Home to another striking modern church (it’s actually called the Cathedral of the Northern Lights), Alta is also the site of the world’s first Northern Lights observatory, built in the late 1800s. This is one of the spots you’re most likely to catch a glimpse of the unpredictable polar lightshow, but there are plenty more experiences to be had.

More breathtaking natural beauty, crashing waterfalls and head-spinning vertical drops (this time 600m from the flat-topped Pulpit Rock or Preikestolen) can be found about Stavanger. Or find out about more Viking antics in Stavanger’s Museum of Archaeology, then explore the cobbled streets of the old town with its lovely white-painted wooden cottages.

You’re just 400km from the Arctic Circle in Tromsø, but there’s no need to get out your polar gear. Thanks to its position on the Gulf Stream, this lively city (said to have the greatest number of bars per capita in Norway) is relatively mild for its latitude. It has a centuries-old heart and some impressive modern architecture, including the beautifully austere, peaked Arctic Cathedral with its icy shards of concrete and glass.

Second World War buffs will be interested in the interactive exhibits at Narvik’s new War Museum. Then venture out to view the incredible scenery – a cable car up Fagernesfjellet mountain, or the 43km-long Ofoten Railway line from Narvik to the Swedish border and beyond, which takes you through some truly wild and breathtaking landscapes.