( mi, Rakiura, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across the Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a total land ar ...

in New Zealand,

Walvis Bay Walvis Bay ( en, lit. Whale Bay; af, Walvisbaai; ger, Walfischbucht or Walfischbai) is a city in Namibia and the name of the bay on which it lies. It is the second largest city in Namibia and the largest coastal city in the country. The c ...

in Namibia,

Corral, Chile Corral is a town, commune and sea port in Valdivia Province, Los Ríos Region, Chile. It is located south of Corral Bay. Corral is best known for the forts of Corral Bay, a system of defensive batteries and forts made to protect Valdivia duri ...

, and also isolated places such as

Kerguelen Islands The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a l ...

,

South Georgia Island South Georgia ( es, Isla San Pedro) is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around east of the Falkland Islands. Stretching in the eas ...

,

Bouvet Island Bouvet Island ( ; or ''Bouvetøyen'') is an island claimed by Norway, and declared an uninhabited protected nature reserve. It is a subantarctic volcanic island, situated in the South Atlantic Ocean at the southern end of the Mid-Atlantic ...

, and the

Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-smal ...

. In the 1910s, affluent Sandefjordian

August F. Christensen August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian calendar, Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo (astrology), Leo and was originally named ''Sextilis'' in Latin ...

was given a grant to practice whaling outside

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

and

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechuan ...

. He was also appointed Ecuador's consul to Norway. He achieved an agreement with Ecuadorian government officials which allowed Norwegians to inhabit the

Galápagos Islands The Galápagos Islands ( es, Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands in the Eastern Pacific, located around the Equator west of the mainland of South America. They form the Galápagos Province of the Republic of Ecuador, with ...

, and also receive 200 hectares of land, pay no taxes for ten years, and be allowed to keep their Norwegian citizenship. Christensen created huge local interest of Galápagos, and the local company '' La Colonia de Floreana A/S'' was established on 21 March 1925. Its main goal was to exploit the Norwegian fishing rights at the Galápagos Islands. A ship named ''Floreana'' departed from Sandefjord on 15 May 1925, equipped with enough men and goods to establish a colony. Modell av Grytviken kirke (HS

On 16 November 1904,

Carl Anton Larsen Carl Anton Larsen (7 August 1860 – 8 December 1924) was a Norwegian-born whaler and Antarctic explorer who made important contributions to the exploration of Antarctica, the most significant being the first discovery of fossils for which he ...

of Sandefjord established the whaling community of

Grytviken Grytviken ( ) is a settlement on South Georgia in the South Atlantic and formerly a whaling station and the largest settlement on the island. It is located at the head of King Edward Cove within the larger Cumberland East Bay, considered the bes ...

, the largest settlement in

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song_type = , song = , image_map = South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in United Kingdom.svg , map_caption = Location of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in the southern Atlantic Oc ...

. South Georgia Island lies a few thousand kilometers east of

Cape Horn Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramí ...

.

Nils Larsen Nils Larsen (19 June 1900 – 29 September 1976) was a Norwegian sea captain. Larsen is perhaps most associated with the Norvegia expeditions of Antarctica. Larsen was born in Sandar, and became a noted whaler, captaining a number of whalin ...

(1900–76) was a sea captain from Sandefjord, famous for his expeditions of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

in the early 20th century. It was under his expeditions that Norway achieved annexation of

Bouvet Island Bouvet Island ( ; or ''Bouvetøyen'') is an island claimed by Norway, and declared an uninhabited protected nature reserve. It is a subantarctic volcanic island, situated in the South Atlantic Ocean at the southern end of the Mid-Atlantic ...

in 1927 and

Peter I Island Peter I Island ( no, Peter I Øy) is an uninhabited volcanic island in the Bellingshausen Sea, from continental Antarctica. It is claimed as a dependency of Norway and, along with Bouvet Island and Queen Maud Land, composes one of the thre ...

two years after. A cove on Antarctica's Peter I Island is named

Sandefjord Cove Sandefjord Cove (sometimes called Sandefjord Bay) is a cove between Cape Ingrid and the terminus of Tofte Glacier on the west side of Peter I Island. A Norwegian expedition under Eyvind Tofte circumnavigated Peter I Island in the '' Odd I'' in ...

in honor of Larsen's hometown.

Sandefjord Ice Bay Sandefjord Ice Bay is an ice bay about 25 nautical miles (46 km) wide which forms the head of Prydz Bay. The feature is bounded on the west by Amery Ice Shelf, on the east by Publications Ice Shelf, and on the south by the mainland. The bay ...

in continental Antarctica is also named after Sandefjord.

Mount Nils Larsen Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

in

Queen Maud Land Queen Maud Land ( no, Dronning Maud Land) is a roughly region of Antarctica claimed by Norway as a dependent territory. It borders the claimed British Antarctic Territory 20° west and the Australian Antarctic Territory 45° east. In addit ...

,

Mount Nils Mount Nils () is a prominent, ice-covered mountain standing close west of Rayner Glacier and 3 nautical miles (6 km) south of Mount Christensen, Enderby Land. It was plotted from air photos taken by ANARE (Australian National Antarctic Resear ...

in

Enderby Land Enderby Land is a projecting landmass of Antarctica. Its shore extends from Shinnan Glacier at about to William Scoresby Bay at , approximately of the earth's longitude. It was first documented in western and eastern literature in February 18 ...

and

Nils Larsen Glacier Nils Larsen Glacier () is a glacier descending to the west coast of Peter I Island close northward of Norvegia Bay. In February 1929 the crew of the Norvegia carried out a series of investigations of this island, landing on February 2. Named for N ...

are examples of many geographical names given in honor of Nils Larsen.

World War II

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-113-0003-15, Nordeuropa, Küstenbatterie, Bunker

A week after

Operation Weserübung Operation Weserübung (german: Unternehmen Weserübung , , 9 April – 10 June 1940) was Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign. In the early morning of 9 Ap ...

, German forces entered Sandefjord on April 16, 1940. 30-40 men arrived in semi-trucks from

Horten is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the town of Åsgårdstrand ...

under the leadership of Erik von Drydalski. After handing their directives to Sandefjord police chief Kjartan Bruun Hansen, the men left for Hotel Atlantic, where they established their headquarters in the city. German troops in the city soon rose to 200. At the beginning of the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

, a German ''Hafenkapitän'' (

harbormaster A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct opera ...

) was placed at Tollboden, and a representative for Admiral Norwegen was placed in an office building at Framnes verft. German soldiers could be seen marching throughout the city. At the beginning of the occupation, over 2,000 German officers visited ''Socitetsbygningen'' (today's Park Hotel), which belonged to

Sandefjord Spa Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordi ...

. The

Nazi flag The flag of Nazi Germany, officially the flag of the German Reich, featured a red background with a black swastika on a white disc. This flag came into use initially as the banner of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) after its foundation. Following the app ...

was waving over the building during the visit. Norwegian students were told to learn the German language, and handed out a book, '' Deutsche Fibel''. They were also given a copy of Adolf Hitler's book ''

Mein Kampf (; ''My Struggle'' or ''My Battle'') is a 1925 autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The work describes the process by which Hitler became antisemitic and outlines his political ideology and future plans for G ...

'' translated into the Norwegian language. Albert-kristoffer-johan-skålsvik

German forces constructed two coastal forts in Sandefjord, located at the southern tips of both

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

- and

East Islands East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

. The largest German construction in Sandefjord took place at Folehavna, where a fortress was erected in the spring of 1941. Four cannons with a target range of 14 kilometers were installed at the site, along with a 120-meter tunnel. The four 15 cm cannons were installed in concrete gun pits on the sloping rocks. German construction also took place by

Goksjø Goksjø is a lake in the municipalities of Sandefjord, Larvik and Andebu in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. Goksjø is 5 km from north to south, and has a circumference of 20 km. At its deepest, Goksjø is no deeper than 26 meters. Goksjø ha ...

Lake, and also at Jernbaneallén, where a former garage structure was turned into a prison camp. Many Sandefjordians were killed during World War II, including a number of seamen. Håkon Andersen of Framnes was killed onboard ''Arcturus'' when the ship was attacked by British

Beaufighter The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter (often called the Beau) is a British multi-role aircraft developed during the Second World War by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was originally conceived as a heavy fighter variant of the Bristol Beaufort t ...

s. Albert K. J. Skålsvik (1921–1944) of Krokemoa, a member of the Norwegian Homefleet ("Hjemmeflåten"), was 18 years when the war broke out. Skålsvik was killed, along with the captain, when the ship ''DS Kong Bjørn'' was attacked by allied warplanes by

Ryvingen Lighthouse Ryvingen Lighthouse ( no, Ryvingen fyrstasjon) is a coastal lighthouse located on the island of Låven in the North Sea. It is the southernmost lighthouse in Norway. It is located in the municipality of Lindesnes in Agder county. The island lies ...

in 1944. He is now commemorated at the

Hall of Remembrance The Hall of Remembrance was a series of paintings and sculptures commissioned, in 1918, by the British War Memorials Committee of the British Ministry of Information in commemoration of the dead of World War I. History The artworks commissio ...

in

Stavern Stavern is a small water-side town in Larvik municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It is south of the city of Larvik. Currently there are around 3,000 inhabitants in Stavern. It is a small town where tourism is one of the most important sour ...

(

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

). Skålsvik's younger brother, Bernard, was also a part of the Homefleet and was killed at age 17 in 1945.Holskjær, Lars (2017). ''Kamper uten tall''. Forlagshuset i Vestfold. p. 192. . Radios were illegal, and Sandefjordians such as Henry Melby of

Gokstad The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

was arrested for having a radio in 1942. He was incarcerated at the tanker ''Inger Johanne'', which was attacked by allied warplanes in 1944, killing 15 people, including Henry Melby. In the fall of 1941, German occupation forces replaced Sandefjord's city manager Finn Sandberg with NS-member

Frithjof Holtedahl Friðþjófur (variations: Fritiof, Frithiof, Fritjof, Frithjof, and Fridtjof) is a Scandinavian masculine given name derived from Old Norse friðr (“peace”) + þjófr (“thief”). Maybe a kenning (a metaphorical phrase used in Old Norse poe ...

who was soon appointed mayor. Sandar received its NS mayor in November 1941, Ole Kristian Holtan.Olstad, Finn (1997). ''Sandefjords historie. B. 2: En vanlig småby?'' Sandefjord kommune. Page 119. ISBN 8299379725. Olaf Bøe from

Nasjonal Samling Nasjonal Samling (, NS; ) was a Norwegian far-right political party active from 1933 to 1945. It was the only legal party of Norway from 1942 to 1945. It was founded by former minister of defence Vidkun Quisling and a group of supporters such ...

was appointed editor for Sandefjords Presse by Anders Beggerud in 1944. Following World War II, Norway became one of the founding members of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and several air bases were constructed in Norway using NATO funds. One of these was

Sandefjord Airport Torp Sandefjord Airport, Torp ( no, Sandefjord lufthavn, Torp; ) is an international airport located northeast of Sandefjord, Norway and south of Oslo. The airport features a runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Ves ...

, which was to be used by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army S ...

in case of war. Construction began in 1953 and was completed in July 1956.

SAS merge

The municipalities of Sandefjord (S),

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

(A) and

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

(S) merged on 1 January 2017. The merge was the first of numerous nationwide merges following a municipal reform by the

Solberg Cabinet The Solberg Cabinet was the government of the Kingdom of Norway, headed by Conservative Party leader Erna Solberg as Prime Minister from 16 October 2013 to 14 October 2021. The government was appointed by King Harald V on 16 October 2013 followi ...

. The "new" municipality is 425.47 km², including freshwater lakes and rivers. It is 11th most populated municipality in Norway, and the most populous in Vestfold County.Larsen, Erlend (2016). ''Tre kommuner blir til én''. Erlend Larsen Forlag. pp. 13 and 171. . Proposed names for the "new" municipality were

Gokstad The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

, Sandar and

Torp Torp may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Torp (surname), a list of people Places * Torp, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Torp Court District, an administrative region of Sweden * Torp, a place in the Norwegian municipality Fredrikstad, ...

, however, the name ''Sandefjord'' was ultimately kept. A poll conducted by ''Sandefjords blad'' in January 2015 called 600 residents in Andebu, 750 in Stokke, and 1,000 in Sandefjord. All were given the question "Do you think Stokke, Andebu, and Sandefjord should establish one single municipality?". 69% of Sandefjord residents answered "yes", while 64% (Andebu) and 61% (Stokke) answered "yes" in Stokke and Andebu. Few Stokke residents read ''

Sandefjords Blad ''Sandefjords Blad'' is a newspaper published daily in Sandefjord, Norway, except on Sundays. It is available in Norwegian language only. Sandefjords Blad is a private company, owned by Mecom with a circulation of 14,780 copies (2004) and 50 emp ...

'', the main newspaper of Sandefjord, and relatively few residents commute to Sandefjord proper for work. However, Sandefjord's wealth and its international airport have been seen as key factors as to why Stokke residents decided to merge. 77.8 percent of Stokke residents ultimately voted to merge into Sandefjord during the September 2015 elections.

Historical population

Ommestadkollen, Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway - panoramio

The city experienced a 98.6 percent population growth from 1875 to 1900. Even not including Sandar's merge into Sandefjord in 1888, this population increase was substantially higher than most Norwegian cities. Sandar experienced the largest population growth of any Norwegian town, and over twice the growth of other towns in Vestfold County. From 1875 to 1900, the disposable income of Sandefjordians increased by over 200 percent. Total assets in local banks also increased, and in 1895–1900, total assets went from 0.6 to 1.9 million in Aktiekreditbanken and from 1.1 million to 1.3 million in Sandefjords Sparebank. Even after whaling lost its importance, Sandefjord remained Norway's richest city, and from 1913 to 1917, the median income increased by over 350 percent.

Geography

Sandefjord is a coastal city on the western shore of the

Oslo Fjord The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...

. It can be described as a suburb of

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, situated southwest of the capital.Bertelsen, Hans Kristian (1985). ''Sandefjord: A modern city with vast potential''. Grafisk Studio. p. 4. . It is the largest city in

Vestfold og Telemark Vestfold og Telemark (; ) is a county under disestablishment in Norway. The county is the southernmost one of Eastern Norway and consists of two distinct and separate traditional regions: the former counties of Telemark and (most of) Vestfold. T ...

County. Its 93-mile long coastline has various beaches and sheltered coves, and several forests are also within city limits. The two

peninsulas A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on al ...

called

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

("East Island") and

Vesterøya Vesterøya (West Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It is primarily known for its many beaches and idyllic coastal landscape, but there are also numerous trails used for hiking and biking.Mšbius, Aaron and Michael (2014). ...

