The Flåm Railway
The Flåm Railway takes you from a bare mountain station at Myrdal, 867 meters up, down to the fjord village of Flåm in under 1 hour. In between: 20 tunnels, a waterfall, and farms clinging to slopes. It’s one of the steepest railways in the world with normal passenger service, and it opened in 1940.
In this guide, we cover the route, stops, the best side to sit on, how to get there, and when the trip is at its best.
Written by
The Fjord Tours team
5 min readUpdated: Sep 11, 2026
Tours including the Flåm Railway
The Flåm Railway is part of our signature Sognefjord in a Nutshell™ and Norway in a Nutshell® tours. Combine the steepest railway with a fjord cruise and more fjords.
2027 bookings open
The classic journey
Norway in a Nutshell®
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See the highlights: UNESCO Nærøyfjord, Flåm and Bergen Railway
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From 1 day
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Available year-round
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 2698 NOK
2027 bookings open
Slow and comfortable
Sognefjord in a Nutshell™
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Explore Norway's longest fjord at a relaxed pace
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From 1 day
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Available April – October
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 2745 NOK
2027 bookings open
Slow down on the shores of Sognefjord
Sognefjord Cruise & Balestrand Stay
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Fjord cruise, glacier tour & 2 nights in Balestrand
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3 days
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Available May – September
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 9477 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
2027 bookings open
Cultural cities & scenic trains
Cities and Coastal Cruise
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Trondheim, Oslo and Bergen round trip
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From 4 days
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Available year-round
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 11931 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
Explore beyond the highlights
Geirangerfjord and Norway in a Nutshell®
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See Norway's coast, famous fjords and scenic mountains
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From 3 days
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Available June – September
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 8459 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
Active adventure
Preikestolen & Norway in a Nutshell®
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See Norway's iconic highlights & adventure to Preikestolen
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From 3 days
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Available May – September
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Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 7100 NOK
2027 bookings open
The classic journey
Norway in a Nutshell®
-
See the highlights: UNESCO Nærøyfjord, Flåm and Bergen Railway
-
From 1 day
-
Available year-round
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 2698 NOK
2027 bookings open
Slow and comfortable
Sognefjord in a Nutshell™
-
Explore Norway's longest fjord at a relaxed pace
-
From 1 day
-
Available April – October
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 2745 NOK
2027 bookings open
Slow down on the shores of Sognefjord
Sognefjord Cruise & Balestrand Stay
-
Fjord cruise, glacier tour & 2 nights in Balestrand
-
3 days
-
Available May – September
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 9477 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
2027 bookings open
Cultural cities & scenic trains
Cities and Coastal Cruise
-
Trondheim, Oslo and Bergen round trip
-
From 4 days
-
Available year-round
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 11931 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
Explore beyond the highlights
Geirangerfjord and Norway in a Nutshell®
-
See Norway's coast, famous fjords and scenic mountains
-
From 3 days
-
Available June – September
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 8459 NOK
With Norway in a Nutshell®
Active adventure
Preikestolen & Norway in a Nutshell®
-
See Norway's iconic highlights & adventure to Preikestolen
-
From 3 days
-
Available May – September
-
Start from Oslo or Bergen
From 7100 NOK
Quick facts
Flåm Railway at a glance
- Name: Flåm Railway (Flåmsbana or Flåmsbanen in Norwegian)
- Route: Myrdal to Flåm
- Length: 20.2 km
- Height drop: 863 meters. Around 80% of the route runs at a steep 5.5% gradient
- Journey time: About 1 hour
- Tunnels: 20
- Change here: Myrdal, for the Bergen Railway
- Operator: Vy
- Opened: 1940
- Known for: Named one of the world’s most beautiful train journeys by Lonely Planet and National Geographic
Source: Vy / Bane NOR.
What makes the Flåm Railway special
The short answer is the gradient. The Flåm Railway runs 20.2 km from Myrdal down to Flåm, covering a height drop of 863 meters. A drop this steep is unusual for a passenger train, and it packs a lot into 20 kilometers. You leave snow at the top and reach a green fjord arm at the bottom, all in an hour.
