Gjøvik - the city by the lake
Gjøvik was awarded city status in 1861 and was originally based on cornerstone industries such as Mustad Fabrikker (fish hooks) and Gjøvigs Glasverk (glassworks) that sprouted up along the Hunnselva river. Today, the municipality has approx. 27,300 residents and is the largest of the three urban municipalities situated along Lake Mjøsa. Approximately 17,000 of the inhabitants live in the downtown area. The city is only 12 miles from Oslo, and Norway’s international airport at Gardermoen is only about an hour’s drive south of the city.

 Gjøvik is a leader for inland Norway in the fields of industry, commerce and social services, and the city serves as an important centre for higher education, with the highest number of students between Oslo and Trondheim. Here you will find nursery schools that guarantee positive childhood memories and a primary school that is among the best in the country when it comes to child development and education. Everything is primed for innovation, both in terms of the business culture and in terms of technological know-how. And the locals? Well, enthusiasm, commitment and hospitality are the terms that best characterise both the people and life in Gjøvik.