Pepperkakebyen: The Stunning Gingerbread Town Of Bergen, Norway

Bergen's Pepperkakebyen is a real highlight of the Christmas season in Norway's second biggest city. Come take a closer look.

Gingerbread is one of those aromas that instantly transports me back decades to Christmas as a young child. Its use in Norway is one of the best things for me about a Norwegian Christmas!

In particular, the thin, crispy gingerbread cookies known as pepperkaker are something I look forward to seeing on supermarket shelves every November. They are as much a part of Norwegian holiday tradition as the Christmas tree or the julebord buffet.

I’ve seen a few pepperkakehus (gingerbread houses) in parts of Norway over the years, including at the Røros Christmas market. But nothing compares with the incredible gingerbread town of Bergen known as Pepperkakebyen.

Watch a Tour of Pepperkakebyen

If you're the kind of person who prefers to watch, then check out this 12-minute tour of the exhibition.

Once you've seen the video, scroll down for loads more photos and details about this remarkable place.

What Is Bergen’s Gingerbread Town?

Said to be the biggest gingerbread city in the world, Bergen’s Pepperkakebyen is one of the most heartwarming Christmas traditions in Norway.

Each year, the people of Bergen come together to build an entire miniature city made from gingerbread, complete with houses, boats, schools, and even tiny football stadiums.

The scale of it is astonishing. Imagine a glowing winter landscape filled with hundreds of intricately decorated gingerbread creations, all gently illuminated to create a magical twilight glow.

Model trains wind through the town, boats sit in sugar “harbours,” and the scent of freshly baked gingerbread fills the air.

While some structures are modelled on real buildings from Bergen—you might spot Bryggen, the Fish Market, or Fløibanen funicular—many are pure imagination.

Children build cozy cottages, companies contribute elaborate landmarks, and schools submit entire neighborhoods. The result is a city that feels both whimsical and deeply personal.

A Bergen Tradition Since 1991

Pepperkakebyen began back in 1991 as a community project initiated by local teacher Steinar Kristoffersen.

The goal was simple: to create something joyful that could bring Bergen’s citizens together during the darkest part of the year. More than three decades later, that spirit still defines the event.

The exhibition is coordinated by Bergen Sentrum AS, the city’s downtown association, and every krone of profit is donated to children’s charities. It’s a rare example of a major seasonal attraction that is both community-driven and non-profit.

Every November, kindergartens, schools, bakeries, companies, and families across Bergen roll up their sleeves and get baking. The rules are simple: everything must be made of gingerbread and sugar-based decorations.

By mid-November, thousands of buildings are delivered to the exhibition site, where a small army of volunteers assembles them into a cohesive cityscape.

Pepperkakebyen 2025: Dates, Location & Tickets

For 2025, the exhibition runs from 15 November 2025 until 11 January 2026, hosted once again in byROMMET at Kong Oscars gate 24–26, just a short walk from the Fish Market and Bergen Cathedral.

Opening hours are generous. It's open from 09:00 to 21:00 on weekdays, slightly shorter at weekends, and with special hours on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Eve. The exhibition is closed only on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Tickets cost NOK 199 for adults, NOK 149 for students, and NOK 49 for children aged 3–15 on weekends.

On weekdays, children enter free, a lovely gesture that makes the exhibition accessible to local families. Those who have contributed a gingerbread house also enjoy free admission.

The venue is fully accessible for prams and wheelchairs, and there’s space for coats and bags inside. It’s worth knowing that even with online tickets you may need to queue, especially on December weekends. The scent of gingerbread attracts quite the crowd!

Exploring Bergen’s Miniature World

When you step through the entrance, the first thing that hits you is the smell. Sweet, spiced, and unmistakably festive, it’s like stepping inside a bakery crossed with a fairytale.

Then your eyes adjust to the glow of hundreds of tiny lights reflecting off icing “snow.”

At first glance, the display seems manageable, but once you start following the train tracks and sugar roads, it quickly reveals its depth.

There are tunnels, bridges, churches, sports fields, and harbours. Every corner is filled with small details you might miss on the first lap.

I was particularly taken with the gingerbread version of SK Brann’s Brann Stadion, complete with jelly players and cheering fans.

Another display featured a basketball court with little biscuit players mid-game. A gingerbread ferry was moored near a “river,” while a bridge arched gracefully over icing “water.”

Everywhere you look, you can see the pride of those who contributed. There’s real artistry in some pieces, but the charm lies in the mix. There's professional-quality bakes alongside delightfully lopsided creations clearly made by kids.

Visitors describe Pepperkakebyen as “magical,” “so much bigger than expected,” and “the highlight of winter in Bergen.” Travel bloggers have called it “the most wholesome Christmas experience in Norway,” and families return year after year to see how it evolves.

The exhibition has even inspired imitators abroad, including gingerbread cities in Minnesota, London, and Stockholm, but Bergen’s remains the original and still the largest, or so they claim.

A Community That Smells Like Christmas

What makes Pepperkakebyen so special is that it’s not a tourist show built by professionals. It’s a city literally baked by the people of Bergen, by schoolchildren, bakers, businesses, and parents spending an evening decorating together.

The result captures something fundamental about Norwegian Christmas spirit: that sense of dugnad, the community working together for joy rather than profit.

The event has also become a cultural symbol for Bergen. Local media track its progress every year, and when the city suffered a devastating fire at its previous venue in 2009, hundreds of volunteers came forward to rebuild it from scratch in time for Christmas.

Why You Should Go

Whether you visit Bergen especially for Christmas or simply happen to be in the city on a winter trip, Pepperkakebyen is well worth a detour. It’s part art exhibition, part community event, and part nostalgic trip back to childhood.

Step inside and you’ll be surrounded by the warm glow of fairy lights, the scent of gingerbread, and the quiet hum of delighted voices. It’s the very definition of koselig, that cozy, contented feeling Norwegians chase during the long dark months.

So next time you’re in Bergen in December, follow your nose. It will probably lead you straight to the gingerbread town.