The train runs all year. Lonely Planet and National Geographic both put it on their lists of the world’s most beautiful railways, which is a large part of why train lovers travel a long way to ride it.
Route and stations
From Myrdal, the train passes Vatnahalsen, an old mountain hotel first built for rail passengers. Below Vatnahalsen comes the Kjosfossen waterfall, where the train stops for a few minutes. The line then runs down through Berekvam, which is the only place trains can pass each other on this single track. The railway continues past Blomheller and Håreina to the quay at Flåm. All the way, it follows the Flåm valley, with the river Flåmselvi close beside it.
To read more about the waterfall stop and the performance there, see our page on Kjosfossen and the Huldra.
Tickets and how to ride the Flåm Railway
Vy runs the Flåm Railway, and you can book a ticket for the train ride on its own. In summer, the line fills up, so if you have fixed dates, we recommend booking them early. July and August sell out.
If you are arriving by cruise ship, you can book a return ticket up to Myrdal and back. And if the Flåm Railway is one leg of a longer fjord trip, it’s often simpler to book the whole thing as one journey rather than piece it together yourself. Either way, the ride is identical: same train, same seats, same stops.
Which side should you sit on?
The Flåm Railway has free seating, meaning that you can’t book seats in advance. You choose when you board.
Which side you sit on doesn’t matter that much. Heading down from Myrdal, the track curves left, then right, then left again. These turns are often called the Myrdal bends. Sit on the left going down, and you get the best of the valley and the bends, including a view of the Rjoandefossen waterfall.
For the middle of the trip, it doesn’t matter where you sit: The scenery keeps swapping sides, and many of the best-known spots, the waterfalls and the steep slopes, show up on both windows in turn.
You don’t need to plan around Kjosfossen either: the train stops here so you can step off. Closer to Flåm, you pass the church and the Brekkefossen waterfall to your left.
If you are taking photos, the light on the way down from Myrdal in the morning is usually kinder than late afternoon.
How to get to Flåm and Myrdal
Most people reach Myrdal via the Bergen Railway, from either Oslo or Bergen. The Bergen Railway and the Flåm Railway meet each other in Myrdal.
From Oslo, it’s about 4.5 to 5 hours to Myrdal; from Bergen, around 1.5 hours. To plan this leg in detail, see our guide to the Bergen Railway.
From Bergen, the Flåm Railway plus a couple of hours in Flåm is one of the most popular fjord day trips on the Norway in a Nutshell® tour.
History and engineering
The railway took many years to develop, first emerging as an idea in 1871. The Norwegian government didn’t approve it until 1908. Work on the Flåm Railway began in the 1920s and took nearly 20 years to complete.
Crews lived in simple group spaces also used by soldiers, so they had little comfort after work. They lived in these camps along the route even through the winters, in some of the harshest climates. The line opened to passengers in 1940, and has been electrified in stages since 1954.
The workers cut several tunnels by hand, without heavy machinery. Some of these tunnels are still among the steepest and narrowest on the entire Norwegian network. That mix of steep ground and hand labor is why the Flåm Railway is still one of the most talked-about railway projects in the country’s history.
Even now, with modern trains, the climb is steep enough that the line is demanding to run, especially in winter.
The best time to go
The best time to board the Flåm Railway depends on what you’re looking for:
- In summer, the valley is at its greenest, the Kjosfossen stop and the Huldra are in full swing, and the trains are busiest.
- In winter, the whole line is likely covered in snow, the waterfall is frozen, and the ride feels calmer and quieter, with frost along the track.
- Spring and early autumn often give you the best of both: green or early snow, smaller crowds, and a better chance of a seat without booking ahead.
For more information on the seasons and weather, read our guide to when to visit Norway.
Questions about the Flåm Railway
Get quick answers to questions about the journey.
Discover all of Norway’s railways
The Flåm Railway
The Flåm Railway takes you from a bare mountain station at Myrdal, 867 meters up, down to the fjord village of Flåm in under 1 hour. In between: 20 tunnels, a waterfall, and farms clinging to slopes. It’s one of the steepest railways in the world with normal passenger service, and it opened in 1940.