("West Island") contribute to a total coastline of , and form the

Sandefjordsfjord The Sandefjordsfjord (), sometimes also called the Sandefjord (), is an approximately 9 km long fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is located to the west of Vesterøya. The Sandefjordsfjord is the longest of the ...

and

Mefjord The Mefjord (''Mefjorden'') is a small fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is a 9 km long fjord which lies in-between Vesterøya (West Island) and Østerøya (East Island). It is a narrow fjord with many minor islands a ...

. The coastline offers a wide variety of sandy beaches,

skerries A skerry is a small rocky island, usually defined to be too small for habitation. Skerry, skerries, or The Skerries may also refer to: Geography Northern Ireland * Skerries, County Armagh, a townland in County Armagh * Skerry, County Antrim, a ...

, and

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be perman ...

s (116 in total), along with

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a nar ...

s and sloping rocks. Forested areas are often laced with paths and lighted for trails for summer hikes and winter skiing. Of Sandefjord's total area, (31%) is agricultural and (26%) is forest. 2 percent is made up of lakes and rivers. Neighbouring towns are

Tønsberg Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative c ...

and

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

. 124-116 islands are within city limits. Small island bays give shelter for overnight campers, and many islets have relatively accessible beaches. Sandefjord is home to several peninsulas, including

West Island The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cl ...

(12 km²), East Island (8 km²),

Engø Engø is a peninsula in Sandefjord, Norway. The original name was ''Engøy'', which is a combination of the words ''eng'' (“meadow”) and ''øy'' (“island”). Former written forms include ''Ænghøy'' (in 1398), ''Enngøenn'' (1575), ''Engø ...

(1 km²), Marøy, and Årø.

Langøya Langøya is the third largest island of Norway (outside of Svalbard), with an area of . The island is a part of the Vesterålen archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. The island includes the municipalities of Bø and Øksnes as well as part ...

(Langø) is the largest island at 0.55 km², while other islands include Ravnø (0.40 km²), Skogøy/Storøya (0.25 km²),

Natholmen {{Infobox islands , name = Natholmen , native_name = , native_name_link = , sobriquet = , image_name = Brua_til_Natholmen.jpg , image_size ...

(0.2 km²), Storholmen (0.13 km²), Ormestadholmen (0.1 km²), Grindholmen (0.08 km²), and

Granholmen Granholmen is a island located in the Sandefjordsfjord of Sandefjord, Norway. Situated around five kilometers south of the city center, the island is housing a campground, a cafe, kiosk, pub, soccer field, along with grassland and sandy beaches. I ...

(12 acres). Despite its location in-between Flautangen and Lindholmen (

Tjøme Tjøme () is an island in Færder, and a former municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Tjøme. The parish of ''Tjømø'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see f ...

) in the Tønsbergfjord, the archipelago of

Stauper Stauper is an archipelago in the Tønsbergfjord that belongs to Sandefjord, Norway. It consists of 170 decares (17 ha, 42 acres) of rocky islands, islets, and skerries, that are only accessible by boat. Stauper consists of 21 islands, including ...

belongs to Sandefjord. It consists of ten large islands and a number of smaller skerries and islets. There were two natural lakes in Sandefjord prior to the 2017 merge:

Goksjø Goksjø is a lake in the municipalities of Sandefjord, Larvik and Andebu in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. Goksjø is 5 km from north to south, and has a circumference of 20 km. At its deepest, Goksjø is no deeper than 26 meters. Goksjø ha ...

, which is the third-largest in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County, and the smaller Napperødtjern (). Napperødtjern lies a few hundred meters north of Goksjø and is a

nature preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

surrounded by swamp forests and wetland. Artificial ponds include Bugårdsdammen, Brydedammen, Virikdammen, Kroksjø, Veradammen, Svarttjern, and others. Local wildlife such as moose, deer, and avifauna can often be observed near freshwater lakes and rivers. Sandefjord has four fjords:

Sandefjordsfjord The Sandefjordsfjord (), sometimes also called the Sandefjord (), is an approximately 9 km long fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is located to the west of Vesterøya. The Sandefjordsfjord is the longest of the ...

,

Lahellefjord Lahellefjord is a minor fjord-arm in the Tønsbergfjord in Sandefjord, Norway. It stretches from Natholmen Island to its base at Lahelle. The Lahellefjord is 5 kilometers long, and is one of four fjords In physical geography, a fjord or fior ...

,

Mefjord The Mefjord (''Mefjorden'') is a small fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is a 9 km long fjord which lies in-between Vesterøya (West Island) and Østerøya (East Island). It is a narrow fjord with many minor islands a ...

, and Tønsbergfjord, which it shares with neighboring

Tønsberg Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative c ...

. The highest point in the municipality is Brånafjell at , which lies northwest of Høyjord. Hjertås at above sea level is the highest point in the city of Sandefjord. From the peak are surrounding views of the

Oslofjord The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...

, Vealøs by

Skien Skien () is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. In modern times it is regarded as part of the traditional region of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the ...

,

Skrim Skrim is a mountain of Buskerud, in southern Norway. Mountains of Viken {{Viken-mountain-stub ...

and

Torp Torp may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Torp (surname), a list of people Places * Torp, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Torp Court District, an administrative region of Sweden * Torp, a place in the Norwegian municipality Fredrikstad, ...

.

Climate

The climate of the entirety of Norway is extremely affected by the

Gulf Stream The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida and up the eastern coastline of the Uni ...

. Were it not for the warming effects of the Gulf Stream, coastal cities by

Oslo Fjord The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...

would be up to 4 °C (7 °F) colder. This means that the climate, the summers especially, are warmer than in other regions at the same latitude, i.e. the

State of Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

or

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...

. Sandefjord has a higher latitude than

Juneau, Alaska The City and Borough of Juneau, more commonly known simply as Juneau ( ; tli, Dzánti K'ihéeni ), is the capital city of the state of Alaska. Located in the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle, it is a unified municipality A mu ...

; Sandefjord is at 59°08′N, while the capital of Alaska is at 58°18′N. Sandefjord experiences more sun than any other Norwegian city during the summer months. Warm breezes from

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (, , ) is a strait running between the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, the southeast coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area through the Danish Straits to the Baltic Sea. T ...

cause a mild climate, and Sandefjord experiences the highest annual number of cloud-free days in Norway. The climate is relatively mild for its latitude. Fields become green in early May, but the air remains slightly cold. The summer seldom begins before the end of May, when temperatures often rapidly increase. The whole month of June and most of July experience little darkness during night and

songbirds A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds ( Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 500 ...

are silent for only 2–3 hours at most.Ebbesen, Jorgen Tandberg (2018). ''The Sulphureous Bath at Sandefjord in Norway''. Sagwan Press. p. 6. . July is the warmest month of the year in Sandefjord when temperatures often rise above . Sandefjord has a relatively humid

continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in the middle latitudes (40 to 55 north), within large landmasses where prevailing winds blow overland bringing so ...

(

Dfb DFB may refer to: * Deerfield Beach, Florida, a city * Decafluorobutane, a fluorocarbon gas * Dem Franchize Boyz, former hip hop group, Atlanta, Georgia * Dfb, Köppen climate classification for Humid continental climate * Distributed-feedback las ...

) with warm summers, no dry season, and relatively much precipitation year long. During the colder season, which is from the end of November until early March, there is a 56 percent average chance that precipitation will be observed during a given day. The likelihood of snow falling is highest in late January and the season in which it is likely to snowfall spans from early November until early April. The coldest day of the year in Sandefjord is 4 February, with an average low temperature of and average high of only .

Villages

Sandefjord Municipality consists of Sandefjord proper and an additional six villages: *

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

(2016 pop. 3,391) *

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

(pop. 2,160) *

Melsomvik Melsomvik is a village in the municipality of Sandefjord, Norway, which lies by the Tønsberg Fjord. Its population is 2,076 as of 2016. It has been a boat harbor since Medieval times when the Leidang fleet was located in Melsomvik. When the confli ...

(pop. 2,076) *

Kodal Kodal is a village and parish in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. Kodal is mostly a rural area, with a population of 971 as of 2014. It is located ten kilometers north of Sandefjord city center and eleven miles south of the town ...

(pop. 1,002) * Fossnes (pop. 519) * Høyjord (pop. 316) A small part of Sandefjord – the Himberg farm – is lying as an

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

inside the borders of the municipality of

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

. All efforts at annexing Himberg into surrounding Larvik have been met with massive protests from local residents. A 1995 annexation attempt was ultimately canceled due to large protests from Himberg residents. Himberg is a rural agricultural community consisting of no more than ten households. There are only four similar exclaves in Norway, and

Himberg Himberg am Wald () is a municipality in the district of Bruck an der Leitha in the Austrian state of Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of ...

is the most populous exclave in the nation, with a population of around 40. It is .

Townscape

Whaler's Monument Whaler's Monument, also known as The Whaling Monument (Norwegian: ''Hvalfangstmonumentet''), is a rotating bronze memorial statue situated by the harbor in Sandefjord, Norway. It is located at the end of Jernbanealleen, which is the main street i ...

, a Sandefjord trademark, is located at the end of the city's main street, Jernbanealléen, in the harbour area. Nearby are the oceanfront restaurants ''Kokeriet'' and ''La Scala'', two of the relatively few places where

whale meat Whale meat, broadly speaking, may include all cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises) and all parts of the animal: muscle (meat), organs (offal), skin ( muktuk), and fat (blubber). There is relatively little demand for whale meat, compared to ...

is regularly served. The

Train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often k ...

- and nearby bus stations are approximately up Jernbanealléen from the waterfront.Lee, Phil and Jules Brown (2003). ''The Rough Guide to Norway''. Rough Guides. p. 129. . The main commercial areas are found on Jernbanealléen (main street), Storgata, Kongensgate and Hvaltorvet Shopping Centre. Sandefjord has a city centre, consisting of a mixture of old and modern buildings and a selection of shops. It has a good selection of restaurants and cafés. According to the renowned restaurant guide, ''Salt & Pepper,'' Sandefjord holds what is possibly Norway's best gourmet restaurant which is located in a modern building near the harbour, known as ''Brygga11'', run by

Bocuse d'Or The Bocuse d'Or (the ''Concours mondial de la cuisine'', World Cooking Contest) is a biennial world chef championship. Named for the chef Paul Bocuse, the event takes place during two days near the end of January in Lyon, France, at the SIRHA Inter ...

winner

Geir Skeie Geir Skeie (born July 2, 1980, Fitjar) is a Norwegian chef and restaurateur, winner of the 2008 Bocuse d'Or Europe,Aardal Hagen, Guro, ''Dagens Næringsliv'' (July 2, 2008)Norsk gull i Bocuse d’OrHolt, Morten, ''Horecanytt'' (August 15, 2008)Boc ...

.Gjerseth, Simen (2016). ''Nye Sandefjord''. Liv forlag. Page 329. . Other restaurants include ''Chili'', ''Kismat'', ''Restaurant La Scala'', ''

Peppes Pizza Peppes Pizza is a Norwegian pizza chain that serves American style. Peppes Pizza is the largest pizza restaurant chain in Scandinavia with close to 90 departments. The restaurant chain was founded in 1970 by the american, Louis Jordan and his no ...

'', ''Kokeriet'', ''Zorba'', ''Lady og Landstryker'n'', and others. Also located at the harbour, is the

fishmonger A fishmonger (historically fishwife for female practitioners) is someone who sells raw fish and seafood. Fishmongers can be wholesalers or retailers and are trained at selecting and purchasing, handling, gutting, boning, filleting, displaying, m ...

well known for the quality of its goods and delicacies, including freshly caught shrimp, crab and fish. The fishmonger, known as ''Brødrene Berggren'', was established in 1911 and is among the oldest in Norway. It processed 1,000 tons of fish and shellfish per year as of year 2000. In the Bakgaarden (backyard) area are numerous cafés, boutiques, and art shops, as well as occasional summer concerts. Restaurants are found throughout the city and offer local specialties such as smoked salmon, dry-cured salmon, moose, reindeer, grouse, and deer. ''Sandar Haandverksbryggeri'' is a popular microbrewery, while wine tastings are offered at ''SMAK Winebar''. Bars include ''Draaben Bar'', ''James Clark Pub'', ''Brygga Bar'', and ''Pir 4''. Street names are named for notable women in the Krokemoa area, such as Lauras vei (named for Laura Konstanse Jensen in 1993), planets (Mosserød), bird species (Lystad), plant species (

Unneberg Unneberg is a residential- and statistical area (''grunnkrets'') in Sandefjord municipality, Norway. The statistical area Unneberg, which also can include the peripheral parts of the village as well as the surrounding countryside, has a population ...

), rock species (Nygård), insects (Gjekstad), and

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern peri ...

(

Breidablik } and ang, fācenstafas respectively). In Beowulf, the lack of refers to the absence of crimes being committed, and therefore both halls have been proposed to be sanctuaries. In popular culture * Breidablik is a sacred weapon in ''Fire Emblem H ...

k), which has streets named for

Freyja In Norse paganism, Freyja ( Old Norse "(the) Lady") is a goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, sex, war, gold, and seiðr (magic for seeing and influencing the future). Freyja is the owner of the necklace Brísingamen, rides a char ...

, Odin,

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing ...

,

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic peoples, ...

, Baldr,

Frigg Frigg (; Old Norse: ) is a goddess, one of the Æsir, in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about her, she is associated with marriage, prophecy, clairvoyance and motherhood, and dwells in the wet ...

,

Mjölnir Mjölnir (from Old Norse Mjǫllnir) is the hammer of the thunder god Thor in Norse mythology, used both as a devastating weapon and as a divine instrument to provide blessings. The hammer is attested in numerous sources, including the 11th cen ...

,

Bragi Bragi (; Old Norse: ) is the skaldic god of poetry in Norse mythology. Etymology The theonym Bragi probably stems from the masculine noun ''bragr'', which can be translated in Old Norse as 'poetry' (cf. Icelandic ''bragur'' 'poem, melody, w ...

,

Urðr Urðr (Old Norse "fate"Orchard (1997:169).) is one of the Norns in Norse mythology. Along with Verðandi (possibly "happening" or "present"Orchard (1997:174).) and Skuld (possibly "debt" or "future"Orchard (1997:151).), Urðr makes up a trio o ...

