Should you Norway in a Nutshell or Fjord Your Own Way?

Norway in a Nutshell

I am killing it with the punny titles. For those on a kamikaze tour of Scandinavia, this post is for you. Well, I suppose it could be for anyone on a bit of a tight timeline, or those who are train aficionados, or those who just want an efficient way to see some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Everyone else, you’re not allowed to read any further.

Norway in a Nutshell is simply a way to get from Oslo to Bergen. It’s not the most efficient way exactly from a ‘point A to point B’ standpoint, but it’s the best combination of efficiency + scenic + charming. You can do this a two ways: pay a company to book everything for you (it’s not a guided tour, just a collection of public transit tickets) or you can save some money and do it yourself. There is really no reason to pay a company to book these tickets for you: it’s easy to do, and you are only buying two tickets – out of four total - as the others can’t be booked ahead anyways. Here’s how it works:

Leg One: Oslo to Myrdal
The first half of this trip is just leaving the city and heading into the countryside, so it you’re going to take a nap, now is the time. This leg should be booked ahead because it sells out, even in the off season, as I so rudely found out. If you can’t book online (Americans, your credit cards probably won’t work on the website, PayPal might, or you can call them and they send you a payment link) , and the machine kiosk says it’s sold out, you can go down to the platform and ask one of the conductors if you can buy a ticket from them. They may or may not let you (they let me on with the warning it may end up being standing room only, but I got lucky and had a seat the entire way) but it’s totally worth a shot.

Leg Two: Myrdal to Flåm
You’ll hope off the train and cross the platform to the historic Flåm train right next to you. You can buy a ticket on the train so go hope on and get a good spot. Either side will be good, but maybe the left side has slightly better views. Slightly. If it’s summer or warm some of the windows will be open and you can stick your camera out for some good shots, but if it’s winter (I went in March) then put your camera away and just enjoy the view. Even Ansel Adams could’t make foggy, through-the-glass photos look good, and you won’t either: so just sit back and enjoy the scenery. This is pretty scenery, and you’ll miss it running around the train like lunatic trying to take photos, photos that no-one will want to look at anyways. Seriously, use your brain-camera.

Switching trains in Myrdal. That’s the train you arrive on, on the left.

Leg Three: Flam Nærøyfjord cruise to Voss
This part can also be booked ahead, and should be, as it’s likely to be sold out also, though it was sparse on my early spring voyage.You will have around 30 minutes if you're following the official Norway in a Nutshell schedule until the ferry leaves. You can book it here on the Visit Flam website. This is best part of the entire trip, or at least it was my favorite. You hope off the train and the terminal is right in front of you, just a few steps away. If you want to split the trip and overnight, it should be here. There are a couple hotels and a few things to do, though not much, it is at least quiet. Even mist and snow-shrouded, it’s beautiful and surreal, with mountains sprouting up thousand of feet (or meters, for you metrics types) juxtaposing from the calm freezing waters. It’s truly unique, and amazing, and worth the visit all by itself. It’s a UNESCO world heritage site, and unlike some places, really deserves to be on the list. The ferry cruises along serenely, and you can get hot coffee or cold drinks and a few snacks on board.

Looks closely at that zigzag driveway up to the houses. Now that’s a driveway!

Step Three: Voss – Gudvangen
The ferry drops you off in Gudvangen, and the bus will pick you up right outside the little restaurant. It is CASH ONLY and there are no ATMs, though you can get some cash from the little restaurant shop. They will swipe your card and charge you a small amount for the service. Generally, when in Norway you won’t ever need cash, but this is one of those times. I had some cash and tried to use it and the attendant hadn’t even seen the new bills that I had. The bus has some nice scenery, a few hairpin turns, and is overall very pleasant.

Step Four: Gudvangen to Bergen
The bus will again deposit you right outside the station, and it’s a very easy short walk to the train. Grab a ticket, there are no assigned seats, and hope on. You will have around 20 minutes if you're following the official Norway in a Nutshell schedule. This train will get you into Bergen a little after eight, and it will probably be getting dark, so it’s another good time to snooze.

Should you do it? Totally, whether you're a lazy (which is ok sometimes, of course) and buy the package, or frugal and book it yourself, it’s worth the trip. Many people also recommending driving as you see similar sites but at your own pace, but in winter that’s not totally possible - train or fly is the way to go. Summertime, that would probably be my choice if you have the time, as it’s more flexible, but this route is a a great trip and pretty good bargain for what you get. Bergen, a charmingly wet city, is worth at least a days visit if you are on a tight timeline. My schedule was extra tight, so after a dinner at Pingvinen and a short walk, I called it a night.

Next stop is Sweden, and I can’t wait for some meatballs:)