Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Norway Gildeskål Uredd Rest Area (Ureddplassen)
AO Edited

Uredd Rest Area (Ureddplassen)

Norway has built what may be the world's most beautiful public toilet.

Gildeskål, Norway

Meg profile photo
Added By
Meg Neal
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The restroom at night.   Lars Grimsby / Statens vegvesen
Ureddplassen restroom.   Lars Grimsby / Statens vegvesen
The restroom at night.   Lars Grimsby / Statens vegvesen
Ureddplassen.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
The memorial.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
The restroom at night.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
The amphitheater.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
The restroom at night.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
Ureddplassen scenery.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
Ureddplassen.   Steinar Skaar / Statens vegvesen
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Norway’s newest landmark is a place of absurd beauty. The redesigned rest area, situated along a section of the Norwegian Scenic Route, overlooks stunning views of the fjords and the open sea, and is a popular spot for visitors and locals to watch the northern lights in winter and the midnight sun in summer.

Now this picturesque place is quickly gaining a stranger kind of fame, for being home to what may be the most beautiful public toilet the world over.

As part of a project to enhance Norway's scenic highways with innovative architecture, a sleek viewing area with marble benches and amphitheater steps leading down to the water was built along the roadside. And next to them, a striking, wave-shaped public restroom.

Made of frosted glass and concrete, in quintessential minimalist design, the structure seems to glow in the dark as the glass is lit at night. In the daytime, the facility offers just about the most breathtaking view you could hope to enjoy while relieving yourself.

The rest area gets its name from the World War II memorial located at the site. The monument commemorates the Norwegian “Uredd” submarine (meaning "fearless") that sank during the war, causing 42 sailors to lose their lives.

Places

Discover your next amazing Atlas Place.

Get more unusual and extraordinary places each week with the Atlas Obscura Places newsletter.

Your newsletter subscriptions with us are subject to Atlas Obscura's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Know Before You Go

Uredd Rest Area is wheelchair accessible.

Community Contributors

Meg profile photo

Added By

Meg

G gordoninontario profile photo V vinnygret profile photo

Edited By

gordoninontario, vinnygret

  • G gordoninontario profile photo gordoninontario
  • V vinnygret profile photo vinnygret

Published

April 16, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.nasjonaleturistveger.no/no/turistvegene/helgelandskysten?attraksjon=ureddplassen

Related Tags

Bathrooms Architectural Oddities Architecture Panoramas Nature Design Roads Roadside Attractions Fjords
Uredd Rest Area (Ureddplassen)
Fv17 310
Gildeskål
Norway
66.950447, 13.631344
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Noviken VLF Transmitter

Gildeskål, Norway

miles away

Saltstraumen Maelstrom

Bodo, Norway

miles away

Red Beach at Mjelle

Bodo, Norway

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Gildeskål

Gildeskål

Norway

Places 2

Nearby Places

Noviken VLF Transmitter

Gildeskål, Norway

miles away

Saltstraumen Maelstrom

Bodo, Norway

miles away

Red Beach at Mjelle

Bodo, Norway

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Gildeskål

Gildeskål

Norway

Places 2

Related Stories and Lists

10 Bathrooms You Should Pee in Before You Die

List

By Sabrina Imbler

The World's Most Beautiful Public Toilet

Video

By Atlas Obscura

Related Places

  • Cedar Lake's two-story outhouse.

    Cedar Lake, Michigan

    Two-Story Outhouse

    There are two legends behind the origin of this unusually tall sanitary structure.

  • Visitors stand on a 130-foot-high spiral tower.

    Binz, Germany

    Treetop Tower of Rügen

    A long spiraling walkway winds through the woods, and around a copper beech tree at the center.

  • The kiln.

    London, England

    'Potteries and Piggeries' Bottle Kiln

    A relic from one of London's worst 19th-century slums.

  • LaVale Toll Gate House

    Cumberland, Maryland

    LaVale Toll Gate House

    Maryland's first (and last standing) toll house on America's first federal road established the state as the "Gateway to the West."

  • Two-Story Outhouse

    Gays, Illinois

    Two-Story Outhouse

    This historic lavatory leftover features two levels of defecation stations completely without context.

  • Koontz Coffee Pot

    Bedford, Pennsylvania

    Koontz Coffee Pot

    This titanic java kettle is one of the many kitschy landmarks located along America's OTHER famous highway.

  • End of the Trail

    Santa Monica, California

    Route 66 End of the Trail Sign

    A sign at the end of the Santa Monica Pier marks the traditional end of the legendary American highway.

  • Rosalie Sharp Centre for Design in the iconic Toronto cityscape.

    Toronto, Ontario

    Rosalie Sharp Centre for Design

    This buzzy, award-winning building hovers 85 feet above the ground on a dozen colorful stilts.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2026 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.