Vestnes Municipality

Vestnes Municipality
Vestnes kommune
Væstnes herred  (historic name)
View of Vestnes with mountains in the background
Møre og Romsdal within Norway
Vestnes within Møre og Romsdal
Coordinates: 62°35′04″N 07°01′06″E / 62.58444°N 7.01833°E / 62.58444; 7.01833
CountryNorway
CountyMøre og Romsdal
DistrictRomsdal
Established1 Jan 1838
  Created asFormannskapsdistrikt
Administrative centreVestnes
Government
  Mayor (2023)Randi Bergundhaugen (H)
Area
  Total
404.59 km2 (156.21 sq mi)
  Land399.23 km2 (154.14 sq mi)
  Water5.36 km2 (2.07 sq mi)  1.3%
  Rank#238 in Norway
Highest elevation
1,467.83 m (4,815.72 ft)
Population
 (2024)
  Total
7,147
  Rank#144 in Norway
  Density17.7/km2 (46/sq mi)
  Change (10 years)
 +8%
DemonymVestnesing
Official language
  Norwegian formNynorsk
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
  Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-1535
WebsiteOfficial website

Vestnes is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Vestnes is part of the traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vestnes. Other villages in the municipality include Vikebukt, Vik, Vågstranda, Øverås, Fiksdal, Tomrefjord, and Tresfjord.

The area is known for nature and outdoor pursuits, and has a long history in ship building and maritime crafts. The village of Vestnes (Helland) dates back to early medieval times, and has 24-hour ferry and water taxi service with the town of Molde to the northeast. The ferry takes about 35-minutes each way.

The 405-square-kilometre (156 sq mi) municipality is the 238th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Vestnes Municipality is the 144th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 7,147. The municipality's population density is 17.7 inhabitants per square kilometre (46/sq mi) and its population has increased by 8% over the previous 10-year period.