,

Loki Loki is a god in Norse mythology. According to some sources, Loki is the son of Fárbauti (a jötunn) and Laufey (mentioned as a goddess), and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. Loki is married to Sigyn and they have two sons, Narfi ...

,

Þrymr In Norse mythology, Þrymr (''Thrymr'', ''Thrym''; "uproar") was king of the jǫtnar. In one legend, he stole Mjǫlnir, Thor's hammer, to extort the gods into giving him Freyja as his wife. His kingdom was called Jötunheimr, but according to ...

,

Jötunheimr The terms Jötunheimr (in Old Norse orthography: Jǫtunheimr ; often anglicised as Jotunheim) or Jötunheimar refer to either a land or multiple lands in Nordic mythology inhabited by the jötnar. are typically, but not exclusively, presen ...

, and various

Norse gods Norse is a demonym for Norsemen, a medieval North Germanic ethnolinguistic group ancestral to modern Scandinavians, defined as speakers of Old Norse from about the 9th to the 13th centuries. Norse may also refer to: Culture and religion * Nors ...

. Streets are also named for notable people with ties to the city, including

Wilhelm Wetlesen Wilhelm Laurits Wetlesen (28 November 1871 – 15 June 1925) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. He was part of the circle around painter Erik Werenskiold. Biography Wetlesen was born at Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. He was the son of Chr ...

,

Johan Bryde Johan Bryde (June 1858 – May 1925) was a Norwegian businessperson, ship owner and whaler. He helped establish the first modern whaling station in the country of South Africa. The Bryde's whale (''Balaenoptera brydei'') is named after him. Biogra ...

,

Carl Anton Larsen Carl Anton Larsen (7 August 1860 – 8 December 1924) was a Norwegian-born whaler and Antarctic explorer who made important contributions to the exploration of Antarctica, the most significant being the first discovery of fossils for which he ...

, Christen Christensen,

Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen (11 December 1812 – 16 July 1887) was a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party. Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen was born in Fredrikstad as the son of Hans Christian Ebbesen (1774–1858) and Abigael Marie Bing (1785– ...

, Heinrich Arnold Thaulow,

Nils Vibe Stockfleth Nils Joachim Christian Vibe Stockfleth (11 January 1787 in Fredrikstad, Norway – 26 April 1866 in Sandefjord) was a Norwegian cleric who was instrumental in the first development of the written form of the Northern Sami language. Stockfleth c ...

,

Peter Hersleb Harboe Castberg Peter Hersleb Harboe Castberg (22 July 1794 – 10 June 1858) was a Norwegian priest and politician. Personal life Peter Hersleb Harboe Castberg was born in Bergen as the son of Tycho Didrich Castberg (1755–1801) and his wife Helene Margaretha ...

,

Magnus Brostrup Landstad Magnus Brostrup Landstad (7 October 1802 – 8 October 1880) was a Norwegian parish priest and provost, hymn writer, and poet who published the first collection of authentic Norwegian traditional ballads in 1853. Biography Landstad was born in ...

, and others.

Architecture

Sandefjord's architecture varies from smaller tree homes to large modern complexes. Sandefjord is one of few

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Moder ...

towns in Norway; it is the town with the second-most Art Nouveau buildings in Norway. The major town fires of 1882, 1900 and 1915 devastated much of town and paved the way for new architecture. While neighboring towns mostly consist of wooden clapboard houses, Sandefjord is home to pastel-painted fronts, spires, turrets, and gargoyles.

Jugend style ''Jugendstil'' ("Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German counterpart of ...

structures include Saint John the Baptist's Church, Privatbanken, Gunilla's (''Kongens gate 18''), and an award-receiving 1915 structure at ''Stockfleths gate 9''. Noble examples are also found at Christopher Hvidts Plass, including the bakery Ivar Halvorsen (built in 1900) and the former Methodist Church (1918).Tore, Sandberg and Cato Arveschoug (2001). ''Sandefjord zoomet inn av fotograf Tore Sandberg''. C. Arveschoug and Magne Helland. p. 147. . Certain parts were left untouched by the town fires, including the street known as Bjerggata. Bjerggata is the oldest or one of the oldest parts of Sandefjord. It consists mostly of white wooden homes and is an indicator of how Sandefjord looked until the 1950s.Lee, Phil (2012). ''The Rough Guide To Norway''. Rough Guides. p. 118. .Davidsen, Roger (2008). ''Et Sted i Sandefjord''. Sandar Historielag. pp. 304–305. . Most of the homes at Bjerggata are dated to the early 1800s. Other architecture includes the Viking-inspired dragon style complex from 1899, which housed

Sandefjord Spa Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordi ...

.Bertelsen, Hans Kristian (1985). ''Sandefjord: A modern city with vast potential''. Grafisk Studio. p. 51. . It is one of Scandinavia's largest wooden buildings.

Politics and government

Sandefjord is a stronghold for the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. In the Norwegian local elections of 2011, 47.9% of voters voted for the Conservative Party. The right-wing parties received a total of 70.4% of the vote in Sandefjord, compared to 51.2% nationwide. The current mayor,

Bjørn Ole Gleditsch Bjørn Ole Gleditsch (born 13 January 1963) is a Norwegian businessperson and politician for the Conservative Party. Since 2003 he is the mayor of Sandefjord. Before this he served several terms in the municipal council.Progress Party. Gleditsch is the wealthiest mayor to ever be elected in Norway.

Cathrine Andersen Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

from the Progress Party has been deputy mayor since 2015.

Municipal council

The

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural coun ...

of Sandefjord is made up of 57 representatives that are elected to four-year terms. Each representative from Sandefjord proper is represented by 1,160 inhabitants, representatives from

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

by 1,045, and

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

by 837 residents per municipal council member. The party breakdown as of 2017 is:

Demographics

According to

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every ye ...

in 2017, the municipality is home to 62,622 residents. There were 2,797 vacation homes in Sandefjord as of 2018, and 2,19 people per housing unit. 69.2% are members of

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. ...

, 18% are unaffiliated and 12.8% are members of other religious communities. In addition to State Churches, the city also houses various minor congregations, including an Adventist- and Methodist Church. Religious minorities with congregations in town include

Pentecostals Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

(Salem),

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

( St. Johannes Døperen), Methodists (Metodistkirken),

Seventh-day Adventists The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

(Adventkirken), Baptists (Baptistkirken),

Norwegian Lutheran Mission The Norwegian Lutheran Mission (''Norsk Luthersk Misjonssamband'' in Norwegian; NLM) is one of several independent Lutheran organisations based in Norway. History The organization was founded in 1891 as Det Norske Lutherske Kinamisjonsforbund ...

(Den lille gren), Jehovas Witnesses (Rikets Sal) and

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abra ...

(Alkawther Islam Center and Sandefjord Islamic Center). Baptists first established a congregation in town in the 1880s and Methodists in the 1890s. Konferansesenter1

Brunstad Christian Church Brunstad Christian Church (BCC) is a worldwide evangelical non-denominational Christian church. Established in Norway early in the 20th century. It is represented by more than 220 churches in 54 countries. An overview of members per country shows ...

(Smith's Friends) is an

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exp ...

non-denominational A non-denominational person or organization is one that does not follow (or is not restricted to) any particular or specific religious denomination. Overview The term has been used in the context of various faiths including Jainism, Baháʼí Fait ...

church which was established in neighboring

Horten is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the town of Åsgårdstrand ...

in 1905.

Brunstad Conference Center Oslofjord Convention Center is a convention center in Stokke, Norway, as well as the company established to manage the facility. Ownership and management Oslofjord Convention Center is a commercial entity (joint-stock company) with ''Stiftelsen ...

is the denomination's headquarters and is located in

Stokke Stokke is a town in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold County, Norway. It lies in-between Sandefjord and Tønsberg, two of Vestfold's largest cities. It was a municipality from 1838 to 2016. The administrative centre of the municipality was th ...

. It is the only worldwide denomination which was established in Norway. The largest minority groups in 2017 (first- and second generation immigrants) are Lithuanians (1.95%), Polish (1.93%), Iraqis (1.24%), Vietnamese (0.80%), Germans (0.71%), Swedes (0.69%), Kosovans (0.67%), Bosnians (0.64%), and Danes (0.51%). Sandefjord has a high population density of 339 people per square kilometre. The population density is particularly high in Sandefjord proper, and between E18 and the coast, the city has an equivalent population density to that of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The population increases significantly during summer months due to tourism. After the merge with Stokke and Andebu in 2017, Sandefjord has a population of over 63,000. This makes Sandefjord to the 11th most populous municipality in Norway. It is the most populous city in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County; One in four people from Vestfold County are from Sandefjord, or 25.2 percent of the county population.

Economy

Sandefjord is the wealthiest city in Norway. Important industries in Sandefjord are information technology, chemical production, tourism, navigation, ship building and fishing. It is home to the international airport

Torp Airport Sandefjord Airport, Torp ( no, Sandefjord lufthavn, Torp; ) is an international airport located northeast of Sandefjord, Norway and south of Oslo. The airport features a runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Ves ...

, paint producer Jotun, the brewery Grans Bryggeri, the chocolate factory

Hval Sjokoladefabrikk Hval sjokoladefabrikk is a chocolate factory in Sandefjord, Norway. It manufactures and markets confectionery made of chocolate and marzipan. It was established by Rolf Rune Forsberg at Pindsle in 1995 as Vestfold County’s only chocolate factor ...

, and the engineering company Ramboll Oil & Gas. High-tech and information technology have become important industries in recent times, represented by some of Norway's largest web shops: Komplett, mpx.no, and netshop.no. The largest employer, besides the city itself, is Jotun, which was established in Sandefjord in 1926. Jotun is now one of the world's largest manufacturers of paints and coating products. As of February 2017, Jotun has a presence in over 100 countries and employed 9,500 employees worldwide. The Jotun Group operates four divisions, while its head office is located in Sandefjord. As of 2016, Jotun had 9,800 employees including one thousand employees within Norway. It operated 37 factories in 21 countries and is represented in 120 countries through distributors, offices, and agents. It is owned by the Gleditsch family and

Orkla ASA Orkla ASA is a Norwegian conglomerate operating in the Nordic region, Eastern Europe, Asia and the US. At present, Orkla operates in the branded consumer goods, aluminium solutions and financial investment sectors. Orkla ASA is listed on the Os ...

. While Jotun by far is the largest company in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County, the second-biggest company is

Komplett Komplett AS is a Norwegian e-commerce company with nine webshops in 3 countries in Scandinavia. The main part of their product assortment is computers and components, but they have also expanded to include photographic, Hi-Fi, TV, gaming and w ...

. A web shop operating in all of Scandinavia, Komplett had a 7.3 billion

NOK Nok is a village in Jaba Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. The village is an archeological site. Archaeology The discovery of terracotta figurines at this location caused its name to be used for the Nok culture, of which th ...

revenue in 2015 and had 800 employees. Åsnes - panoramio

Sandefjord had Norway's most expensive seaside vacation homes as of 2011, with an average price of 7.2 million crowns. General property values in Sandefjord appreciated 25.7 percent between 2010 and 2015. Sandefjord Muzeum Wielorybnictwa 3

Largest companies in Sandefjord based on

operating income In accounting and finance, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) is a measure of a firm's profit that includes all incomes and expenses (operating and non-operating) except interest expenses and income tax expenses. Operating income and ...

in 2015:

Tourism

Sandefjord is dubbed a resort town due to its many summer visitors. Sandefjord is also nicknamed the "Bathing City" due to its many beaches, islands and minor archipelagos. Beaches such as Vøra and nearby

Langeby Langeby is a beach at Vesterøya, West Island (Vesterøya) in Sandefjord, Norway. It is described as the city’s best beach by both Frommer's- and Fodor's Travel Guides. Besides its sandy beach, it is home to Langeby Camping which offers boat- an ...

on

West Island The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cl ...

attract summer visitors from

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

and other larger Norwegian cities. Sandefjord became a bathing destination when

sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

was discovered in waters and gyttja in 1837. Sandefjord is home to over two thousand vacation homes, most of which are built along the seaside. Sandefjord had Norway's most expensive vacation homes as of 2012; the mean vacation home price was 7.1 million crowns in 2012. Sandefjord Voera

The city of Sandefjord may be best known for its bathing and many beaches.Alspaugh, Emmanuelle (2006). ''Fodor's Norway''. Fodor's Travel Publications. p. 74. . It is first and foremost known as a summer community. The city lies on a low, slightly inclined

strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa *Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa *Strand Street, ...

, protected on three sides by hills, and only open towards the south where the

Sandefjordsfjord The Sandefjordsfjord (), sometimes also called the Sandefjord (), is an approximately 9 km long fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is located to the west of Vesterøya. The Sandefjordsfjord is the longest of the ...

is located. It is known for its great bathing and pure sea water quality. It has a country-like appearance with clean streets and quaint roads. The city is dependent on the bathing establishment during the summer season when many tourists arrive in Sandefjord. The bathing season in Sandefjord generally begins on 1 June, while it ends on the last day of August. Visitors to

Sandefjord Spa Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordi ...

in the 19th century were the city's first tourists, and made Sandefjord into a popular holiday destination.Tollnes, Ivar and Olaf Akselsen (1994). ''Sandefjord: Den lille storbyen''. Sandefjords blad. p. 140. . The city's fame as a seaside mecca dates back to 1837, when

sulphur spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage unde ...

s first were discovered in town. Sandefjord has been nicknamed "Eastern Norway's vacation paradise." A majority of current tourists and vacation homeowners are from the capital of

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

. Sandefjord is home to four hotels: Scandic Park Hotel,

Hotel Kong Carl A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

, Torp Hotel, and Clarion Collection Hotel Atlantic. Skjellvika Sandefjord

Culture

The 9th century Gokstad Ship was discovered in Sandefjord during an 1880 excavation led by

Nicolay Nicolaysen Nicolay Nicolaysen (14 January 1817 - 22 January 1911) was a Norwegian archaeologist and Norway's first state employed antiquarian. He is perhaps best known for his excavations of the ship burial at Gokstad in 1880. Viking Ship Museum in Oslo, was built around year 910. It is the largest preserved Viking ship in Norway. A Viking chieftain was buried at the

Gokstad Mound The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

(Gokstadhaugen), along with the 23.5-meter Gokstad Ship. Interpretive signs have been put up at the Gokstad Mound on Helgerødveien. Sandefjord has four churches remaining from the Middle Ages: Høyjord Stave Church, Kodal Church, Skjee Church, and Andebu Church. While Andebu Church has Norway's oldest parish register (dated 1623), Høyjord stave church is the only

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ...

left in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County. Its chancel dates to the year 1100 and is the oldest part of the church. Burial mounds dating to the Viking Age can be seen around the church.

