If you’d like to combine culture and outdoor activities in Viborg, there are several options: the cathedral, two art venues, a stage of the Hærvejen and the route around the lakes. You can focus on architecture and exhibitions, or explore the city along a route through green surroundings. When planning, it’s worth distinguishing between buildings, changing exhibitions and the different ways of getting around.
The Cathedral, Museum and Contemporary Art
Viborg Cathedral was built as an elongated cruciform church with two western towers and two eastern towers. Its architecture includes side aisles, a high choir and a crypt. Its elongated form and the pairs of towers at either end define the building. The cathedral is probably the largest granite church in the world. A cruciform church has a cross-shaped floor plan. Side aisles flank the nave, and a high choir is an elevated part of the church where the choir is situated. A crypt is an underground room within a church.
The Skovgaard Museum is a state-recognised art museum in a historic town hall dating from 1728. From Viborg station, you can reach the museum on foot in about ten minutes via the pedestrian street. This makes it easy to factor a visit to the museum into your plans for getting from the station.
Viborg Kunsthal has a different focus: it is an exhibition venue for vibrant, dynamic contemporary art, with changing exhibitions by Danish and international visual artists. This means Viborg has both an art museum in a historic building and a venue with a changing programme of contemporary art. When planning your cultural visit, you can take these different art profiles into account.
A Stage, a City Route and a Circuit Around the Lakes
A stage of the Hærvejen runs 18 km from Skelhøje to Viborg Cathedral. In Banebyen, the Hærvejen runs as a recreational path, connecting the neighbourhood to the city centre via Hærvejsbroen and Hærvejsstien. There, Hærvejsstien runs from Gyldenrisvej in the south to Hærvejsbroen in the north. As a shared space, it can be used by cars travelling at low speed, cyclists and pedestrians.
The Viborg Lakes comprise Nørresø and Søndersø. Both are in the heart of Viborg, surrounded by lush nature and close to city life. The complete circuit around the lakes is 11 km long and can be travelled on foot or by bike. While the 18 km Hærvejen stage runs from Skelhøje to the cathedral, the shorter lakeside route goes around the lakes. You can choose between a stage with named endpoints and a circular route. Fishing is permitted in public areas at the Viborg Lakes; general fishing regulations still apply.
Discover more destinations: Tjele, Skals, Møldrup, Løgstrup, Rødding, Lynderup, Tange, Hjarbæk
For the overview of the wider area: Viborg Municipality.
