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Utstein Monastery
Utstein Monastery is Norway’s only preserved medieval monastery. It lies in beautiful surroundings on the island of Mosterøy in the municipality of Rennesøy. Here King Harald Fairhair once had a farm. In the Middle Ages it was a monastery for Augustinian monks, and in the 1700s it became the farm of the local magistrate.
Utstein Monastery is today a museum, conference centre and venue for banquets and concerts. It is located on Klosterøy in the municipality of Rennesøy, approximately 30 minutes’ drive from Stavanger via an undersea tunnel.
The site of Utstein Monastery is mentioned in historical records dating back to the Eleventh Century. Construction of the monastery started in about 1260, although some parts may be older and may date from the earlier royal farm on the site. The church is unique in Norway, with its tower situated centrally between chancel and nave.