Special: Sognefjord in a Nutshell

Sognefjord in a Nuthsell is a combination of a fjord cruise as well as two train rides, allowing you to see a lot of Norway’s nature. In this special, I’ll explain what it is about and why I enjoyed the tour!

Sognefjord in a Nutshell is a tour you can build yourself to some extent. You can either start in Oslo and go to Bergen, start in Bergen and get back there or start in Bergen and go to Oslo. Each page has a slightly different price tag and follows a different order, but you see more or less the same things. You may also add a night in Flam, for example. For this review, I went from Bergen to Flam on the ship and then contiuned with Flam Line to Myrdal, where I boarded the train to Oslo. All in all, it was a really enjoyable trip as I’ll explain in this article.

Fjord Cruise from Bergen to Flam

The major part of doing the Sognefjord in a Nutshell experience obviously is taking the fjord cruise. Departing in Bergen, I was lucky enough to enjoy amazing views of the city in the morning.

When the journey continues, you’ll see various different landscapes.

The ship is even crossing narrow parts of the fjord with beautiful bridges, looking like they are basically located in the middle of nowhere.

The further you get away from Bergen, the more you feel like going to the Artics.

That’s for a reason as you are basically going into the direction of the ocean, before actually going into the famous Sognefjord after approximately two hours.

The fjord as such offers a real beautiful atmosphere as it’s not only really big, but also surrounded by really nice mountaineous landscape.

From time to time, the cruise stops at smaller villages, where a few people or boarding or deboarding.

After about five hours, you’ll get closer to the final destination, Flam.

The little town is located on a smaller fjord, which is very charming as well.

Flam itself usually comes with a special scenery – as one major cruise shop is coming here per day.

All in all, I really enjoyed the fjord cruise. While it might seem somewhat boring to just look out of the window for five hours, the views are just brilliant.

Walking through overcrowded Flam

Regardless of how you are actually doing the tour, you’ll end up having about two hours to explore Flam, which is way more than enough.

Why? Because there’s hardly anything to see aside from a few little houses.

There’s also a nice enough beach and the views are very nice, too.

Nevertheless, it’s just way too crowded (due to the cruise ship) to really enjoy walking around.

An incredible waterfall on the Flam Line

The next part of the Sognefjord in a Nutshell tour is taking the Flam Line from Flam to Myrdal.

The ride is less than an hour, but goes upwards quite a bit. The views are really nice as you’ll see several waterfalls and more beautiful landscape.

The highlight is Kjosfossen though, one of the most famous waterfalls in Norway.

You’ll stop here for a moment, so everyone can take pictures. It’s really worth it, but as you’d expect, the platform here is really overcrowded as well.

Just minutes later you’ll find yourself in Myrdal, where there is hardly anything. You can just sit down in a café and wait for the train.

Surprisingly beautiful views on the Bergen Line

To be honest: At that point I thought that the Sognefjord in a Nuthsell experience was basically over. Well, I was wrong as the Bergen Line prooved to be incredibly beautiful.

As the train line is going through the mountains, you can enjoy amazing views of the various landscapes, which are really unique.

I’m not sure whether I’ve ever taken a train ride with such incredible views, not even in Cornwall.

The landscape is not only beautiful in the mountains, but also as you are coming closer to Oslo.

Summed up, I’d say that even just taking the Bergen Line (which you can book individually as well) is an experience really worth doing!

Overall impressions of Sognefjord in a Nutshell

With a price tag of about 200 Euro per person, Sognefjord in a Nutshell isn’t cheap. Yet, I really enjoyed the experience and thought that it’s worth the price tag. It’s very convenient to buy all tickets together and fit three beautiful experiences in just one day. To my surprise, not only the Sognefjord cruise and the Flam Line were amazing experiences, but the Bergen Line was just as beautiful. If you don’t have a lot of time and want to experience the beauty of Norway’s nature, Sognefjord in a Nuthsell is a great way!

Check out our specials section for more exciting places like this one!