Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Flåm, at the head of Aurlandsfjorden, sits in a truly spectacular setting. As a stop on the
popular Norway in a Nutshell tour, this tiny village receives over 500,000 visitors every
year. It's a charming place, but this piece of heaven can turn hellish if too many of those
visitors end up here at the same time.
The seasonal
tourist office
(
57 63 33 13;
www.visitflam.com
;
8.30am-8pm Jun-Aug,
8.30am-4pm May & Sep)
is within the train station.
Sights
Flåmsbana Railway
SCENIC RAILWAY
(
www.flaamsbana.no
;
adult/child one way Nkr300/150, return Nkr400/300)
A 20km-long engineering wonder hauls itself up 864m of altitude gain through 20 tunnels.
At a gradient of 1:18, it's the world's steepest railway that runs without cable or rack
wheels. It takes a full 45 minutes to climb to Myrdal on the bleak, treeless Hardangervidda
plateau, past thundering waterfalls (there's a photo stop at awesome Kjosfossen). The rail-
way runs year-round, with up to 10 departures daily in summer.
Flåmsbana Museum
MUSEUM
( 9am-7pm May-Sep, shorter hours rest of year)
This little museum is right by the Flåmsbana Railway platform. It's not, however, just
about railways: there are fascinating photos of construction gangs and life in and around
Flåm before cars and buses made it this far up the fjords.
Activities
To simply pedal along the shoreline or for something more strenuous, rent a bike from the
tourist office (Nkr50/250 per hour/day). The tourist office also has six easy-to-interpret
free sheets describing local walks, varying from 45 minutes to five hours, with routes su-
perimposed upon aerial photos.
Riding the Rallarvegen
CYCLING
