Today was the start of a week long road trip around the west fjords of Norway! This trip was planned with Nordic Visitor, an online travel agency I used back in 2011 before Iceland became as popular as it is now. Basically they organize the car rental and accommodations for you and give you a driving route to follow. I’m way too busy to plan trips as much I used to so using an agent in this regard was a time saver for me, though I did additional research in terms of driving expectations and attractions I wanted to visit.
From the Nordic Visitor site, I did the Fjord Complete driving tour. I’ve heard unflattering things about Oslo and am more interested in nature anyway so picked the one that started in and ended in Bergen.
For today’s drive, went from Bergen to Tvindefossen (near Voss) to Flam to Stegastein Lookout and then to Sogndal/Halfso. In total with stops this took about six hours, leaving Bergen at 9 am and getting to Halfso by 3:15 pm.
The drive from Bergen took close to two hours. Would recommend leaving as early as you can to avoid any “traffic.” Ran into a short area where only one lane was operating due to construction so cars needed to wait until one side passed (led by a traffic controller). Also recommend hitting up a rest stop about 10-15 minutes before arriving here as the rest stop had free bathrooms and at the falls of Tvindefossen you need to pay. Parking is small too and limited; but people are in and out of this place. The falls was very nice (a bit chilly and windy as you walk closer to it) and stayed about ten minutes.
Next, I headed over to Flam which was about 45 minutes away. Had intentions to do the railway ride but read online that if you’re driving thru the fjords there’s no point to do this so ended up skipping it. Glad I skipped as I would’ve booked the 12 pm slot and arrived in Flam just after noon and would’ve missed it! But at Flam there is also the “Mall of Norway.” A lot of cruise ships come through here so there’s a bunch of outlet shops here too. However, another great place to take a quick WC break. The WC hangs in front of a beautiful backdrop as well!
Oh! Almost forgot the drive to Flam was so pretty. Quite a few strings of waterfalls gushing down the sides of the mountain as you’re driving through.
The water is so clear and beautiful mirror reflections everywhere you look.
From Flam, went over to the Stegastein Lookout, which is a concrete walkway overlooking the fjords. Getting here was a bit tough. As someone used to driving tight spaces, this felt a bit more nerve wrecking as much of the twisty uphill climb had one way lanes with small turnouts. Got stuck in one small section where it was a bit congested with buses coming down and a bunch of cars in both directions. A local got out to manage the traffic but can’t imagine how it is when it’s super crowded! It’s a 3 mile drive up to the Lookout from the base and took about 15-20 minutes due to navigating turns and the one lane passes. The parking lot at the top is also small but people are coming and going pretty frequently.
The views are gorgeous! Today was a bit cloudy but it was still so pretty. Spent about 20 minutes here and there are also WC facilities (free) here too. Facilities are important when you drink a lot of water like me!
From here there is the option to keep driving over the mountains taking the scenic route on Aurlandsfjellet, which is only open during the summertime. However much of the drive will be like before; lots of one car lanes and pullover overs. We opted to go back the way we came (which didn’t seem as bad going downhill vs. uphill) and took the Laerdalstunnelen tunnel (longest tunnel in the world?) across instead. Both distances are about the same and probably about the same time wise too. I’m not claustrophobic but driving thru a very long tunnel without knowing when the end is is my personal hell, lol. However it was either this or anxiety with oncoming traffic on the scenic route. This tunnel was about 24.5 km (15 miles) long.
After you pass thru the tunnel you’ll arrive at the ferry (Fondes) to Manheller/Sogndal. If you’re in a rental car there is a scan of your license plate which will be added to your rental car (with tolls along all the driving routes too) so don’t need to worry about how to pay/buy a ticket. The ferry runs pretty frequent and didn’t have to wait long when we got there Saturday afternoon. The ride is short, less than 15 minutes as you pass thru the fjords to the other side.
We then drove 20 minutes to our hotel in Halfso, BesteBakken. Cute yellow farmhouse on top of a hill, just right pass Spar supermarket. Our stay included breakfast and dinner so we had a nice homemade dinner here and enjoyed the views near town.
The farmhouse also has a few alpacas and dining is communal (eating with our guests at assigned meal time).