Sandar Church Sandar Church (Norwegian: ''Sandar kirke'') is the oldest church in Sandefjord, Norway in Vestfold og Telemark. The church was erected at the ruins of a mediaeval stone church from the 13th century. The current church was built in 1792 in the s ...

by

Sandefjord Station Sandefjord Station ( no, Sandefjord stasjon) is a railway station on the Vestfold Line in Sandefjord, Norway. The station is served with regional trains operated by Vy. The station opened as part of the Vestfold Line in 1881. Norsk Spisevogn ...

was constructed atop of the ruins of a Medieval church dated to the 13th century. The present church, however, was erected in 1792. Sandefjord Bryggekapellet

Midtåsen Sculpture Park contains a collection of bronze- and marbleworks by sculptor

Knut Steen Knut Steen (19 November 1924 – 22 September 2011) was a Norwegian sculptor. Steen lived in Sandefjord for most of his life and dedicated works such as the Whaler's Monument to the city. Many of his sculptures may also be seen at Midtåsen ...

, which is housed in a pine forest

pavilion In architecture, ''pavilion'' has several meanings: * It may be a subsidiary building that is either positioned separately or as an attachment to a main building. Often it is associated with pleasure. In palaces and traditional mansions of Asia ...

overlooking Sandefjord and its

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...

. The former estate of shipping magnate

Anders Jahre Anders August Jahre (28 May 1891 – 26 February 1982) was a Norwegian shipping magnate. Jahre was educated in law, and worked as a lawyer in Sandefjord from 1916 until 1928. Meanwhile, he was also involved in the whaling industry, and he founded ...

is located at Midtåsen, and is now owned by the municipality. Guided tours of the villa are available. The 1200 km² (23,916 sq. ft.) villa was designed by architect

Arnstein Arneberg Arnstein Rynning Arneberg (6 July 1882 – 9 June 1961) was a Norwegian architect. He was active professionally for 50 years and is often considered the leading architect in Norway of his time. Personal life Arnstein Rynning Arneberg was ...

. It is located in a 60-decare (15 acre) park.

Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center is a series of municipal buildings in Sandefjord, Norway, which houses the City Hall, city library and a movie theater. It is situated next-door to Scandic Park Hotel at Sandefjordsveien in the city center. It has ...

is home to three auditoriums and an outdoor amphitheater. A movie theater, City Hall and library are found at Hjertnes. Concerts, opera, and other cultural events also take place at Hjertnes Civic Center.

Art

Sandefjord is the city in Norway with the most sculptures per inhabitant. The city is home to around 100 sculptures from over 50 artists and sculptors including

Ørnulf Bast Ørnulf Bast (25 January 1907 – 28 October 1974) was a Norwegian sculptor and painter particularly known for his public monuments. Background Ørnulf Bjarne Bast was born in Oslo. His parents were Halsten Andersen Bast Birklund (1870–1 ...

,

Nils Aas Nils Sigurd Aas (21 April 1933 – 10 February 2004) was a Norwegian sculptor. He was one of the most prominent artists in modern Norwegian sculpture and is particularly well known for his statue of Haakon VII, located in the June Seventh Squar ...

,

Dagfin Werenskiold Dagfin Werenskiold (16 October 1892 – 29 June 1977) was a Norwegian sculptor and painter. He was born in Bærum as son of Norwegian painter and illustrator Erik Werenskiold, and brother of geologist Werner Werenskiold. He first learned drawi ...

,

Knut Steen Knut Steen (19 November 1924 – 22 September 2011) was a Norwegian sculptor. Steen lived in Sandefjord for most of his life and dedicated works such as the Whaler's Monument to the city. Many of his sculptures may also be seen at Midtåsen ...

,

Per Krogh Per Lasson Krohg (18 June 1889 – 3 March 1965) was a Norwegian artist. He is best known for the mural he created for the United Nations Security Council Chamber, located in the United Nations headquarters in New York City. Biography Per Kroh ...

, and others. Notable sculptures include the

Whaler's Monument Whaler's Monument, also known as The Whaling Monument (Norwegian: ''Hvalfangstmonumentet''), is a rotating bronze memorial statue situated by the harbor in Sandefjord, Norway. It is located at the end of Jernbanealleen, which is the main street i ...

and the Sea Queen (“Havdronningen”) by

Arnold Haukeland Arnold Haukeland (28 March 1920 – 18 June 1983) was a Norwegian sculptor. Biography He was born at Verdal in Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. He was the son of Arnold Martin Haukeland (1891–1977) and Lilly Karoline Wallem (1896–1969). He att ...

, which is located outside

Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center is a series of municipal buildings in Sandefjord, Norway, which houses the City Hall, city library and a movie theater. It is situated next-door to Scandic Park Hotel at Sandefjordsveien in the city center. It has ...

. Midtåsen Sculpture Park contains a collection of bronze and marble works by Knut Steen in a park and villa designed by

Arnstein Arneberg Arnstein Rynning Arneberg (6 July 1882 – 9 June 1961) was a Norwegian architect. He was active professionally for 50 years and is often considered the leading architect in Norway of his time. Personal life Arnstein Rynning Arneberg was ...

. Poseidon Sculpture Park, which is located in

Badeparken Badeparken ("the Bathing Park") is a 12-acre (4.8 ha) public park in the city centre of Sandefjord, Norway. It is near the harbor and is home to a playground, sculpture park, several reflection mirrors, and an amphitheater. The park was establish ...

, features Greek mythology sculptures by

Nina Sundbye Nina Sundbye (born 4 August 1944) is a Norwegian sculptor, born in Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a populati ...

.

Arne Durban Arne Durban (16 June 1912 – 18 March 1993) was a Norwegian sculptor and art critic. He was born in Kristiania, and was a brother of Halvor Durban-Hansen. His works are represented in more than thirty cities in Norway. Among his works are sc ...

’s sculpture "Mother and Child" is located in the City Park (“Byparken”), while a sculpture of priest

Magnus Brostrup Landstad Magnus Brostrup Landstad (7 October 1802 – 8 October 1880) was a Norwegian parish priest and provost, hymn writer, and poet who published the first collection of authentic Norwegian traditional ballads in 1853. Biography Landstad was born in ...

made by

Hans Holmen Hans Holmen (January 8, 1878 – August 16, 1958) was a Norwegian painter and sculptor. Hans Holmen was born at the Holmen farm in Hedrum, Norway, the son of the farmer Iver Holmen (1839–1915) and Anne Marie Svartsrød (1835–1916). He studie ...

can be seen at ''Landstads plass'' by

Sandar Church Sandar Church (Norwegian: ''Sandar kirke'') is the oldest church in Sandefjord, Norway in Vestfold og Telemark. The church was erected at the ruins of a mediaeval stone church from the 13th century. The current church was built in 1792 in the s ...

. A polar bear sculpture by

Skule Waksvik Skule Waksvik (22 December 1927 – 7 February 2018) was a Norwegian sculptor. Biography Waksvik was born in Strinda to painter Bjarne Sigfred Waksvik and Gudrun Bøe. He was married three times, first to textile artist Karin Sundbye, then ...

is located outside

Sandefjord Museum Sandefjordmuseene (''Hvalfangstmuseet'') is a museum located in Sandefjord, Norway. It is dedicated to the whaling industry and is the only specialized museum on the subject of whales and whaling in Europe. Since 2009, the museum has been associa ...

, while a whale jawbone arch is placed outside Scandic Park Hotel. A memorial to fallen sailors (Sjømannsminnesmerket) was placed outside Sandefjord Church in 1920 and was made by sculptor

Gustav Lærum Gustav Lærum (2 June 1870, in Fet – 21 May 1938) was a Norwegian satirical illustrator, caricaturist and sculptor. He provided illustrations for the satirical magazines '' Korsaren'', ''Tyrihans'', and '' Vikingen'', and also the newspape ...

. The fountain at Christopher Hvidts Plass, the Thaulow fountain, was donated to the city in 1875 by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow, the city's first physician and founder of

Sandefjord Spa Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordi ...

. It is the city's oldest sculpture and its first donation. In 2017, the NGO ''Art for All in the World'' conducted a project where seven mural artists contributed. A mural by

Eduardo Kobra Carlos Eduardo Fernandes Léo (born January 1, 1976 in São Paulo, Brazil), known as Eduardo Kobra, nicknamed Kobra, is a street artist who officially began his career in 1987 at 11 years old, in his hometown of São Paulo. Since then he has pai ...

, “Peace between nations”, can be seen behind ''Peter Grøns gate 2B''. Street art by graffiti artist Victor Ash can be seen at ''Stockfeldsgate 6-8''.

Museums

Sandefjord is home to Europe's only museum dedicated to

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

, which is located in the city center.Philpott, Don (1991). ''Visitor's Guide: Norway''. Moorland. p. 76. . The museum was one of the first original museums in Norway when established in 1917. Today it boasts over 150,000 photographs as well as exhibits of marine animals, a restored whale catcher, and more. A whale catcher named ''

Southern Actor ''Southern Actor'' is a former whale catcher, currently a museum ship based in Sandefjord, Norway and owned by Sandefjord Museum. It is the only whale catcher from the Modern Whaling Epoch still to be in its original working order. Over 100,000 h ...

'' is docked at Museum's Wharf and is a part of the Maritime Museum. It is the only whale catcher from the Modern Whaling Epoch still to be in its original working order. It was constructed by

Sevilla Whaling Co. Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsul ...

in 1950 and brought to Sandefjord in 1989.Olstad, Finn (1997). ''Sandefjords historie B.2: En vanlig småby?'' Sandefjord kommune. Page 395. ISBN 8299379725. Museum's Wharf ("Museumsbrygga") was established in 1995 and both the ''

Gaia ship The Gaia ship is a replica of the 9th century Viking ship '' Gokstad ship''. It was built in 1990 and departed Bergen for North America on 17 May 1991. It was named Hav-Cella prior to departing but was renamed ''Gaia'' by Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, ...

'' and ''Southern Actor'' were placed at the wharf. There are six protected buildings in Sandefjord as of 2008: City Museum (Bymuseet), Maritime Museum (Sjøfartsmuséet), and the three farms Elverhøy-, Nordby-, and Auve farms. The city's oldest house, which is located at Skippergaten 6 and was built in 1667, is also one of the city's protected structures. The City Museum and Maritime Museum, along with

Sandefjord Museum Sandefjordmuseene (''Hvalfangstmuseet'') is a museum located in Sandefjord, Norway. It is dedicated to the whaling industry and is the only specialized museum on the subject of whales and whaling in Europe. Since 2009, the museum has been associa ...

, are the three museums found in Sandefjord. Sandefjord Museum is among the world's largest whaling museums. It was established in 1917 and was a gift to the city from

Lars Christensen Lars Christensen (6 April 1884 – 10 December 1965) was a Norwegian shipowner and whaling magnate. He was also a philanthropist with a keen interest in the exploration of Antarctica. Career Lars Christensen was born at Sandar in Vestfold, Nor ...

.

Transportation

Sandefjord Airport Torp Sandefjord Airport, Torp ( no, Sandefjord lufthavn, Torp; ) is an international airport located northeast of Sandefjord, Norway and south of Oslo. The airport features a runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Ves ...

is one of Norway's largest airports, and is particularly known for its high number of international flights. Torp is Norway's second-largest airport in terms of international flights in 2003. As of 2003, Torp had over one million annual passengers, of which around 50% were for international flights. Despite being located 74 miles south of Oslo, Torp is sometimes called Oslo Airport Torp. It is reached with a free shuttle bus from

Sandefjord Airport Station Torp Station ( no, Torp stasjon), also known as Sandefjord Airport Station (), is on the Vestfold Line in Sandefjord, Norway. It is served with regional trains operated by Vy. Located close to Sandefjord Airport, Torp, the station is served by ...

on

Vestfoldbanen The Vestfold Line ( no, Vestfoldbanen) is a railway line which runs between Drammen and Eidanger in Norway. The line connects to the Drammen Line at the northern terminus at Drammen Station and continues as the Bratsberg Line past Skien Statio ...

. Sandefjord Airport is a budget airline hub for airlines such as

Widerøe Widerøes Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a Norwegian airline, and is the largest regional airline operating in the Nordic countries. The airline's fleet of 40 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft, and 3 Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, serves over 4 ...

,

Ryanair Ryanair is an Irish ultra low-cost carrier founded in 1984. It is headquartered in Swords, Dublin, Ireland and has its primary operational bases at Dublin and London Stansted airports. It forms the largest part of the Ryanair Holdings family ...

, and

Wizz Air Wizz Air, legally incorporated as Wizz Air Hungary Ltd. ( hu, Wizz Air Hungary Légiközlekedési Zrt.) is a Hungarian ultra-low-cost carrier with its head office in Budapest, Hungary. The airline serves many cities across Europe, as well as s ...

. Torp offers direct routes to over 30 international and domestic destinations, including daily flights to European cities such as

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. The city is served by frequent intercity trains to Oslo and onwards to

Oslo Airport Oslo Airport ( no, Oslo lufthavn; ), alternatively referred to as Oslo Gardermoen Airport or simply Gardermoen, is the international airport serving Oslo, Norway, the capital and most populous city in the country. A hub for Flyr, Norse Atl ...

. Daily ferries connect Sandefjord to Sweden.Fodor, Eugene (1991). ''Fodor's Scandinavian Cities''. Fodor's Travel Publications. p. 93. . Color Line ferries ''

MS Color Hybrid MS ''Color Hybrid'' is a cruiseferry owned and operated by Color Line on their route between Sandefjord in Norway and Strömstad in Sweden. The largest plug-in diesel-electric hybrid vessel in the world, she entered service in August 2019. ...

'' and '' Color Viking'' connect the town to

Strömstad Strömstad is a locality and the seat of Strömstad Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 6,288 inhabitants in 2010. For historical reasons, Strömstad is called a ''city'' despite its small population. Strömstad became part of ...

in Sweden.

Fjord Line Fjord Line is a Norwegian ferry operator offering services between Norway and Denmark; in October 2020 the company announced a scale-back of operations whereby the ferry operations will only serve the ports of Kristiansand, Hirtshals, and ...

is another ferry service connecting Sandefjord and Sweden. Neighboring town of

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

is home to daily ferry operations between Norway and

Hirtshals Hirtshals is a town and seaport on the coast of Skagerrak on the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark, Europe. It is located in Hjørring municipality in Region Nordjylland. The town of Hirtshals has ...

, Denmark.

