In this guide · 17 sections
- What the scene actually looks like
- Tyven
- Other places Visit Norway lists
- Saunas, cruising and beaches
- Trondheim Pride
- Community and health
- Where to stay
- Practical tips
- Beyond the bars
- A few words in Norwegian
- At a glance
- FAQ
- Is there a gay bar in Trondheim?
- Is there a gay sauna in Trondheim?
- When is Trondheim Pride?
- Is Trondheim safe for LGBTQ+ travellers?
- How long is the trip from Oslo?
The honest summary: Trondheim is Norway's third city, about 218,000 people on a bend of the Nidelva, and it has no dedicated gay bar, no gay club and no gay sauna. Queer nightlife here happens in a mixed bar called Tyven, at the student society Samfundet and at events. The year's big moment is Trondheim Pride in September; more than 30,000 people joined the 2026 parade. Come for the cathedral, Bakklandet and a relaxed, safe city, and time your trip for Pride week if nightlife matters to you.
Legal in one line: Norway banned discrimination on sexual orientation in 1981, the first country to do so, brought in registered partnership in 1993 and gender-neutral marriage on 1 January 2009, and parliament banned conversion therapy in December 2023.
What the scene actually looks like
We went through Visit Norway's page on LGBTIQ+ meeting places, the Trondheim Pride and FRI Trøndelag websites, NTNU's student pages and Norwegian-language listings for gay bars, clubs and saunas in 2026. None of them names a gay bar in Trondheim, and we found none ourselves. What Visit Norway does list is a handful of mixed places where queer locals feel at home, with Tyven at the top.
Older guides, including an earlier version of this one, talked about a "gay bar scene around Torvet and Munkegata". We couldn't find any source for that, so we've dropped it. Most bars are in Midtbyen, the centre between the river loop and the harbour, and that's where you'll spend your evenings, but no street or district is a gay quarter.
Tyven
Tyven is at Dronningens gate 11 in Midtbyen and has been open since 2018. Visit Norway calls it "a very important queer hangout in Trondheim". It is a mixed bar and event space with DJs, not a gay bar.
- Hours (per tyventrondheim.no, November 2026): Wednesday and Thursday 18:00–01:30, Friday 16:00–03:30, Saturday 18:00–03:30, Sunday 16:00–00:30. Closed Monday and Tuesday.
- Food: a kebab menu called Kebabaluba.
- Events: listed on its website and Instagram; you can book a table online for busy nights.
- Samfundet (Studentersamfundet, the round red building at Elgeseter gate 1) is the big student society. It marks Pride with concerts and parties, and Visit Norway mentions monthly queer concerts and Skeiv Scene, a queer open mic.
- Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri brews a pride beer for June and for Trondheim Pride.
- Fru Lundgreen is a dive bar that is open to everyone, and Sellanraa Bok & Bar is a book café and bar.
- Sukkerhuset held its first drag show on 20 February 2026, according to FRI's calendar. It's one to watch rather than a regular night yet.
- FRI Trøndelag is the regional branch of FRI and the Pride organiser. It has no public office. Its quiz nights, board-game evenings, clothing swaps and hikes are mostly held at NTNU Helgasetr, and it runs a group for parents of trans children.
- Skeive Studenter is NTNU's queer student group, with several events a month during term.
- Testing: Helseutvalget's Sjekkpunkt drop-in clinics are in Oslo and Bergen; we found no Sjekkpunkt in Trondheim. HIV and STI tests go through the public health service, starting with a GP; helsenorge.no lists current options.
- Getting in: Trondheim Airport Værnes (TRD) is about 30 km east of the centre. Trains to Trondheim S run about hourly and take around 35 minutes; the Flybussen coach also runs to the centre.
- Getting around: the centre is compact and walkable. Buses cover the rest, and the Gråkallbanen tram runs from St. Olavs gate up to Lian in the hills west of the city.
- Oslo is far: the train takes about six and a half to seven hours. It isn't a day trip.
