During our one week in Norway, Peter and I experienced one of the most magical landscapes that either of us had ever seen: fjords. As a part of our Norway in a Nutshell tour, we took a fjord cruise through the magnificent Aurlandsfjord and on the narrow Nærøyfjord.

In this post I will go into detail about our experience taking a fjord cruise in Norway as well as show you a fraction of the hundreds of photos that I took during our cruise in an attempt to capture the breath-taking beauty of these magical fjords.

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Along with this blog post, you can also watch the YouTube video we created from the videos we took! May they both inspire you while planning your own fjord cruise trip in Norway. Now, onto the details!

How to book a fjord cruise in Norway

Norway in a Nutshell

If you’re planning a trip to Southern Norway then you’ve probably already heard of the popular Norway in a Nutshell tour. It is popular for a reason. This tour combines all of top places to visit in the region into one neat package.

It is very convenient as it schedules all of the tickets of transportation for you when you book the tour. Some of these you would not be able to book ahead of time on your own and others are just a bit confusing to do so. Peter and I did the Norway in a Nutshell tour and really enjoyed it. Learn more and buy tickets on the official Norway in a Nutshell tour website. Not sponsored but I wish it was!

The tour takes you on some of “the most beautiful train rides in the world” as well as the fjord cruise. Admittedly, the fjord cruise was our favorite part from the entire Norway in a Nutshell tour, but the other legs of the journey were also incredible. Read our tips and entire experience taking the Norway in a Nutshell tour in the blog post linked below.

Photo credit: Fjord Tours, Norway in a Nutshell tour official website — *Photo credit: Fjord Tours,* *Norway in a Nutshell tour* *official website*

Other way to book a fjord cruise

If you’re not planning on booking the Norway in a Nutshell tour with its multiple leg journey across Southern Norway, you can always book a fjord cruise individually. Fjord Tours (behind the Norway in a Nutshell tour) offer fjord cruises at multiple locations across Norway.

Fjord Tour’s Fjord Cruises

If you search “fjord cruise norway” there are a ton of other companies that come up as well offering a variety of cruises across the country. However, I can’t specifically recommend any since we only did the Norway in a Nutshell fjord cruise through Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord.

Things to know before taking your fjord cruise

It gets really cold

While the outdoor temperature may vary depending on the time of year that you plan your visit to Norway, you are still likely to get wet from the spray of the water and the wind from standing on the deck of the boat and this is a combination sure to make anyone chilly. And if there’s one thing that I learned when planning our own trip to Norway, it’s that you should always be prepared for the possibility of rain.

In our case, it lightly rained on and off for the entirety of our cruise. This adds to the cold significantly. But to be quite honest, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The misty clouds and moody sky of our fjord trip made the landscape all the more dramatic and beautiful. See for yourself in the pictures throughout this post. Just make sure to dress and pack appropriately and it won’t be an issue.

I’m sure by now in researching for your trip to Norway you’ve already heard the iconic Norwegian saying: “There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing”.

What to wear on a fjord cruise

It’s all about the layers. You might look like marshmallows (see pictures of us for example) but at least you will stay warm and dry which will allow you to fully enjoy the cruise!

Sturdy, waterproof shoes or boots. We have the Oboz Bridger hiking boots.
Thick socks that will keep your feet warm! I would recommend ones with wool like these.
Gloves, preferably waterproof. I have the these Sealskinz waterproof gloves. (They are a bit of an investment but I’ve already taken them hiking in Norway, Patagonia, and around the U.S.)
Warm hat to keep your head and ears warm.
Base layers to keep you warm. I have these merino wool pants and this moisture wicking shirt.
A warm coat, such as a down jacket. Ours are from Uniqlo, but these down jackets from Amazon are very similar.
Waterproof outer layers. We both have waterproof jackets from The North Face (Mens and Womens). We also have waterproof rain pants from Helly Hansen we didn’t have for this cruise but wish that we did (we actually bought them while we were in Bergen, Norway because we weren’t prepared for all the rain!).

What to bring to your fjord cruise

This is a one-way cruise and you will most likely be bringing all of your bags that you brought on your trip, but here are a few specific items you will want on hand for the fjord cruise.

YOUR CAMERA! Whatever camera you have will do the trick, but you don’t want to find yourself without one in this incredibly beautiful scenery. At the time, I had a Canon DSLR but as you can tell from some of the pictures it had trouble focusing. I now have a Sony A7III Mirrorless camera which I love. *If you are bringing a camera with interchangeable lenses, I would recommend those with a wider angle to allow you to capture the fjord around you.
Weather protection for your camera. It was super misty and raining on and off during our entire cruise, so I would definitely recommend protecting your camera with a waterproof shell. There are investment options like a Peak Design Camera shell (what we use now) or cheaper options like these plastic rainsleeves (what we used on this trip). If you are using your phone for pictures, they sell waterproof phone pouches though I’m not sure if they affect the photos.
Tripod (if you want to take videos or a timelapse). We have the Sirui Aluminum Tripod which is lightweight and easily packable for our travels.
A daypack to carry your things and camera gear (if you’re nerds like us). Extra points if it’s waterproof. We have the Osprey Daylite Plus Daypack.
Snacks and water. If you’d rather save some money versus buying the onboard fare. The boat ride is two hours long so keep that in mind.