Scandi Line A Scandinavian is a resident of Scandinavia or something associated with the region, including: Culture * Scandinavianism, political and cultural movement * Scandinavian design, a design movement of the 1950s * Scandinavian folklore * Scandinavi ...

was a former ferry service operating ferries between Sandefjord and Sweden. Sandefjord is also home to a domestic ferry route: MF Jutøya transports people and goods to

Veierland Veierland is a populated, carfree island in Færder municipality, Norway. A ferry service operated by Jutøya AS connects the island with the nearby, larger island of Nøtterøy. The island also has a permanent ferry link to Engø peninsula in ...

Island from Engø peninsula several times per day. Sandefjord is also a cruise ship destination.

European route E18 European route E18 runs from Craigavon in Northern Ireland to Saint Petersburg in Russia, passing through Scotland, England, Norway, Sweden and Finland. It is about in length. Although the designation implies the possibility of a through jo ...

traverses the municipality. It is one of Norway's most important main roads, and makes the drive to

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

approximately 90 minutes.

Public transit

Sandefjord Airport, Torp from the air cropped

Sandefjord Station Sandefjord Station ( no, Sandefjord stasjon) is a railway station on the Vestfold Line in Sandefjord, Norway. The station is served with regional trains operated by Vy. The station opened as part of the Vestfold Line in 1881. Norsk Spisevogn ...

is the central train station and is served by regional trains operated by Vy. The main bus station is also located by Sandefjord Station. Fast and frequent express buses from Sandefjord shuttle along E18, connecting to

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, f ...

and linking key resorts in

Southern Norway Southern Norway ( no, Sørlandet; lit. "The Southland") is the geographical region (''landsdel'') along the Skagerrak coast of southern Norway. The region is an informal description since it does not have any governmental function. It roughl ...

. Trains and buses for Sandefjord leave

Oslo Central Station Oslo Central Station ( no, Oslo sentralstasjon, abbreviated ) is the main railway station in Oslo, and the largest railway station within the entire Norwegian railway system. It connects with Jernbanetorget station. It's the terminus of Dramm ...

(Oslo S) every 30 minutes, and the journey takes two hours. The public transportation system in Sandefjord is known as

Vestfold Kollektivtrafikk Vestfold Kollektivtrafikk (VKT) (lit. ''Vestfold Public Transport'') is the public transport administration for the county of Vestfold in Norway. VKT is responsible for planning, organising and marketing bus transport in the county, but does not ...

(VKT). Besides Sandefjord Station, additional railway stations include

Sandefjord Airport Station Torp Station ( no, Torp stasjon), also known as Sandefjord Airport Station (), is on the Vestfold Line in Sandefjord, Norway. It is served with regional trains operated by Vy. Located close to Sandefjord Airport, Torp, the station is served by ...

and

Stokke Station Stokke Station ( no, Stokke stasjon) is a railway station on the Vestfold Line in Stokke, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western a ...

. Torp Express Bus Service operates buses from Sandefjord Airport to Oslo. There are free shuttle buses between Sandefjord Airport Station and Sandefjord Airport. Panoramic view of Sandefjord Lufthavn Torp Norway 2015-05-27 darker

Panoramic view of Sandefjord Lufthavn Torp Norway 2015-05-27 darker

Sports

Bugårds Park is home to the city's largest sporting grounds and facilities, including areas for soccer, tennis, frisbee golf, handball, badminton, archery, rollerskating, horseback-riding, water sports, ice hockey, and ice skating. The 60-acre park sits by

Sandefjord High School Sandefjord Upper Secondary School (, often abbreviated to SVGS) is a public upper secondary school in Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway. It is the largest secondary school in Norway. It is housed in two-story facilities which are located at Krokemoa ...

and is also home to a walking path,

duck pond A duck pond is a pond for ducks and other waterfowl. Duck ponds provide habitats for water fowl and other birds, who use the water to bathe in and drink. Typically, such ponds are round, oval or kidney-shaped. An example is the lily pond ...

and designated picnic areas. The swimming center with its 2,500 m² public pool is also located in Bugårds Park. Indoor handball courts are housed in Jotunhallen, while tennis courts are found in Pingvinhallen. Sandefjord Golfbane is an 18-hole golf course located at Jåberg, 5 km (3.1 mi.) from the city center. It was designed by

Peter Chamberlin Peter Hugh Girard Chamberlin (31 March 1919, London – 23 May 1978, Berkshire), most commonly known as Joe Chamberlin, was a post-War English architect most famous for his work on the Barbican Estate in London. Biography Chamberlin was born on ...

. It was established in August 2009.

Professional sports

Sandefjord Fotball Sandefjord Fotball, commonly known simply as Sandefjord, is a Norwegian professional football club, founded on 10 September 1998. The club currently competes in Eliteserien, the top tier of the Norwegian football league system. Their home grou ...

is a professional football club which plays in

Tippeligaen Eliteserien () is a Norwegian professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the Norwegian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotio ...

/Eliteserien (Norwegian Premier League). The team previously played home games at

Storstadion Storstadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Sandefjord, Norway. It was the home ground of Sandefjord Fotball until the summer of 2007. It is currently used mostly for track and field meets and football matches, and is the home ground of Sandefjord ...

, but has played at

Komplett Arena Release Arena (previously called Komplett Arena for sponsorship reasons and Sandefjord Arena) is the current stadium of Sandefjord Fotball. It was opened on 21 July 2007, when Lyn visited Sandefjord, and is still the match with the highest attendan ...

since its opening in 2007. The club reached the

Norwegian First Division The Norwegian First Division, also called 1. divisjon and OBOS-ligaen (named sponsor is property developer OBOS), is the second-highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Each year, the top finishing teams in the 1. divisjon are ...

in 1999, the year after its foundation. Sandefjord is noted for its strong performance in professional handball. The city is home to two top league handball teams: Sandefjord TIF and

IL Runar Idrettslaget Runar is a Norwegian sports club from Haukerød in Sandefjord. It has sections for athletics, handball, football, and cross-country skiing. It was established on January 7, 1949. Athletics Its athletics section is known for its pro ...

. From 1991 to 2008 Sandefjord TIF won nine Men's Premier League and another local team, Runar Håndball, won four.

Sandefjord TIF Handball Sandefjord Turn- og Idrettsforening is a sports club in Sandefjord, Norway. The club has activities in basketball, team handball, handball, orienteering, sport of athletics, athletics, skiing, volleyball, gymnastics and children's allsports. Its ...

won the Men's Premier League again in 2005–06. In professional ice skating, Sandefjord has been the location of

Norwegian Allround Championships The Norwegian Allround Championships are organized by the '' Norges Skøyteforbund'' (Norwegian Skating Association). Men's result 1887-1893 Unofficial Only one distance was skated, the 5000 meter. The winner was Norwegian Champion. * NC = Not cl ...

in 1928, 1958, and 1961.

Education

Sandefjord High School Sandefjord Upper Secondary School (, often abbreviated to SVGS) is a public upper secondary school in Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway. It is the largest secondary school in Norway. It is housed in two-story facilities which are located at Krokemoa ...

(SVGS) has about 2,000 students and is Norway's largest high school. It is a result of the merge between Sandefjord's four former high schools.

Skagerak International School The international schools at Skagerak are a group of private schools located on the waterfront in Sandefjord, Norway. Skagerak is located at the prestigious premises of the former shipyard administration at Framnes.Tore, Sandberg and Cato Arvesch ...

is also located in town and offers English-speaking kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and high school. Other private schools include Moe- and Mokollen schools. Skiringssal folkehøyskole is a

folk high school Folk high schools (also ''Adult Education Center'', Danish: ''Folkehøjskole;'' Dutch: ''Volkshogeschool;'' Finnish: ''kansanopisto'' and ''työväenopisto'' or ''kansalaisopisto;'' German: ''Volkshochschule'' and (a few) ''Heimvolkshochschule ...

in Sandefjord, which is owned by

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County. There are six public middle schools in Sandefjord: Andebu-, Breidablikk-, Bugården-, Ranvik-, Stokke- and Varden middle schools. There are 21 public elementary schools in town. Sandefjord High School (SVGS) and its two-story 32,000 m² (344,000 sq. ft.) facilities are located at Krokemoa near the Bugårds Park. It is a public

International Baccalaureate World School The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Dip ...

, but also offers general academics (the college preparatory ''studiespesialisering'' of the Norwegian school system), as well as elite sports, vocational education, and more.

Skagerak International School The international schools at Skagerak are a group of private schools located on the waterfront in Sandefjord, Norway. Skagerak is located at the prestigious premises of the former shipyard administration at Framnes.Tore, Sandberg and Cato Arvesch ...

is a private, English-language,

International Baccalaureate World School The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Dip ...

at Framnes. Its education is offered to both international- and Norwegian students. Established as a High School in 1991, the school expanded to include a kindergarten as well as Primary- and Middle schools in 2000. The basis of the education is formed by the International Baccalaureate Primary Years (PYP), Middle Years (MYP) and Diploma (DP) programs. Skagerak is located in a renovated shipyard on the waterfront at Framnes. Camps and excursions are offered for all Primary- and Middle School students, as well as two or more annual trips abroad. High School students travel abroad for cultural and service-oriented trips, mostly to areas in Europe, Central Asia, and Africa. The High School is a member of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

's ''SOUL'' project. As of 2018, 250 students are enrolled at

Pilot Flight Academy An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they ar ...

at

Torp Airport Sandefjord Airport, Torp ( no, Sandefjord lufthavn, Torp; ) is an international airport located northeast of Sandefjord, Norway and south of Oslo. The airport features a runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Ves ...

.

Points of interest

Notable points of interest include: * Gokstad Burial Mound, site of the discovery of the 9th-century Gokstad Ship. *

Sandefjord Museum Sandefjordmuseene (''Hvalfangstmuseet'') is a museum located in Sandefjord, Norway. It is dedicated to the whaling industry and is the only specialized museum on the subject of whales and whaling in Europe. Since 2009, the museum has been associa ...

(the Whaling Museum), Europe's only museum dedicated to the whaling industry. **

Gaia ship The Gaia ship is a replica of the 9th century Viking ship '' Gokstad ship''. It was built in 1990 and departed Bergen for North America on 17 May 1991. It was named Hav-Cella prior to departing but was renamed ''Gaia'' by Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, ...

, 1990 replica of the Gokstad Ship at Museum's Wharf in Sandefjord Harbor. **

Southern Actor ''Southern Actor'' is a former whale catcher, currently a museum ship based in Sandefjord, Norway and owned by Sandefjord Museum. It is the only whale catcher from the Modern Whaling Epoch still to be in its original working order. Over 100,000 h ...

,

whale-catcher A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Jap ...

turned

museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small num ...

. Only whale catcher from the Modern Whaling Epoch still to be in its original working order. *

Whaler's Monument Whaler's Monument, also known as The Whaling Monument (Norwegian: ''Hvalfangstmonumentet''), is a rotating bronze memorial statue situated by the harbor in Sandefjord, Norway. It is located at the end of Jernbanealleen, which is the main street i ...

, rotating bronze monument, erected in honor of pioneering whalers *

Sandefjord Spa Sandefjord Spa ( no, Sandefjord Kurbad, often shortened to Kurbadet), was a spa in Sandefjord, Norway, established by Heinrich Arnold Thaulow in 1837. The main building from 1899 is one of the largest wooden buildings in Norway and in the Nordi ...

(Kurbadet), the 1899 thermal baths are housed in one of Scandinavia's largest wooden buildings. * Bjerggata, one of the oldest parts of town with preserved wooden houses. *

Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center is a series of municipal buildings in Sandefjord, Norway, which houses the City Hall, city library and a movie theater. It is situated next-door to Scandic Park Hotel at Sandefjordsveien in the city center. It has ...

, adjacent to

Badeparken Badeparken ("the Bathing Park") is a 12-acre (4.8 ha) public park in the city centre of Sandefjord, Norway. It is near the harbor and is home to a playground, sculpture park, several reflection mirrors, and an amphitheater. The park was establish ...

and Scandic Park Hotel. *

Sandar Church Sandar Church (Norwegian: ''Sandar kirke'') is the oldest church in Sandefjord, Norway in Vestfold og Telemark. The church was erected at the ruins of a mediaeval stone church from the 13th century. The current church was built in 1792 in the s ...

, built on ruins of a 13th-century

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

stone church. Present church was erected in 1792. *

Sandefjord Church Sandefjord () is a List of cities in Norway, city and the most populous List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The municipality of Sandefjord formannskapsdistrikt, was established on 1 January 1838 ...

, 1903 church, home of Sandefjord Church Bells and host of various concerts and events. * Høyjord Stave Church, in

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

, only preserved

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ...

in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County. * Hvaltorvet Shopping Centre, largest shopping mall in Sandefjord, located in the city center. * Harbour Chapel ("Bryggekapellet"), Europe's only floating church. * Folehavna Fort, ruins from a German fortress constructed in 1941 during the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

.Schandy, Tom and Tom Helgesen (2012). ''Naturperler i Vestfold''. Forlaget Tom & Tom v/Schandy. Pages 173-175. ISBN 9788292916148.Gjerseth, Simen (2016). ''Nye Sandefjord''. Liv forlag. Page 71. ISBN 9788283301137. * Sundås Fort, ruins from fortifications constructed in 1899 during the

Union between Sweden and Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway ( sv, Svensk-norska unionen; no, Den svensk-norske union(en)), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate Monarchy, kingdoms ...

. *

Istrehågan Istrehågan is an ancient monument at Jåberg on the Sandefjord-Larvik border in Vestfold og Telemark, Norway.Jøranlid, Marianne (1996). ''40 trivelige turer i Sandefjord og omegn''. Vett Viten. Page 123. .Davidsen, Roger (2008). ''Et Sted i Sande ...

, ancient burial ground which dates to the

Roman Iron Age The archaeology of Northern Europe studies the prehistory of Scandinavia and the adjacent North European Plain, roughly corresponding to the territories of modern Sweden, Norway, Denmark, northern Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. The reg ...

around 1500–500 BCE.

Recreation

Sandefjord has some of Eastern Norway's largest preserved coastal recreation areas. This includes

Yxnøy Yxnøy (also spelled Yxney, formerly: Yxnøyn) is the southernmost part of Østerøya (East Island) in Sandefjord, Norway. It stretches from Nordre Truber to Ertsvika. It is one of the largest undeveloped areas found along the Vestfold coast. It ...

