Western Norway, Sogn og Fjordane
Sognefjord
Norway's deepest fjord, taken one village at a time
Sognefjord stretches more than 200 kilometres inland and plunges over a kilometre deep. This seven-day route follows its southern shore by local ferry, pauses in the white wooden villages of Balestrand and Flam, and climbs to the high plateau of Aurlandsfjellet on foot. The pace is deliberately slow: one ferry each morning, afternoons free for hiking or sitting by the water with a thermos of coffee.
Trip Highlights
- Flamsbana railway, one of the steepest in the world
- Stegastein viewpoint high above Aurlandsfjord
- Kayaking the narrow Naeroyfjord arm, a UNESCO World Heritage site
- The medieval stave-church cluster around Laerdal
- Farm-to-table dinners at waterside guesthouses in Balestrand
- Watching the summer midnight light turn the fjord surface to copper
Day by Day
- 1
Day 1 - Arrive in Bergen, board the night train to Myrdal
Fly into Bergen and spend the afternoon walking the Bryggen wharf. In the early evening board the Bergen Railway east. The train climbs through birch forest and moorland, arriving at Myrdal high on the plateau as dusk settles. Sleep at the small mountain lodge.
- 2
Day 2 - Flamsbana descent and afternoon in Flam
Take the Flamsbana rack railway down through 20 tunnels and past the Kjosfossen waterfall to the village of Flam at the fjord's edge. Check in, eat fresh trout at the harbour, and watch the last ferry of the day drift out toward Gudvangen.
- 3
Day 3 - Naeroyfjord kayak day
Join a small guided kayak group and paddle the Naeroyfjord arm for six hours. Cliff walls rise nearly 1,800 metres on both sides. Stop for lunch on a gravel beach; look for white-tailed eagles overhead. Return to Flam by water taxi.
- 4
Day 4 - Aurlandsfjellet snow road and Stegastein
Hire a bicycle or take the seasonal bus up the Aurlandsfjellet mountain road. Stop at the Stegastein viewpoint, a cantilevered wooden platform 650 metres above the fjord. Descend slowly, stopping at farms selling sour-cream waffles.
- 5
Day 5 - Ferry to Balestrand
Board the morning express ferry heading west along the main Sognefjord channel. Arrive in Balestrand after three hours of open water. The village is ringed by apple orchards; walk the shore path and visit the small Viking burial mounds before dinner.
- 6
Day 6 - Laerdal and the stave churches
A short bus journey east brings you to Laerdal and the old village of Laerdalsoeyri, preserved as a living museum of painted 18th-century timber houses. Visit Borgund Stave Church in the valley, then return to Balestrand for a last waterside evening.
- 7
Day 7 - Return ferry to Bergen
The westbound morning ferry follows the southern shore back to Bergen, arriving in time for a late lunch and an evening flight. Or stay a second night in Bergen and walk the fish market before flying home the next day.