In this guide, we cover the route, stops, the best side to sit on, how to get there, and when the trip is at its best.
The Rauma Railway
The Rauma Railway (Raumabanen) runs 114.2 kilometers from Dombås to Åndalsnes in about 1 hour and 40 minutes, past the steep Trollveggen mountain wall and Kylling Bridge.
The stretch is one of Norway's wildest and most photographed train journeys, and is known far beyond Norway's borders, thanks to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It was also on this track that 50 tons of Norwegian gold were transported to avoid it falling into wrong hands during World War II.
In this guide, we will tell you all about the route, the most famous destinations, and how to travel, including the Golden Train as a separate optional experience.
The Bergen Railway: Oslo to Bergen by train
The Bergen Railway (Bergensbanen) runs between Norway’s 2 largest cities, and for many people it’s the Norwegian train journey. In 7 hours, you go from the forests around Oslo up to the Hardangervidda mountain plateau and on to the West Coast and Bergen.
The Dovre Railway
The Dovre Railway runs 548 kilometers from Oslo to Trondheim, over the Dovrefjell mountains and through the Gudbrandsdalen valley. The trip takes about 6.5 to 7 hours.
Take a seat in Oslo and get off in Trondheim, with the whole of southern Norway behind you. See a diverse range of landscapes. From Lake Mjøsa's shimmering water, the Gudbrandsdalen valley's traditional farms, and the mighty Dovrefjell mountains with musk oxen and reindeer.
The Røros Railway
The Røros Railway runs between Hamar and Trondheim, through Østerdalen and past Røros, a journey of about 431 kilometers that takes around 6 hours. The line opened in 1877 and is Norway's oldest inter-regional railway line, and it takes you where no other train does: through the wilderness of Østerdalen to the mining town of Røros, with its beautiful wooden buildings.
The Flåm Railway
The Flåm Railway takes you from a bare mountain station at Myrdal, 867 meters up, down to the fjord village of Flåm in under 1 hour. In between: 20 tunnels, a waterfall, and farms clinging to slopes. It’s one of the steepest railways in the world with normal passenger service, and it opened in 1940.
In this guide, we cover the route, stops, the best side to sit on, how to get there, and when the trip is at its best.
The Rauma Railway
The Rauma Railway (Raumabanen) runs 114.2 kilometers from Dombås to Åndalsnes in about 1 hour and 40 minutes, past the steep Trollveggen mountain wall and Kylling Bridge.
The stretch is one of Norway's wildest and most photographed train journeys, and is known far beyond Norway's borders, thanks to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It was also on this track that 50 tons of Norwegian gold were transported to avoid it falling into wrong hands during World War II.
In this guide, we will tell you all about the route, the most famous destinations, and how to travel, including the Golden Train as a separate optional experience.
The Bergen Railway: Oslo to Bergen by train
The Bergen Railway (Bergensbanen) runs between Norway’s 2 largest cities, and for many people it’s the Norwegian train journey. In 7 hours, you go from the forests around Oslo up to the Hardangervidda mountain plateau and on to the West Coast and Bergen.
The Dovre Railway
The Dovre Railway runs 548 kilometers from Oslo to Trondheim, over the Dovrefjell mountains and through the Gudbrandsdalen valley. The trip takes about 6.5 to 7 hours.
Take a seat in Oslo and get off in Trondheim, with the whole of southern Norway behind you. See a diverse range of landscapes. From Lake Mjøsa's shimmering water, the Gudbrandsdalen valley's traditional farms, and the mighty Dovrefjell mountains with musk oxen and reindeer.
The Røros Railway
The Røros Railway runs between Hamar and Trondheim, through Østerdalen and past Røros, a journey of about 431 kilometers that takes around 6 hours. The line opened in 1877 and is Norway's oldest inter-regional railway line, and it takes you where no other train does: through the wilderness of Østerdalen to the mining town of Røros, with its beautiful wooden buildings.