POULSBO — Little Norway does actually resemble Norway, or at least that’s the opinion of 54 Norwegian visitors who spent three days touring the city this week.

“Poulsbo is famous and people from all over Norway know about it,” Norwegian resident Arne Sunde said, noting the city is an important location in the historical migration of Norwegians to America. “This is much more like Norway than the Midwest, and a lot of people live on the fjords.”

The tour was organized by brothers Arne and Rasmus Sunde, who have both written scholarly articles about the Norwegian emigration to the United States.

The pair, who hail from Sogndal, Norway, has led groups of more than 100 people to various Norwegian cities in the Midwest such as Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. and Decorah, Iowa, but the group visited Vancouver, B.C. July 23 and arrived in Poulsbo July 24 where it was welcomed by the Sons of Norway lodge and the city in general, Sunde said.

“They are a very hearty and kindly people,” he said of the Poulsbo residents who welcomed the group with open arms and warm smiles.

After a night of dancing and feasting at Grieg Hall, the group took a walking tour sponsored by the Poulsbo Historical Society through downtown on Tuesday morning.

“It was very interesting because we got to see parts of town we would not have seen,” Sunde said.

Judy Driscoll, one of the tour leaders, said at the end of the excursion everyone seemed pleased.

“They all said they enjoyed it,” Driscoll said of the 54 visitors.

Despite the language barrier, about a third of the group spoke some English and Arne Sunde served as interpreter as well, she said.

One of the new things Driscoll incorporated into the tour was using the book, “Paul’s Place,” which she wrote about the history of Poulsbo, to illustrate the city’s past.

“I wish I had thought of that sooner, because it made it a little clearer,” Driscoll said.

The tour also brought a greater appreciation of the city’s commitment to its heritage, Sunde said.

“We’re following the trails of Norwegian emigration, and my experience is that people in our group like small towns better than big cities,” he said.

Most of the group is from small towns and they feel more at home in places like Poulsbo than in Seattle, he said.

Throughout the tour, the Sons of Norway lodges have been extremely hospitable and the visit to Poulsbo is due in large part to the efforts of former Sons administrator Mariann Samuelsen, he said.

“When we met with her in October at Kaffe Stua, she helped us a lot,” he said. “She knew a lot about motels, where to go, where to eat, so we corresponded a lot with her.”

For Samuelsen, the group’s arrival was a prelude to her return to her native land some time this fall.

“This is great and I’m so excited that they’re here,” Samuelsen said. “I love that.”