- Prices: Norwegian bar prices are high, and the state-run Vinmonopolet is the only place to buy wine and spirits to take away.
- Seasons: June nights barely get dark; in December the sun is up for only about four and a half hours.
- skeiv – queer (skeive = queer people)
- homofil – gay; lesbisk – lesbian
- kjæreste – boyfriend or girlfriend
- skål! – cheers!
Other places Visit Norway lists
None of these is a gay venue. They are places where you won't stand out, and some host queer events from time to time.
Saunas, cruising and beaches
Trondheim has no gay sauna. The saunas you'll find, at Havet Arena on the harbour, the Stu floating saunas at Brattøra and Sjøbadet, are ordinary public saunas: mixed, in swimwear and bookable by the hour. They're well worth a session, but they are not gay spaces.
We found no cruising area in Trondheim with two or more current sources, so we don't list one. We also found no gay beach. The city's popular summer beaches are Korsvika on the Lade trail and Munkholmen, the small island reached by boat from Ravnkloa between mid-May and September. For gay saunas and a bigger bar scene, Oslo is the nearest option; see our Oslo guide.
Trondheim Pride
Trondheim Pride is run by volunteers from FRI Trøndelag and takes place in September, not in June or August as older guides say. The 2025 festival ran from 5 to 14 September. In 2026 the programme ran from 4 to 12 September, and the parade on Saturday 12 September went along Kongens gate from 12:00, followed by a show on Torvet with Alessandra headlining. FRI's speech that day put the turnout at more than 30,000.
King Harald V died on 28 August 2026, and national mourning lasted until his funeral on 9 September. A few early Pride events were moved, but the festival and parade went ahead. The 2027 dates were not announced at the time of writing; going by recent years, expect the second week of September. Check trondheimpride.no before booking.
Community and health
Where to stay
Stay in Midtbyen or along the river and everything is walkable. The Britannia Hotel on Dronningens gate is the grand option, a few doors from Tyven. Scandic Nidelven and Clarion Hotel Trondheim are big, well-reviewed hotels by the station and harbour, handy for the airport train. Scandic Bakklandet puts you on the east bank by the old wooden-house quarter. None of them is a gay hotel; in Norway that simply isn't a category. See all our Trondheim hotels.
Practical tips
Beyond the bars
Nidaros Cathedral, built over the grave of St Olav from 1070 onwards, is the city's centrepiece. Cross the Old Town Bridge to Bakklandet for coffee in the wooden houses, then walk the river to Solsiden, the old shipyard turned waterfront strip. Rockheim, the national museum of pop and rock, sits on the harbour. Further out, the UNESCO mining town of Røros is about two and a half hours away by train.
A few words in Norwegian
At a glance
| Gay bars | None dedicated; Tyven is the main queer hangout (mixed) |
|---|---|
| Gay sauna | None |
| Cruising | Nothing verified |
| Pride | Trondheim Pride, September (2026: 4–12 Sep, parade 12 Sep); 2027 not announced |
| Organisation | FRI Trøndelag |
| Airport | Værnes (TRD), about 30 km, ~35 min by train |
| Population | 218,460 (SSB, 1 January 2026) |
FAQ
Is there a gay bar in Trondheim?
No dedicated one. Tyven at Dronningens gate 11 is the mixed bar that Visit Norway calls a very important queer hangout, and Samfundet runs queer concerts and an open mic.
Is there a gay sauna in Trondheim?
No. The harbour saunas are public, mixed saunas. The nearest gay saunas are in Oslo.
When is Trondheim Pride?
In September. 2026 ran from 4 to 12 September, with the parade on Saturday 12 September. The 2027 dates weren't announced at the time of writing.
Is Trondheim safe for LGBTQ+ travellers?
Yes. Norway has some of the strongest legal protections in the world, and same-sex couples draw no attention in the centre.
How long is the trip from Oslo?
About six and a half to seven hours by train, or about an hour by plane to Værnes.
Last verified: November 2026.