, which is one of the largest preserved nature areas along

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

's coast. There are 20 km (12.4 mi) of coastal hiking trails on

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

peninsula, including to its southern tip where

Tønsberg Barrel Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative ce ...

is located. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon mentioned in ''

Sverris saga ''Sverris saga'' is one of the Kings' sagas. Its subject is King Sverre Sigurdsson of Norway (r. 1177–1202) and it is the main source for this period of Norwegian history. As the foreword tells us, the saga in its final form consists of mor ...

''. The 20 km coastal path at Østerøya (East Island) is an extension of the 25 km (15.5 mi) coastal path on

Vesterøya Vesterøya (West Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It is primarily known for its many beaches and idyllic coastal landscape, but there are also numerous trails used for hiking and biking.Mšbius, Aaron and Michael (2014). ...

(West Island). These 45 kilometers (28 mi.) of hiking trails are part of the international

North Sea Trail The North Sea Trail is a transnational long-distance hiking trail along the coast of the North Sea. The route passes through seven countries and 26 partner areas. The aim of the project is to promote sustainable tourism and to keep alive the com ...

. Additional hiking trails are found at Preståsen, Hjertnes Forest, Fjellvikåsen, Mokollen, Midtås, as well as the Culture Walk. 100 km of hiking trails are attached to trailheads by Heisetra in rural

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

. Sandefjord is home to ten

cross-country skiing trail A cross-country skiing trail or ''loipe''From german: Loipe or ''Langlaufloipe'', pl. –''n'', ''loipe'' is a loanword in English-language travel guides, referring to cross-country ski trails in Europe. It is a Germanization of the Norwegian word ...

s (loipes).

Goksjø Goksjø is a lake in the municipalities of Sandefjord, Larvik and Andebu in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. Goksjø is 5 km from north to south, and has a circumference of 20 km. At its deepest, Goksjø is no deeper than 26 meters. Goksjø ha ...

is a 3.47 km² (2.15 mi²) lake on the border between Sandefjord,

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

, and

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

. It is the third-largest lake in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County. Goksjø is popular for swimming, kayaking and fishing; some of the fish species found here are

Northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish water, brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are kno ...

,

European perch The European perch (''Perca fluviatilis''), also known as the common perch, redfin perch, big-scaled redfin, English perch, Euro perch, Eurasian perch, Eurasian river perch, Hatch, poor man’s rockfish or in Anglophone parts of Europe, simply th ...

, Ide,

Common dace The common dace (''Leuciscus leuciscus'') is a species of freshwater and brackish water ray-finned fish from the family Cyprinidae which is native to Europe but which has been introduced to other parts of the world. It is a quarry species for coa ...

,

European eel The European eel (''Anguilla anguilla'') is a species of eel, a snake-like, catadromous fish. They are normally around and rarely reach more than , but can reach a length of up to in exceptional cases. Eels have been important sources of ...

,

Salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

and

Brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...

. Freshwater fishing is also common by rivers such as Svartåa in

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

and the Hagenes River in

Kodal Kodal is a village and parish in Sandefjord municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. Kodal is mostly a rural area, with a population of 971 as of 2014. It is located ten kilometers north of Sandefjord city center and eleven miles south of the town ...

.

Numedalslågen Numedalslågen is a river located in the counties of Vestfold and Telemark and Viken in southeastern Norway. It is one of the longest rivers in Norway. Location Numedalslågen stretches for over through the counties of Vestfold and Telemark an ...

, which is considered one of Norway's best salmon fishing rivers, is located in neighboring town of

Larvik Larvik () is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. The municipality of Larvik has about 46,364 inhabitants. The municipality has a 110&nbs ...

. Sandefjord is home to numerous campgrounds, all which are located along the seaside. Campgrounds include Asnes,

Langeby Langeby is a beach at Vesterøya, West Island (Vesterøya) in Sandefjord, Norway. It is described as the city’s best beach by both Frommer's- and Fodor's Travel Guides. Besides its sandy beach, it is home to Langeby Camping which offers boat- an ...

, Vøra, Sjøbakken, Strand Leirsted, Solløkka, and islands such as

Granholmen Granholmen is a island located in the Sandefjordsfjord of Sandefjord, Norway. Situated around five kilometers south of the city center, the island is housing a campground, a cafe, kiosk, pub, soccer field, along with grassland and sandy beaches. I ...

and

Natholmen {{Infobox islands , name = Natholmen , native_name = , native_name_link = , sobriquet = , image_name = Brua_til_Natholmen.jpg , image_size ...

.

Langeby Langeby is a beach at Vesterøya, West Island (Vesterøya) in Sandefjord, Norway. It is described as the city’s best beach by both Frommer's- and Fodor's Travel Guides. Besides its sandy beach, it is home to Langeby Camping which offers boat- an ...

is considered Sandefjord's best beach by

Frommer's Frommer's is a travel guide book series created by Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the compan ...

and

Fodor's Fodor's is a publisher of English language travel and tourism information. Fodor's Travel and Fodors.com are divisions of Internet Brands. History Founder Eugene Fodor was a keen traveler, but felt that the guidebooks of his time were borin ...

Travel Guides, and is home to Langeby Camping which offers boat- and kayak rentals. Tent camping is permitted on numerous nearby islands, including the 11-acre (4.5 ha) Hellesøya and 12-acre (5 ha) Buerøya. Langeby lies adjacent to Vøra, a neighboring beach and campground. Vøra tends to get crowded during warm summer days due to tourism. It attracts summer vacationers from throughout Norway during warm summer months. The archipelago of

Stauper Stauper is an archipelago in the Tønsbergfjord that belongs to Sandefjord, Norway. It consists of 170 decares (17 ha, 42 acres) of rocky islands, islets, and skerries, that are only accessible by boat. Stauper consists of 21 islands, including ...

in the Tønsbergfjord, in-between

Tjøme Tjøme () is an island in Færder, and a former municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Tjøme. The parish of ''Tjømø'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see f ...

and

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

, is particularly popular during summer months. These islands are popular for swimming, kayaking, boating, and camping. It consists of four larger islands, four small islands, and a number of islets. Tent camping is permitted in forests, minimum 150 meters (492 ft.) from nearest settlement.

Beaches

Sandefjord's 146 km (90.7 mi.) of coastline is home to various beaches:http://www.oslofjorden.com/badesteder/kart_badeplasser_sandefjord_kommune.html * Asnes (

West Island The West Island () is the unofficial name given to the cities, towns and boroughs at the western end of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada. It is generally considered to consist of the Lakeshore municipalities of Dorval, Pointe-Cl ...

): Campground, convenience store, public restrooms, diving boards, sloping rocks. * Flautangen ( East Island): Firepits, fishing, public restrooms. * Folehavna (West Island): Hiking trails, fishing, sloping rocks. Ruins from a German fortress built in 1941. * Fruvika (West Island): Firepits, benches, public restrooms. *

Granholmen Granholmen is a island located in the Sandefjordsfjord of Sandefjord, Norway. Situated around five kilometers south of the city center, the island is housing a campground, a cafe, kiosk, pub, soccer field, along with grassland and sandy beaches. I ...

(islet): Campground, convenience store, public restrooms, pier, boat rentals, playground. * Grubesand (West Island): 100-meter beach with hiking trails, firepits, sloping rocks, picnic tables, fishing, and public restrooms. *

Langeby Langeby is a beach at Vesterøya, West Island (Vesterøya) in Sandefjord, Norway. It is described as the city’s best beach by both Frommer's- and Fodor's Travel Guides. Besides its sandy beach, it is home to Langeby Camping which offers boat- an ...

(West Island): Campground, convenience store, fishing, boat pier, restrooms, sloping rocks, floating platform, diving boards, showers, volleyball court, soccer field, playground. * Sandtangen (

Goksjø Goksjø is a lake in the municipalities of Sandefjord, Larvik and Andebu in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. Goksjø is 5 km from north to south, and has a circumference of 20 km. At its deepest, Goksjø is no deeper than 26 meters. Goksjø ha ...

Lake): Freshwater beach with pier and floating platform. *

Skjellvika Skjellvika is a lagoon and one of the most visited beaches in Sandefjord, Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold og Telemark, Norway. It has the most shallow waters of any beach in town, furthermore, it has one of the city’s purest sea water quality. I ...

(East Island): Oceanside pier, diving boards, hiking trails, floating platform, sloping rocks. * Strømbadet (city center): floating jetty for swimming in the Sandefjord Harbor. Access from Hjertnesstranda. * Tangen (West Island): Diving boards, floating platform, soccer field, playground, volleyball court, benches, toilets. * Truber and

Yxnøy Yxnøy (also spelled Yxney, formerly: Yxnøyn) is the southernmost part of Østerøya (East Island) in Sandefjord, Norway. It stretches from Nordre Truber to Ertsvika. It is one of the largest undeveloped areas found along the Vestfold coast. It ...

(East Island): Sloping rocks, public restrooms, hiking trails, picnic tables. * Vøra (West Island): Campground, convenience store, volleyball court, public restroom, playground, soccer field, floating platform. Goksjo

Additional beaches include Bogen (Nallberg), Brunstad, Kleivern, Korsvik, Kulerødvannet, Sandbånn and Rossnesodden (Melsomvik), Storevar, Stålerødvannet, Ertsvika, Strandvika, Albertstranda, Ormestadvika, Trollsvann, and Vårnes. Several islands with beaches are only accessible by boat, including Gokstadholmen, Lindholmen, Gåsø, Furuholmen, Gåsøkalven, Ravnø, Buerøya and Hellesøya. The lake

Goksjø Goksjø is a lake in the municipalities of Sandefjord, Larvik and Andebu in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. Goksjø is 5 km from north to south, and has a circumference of 20 km. At its deepest, Goksjø is no deeper than 26 meters. Goksjø ha ...

is home to beaches such as Gubbetangen and Sandtangen. In the early 1940s, the city, under the leadership of mayor

Frithjof Holtedahl Friðþjófur (variations: Fritiof, Frithiof, Fritjof, Frithjof, and Fridtjof) is a Scandinavian masculine given name derived from Old Norse friðr (“peace”) + þjófr (“thief”). Maybe a kenning (a metaphorical phrase used in Old Norse poe ...

, acquired the beaches Asnes on

Vesterøya Vesterøya (West Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It is primarily known for its many beaches and idyllic coastal landscape, but there are also numerous trails used for hiking and biking.Mšbius, Aaron and Michael (2014). ...

and

Skjellvika Skjellvika is a lagoon and one of the most visited beaches in Sandefjord, Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold og Telemark, Norway. It has the most shallow waters of any beach in town, furthermore, it has one of the city’s purest sea water quality. I ...

on

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

. Mayor Holtedahl was also instrumental in acquiring the beach Vøra in 1943.

Nature preserves

The early 1980s saw the establishment of several nature preserves in Sandefjord, including at Fokserød, Strandvika,

Hemskilen Hemskilen is a plant and wildlife preserve with a wetland area known for its unique vegetation and fauna. It is located near the island Storøya on the Sandefjord-Larvik border in Vestfold County. Hemskilen is, at 335 decares (83 acres), one of th ...

, and Vøra. Sandefjord is home to 16

nature preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

s as of 2017: * Dalaåsen (

beech forest Beech Forest is a town in Victoria, Australia. The area of Beech Forest is largely used for potato farming. History The town was named after the many myrtle beech trees of the area. Beech Forest Post Office opened on 10 May 1890 and closed in ...

) * Flisefyr-Hidalen (forest) * Storås and Spirås (forest) * Veggermyra og Nordre Skarsholttjønn (marsh) *

Langø Langø is an island in Denmark. It is situated in the Ulvsund between Sjælland and Møn Møn () is an island in south-eastern Denmark. Until 1 January 2007, it was a municipality in its own right but it is now part of the municipality of Vo ...

and Bokemoa (

protected landscape Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although t ...

) * Robergvannet (

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

) * Melsom (plant- and

wildlife preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

) * Napperødtjern (

riparian forest A riparian forest or riparian woodland is a forested or wooded area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir. Etymology The term riparian comes from the Latin word ...

) * Fokserød (beech forest) * Holtan (plant preserve) * Strandvika (riparian forest) *

Hemskilen Hemskilen is a plant and wildlife preserve with a wetland area known for its unique vegetation and fauna. It is located near the island Storøya on the Sandefjord-Larvik border in Vestfold County. Hemskilen is, at 335 decares (83 acres), one of th ...

(wetland) * Vøra (geological area) * Akersvannet (marsh)

Public parks

Public parks in Sandefjord include: Badeparken_Sandefjord_2

* Bugårdsparken ("the Bugårds Park"), 60-acre park that is home to

Storstadion Storstadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Sandefjord, Norway. It was the home ground of Sandefjord Fotball until the summer of 2007. It is currently used mostly for track and field meets and football matches, and is the home ground of Sandefjord ...

, a 20-acre

duck pond A duck pond is a pond for ducks and other waterfowl. Duck ponds provide habitats for water fowl and other birds, who use the water to bathe in and drink. Typically, such ponds are round, oval or kidney-shaped. An example is the lily pond ...

, public pools, ice-skating rink, and a sports facilities. * Byparken ("the Town Park"), built after the town fire of 1900. Home of the statue ''Mother and Child'' by

Arne Durban Arne Durban (16 June 1912 – 18 March 1993) was a Norwegian sculptor and art critic. He was born in Kristiania, and was a brother of Halvor Durban-Hansen. His works are represented in more than thirty cities in Norway. Among his works are sc ...

. The decision to establish a city park was made by the city council on June 28, 1901. In 1906, enough funds had been received to secure the land. The park has a cubic stone pedestal gifted to the city in May 1995 from

Sandefjord Rotary Sandefjord () is a city and the most populous municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838. The municipality of Sandar was merged into Sandefjord on 1 January 1969. On 1 ...

. On this pedestal is where the “sculpture of the month” has been placed every month since 1995. *

Badeparken Badeparken ("the Bathing Park") is a 12-acre (4.8 ha) public park in the city centre of Sandefjord, Norway. It is near the harbor and is home to a playground, sculpture park, several reflection mirrors, and an amphitheater. The park was establish ...

("the bathing park"), 15-acre city park with fitness trail, an amphitheater, and playground, adjacent to Scandic Park Hotel and

Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center Hjertnes Civic and Theater Center is a series of municipal buildings in Sandefjord, Norway, which houses the City Hall, city library and a movie theater. It is situated next-door to Scandic Park Hotel at Sandefjordsveien in the city center. It has ...

