Molde was already a town back in the viking age. At that time the center of the town was outside todays Molde, and the town was called Veøya.

Molde achieved official town status in 1742.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth century, the city's main industries were boat building, factory-made clothing business, trade and tourism.

The city fire in 1916 and extensive bombing during World War II caused the destruction of the old, idyllic wooden buildings.

That explains the prevalence of simple, clean-cut and functional post-war architecture in some parts of the town.
Molde’s outstanding gardens have earned it the nickname “Town of Roses.

Today Molde has about 25 000 inhabitants. The summer temperature varies between 10°C and 30°C. The winters are mild in Molde.

 

The Molde area is known for the Mountain Road, the Atlantic Road, Molde Jazz Festival
and the 87 mountain peaks of Molde Panorama. There issalmon, sea trout and sea
char in the rivers of the area, and they was already legendary among the British
gentry in the mid-1800s.

Atlanterhavsveien (The Atlantic Road) was voted "Norwegian Construction of
the Century"on 27 September 2005, and is currently Norway's second most
visited scenic road after Trollstigen (The MountainRoad). Trollstigen are in
the same county as Molde.

Atlanterhavsveien's sharp turns and wild nature have ranked it first on The Guardian's list of the world's best road trips, in sharp competition with world renowned attractions such as Northern Ireland's Antrim coast road and the Himalayas.

Trollstigen (The Mountain road/The Troll Ladder) is a popular tourist attraction due to its steep incline of 9% and eleven hairpin bends up a steep mountain side.

  

 

 

In the same county as Molde you'll find Trollveggen (The Troll Wall) who is a part of the mountain massif Trolltindene (Troll Peaks- 1742m) in the Romsdal valley, near Molde.

Troll Wall is the tallest vertical rock face in Europe, 1100 meters from the base to the summit at its
tallest. At its steepest, the summit overhangs the base by nearly fifty meters.

The Troll Wall has been a prestigious goal for climbers and BASE jumpers alike. In 1984 Carl Boenish, the "father" of BASE jumping, was killed on the Troll Wall shortly after setting the world record for the highest BASE jump in history. BASE jumping from Troll Wall has been illegal since 1986

 

Molde International Jazz Festival takes place in july every year sice 1961 and it is one of the oldest jazz festivals in Europa.