The Scenic Flåm Railway

[tigger8792]

Is the Flam train ride any better than the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway in Skagway? 

[Peregrina651]

You are asking a very subjective question. Better how? What kind of information are you looking for?

 

see also: Flam railway excursion availability

[JDincalif]

Both are spectacular in distinctly different ways; neither is to be missed if the opportunity arises.

[tigger8792]

We are wondering if it is worth $259 per person if it is a lot like White Pass & Yukon Route Railway in Skagway.

[LindaS272]

It’s in Norway, so there’s that. Although I recall a long timer on these boards issuing a ho-hum about the Chilean fjords glaciers having seen glaciers in the Arctic that he liked better. So it really depends if you’d like to see iconic scenery.

[SempreMare]

It's different enough and beautiful enough to be worth it, IMO. 

 

I went on that rail trip when in Alaska with Holland and loved it.  Several of the vistas from that train window are seared into my memory. 

 

I took the Bergen --> Oslo train and also loved it.  Different nature, more communities along the route, more life, less barren than Alaska.  

 

[Peregrina651]

47 minutes ago, tigger8792 said:

We are wondering if it is worth $259 per person if it is a lot like White Pass & Yukon Route Railway in Skagway.

 

If budget is an issue, it can be done on your own (with caveats) -- and that is talked about on the thread I linked to above.

[Capt_BJ]

pictures from the train

[oakridger]

I just Googled a dummy booking for June 7, 2023.  I came up with $52 one way or $104 round trip. (sorry about the formatting)

 

Train Timetable | Rail.Ninja

 

6 results sorted by

Departure timeTravel timePrice

08:25

48m

09:13

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1852 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

09:30

58m

10:28

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1854 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

10:45

58m

11:43

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1856 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

12:00

1h1m

13:01

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1858 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

14:35

56m

15:31

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1862 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

16:00

55m

16:55

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1864 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

[biggerbearmom]

We did this train ride in 2017, we thoroughly enjoyed it and is so easy to do on your own.

[tigger8792]

Sorry, I should have mentioned that we are docked in Eidfjord.  Which means we cant do it on our own.  But thanks for all the help and pictures.  We are still think about taking this excursion.

[lisaatric]

18 hours ago, LindaS272 said:

It’s in Norway, so there’s that. Although I recall a long timer on these boards issuing a ho-hum about the Chilean fjords glaciers having seen glaciers in the Arctic that he liked better. So it really depends if you’d like to see iconic scenery.

Reminds me of a comment I read once where someone was “disappointed in Pompeii”.  Always makes me laugh. 

[jtamchay]

We have done both and they are both awesome. Both are worthy of the dollars spent

[tybeelucy2]

Is the Flam train very different from the Oslo/Bergen train? We are doing that one through Viking's pre cruise excursion.  

[janetcbl]

4 hours ago, tybeelucy2 said:

Is the Flam train very different from the Oslo/Bergen train? We are doing that one through Viking's pre cruise excursion.  

Yes. The Myrdal-Flam train is a side trip from the Bergen-Oslo. You get off at Myrdal and get on the Flam train which goes down to the Fjord, slowly, so you have time to take in the spectacular scenery. It makes one stop at a waterfall, (where there are “spirits” flying around), before continuing to Flam. From Flam you can either return to Myrdal and catch the next train to Bergen or continue on by ferry to Gudvagen. There may now be transportation back to Bergen by bus, but this is recent…someone with more recent knowledge can comment.

[LinnieRed]

On 3/18/2023 at 7:19 PM, oakridger said:

I just Googled a dummy booking for June 7, 2023.  I came up with $52 one way or $104 round trip. (sorry about the formatting)

 

Train Timetable | Rail.Ninja

 

6 results sorted by

Departure timeTravel timePrice

08:25

48m

09:13

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1852 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

09:30

58m

10:28

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1854 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

10:45

58m

11:43

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

SIGHTSEEING TRAIN

Train #1856 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

12:00

1h1m

13:01

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1858 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

14:35

56m

15:31

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1862 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

16:00

55m

16:55

Flam Central Station

Myrdal Central Station

EXPRESS TRAIN

Train #1864 Flamsbana

from$52

1 passenger - $52

Select Seats

If you book it thru visitflam.com it is $52 total per person. They are the direct booking agent. No markup. I just did this very thing in February. 

[oakridger]

Good to know @LinnieRed!  It's interesting that I just tried the  visitflam.com website and came up with $65 per person round trip for June 7th.  I generally try to book with the provider's direct website if possible (unless I have bought a whole trip package) to get the best prices.  

 

Your example shows why it's really important to do some comparison shopping before booking anything!  I appreciate the example you showed to remind us of that!  I'm going to Norway in 2024 on a non-cruise land/ferry trip so am starting my investigations anew after my aborted 2020 trip.

 

Tussen takk,

~Nancy

 

 

Edited March 23, 2023 by oakridger

[LostFan#1]

Has anyone taken the Flam Railway in winter? We will be on the Northern Lights cruise late Feb. DH loves trains. The website says the railway runs year-round, but all I have read about on these couple of threads is from those who've taken the train in summer.

 

Thanks,
Debbie

[janetcbl]

2 hours ago, LostFan#1 said:

Has anyone taken the Flam Railway in winter? We will be on the Northern Lights cruise late Feb. DH loves trains. The website says the railway runs year-round, but all I have read about on these couple of threads is from those who've taken the train in summer.

 

Thanks,
Debbie

When we lived in Denmark one winter, we spent some time in Norway.In February we took the train from Bergen to Myrdal and the train down to Flam. The sun was low in the sky at that point and the atmosphere was awesome! There was only one other couple in Flam and we basically had the place to ourself. There was one venue open for food. The sun was only visible a couple hours; the rest of the time was like twilight. Great memories!- I’d do it agin if I had the opportunity. Of course we had to return by train; the boat to Gudvagen didn’t run in the winter. Go!

[LostFan#1]

Thank you, Janet! I appreciate your voice of encouragement.

[Redtravel]

I have done both train rides. They are both excellent, but different.  Flam train is amazing. You can buy a ticket and take the ride without buying a ship excursion. We did. Got off ship early, walked up to the train ticket booth, and took the early train. Cost us much less than if we had bought the trip from the cruise line.  Being early, the train wasn’t crowded.