** Poseidon Sculpture Park, sculpture park by

Nina Sundbye Nina Sundbye (born 4 August 1944) is a Norwegian sculptor, born in Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a populati ...

established in 1995 * Andebuparken, park in the center of

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

* Sandefjord Hundepark (Sandefjord Dog Park), dog park near

Sandefjord Upper Secondary School Sandefjord Upper Secondary School (, often abbreviated to SVGS) is a public upper secondary school in Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway. It is the largest secondary school in Norway. It is housed in two-story facilities which are located at Krokemoa ...

managed by Sandefjord hundeklubb * Midtåsen Sculpture Park, 15-acre park at Anders Jahre's former villa, sculptures and views of the

Sandefjordsfjord The Sandefjordsfjord (), sometimes also called the Sandefjord (), is an approximately 9 km long fjord in the municipality of Sandefjord in Vestfold, Norway. It is located to the west of Vesterøya. The Sandefjordsfjord is the longest of the ...

. The park was dedicated to artist

Knut Steen Knut Steen (19 November 1924 – 22 September 2011) was a Norwegian sculptor. Steen lived in Sandefjord for most of his life and dedicated works such as the Whaler's Monument to the city. Many of his sculptures may also be seen at Midtåsen ...

. * Hjertnesstranda ("the Hjertnes Beach"), park at the harbor-front with barbecue grills, sand volleyball fields, benches, public toilets. ** Sandefjord Skatepark * Kirkeparken ("the church park"), park immediately west of Sandefjord Church. * Preståsen, park and recreation area situated on a 44-meter (144 ft.) high hill overlooking the city. Preståsen has various hiking trails, benches, a playground, barbecue sites, a water fountain, and Brydedammen, which is a large pond. It has two access points from Bjerggata in the city center.

Notable residents

Business & Public Service

* Christen Christensen (1845–1923) a Norwegian shipyard and ship-owner *

Johan Bryde Johan Bryde (June 1858 – May 1925) was a Norwegian businessperson, ship owner and whaler. He helped establish the first modern whaling station in the country of South Africa. The Bryde's whale (''Balaenoptera brydei'') is named after him. Biogra ...

(1858–1925) a ship owner and whaler, set up a whaling station in South Africa *

Carl Anton Larsen Carl Anton Larsen (7 August 1860 – 8 December 1924) was a Norwegian-born whaler and Antarctic explorer who made important contributions to the exploration of Antarctica, the most significant being the first discovery of fossils for which he ...

(1860–1924) an Antarctic explorer, set up the Antarctic whaling industry and the settlement at

Grytviken Grytviken ( ) is a settlement on South Georgia in the South Atlantic and formerly a whaling station and the largest settlement on the island. It is located at the head of King Edward Cove within the larger Cumberland East Bay, considered the bes ...

on

South Georgia South Georgia ( es, Isla San Pedro) is an island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It lies around east of the Falkland Islands. Stretching in the east ...

* Olaf Alfred Hoffstad (1865–1943) botanist, school principal and Mayor of Sandefjord, 1911/1934 * Christian Theodore Pedersen (1876–1969),

Norwegian American Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...

seaman,

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

captain and

fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mos ...

in

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S ...

, Canada and the northern Pacific *

Lars Christensen Lars Christensen (6 April 1884 – 10 December 1965) was a Norwegian shipowner and whaling magnate. He was also a philanthropist with a keen interest in the exploration of Antarctica. Career Lars Christensen was born at Sandar in Vestfold, Nor ...

(1884–1965) a Norwegian shipowner and whaling magnate *

Ole Aanderud Larsen Ole Aanderud Larsen (18 December 1884 – 6 October 1964) was a ship designer and businessman from Norway. Larsen was born in Tønsberg and died in Sandefjord, in the county of Vestfold. Larsen is best known for designing the '' Enduranc ...

(1884–1964), ship designer, co-founder of the paint company Jotun *

Ingrid Christensen Ingrid Christensen (10 October 1891 – 18 June 1976) was an early polar explorer. She was known as the first woman to view Antarctica and land on the Antarctic mainland. Early life Christensen (née Dahl) was the daughter of Alfhild Freng Dahl ...

(1891–1976) polar explorer, first woman to set foot on

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

*

Anders Jahre Anders August Jahre (28 May 1891 – 26 February 1982) was a Norwegian shipping magnate. Jahre was educated in law, and worked as a lawyer in Sandefjord from 1916 until 1928. Meanwhile, he was also involved in the whaling industry, and he founded ...

(1891–1982) shipping magnate *

Odd Gleditsch, Sr. Odd Gleditsch Sr. (2 October 1894 – 17 January 1990) was a Norwegian business entrepreneur. The founder of the paint company Jotun. He was CEO of the company from 1926 to 1967. Personal life Gleditsch was born in Sandefjord in Vestfold, No ...

(1895–1990), business entrepreneur, co-founder of the paint company Jotun *

Theodore Theodorsen Theodore Theodorsen (January 8, 1897 – November 5, 1978) was a Norwegian-American theoretical aerodynamicist noted for his work at NACA (the forerunner of NASA) and for his contributions to the study of turbulence. Early yea ...

(1897–1978), Norwegian American theoretical

aerodynamicist Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dyn ...

*

Anton Fredrik Klaveness Anton Fredrik Klaveness may refer to: * Anton Klaveness (Anton Fredrik Klaveness, 1874–1958), Norwegian ship-owner * Anton Fredrik Klaveness (1903–1981) Anton Klaveness (8 November 1903 – 15 April 1981) was a Norwegian equestrian and sh ...

(1903–1981) a Norwegian equestrian and ship-owner *

Karenanne Gussgard Karenanne Gussgard (born 2 January 1940) is a retired Norwegian judge. She was born in Sandefjord in 1940. She studied law and earned her cand.jur. degree in 1964. She worked as a lawyer in Bergen from 1974, secretary in the Appeals Selection Co ...

(born 1940) retired justice of the

Supreme Court of Norway The Supreme Court of Norway ( Norwegian Bokmål: ''(Norges) Høyesterett''; Norwegian Nynorsk: ''(Noregs) Høgsterett''; lit. ‘Highest Court’) was established in 1815 on the basis of section 88 in the Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway ...

1990/2010 *

Bjørn Ole Gleditsch Bjørn Ole Gleditsch (born 13 January 1963) is a Norwegian businessperson and politician for the Conservative Party. Since 2003 he is the mayor of Sandefjord. Before this he served several terms in the municipal council.Jotun; Mayor of Sandefjord since 2003 *

Marie Benedicte Bjørnland Marie Benedicte Bjørnland (born 30 April 1965) is a Norwegian lawyer. She is the current Director of Police since 2019, and was the head of the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) from 2012 to 2019. She was born in Kristiansand and grew up ...

(born 1965) head,

Norwegian Police Security Service The Norwegian Police Security Service (, ) is the police security agency of Norway. The agency was previously known as ''POT'' (' or Police Surveillance Agency), the name change was decided by the Parliament of Norway on 2 June 2001. History an ...

2012/2019 *

Frederic Hauge Frederic Hauge (born 15 August 1965) is a Norwegian environmental activist. He is head of the Bellona Foundation which he co-founded in 1986. Bellona is an international environmental NGO based in countries such as Russia, the United States, N ...

(born 1965) environmental activist, founded and runs

Bellona Foundation The Bellona Foundation is an international environmental NGO headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with branches in Europe and North America. Founded in 1986 by Frederic Hauge and Rune Haaland as a direct action protest group to curb Norway's oil and ga ...

The Arts

*

Ole Windingstad Ole Windingstad (May 18, 1886 – June 3, 1959) was a Norwegian conductor, pianist and composer. He was the conductor of the Scandinavian Symphony Orchestra in Brooklyn, New York and the Hudson Valley Philharmonic. His most notable symphonic compo ...

(1886–1959) a Norwegian conductor, pianist and composer *

Eline Nygaard Riisnæs Eline Nygaard Riisnæs (5 July 1913 – 3 February 2011) was a Norwegian pianist and musicologist at UiO, mother of the pianist and piano pedagog Anne Eline Riisnæs (1951-), and the saxophonists Knut Riisnæs (1945-) and Odd Riisnæs (1953- ...

(1913–2011) a pianist and musicologist at

UiO UIO may refer to: * University of Oslo * Mariscal Sucre International Airport, in Quito, Ecuador ** Old Mariscal Sucre International Airport, which was replaced by the above {{Disambig ...

*

Teddy Nelson Teddy Nelson (born ''Terje Nielsen'', August 23, 1939 - died June 8, 1992) was a Norwegian country music artist, best known for his hit singles " Diggy Liggy Lo", "Bonde ifrå Hamlagrø" and "Skilsmisseferd i Hardanger", and his collaborations wi ...

(1939–1992) country music singer, sang with

Skeeter Davis Skeeter Davis (born Mary Frances Penick; December 30, 1931September 19, 2004) was an American country music singer and songwriter who sang crossover pop music songs including 1962's " The End of the World". She started out as part of the Davis ...

*

Dag Solstad Dag Solstad (born 16 July 1941) is a Norwegian novelist, short-story writer, and dramatist whose work has been translated into 20 languages. He has written nearly 30 books and is the only author to have received the Norwegian Literary Critics ...

(born 1941) a Norwegian novelist, short-story writer and dramatist *

Lorene Yarnell Shields and Yarnell were an American mime team, formed in 1972, consisting of Robert Shields (born March 26, 1951) and Lorene Yarnell (March 21, 1944 – July 29, 2010). Robert Shields Shields was born in Los Angeles and graduated from Gra ...

(1944–2010) a dancer and actress, one of an American mime duo *

Karin Fossum Karin Fossum (born 6 November 1954) is a Norwegian author of crime fiction, often referred to as the "Norwegian queen of crime". Early life Karin Mathisen was born on 6 November 1954 in Sandefjord, in Vestfold county, Norway. She currently li ...

(born 1954) a Norwegian author of crime fiction; the ''"Norwegian queen of crime"'' *

Bent Hamer Bent Hamer (born 18 December 1956) is a film director, writer and producer, born in Sandefjord, Norway in 1956. Biography Hamer studied film theory and literature at the University of Stockholm and the Stockholm Film School. In addition to his ...

(born 1956) a film director, writer and producer * Nils Mathisen (born 1959) keyboards, violin, guitar and bass and composer, *

Anita Hegerland Anita Hegerland (born 3 March 1961 in Sandefjord) is Norway's biggest selling solo artist.Bergan, Jon Vidar (December 30, 2019). “Anita Hegerland”. Great Norwegian Encyclopedia. Retrieved on August 26, 2021, from https://snl.no/Anita_Hegerl ...

(born 1961) singer *

Finn Gjerdrum Finn Gjerdrum (born 20 March 1961, in Sandefjord) is a Norwegian film producer. Gjerdrum started his career making short films with Bent Hamer. His first feature-length movie was Hamer's critically acclaimed '' Eggs'', which was awarded the Amand ...

(born 1961) a Norwegian film producer *

Ole Mathisen Ole Mathisen (born 13 February 1965) is a Norwegians, Norwegian List of jazz musicians, jazz musician (saxophone and clarinet) and composer. He is a critically acclaimed saxophonist and active performer on the New York City and the international ...

(born 1965) saxophone and clarinet and composer *

Hans Mathisen Hans Mathisen (born 27 July 1967 in Sandefjord, Norway) is a Norwegian Jazz guitarist, educated on the Jazzprogram at Trondheim musikkonservatorium (1988–90), well known for his Pat Metheny and Wes Montgomery inspired performances. He is the b ...

(born 1967) guitarist *

Petter Wettre Petter Wettre (born 11 August 1967) is a Norwegian Jazz musician (Saxophone) and composer, known from a number of album recordings, accompanied by receiving the Spellemannprisen two times. Career Wettre was born and raised in Sandefjord. H ...

(born 1967) a jazz musician (Saxophone) and composer *

Per Mathisen Per Mathisen (born 7 October 1969) is a Norwegian jazz bassist and composer who has worked with Terri Lyne Carrington, Geri Allen, Gary Thomas, Bill Bruford, Alex Acuña, Gary Husband, Ralph Peterson, Nguyen Le and Terje Rypdal. He is married ...

(born 1969) bassist and composer *

Thomas Numme Thomas Numme (born 28 February 1970) is a Norwegian television personality. He was born in Sandefjord, a son of Yngvar Numme, and took media education at Volda University College. He worked in the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation NRK, ...

(born 1970) television host *

Espen Sandberg Espen Sandberg (born 2 June 1971) is a Norwegian film director and advertising producer, well known to work with his childhood friend and director Joachim Rønning on several projects such as ''Bandidas'' (2006), '' Max Manus: Man of War'' (2008) ...

(born 1971) a Norwegian film director and advertising producer *

Joachim Rønning Joachim Rønning (born 30 May 1972) is a Norwegian film director who previously worked in a partnership with Espen Sandberg, both of whom came from Sandefjord, Norway. As a directing team, they went under the name of Roenberg (a portmanteau of t ...

(born 1972) film director *

Ina Wroldsen Ina Christine Wroldsen (born 29 May 1984), previously known simply as Ina, is a Norwegian singer and songwriter. She was a part of the electropop duo Ask Embla with Icelandic producer and songwriter Arnthor Birgisson. Career Wroldsen's career ...

(born 1984) a Norwegian singer and songwriter * Per Fredrik Åsly (born 1986) known as ''PelleK'' an actor, composer, singer and YouTuber * Tor Eckhoff (1964-2021) an adventurer and

YouTuber A YouTuber is an online personality and/or influencer who produces videos on the video-sharing platform YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006. Influence Influe ...

*

Lukas Zabulionis Lukas Zabulionis (born 6 March 1992 in Lithuania) is a Norwegian saxophonist and composer of Lithuanian origin, residing in Sandefjord, Norway. Biography Zabulionis has lived in Sandefjord since he was 7 years old. After graduation at Sandefj ...

(born 1992) a saxophonist and composer, lives in Sandefjord

Sport

*

Thorbjørn Svenssen Ole Thorbjørn Svenssen (22 April 1924 – 8 January 2011) was a Norwegian footballer, who played a then record 104 international games for Norway, and captained the side 93 times. He was one of the first footballers who played 100 international ...

(1924–2011) footballer with a then record of 104 caps for

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

*

Solfrid Johansen Solfrid Johansen (born 9 February 1956) is a Norwegian sport rower. She was born in Sandefjord. She competed at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, where she placed fourth in the double sculls together with Ingun Brechan. She com ...

(born 1956) sport rower, came 4th & 5th at

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phil ...

& 1984 Summer Olympics *

Erik Bjørkum Erik Bjørkum (born 26 February 1965) is a Norwegian sailor and Olympic medallist, born in Sandefjord. He received a silver medal in the Flying Dutchman class at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, together with Ole Petter Pollen.

