Flam

Visit Flåm – Norway in a Nutshell

Cruise ships regularly visit Flåm, but visits have dropped off a bit as cruise ships anticipate the upcoming Norwegian government requirements for clean energy ship visits. Flåm is also easily accessible by train using the Norway in a Nutshell online booking system. You can start your package tour in Bergen or Oslo and finish in Oslo or Bergen. Norway in a Nutshell includes the Flam Railway and the Nærøyfjord cruise. You can also choose whether you take the Nærøyfjord cruise first or the Flam Railway first.

Even if your stay is very short, don’t miss the Flam Bakery, the free Flam Railway Museum at the train station and drinks at the Viking styled Ægir BrewPub.

Sognefjord Fjord Adventures

Another option for visiting Flam is Sognefjord in a Nutshell. This adventure has a number of options but they all include a 5.5 hour one way cruise through the Sognefjord between Bergen and Flam and also a one way ride on the Flam Railway. With Sognefjord in a Nutshell a great option is to stop overnight at the wonderful Kviknes Hotel in Balestrand, where you can enjoy the sea views from your room as well as their famous buffet dining. If you stay two nights you can take a day cruise up the Fjaerlands Fjord to the Norwegian Glacier Museum at the head of the fjord. Norled calls the trip between Flam and Bergen an express boat, but the ferry makes 10 stops at small villages along the way, including Balestrand.

Depending on your choices, you may need to include an overnight stay in order to select the Viking Village Njardarheim in Gudvangen, the Stegastein Viewpoint, the Borgund Stave Church or a high speed Fjord safari. You need to book hotel options well in advance and space on the Flam Railway may be unavailable at the last minute during the height of the cruise season.

Flam Railway

The Flåm Railway (Flåmsbana) climbs nearly 3,000 feet in 12 miles from Flam to Myrdal Station. The train ride takes an hour, including a brief stop at Kjosfossen Waterfall along the way. At the waterfall a young women pops up out of a distant rock outcropping to perform a Norse mythology Huldra dance designed to seduce men into the woods – quite strange, yet very popular.

Sit on the right side going up to Myrdal Station for the best views, but both sides are good. You can buy your ticket as part of a Norway in a Nutshell ticket package or you can make your own arrangement and even make a round trip. Just make sure you buy your tickets early, as the train sells out during the height of the cruise ship season.

Nærøyfjord Cruise

The Naeroyfjord Cruise is part of Norway in a Nutshell, but not Sognefjord in a Nutshell. You can also book the Nærøyfjord Cruise directly yourself. There are two fabulous, modern, large electric tourist ferries running daily between Flam and Gudvangen. You can book a round trip, but most people book a one way ticket with an add-on bus ride back through the Gudvanga tunnel to their starting point. The Naeroyfjord is a UNESCO World Heritage site, which is too narrow for cruise ships to enter. The cruise runs twice a day and also makes brief stops at 4 small villages during each 2 hour voyage.

Voss to Gudvangen – The Steepest Road in Norway

The Norway in a Nutshell ticket package includes a rail stop in Voss (Vossvangen), where you then catch a bus down to Gudvangen for the Nærøyfjord cruise. The buses wait for the train to arrive in Voss, so you won’t have to wait at all. Extra buses are always on standby, so you don’t have to worry about pre-booking this section of your visit.

The switchback bus ride down the Stalheimskleivane to Gudvangen is the steepest road in Norway. You will catch views of the Tvinde Waterfall and might even stop at the Stalheim Hotel, overlooking the Nærøy Valley. With your Norway in a Nutshell ticket package, you can add on a visit to the Viking Village Njardarheim open air museum, located right next to the Nærøyfjord cruise jetty.

Stegastein Viewpoint

You can add the Stegastein Viewpoint on to your Norway in a Nutshell ticket package or you can purchase the Stegastein mini bus ride on your own in Flam. If you have your own vehicle, visit the small village of Aurland before you take the steep series of switchbacks up to the Stegastein Viewpoint. You will be rewarded with fabulous views over the Aurlandsfjord in either case.

Visit Flam Zipline and Bike the Rallarvegen

The Flam Zipline was built in 2018 and takes riders down the same route that the Flam Railway descends from Vatnahalsen station near Myrdal. The zipline takes you to Kårdal where you can have a coffee break, pet the goats and then ride a bike down the last section of the Rallarvegen trail to the fjord at Flam. The Flam Zipline is a booking option for cruise passengers who ride the Flam Railway up to Vatnahalsen and then take the Flam Zipline. The zipline doesn’t have integrated booking with Norway in a Nutshell yet, but individuals can book the round trip from Flam on the Flam Zipline web site. If you intend to book Norway in a Nutshell, add an overnight stay and then book your zipline adventure independently.

Cafe Rallaren in Myrdal used to rent bikes for the Rallarvegen trail to Flam, but the 21 hairpins down to Kårdal was too challenging for the average tourist. If you want to bike from Myrdal, you need to arrange to get a bike there by train. Cafe Rallaren recommends renting a bike in Flam and including a bicycle ticket on your Flam Railway ride to Myrdal.

Want to see several highlights of the valley without biking? Rent an eMobility two passenger vehicle and drive up from Flam to Bekervram Station about half way up the valley. You will see distant views of the Brekkefossen waterfall, the Steinshølen river bridges, the Flam Church, the Rjoandefossen waterfall from the view point bridge and the Cave Waterfall.

Get to Flam

You can get to Flam in several different ways:

The Flam Railway from Myrdal. Myrdal is on the main train route between Bergen and Oslo, but there is no access by vehicle through Myrdal.

By car or train from the town of Voss and then down to Gudvangen.

Take the Norled ferry from Bergen for 5.5 hours to Flam.

Take an ocean cruise that stops in Flam.

Jostedalsbreen Glacier Arms

Take a day trip to Solvorn or continue north even farther to Jostedalsbreen to see arms of the largest glacier in Europe. The word “breen” in Norwegian means “glacier”. The Jostedals Glacier has more than 40 arms, including the Nigardsbreen and Bøyabreen nearer to Flam. The Nigardsbreen is popular for glacier walks on the ice, while the Bøyabreen also has the Norwegian Glacier Museum nearby.

The Briksdalsbreen and Kjenndalsbreen are closer to Olden and can only be viewed from the valley. The Jostedalsbreen National Park Center is located past Olden and 4 hours by car from Flam.

Flam Weather

Flam weather never gets very warm, because it’s so far north. The long days of the Norwegian summer from May to September are the best time to visit this area. July and August are the warmest months with average highs of 61 F (16 C) and average lows of 45 F (7 C). Cloudy days are common any time of year in Norway.

In the winter months from December – February, average highs are 28 F (-2 C) and average lows are 16 F (-9 C). Rainfall is spread fairly evenly over the year, but is slightly higher in July and August. Many attractions close at the end of the busy summer tourist season, but the Flam Railway and the Nærøyfjord Cruise are both open all year.