Flam RR worthwhile IF taking rail from Oslo to Bergen?

[GeezerCouple]

We plan to take the train from Oslo to Bergen next year (early March) before starting our Hurtigruten RT Bergen-Kirkenes-Bergen.

 

We understand that the train is wonderful.

Given that, is it still worthwhile to do the Flam RR also?

 

I don't think we have time to do the Flam-and-back to Myrdal all the same day en route from Oslo to Bergen, plus we'll have luggage with us.

So the choice would be to start afresh in Bergen, and that would take another full day, if I understand it right.

 

Suggestions?

Thanks.

[Vikingfan#1]

We plan to take the train from Oslo to Bergen next year (early March) before starting our Hurtigruten RT Bergen-Kirkenes-Bergen.

 

We understand that the train is wonderful.

Given that, is it still worthwhile to do the Flam RR also?

 

I don't think we have time to do the Flam-and-back to Myrdal all the same day en route from Oslo to Bergen, plus we'll have luggage with us.

So the choice would be to start afresh in Bergen, and that would take another full day, if I understand it right.

 

 

Suggestions?

Thanks.

 

I'm curious to hear the answer to this question. In 3 weeks I'll be taking the Bergen Railway from Voss to Geilo. Hope I'm not missing the best scenery on the part I don't see--Bergen to Voss and Geilo to Oslo!

[kaisatsu]

We plan to take the train from Oslo to Bergen next year (early March) before starting our Hurtigruten RT Bergen-Kirkenes-Bergen.

 

We understand that the train is wonderful.

Given that, is it still worthwhile to do the Flam RR also?

 

I don't think we have time to do the Flam-and-back to Myrdal all the same day en route from Oslo to Bergen, plus we'll have luggage with us.

So the choice would be to start afresh in Bergen, and that would take another full day, if I understand it right.

 

Suggestions?

Thanks.

Since you're going to be doing the Hurtigruten trip, getting down into the fjords isn't as big a priority as it would be for someone traveling only to Oslo and Bergen. You'll get more than your fair share of fjord views on the ship! So the big draw in your case would be the railway itself. If you're big rail buffs, I would see if you can fit it in. Otherwise, I wouldn't go too far out of your way to try to add it in.

 

If you do want to do it en route to Bergen, you don't have to backtrack to Myrdal. You can follow the Norway in a Nutshell route (or even book the whole thing with NiN). That means switching to the Flåmsbana at Myrdal, then taking the ferry through the Nærøyfjord to Gudvangen and a bus up to Voss to catch another train on to Bergen. It's a long day, but it's fully possible (and popular), and you can have even have your luggage portered to Bergen (as mentioned in this thread) if you don't want to deal with it.

 

Another option is the Sognefjord in a Nutshell route, which follows the train to Myrdal, the Flåmsbana to Flåm, and then just takes the express ferry straight to Bergen (instead of heading back up to Voss). That might be easier with luggage, since you don't have to worry about the local ferry or the bus. You miss the Myrdal-Bergen part of the rail trip, but it's a lot of tunnels and generally considered less scenic than the Oslo-Myrdal section.

 

It's also possible to overnight in/around Flåm, but since you're going to have a full Hurtigruten trip to enjoy the fjords, I would recommend spending more time exploring Bergen instead.

[kaisatsu]

I'm curious to hear the answer to this question. In 3 weeks I'll be taking the Bergen Railway from Voss to Geilo. Hope I'm not missing the best scenery on the part I don't see--Bergen to Voss and Geilo to Oslo!

Personally, I think that section is the best part of the Oslo-Bergen route, since you're traveling right between the two national parks, and at Finse you can catch a few glimpses of the glacier to the south.

 

However, part of the draw of the rail trip is the overall change in elevation and scenery. Traveling between Oslo or Bergen and Finse means traveling from nearly sea level up to 1222 meters, and it's interesting to see the changes in scenery along the way (more so on the Oslo end, I think, since the population change is so drastic and there are fewer tunnels). Geilo is around 800 meters, so there isn't quite as much of a difference.

[GeezerCouple]

Since you're going to be doing the Hurtigruten trip, getting down into the fjords isn't as big a priority as it would be for someone traveling only to Oslo and Bergen. You'll get more than your fair share of fjord views on the ship! So the big draw in your case would be the railway itself. If you're big rail buffs, I would see if you can fit it in. Otherwise, I wouldn't go too far out of your way to try to add it in.

 

If you do want to do it en route to Bergen, you don't have to backtrack to Myrdal. You can follow the Norway in a Nutshell route (or even book the whole thing with NiN). That means switching to the Flåmsbana at Myrdal, then taking the ferry through the Nærøyfjord to Gudvangen and a bus up to Voss to catch another train on to Bergen. It's a long day, but it's fully possible (and popular), and you can have even have your luggage portered to Bergen (as mentioned in this thread) if you don't want to deal with it.

 

Another option is the Sognefjord in a Nutshell route, which follows the train to Myrdal, the Flåmsbana to Flåm, and then just takes the express ferry straight to Bergen (instead of heading back up to Voss). That might be easier with luggage, since you don't have to worry about the local ferry or the bus. You miss the Myrdal-Bergen part of the rail trip, but it's a lot of tunnels and generally considered less scenic than the Oslo-Myrdal section.

 

It's also possible to overnight in/around Flåm, but since you're going to have a full Hurtigruten trip to enjoy the fjords, I would recommend spending more time exploring Bergen instead.

 

Thank you so much for your detailed response!

 

This (the thread you pointed us toward) is the first we've heard (or noticed) about a luggage service, Porter Service Norway.

We will definitely look into that.

Not having to haul our luggage for a short "detour" ;) makes a separate little trip MUCH more attractive.

 

(We've just returned from a few weeks in Japan, and they all seem to use luggage services between different cities; we'd see the little vans show up even at mountain top monastery lodging! It made travel between cities so much easier, no question about that. We had never before heard of regular services like that, also meaning not horrendously expensive, as some customized service would be.)

 

We'll look into this a bit more, but because we'll be doing this very early March, we won't have as much daylight to enjoy the sights.

And of course, one of the joys of the Hurtigruten cruise will be the scenery along the coasts :)

 

There is just too, too much to see (no matter where we go).

 

We are also looking forward to Hurtigruten because it will be a very different type of cruise experience.

The Trollfjord has that wonderful 2-story lounge at the front of the ship, for great views.

 

Thanks again!