Hafslund Park
– a historic landscape open to all
The park at Hafslund Manor is a beautiful and living heritage landscape, where rolling lawns, the majestic lime tree avenue and tranquil ponds come together in quiet harmony. Open to the public year-round, Hafslund Park offers a welcoming setting for walks, relaxation and shared moments outdoors.
Enjoy quiet moments beneath the tree canopies
Experience history at your own pace
Take a gentle stroll beneath the canopy of the grand avenue, pause by the reflective pond, or discover the park’s sculptures and historic pavilions.
Whether you are drawn to history, a love of nature, or simply in search of a beautiful pause in everyday life, Hafslund Park offers an experience that engages all the senses.
In the heart of Sarpsborg lies one of Norway’s most complete manor parks – a protected landscape where history meets the changing rhythm of the seasons.
The avenues guide you through centuries of garden design, from the formal lines of the Baroque to the softness of romantic flower meadows.
Here, you can find a sense of calm beneath the trees, listen to birdsong from the charming aviary, and encounter sculptures by renowned Norwegian artists such as Arne Vigeland, Per Inge Bjørlo and Nico Widerberg.
The park forms part of the Ancient Route in Østfold, and is home to burial mounds from the Iron Age as well as rock carvings dating back more than 3,000 years.
It is open to everyone – year-round – and invites both quiet walks, inspiring encounters, and memorable experiences.
Hafslund Park is shaped by its grand lime tree avenue and wide open lawns, elegantly balanced with shaded paths and tranquil ponds. In the lower part of the park, visitors can wander among burial mounds from the Late Iron Age, before continuing towards the rock carvings of the Bronze Age. The park is rich in wildlife, from hares and squirrels darting between the trees to jackdaws and owls gliding through the canopy. Just below the horse paddock, the aviary adds a lively touch, home to parakeets and chickens.
The park is enriched with artistic elements, featuring works by Arne Vigeland, Per Inge Bjørlo and Nico Widerberg, alongside busts of Hafslund’s founder, Knut Ørn Bryn, and its first chairman, Hieronymus Heyerdahl.
Both the historic Borgleden pilgrim trail and the more recent Millennium Trail, established in connection with Sarpsborg’s millennium anniversary in 2016, pass through Hafslund Park.
On both the eastern and western sides of the main house, the park continues in a similar style. Here you will also find the elegant King’s Pavilion, a replica of the original structure that once stood at Kongehøien by the Sarpsfossen, rebuilt in 1937 by architect Arnstein Arneberg.
Parkens historie
The earliest trace of a designed landscape at Hafslund is the viewpoint at Kongehøien, overlooking the Sarpsfossen. A road led there from the Main House. Første konge på Kongehøien var Christian 5. i 1685.
The earliest traces of a formal garden at Hafslund date back to around 1700, when the Baroque garden north of the main house was first laid out. In 1756, Councillor of Justice Peter Elieson and Anna Collett acquired the estate, marking the beginning of a period of modernisation.
Following the fire of 1758, a new Rococo main house was completed in 1762. The Baroque garden was retained, along with the two-storey garden pavilion, distinguished by its small-paned leaded windows.
In the late 1780s, Johan Fahne began shaping the park, relocating the Baroque pavilion further down into the landscape. The English elements were likely introduced somewhat later. The years around 1800 marked a period of prosperity, during which Maren Juel became owner of the estate – first together with Wessel, and later with her husband Rosenkrantz. Under her stewardship, the park was fully transformed into an English landscape garden. Juel and Rosenkrantz also commissioned the King’s Pavilion, and an intricate water-powered clock was installed.
Later in the 19th century, both the manor and its park fell into a period of decline. When Aktieselskapet Hafslund acquired the estate in 1898, a new phase of renewal began, with extensive restoration of both the buildings and the landscape – work that continued over several decades. Until the mid-1930s, fruit and vegetable gardens were cultivated on both sides of the central lime tree avenue. The gardens were later removed and replaced by expansive lawns. Gradually, the park took on the form we recognise today.
Despite the many changes in ownership throughout the 19th century, a gardener was continually employed at Hafslund, ensuring that the park and gardens were maintained to a reasonable standard. Census records from both 1865 and 1875 confirm that gardeners were living and working on the estate.