Visit

Hours

Special Holiday Hours 2024-2025:
Dec. 24 – Museum 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.,
Dec. 24 – Store & Commons 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Dec. 25 – All closed
Dec. 31 – Museum 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.,
Dec. 31 – Store & Commons 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Jan. 1 – All closed
Jan. 2 – Store closed for inventory

Museum Building
Nov. 1 – April 30: 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
May 1 – Oct. 31: 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Museum Store and Vesterheim Commons
All year: 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Heritage Park
Open daily to wander the grounds.
May 1- Oct. 31: Guided tour of Heritage Park – daily at 1:30 p.m. (Call ahead to confirm.)

Museum and Store are closed New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Admissions

Adults: $12
Ages 7-18: $5
Seniors 65+: $10

  • Second Saturday of the month: FREE
  • Museum Members: FREE
  • Luther College Students, Faculty, and Staff: FREE
  • Museums for All – FREE with EBT card (up to 4 people)

Vesterheim is part of two reciprocal networks, the Time Travelers Program and NARM. Members of museums participating in Time Travelers receive $1 off Vesterheim admission, and members of museums within the NARM network receive free admission. Members of both receive 10% off in the Museum Store.

Everyone Is Welcome at Vesterheim

Exploring Vesterheim’s Museum Building with its four floors of incredible artifacts is a delight. Wandering at your own speed, you can linger for as long as you wish at your favorite pieces.

Vesterheim Commons is open daily from 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Find out more about this inspiring new building.

From May 1- Oct. 31, enjoy a guided tour of the museum’s Heritage Park – scheduled daily at 1:30 p.m. (Please call ahead to confirm in case of tour change.) Find out more about Heritage Park.

 

Vesterheim is committed to championing policies and practices that value diversity, foster equity, and promote an accessible and inclusive community. Vesterheim’s staff and board are dedicated to placing diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion at the center of our daily work and strive to create a welcoming environment for all.

View Map of Campus and Museum Building Here

Parking and Additional Info

Plenty of free, easy street and lot parking nearby.

Get Directions

Accessibility: All areas of the Museum Building, Westby-Torgerson Education Center, Amdal-Odland Heritage Center, the Commons, and the Bethania Lutheran Church are wheelchair accessible, but some of the historic buildings in the Heritage Park are not. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please let us know if any member of your party requires special accommodation or assistance.

Service Animals and Pets: Service animals are welcome in all public areas of Vesterheim; pets (including emotional support animals) are not allowed in any buildings.
• Non-service animals are not permitted in museum buildings in accordance with the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act).
• Service animals are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for persons with disabilities.
• Comfort or emotional support animals are not service animals.

Photography: You may take non-flash photos throughout the museum complex for personal, noncommercial use only, and we encourage you to share your favorites on Facebook, Instagram, Yelp, and other social media sites. All flash photography is prohibited and commercial use of images of Vesterheim’s collections or grounds is strictly forbidden without prior written consent. High-quality images of artifacts are available for a fee.

What is Vesterheim?

Exhibits at Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, explore the diversity of American immigration through the lens of the Norwegian-American experience and showcase the best in historic and contemporary Norwegian folk arts. This national treasure features a world-class collection of 33,000 artifacts and a Heritage Park of 12 historic buildings, as well as a Folk Art School in scenic Decorah, Iowa.

But you don’t have to be Norwegian-American to enjoy all the beauty and wonder Vesterheim has to offer. Be inspired, share history, and create art while visiting the exhibits, taking a class at the Folk Art School, and shopping the Museum Store!

Learn More About Vesterheim