(born 1965) a sailor and team silver medallist at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

*

Ronny Johnsen Jean Ronny Johnsen (born 10 June 1969) is a Norwegian former footballer who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. Johnsen played club football in Norway, Turkey, and England for Sem, Stokke, Eik-Tønsberg, Lyn, Lillestrøm, Beşi ...

(born 1969),

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

with 384 club caps and 62 for

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

*

Morten Fevang Morten Fevang (born 6 March 1975) is a retired Norwegian professional football player. Club career He came to OB from Odd Grenland, and on 28 May 2007 he announced a move home to Odd at the beginning of the summer transfer window. Internatio ...

(born 1975) a football midfielder with 400 club caps *

Geir Ludvig Fevang Geir Ludvig Fevang (born 17 November 1980) is a retired Norwegian football midfielder who last played for Sandefjord. He previously played for Fevang FK, IL Runar, Sandefjord Fotball, IK Start, Lokeren and Haugesund. Career Fevang came to IK St ...

(born 1980) a retired football midfielder with 390 club caps

In popular culture

Johnny Depp in Queensland, Australia (June 2015)

* Both directors of '' Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales'' (2017),

Joachim Rønning Joachim Rønning (born 30 May 1972) is a Norwegian film director who previously worked in a partnership with Espen Sandberg, both of whom came from Sandefjord, Norway. As a directing team, they went under the name of Roenberg (a portmanteau of t ...

and

Espen Sandberg Espen Sandberg (born 2 June 1971) is a Norwegian film director and advertising producer, well known to work with his childhood friend and director Joachim Rønning on several projects such as ''Bandidas'' (2006), '' Max Manus: Man of War'' (2008) ...

, are from Sandefjord. * ''

Hodet over vannet ''Hodet over vannet'' is a Norwegian comedy thriller film by director Nils Gaup. It became a big success at the Norwegian box office. In 1993, it was one of the ten most seen films in Norwegian movie theaters. In the year after, 1994, it won th ...

'' (1993) was filmed at

Yxney Yxnøy (also spelled Yxney, formerly: Yxnøyn) is the southernmost part of Østerøya (East Island) in Sandefjord, Norway. It stretches from Nordre Truber to Ertsvika. It is one of the largest undeveloped areas found along the Vestfold coast. It is ...

on

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

in Sandefjord. The 1996-remake is starring

Cameron Diaz Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is an American actress. With a variety of works in film, she is widely recognised for her work in romantic comedies and animation. Diaz has received various accolades, including nominations for ...

. * ''

Deadline Torp Deadline Torp, also known as Torp-Dramaet, is a TV miniseries co-written by crime author Jo Nesbø based on the true events of the 1994 Torp hostage crisis. It was produced for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. It tells the true story of ...

'' (2005), Norwegian film based on the 1994

Torp hostage crisis The Torp hostage crisis occurred on 28 September 1994 at Sandefjord Airport, Torp, Norway. Two Swedish robbers took two police officers and two pensioners as hostages. The police freed the hostages and killed one of the hostage takers. It is the ...

. It was directed by

Nils Gaup Nils Gaup (born 12 April 1955) is a Sámi film director from Norway. Career Gaup was born in Kautokeino, Finnmark County in Northern Norway. He first intended to become an athlete but from 1974 to 1978 he went to drama school and studied at the ...

and written by

Jo Nesbø Jo Nesbø (; born Jon Nesbø; 29 March 1960) is a Norwegian writer, musician, economist, and former football player and reporter. More than 3 million copies of his novels had been sold in Norway as of March 2014; his work has been translated ...

. * An episode, "Power Junkies" (season 1), of ''

Outrageous Acts of Science ''Outrageous Acts of Science'' is a science program shown on Science Channel in the U.S., featuring a fast-paced countdown of the top 20 internet videos in each episode. The series first aired in the UK on Discovery International with the title ' ...

'' (2012) was partly shot in Sandefjord. * Episode #5.26 of the British TV series ''

Coach Trip ''Coach Trip'' is a British reality game show originally broadcast on Channel 4 from 7 March 2005 to 30 June 2006. The programme returned after a three-year break, from 25 May 2009 to 9 March 2012. In early 2013, the show went into hiatus agai ...

'' (2010) was shot in Sandefjord. * ''

Den starkaste ''The Strongest'' ( sv, Den starkaste) is a 1929 Swedish silent drama film directed by Axel Lindblom and Alf Sjöberg and starring Bengt Djurberg, Anders Henrikson and Gösta Gustafson.Gustafsson p.89 It was Sjöberg's debut film as a director ...

'' (1929), Swedish silent film partly shot in Sandefjord. * ''

Valfångare ''Whalers'' (Swedish: ''Valfångare'') is a 1939 Swedish drama film directed by Anders Henrikson and Tancred Ibsen and starring Allan Bohlin, Tutta Rolf, and Hauk Aabel. It was Rolf's final film. The film's sets were designed by the art direct ...

'' (1939), Swedish movie filmed in Sandefjord. It was directed by

Anders Henrikson Anders Henrik Henrikson (13 June 1896 – 17 October 1965) was a Swedish actor and film director. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1913 and 1965. He also directed 30 films between 1933 and 1956. Selected filmography Actor * ''The ...

and

Tancred Ibsen Tancred Ibsen (11 July 1893 – 4 December 1978) was a Norway, Norwegian Officer (armed forces), military officer, Aircraft pilot, aviator, film director and screenwriter. Background Ibsen was the son of Sigurd Ibsen and Bergljot Bjørnson. He was ...

. * Music video for "Belinda" (2021) by

Marcus & Martinus Marcus & Martinus (both born in Elverum, Norway 21 February 2002), occasionally known as M&M, are Norwegian dance-pop duo consisting of monozygotic twin brothers Marcus and Martinus Gunnarsen. They have released three albums: '' Hei'', ''Togethe ...

was shot at Sandefjord Airport * " Sang til Sandefjord", song played daily by Sandefjord Church * Music video for "The Cabin" (2013) by

Ylvis Ylvis () are a Norwegian comedy duo consisting of brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker. They debuted as professional variety artists in 2000 and have since appeared in several countries in variety shows, comedy concerts, television shows, radi ...

was shot in

Andebu Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities a ...

, Sandefjord. * Music video for "Hvalfangsmuseet" (2011) by

Bare Egil Band Egil Hegerberg (born 23 March 1970) is a Norwegian comedian and musician known for his humorous lyrics and behavior. Career He is best known as a bassist and vocalist, but also plays the guitar, keyboard and synth. He has experimented in severa ...

was shot in Sandefjord. * ''The Machinery'' (2020–),

Viaplay Viaplay is a streaming service owned by Viaplay Group which is based in Stockholm. History Originally owned by Modern Times Group, it was launched in May 2007 as Viasat On Demand. It was rebranded as Viaplay in 2011. Viaplay released its first ...

TV show featuring

Kristoffer Joner Kristoffer Joner (born 19 September 1972) is a Norwegian actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Villmark'' and ''The Man Who Loved Yngve''. He was a part of Rogaland Teater when he was 14 years of age until his early 20s. He was one of the f ...

. It is based in and filmed in Sandefjord. Filming began in Sandefjord in 2019. The city is mentioned in a number of songs, including "

Ola var fra Sandefjord Ola var fra Sandefjord (“Ola was from Sandefjord”) is a 1929 Norwegian song by Einar Rose. It was originally named "My Little Sweetheart". It was one of the most popular songs in Norway in the 1930s. It was composed by Albert Edvin Pedersen ...

" (by

Einar Rose Einar Rose (27 January 1898 – 3 February 1979) was a Norwegian actor, revue artist, singer and restaurant keeper. He was among Norway's most popular singers, and recorded more than 300 songs between 1927 and 1941. He made his debut in the rev ...

, later recorded by the Johnny Band and others), "" (

Anita Hegerland Anita Hegerland (born 3 March 1961 in Sandefjord) is Norway's biggest selling solo artist.Bergan, Jon Vidar (December 30, 2019). “Anita Hegerland”. Great Norwegian Encyclopedia. Retrieved on August 26, 2021, from https://snl.no/Anita_Hegerl ...

), "En sang om en sjømann" (

Lillebjørn Nilsen Bjørn "Lillebjørn" Falk Nilsen (born 21 December 1950) is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and folk musician. He was born in Oslo, and is considered by some to be the leading "voice of Oslo", thanks to numerous classic songs about the city from th ...

), "Oasen 2014" (

Tix Andreas Andresen Haukeland (born 12 April 1993), better known as Tix (stylized as TIX), is a Norwegian singer. He represented Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song " Fallen Angel". He has Tourette syndrome, a condition char ...

), "Medvind" (

Erik og Kriss Erik og Kriss, sometimes styled as Erik & Kriss is a Norwegian rap group created by Erik Mortvedt and Kristoffer Tømmerbakke. The duo became popular through the Internet with the song ''Bærumsgrammatikk'' in 2004 and later with ''Putt Diama ...

), "Vanvittig Utopi II" (

Gatas Parlament Gatas Parlament ( en, Parliament of the Street) is a Norway, Norwegian group of Hip hop music, rap artists. It currently consists of artists Elling Borgersrud and Jester. The group was the first to release a hiphop-recording in their native langu ...

), "Så Det På TV" ( Postgirobygget), and "Helt om natten, helt om dagen" (

Lars Vaular Lars Nesheim Vaular (born September 20, 1984) is a Rapping, rapper and songwriter from Åsane, Bergen, Norway. He started rapping in 2003. He initially released songs under the duo Tier'n og Lars before going solo. Tier'n & Lars Vaular had his be ...

).

Fauna

Wildlife includes the

Mountain hare The mountain hare (''Lepus timidus''), also known as blue hare, tundra hare, variable hare, white hare, snow hare, alpine hare, and Irish hare, is a Palearctic hare that is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats. Evolution The mountai ...

,

European badger The European badger (''Meles meles''), also known as the Eurasian badger, is a badger species in the family Mustelidae native to almost all of Europe. It is classified as least concern on the IUCN Red List as it has a wide range and a large stab ...

,

European beaver The Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber'') or European beaver is a beaver species that was once widespread in Eurasia, but was hunted to near-extinction for both its fur and castoreum. At the turn of the 20th century, only about 1,200 beavers survi ...

,

Roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

,

Red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...

,

Moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...

, Red fox,

European hedgehog The European hedgehog (''Erinaceus europaeus''), also known as the West European hedgehog or common hedgehog, is a hedgehog species native to Europe from Iberia and Italy northwards into Scandinavia and westwards into the British Isles.Harris, S. ...

,

European pine marten The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and parts of Iran, Iraq and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN R ...

, and

Norway lemming The Norway lemming, also known as the Norwegian lemming (''Lemmus lemmus'') is a common species of lemming found in northern Fennoscandia, where it is the only vertebrate species endemic to the region. The Norway lemming dwells in tundra and fell ...

. More rare but occasionally encountered are the

Gray wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...

,

Eurasian lynx The Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') is a medium-sized wild cat widely distributed from Northern, Central and Eastern Europe to Central Asia and Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas. It inhabits temperate and boreal forests up to an e ...

,

Wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...

and

Brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is ...

. Wolves are extremely rare in Sandefjord, although they have been observed on numerous occasions. A wolf shot in neighboring Lardal in 2013 was the first wolf killed in

Vestfold Vestfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in Eastern Norway. In 2020 the county became part of the much larger county of Vestfold og Telemark. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it bordered t ...

County in over 100 years. Common European Viper is the only venomous snake found in Norway. There are an additional two non-venomous snake species found in Vestfold County: European grass snake and European smooth snake. The Slowworm is considered a lizard.Larsen, Erlend (2011). ''På Tur i Vestfold del 2''. E-forlag. p. 22. .

Gallery

Haukerød Skolekorps 2016.jpg, Constitution Day (Norway), 17 May parade, 2016 Tønsberg tønne.jpg,

Tønsberg Barrel Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative ce ...

at the southern tip of

Østerøya Østerøya (East Island) is one of two peninsulas outside Sandefjord, Norway. It borders in west to the Mefjord and east to the Tønsbergfjord. Tønsberg Barrel is located on the southern end of the peninsula. Tønsberg Barrel is an old beacon ...

Joachim Frich Sandefjord.jpg, Sandefjord in 1848, painting Sandefjord kirke1.JPG, Sandefjord Church Sandefjord innseiling IMG 6023.jpg, Seaside entry to Sandefjord Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution (1891) (17813080994).jpg,

Gokstad Mound The Gokstad Mound (Norwegian: Gokstadhaugen) is a large burial mound at Gokstad Farm in Sandefjord (formerly Sandar municipality) in Vestfold County, Norway. It is also known as the King's Mound (''Kongshaugen'') and is where the 9th century Go ...

GransBryggeri2.jpg, Grans Brewery Sandefjord - building 10.jpg, Typical house in Bjerggata Sandefjord_Næringsforening.jpg, Sandefjord, spring 2019 Sandefjord Hotel Atlantic.jpg, Clarion Collection Hotel Atlantic SandefjordVGS1.jpg,

Sandefjord High School Sandefjord Upper Secondary School (, often abbreviated to SVGS) is a public upper secondary school in Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway. It is the largest secondary school in Norway. It is housed in two-story facilities which are located at Krokemoa ...

is Norway's largest. Sandefjord, Norway - panoramio (3).jpg, City Park (Byparken)

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every ye ...

Sandefjord Municipality website
* *
Whaling Museum

Sandefjord Public Library

The local history society "Gamle Sandefjord" – "Old Sandefjord"

A local history society dedicated to the erstwhile municipality of Sandar – Sandar Historielag i Sandefjord

A biographical dictionary of the population of the town of Sandefjord in 1801
in Norwegian
A blog-format collection of potted biographies of people in Sandefjord who turn up in the sources as of 1762 as well as occasional articles based on that material, mostly in Norwegian
{{Authority control Sandefjord, Municipalities of Vestfold og Telemark Populated places in Vestfold og Telemark Cities and towns in Norway

Etymology

Coat-of-arms

History

Viking history

Health resort

Town fires

Whaling and ships

Antarctic expeditions

World War II

SAS merge

Historical population

Geography

Climate

Villages

Townscape

Architecture

Politics and government

Municipal council

Demographics

Economy

Tourism

Culture

Art

Museums

Transportation

Public transit

Sports

Professional sports

Education

Points of interest

Recreation

Beaches

Nature preserves

Public parks

Notable residents

Business & Public Service

The Arts

Sport

In popular culture

Fauna

Gallery

See also

References

External links