The first direct route from London Stansted to the southern Norwegian city of Kristiansand have just launched.

The four-times-a-week service operates on a 78-seater Dash-8 Q400 aircraft with Norwegian airline Widerøe. Kristiansand is a family destination and a gateway to small idyllic coastal towns, inland woods, elk safaris and rivers well suited for white water rafting and salmon fishing. Widerøe announced the route due to strong demand among Norwegian travellers wanting to reach London, and to serve growing numbers of British tourists travelling to Southern Norway and Kristiansand.

Widerøe is the latest of a raft of new airlines choosing to launch services from London Stansted this summer, following Primera Air’s new low-fare long-haul routes to the US and Canada, Air Corsica’s three new routes and the daily flight to Dubai launched by Emirates.

The service flies from London Stansted to Kjevik Airport in Kristiansand at 20:00 on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, and Kristiansand to London Stansted at 17:30 on the same days.