On a relaxed walk around the seaside Art Nouveau wonderland of Alesund, you’ll see firsthand why it’s been voted “most beautiful town in Norway.”Arrayed across three islands stretching into the sea and ringed by dramatic mountains, Alesund’s signature “Jugendstil” skyline is both romantic and historical. After a 1904 city-wide fire left 850 houses in ashes and 10,000 people homeless (though only a single woman died), the entire town was rebuilt in the trendiest architectural style of the day. The resulting cityscape is a unified parade of turrets, spires and medieval ornaments; it was German emperor Wilhelm II, a close friend of Norway, who sent the masons to get the job done in record time. On your walk through the compact city center, you’ll learn more about this story – and about Alesund’s status as Norway’s fisheries capital. In a small park at the base of Mount Aksla, you’ll see a statue commemorating Wilhelm and another of Viking legend Rollo, who sailed from this port to found what is today Normandy. From the park, after your guided tour, you can take an optional climb up the 418 steps to reach the lookout point of Mount Aksla. Your effort rewards you with spectacular views of the city center, the archipelago and the Sunnmore Alps.