Now you are ready for your fjord cruise!

For a detailed guide on everything you should pack for your trip to Norway, make sure to read our Norway Packing List guide. This in-depth Norway Packing List guide explains what to bring for a trip to Norway, covering clothing, hiking gear, camera gear, and more items that you won’t want to forget.

Start in Flåm

Things to do in Flåm

If you are taking the Norway in a Nutshell tour, you will begin your fjord cruise from the town of Flåm. Since we opted to spend a night in Flåm, we had an entire day to spend here before our cruise. Although Flåm is a very small town (really more of a village), there are plenty of fun things to do there and we could have easily stayed longer.

I actually wrote a dedicated blog post about Flåm, including were to stay and things to do there. So make sure to check that out if you plan to spend any time in Flåm on your trip to Norway!

Boarding the Boat

After spending the night in Flåm, bright and early the following morning we packed our bags, checked out of our hotel, and head over to the pier to check in and board the fjord cruise to Gudvangen. I can’t remember how early they asked you to be there before departure, but the tickets and information given to you after booking are very clear and easy to follow.

Note: The docks / pier are only a 5-minute walk from the hotels in town and you can’t miss it, so no rush. Just walk towards the water!

Fjord Cruise Experience

This cruise takes you through the magnificent Aurlandsfjord and on the narrow Nærøyfjord and is about 2 hours long in total. But I must warn you – those 2 hours will go by way too fast as you are blown away by the immense beauty of the fjords.

Onboard the fjord cruise boat

The boat had 2 floors with a deck that wrapped around all sides, allowing passengers to enjoy the views of the fjords up close and personal in the open air. Inside, there was tons of comfortable seating and tables available and even a cafe that sold hot beverages and snacks.

Unfortunately I did not get any of my own photos of the fjord cruise boat itself, but you can see it up above in the Norway in a Nutshell section (the photo is from the Fjord Tours website).

After walking around the boat to check out all of our options, Peter and I eventually claimed some railing in the front of the lower deck of the boat (front row seats for the fjord cruise!). We set up our DSLR camera on a tripod with our intervalometer to take a timelapse of our journey through the fjords. (You can see the final result of the timelapse in our Norway in a Nutshell video!)

The only drawback of our “front row seats” at the front of the deck? It was extra windy and cold. We only let the timelapse run for about 20 minutes but it felt like an hour in the biting wind and rain. But it was so worth it. Afterward, we sat inside for a bit and ordered hot coffees to warm up before returning outside to take more pictures.

Journey through the fjords

Tall mountain cliffs of black rock wet with rain surrounded us, scattered waterfalls of varying sizes cut their faces, some so large the water pounded down like thunder onto the water below and sprayed us with mist adding to the wet and cold of the light rain.

Besides the ripples from the waterfalls and those caused by the boat itself, the water was glassy still, reflecting the ominous black mountains above. Misty clouds clung to the cliffs – a striking white contrast against the dark stone, weaving between the outcrops of rock and slowly dissipating.

It felt like every few minutes something especially spectacular such as snow-peaked mountains or a majestic waterfall would pass and captivate all of the passengers to leave the warm safety of the cabin to venture out onto the deck for pictures. Occasionally, we would even glimpse a small town or a brightly-colored farmhouse of red or yellow tucked into the side of the mountain landscape along the water’s edge. It all seemed too beautiful to be real.

Waterfalls everywhere

One marvel that was particularly common throughout our fjord cruise – the towering waterfalls decorating the sides of the fjords. I’m not sure if they are always so prevalent, as we were visiting during April and the spring melt from the mountains above fueled the waterfalls all around us.

There were waterfalls of all shapes and sizes, from thin and tall white veins along the rockface to thundering towers of water crashing down into the water below.

At a few of the most impressive waterfalls, the boat would slow to a crawl and approach the waterfall for the passengers to get a closer look. They did this 2 or 3 separate times, so you should have the opportunity to get some epic pictures of these spectacular waterfalls. Just be prepared to get a little wet from the spray of the waterfall!

*I promise I was having fun, do not trust how I look in this picture. I was just very cold!*

Arrival in Gudvangen

The 2 hour cruise felt like a half hour and all too soon was coming to an end. Slowly in the distance, a small town appeared at the end of the fjord before us. We were approaching Gudvangen (shown in the picture below).

We approached the docks and our boat came to a stop. As all of the passengers disembarked, I was still in awe of the amazing experience we had just had. I was still soaking it all in. Like all good things, it had went by far too quickly. We made our way off the boat and into the small souvenier shop to warm up and wait for our bus to Voss and on to the next leg of the Norway in a Nutshell tour.

If you haven’t read it yet, make sure to read our full blog post about the Norway in a Nutshell tour, explaining what it includes and our experience from start to finish (linked below).

Are you planning to take a fjord cruise in Norway?

Are you planning a trip to Norway? If so, will you be taking a fjord cruise during your trip? We hope that this blog post helped you with your planning! If you have any questions about our experience feel free to ask them in the comments below. We would love to help in any way we can.

This is only the second post in a series covering me and Peter’s trip to Norway, so keep your eye out for more posts and videos to come! Make sure to subscribe to the Adventures with Pinny YouTube channel and follow us on our Instagram so you don’t miss a thing. Thanks for stopping by our blog, see you again soon!