In the middle between Oslo and Bergen lies beautiful Aurland. The idyllic fjord village that offers adventures and nature experiences in beautiful and wild nature. In Aurland, there is something for everyone and not least a treasure trove of local food and drink, and is a perfect place to spend your holiday.
Aurland has a lot to offer. It is a short way to well known tourist attractions such as Aurlandsdalen Valley, Aurlandsfjellet, Aurlandsvegen Mountain Road and Stegastein Viewpoint. But the Aurlandsfjord itself is perhaps the most beautiful and most famous of them all.
Visit Sognefjord
Visit Sognefjord is the official destination company for the Sognefjord area.
Hotels and accommodation in the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord area
Overview of hotels and other places where you can spend the night in the area around the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord.
Aurland by the Aurlandsfjord
Aurland is an idyllic fjord village where you have everything you need within walking distance. Many places to stay overnight, grocery store, pastry shop, pub, shoe factory outlet, glassblowing gallery and medical office.
From Aurland you can also take the bus to many of the attractions nearby.
There are many activities you can do in this area all year round. You can take a Fjord Cruise on the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord or you can join a Fjord Safari in a RIB-boat to get even closer to nature.
You can visit the Viking Village Njardarheimr in Gudvangen and experience the history and culture of the Viking Age.
Grocery Stores and Petrol Stations in Aurland
There is a grocery store in Aurland, SPAR Aurland. See the store’s website for opening hours and a map with location information.
There are also two unattended petrol stations in Aurland. Esso Express is located just south of Aurlandselvi river near the center of Aurland. Circle K is located close to the Lærdal tunnel, about two kilometers southeast of the center of Aurland.
At Cirkle K, there are also options for charging of electric cars. In the same area there are charging stations from IONITY, Eviny and Tesla Supercharger.
The Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord
The Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord is two of the worlds most beautiful and dramatic fjords. The name Nærøyfjord origin from the norse god Njord, the God of the Seafarer and the sea.
Together with the Aurlandsfjord they are two of many branches of the 204 kilometer long Sognefjord.
In 2005, the Nærøyfjord became a part of UNESCO’s World Heritage.
The landscape on and around the Nærøyfjord is considered to be one of the most scenic fjord areas on earth, and was added to the list due to its unique natural quality and beauty.
Fjord Cruise on the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord
Here you will experience the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord (UNESCO World Heritage) in a fjord cruise from Flåm to Gudvangen.
The boats from run on batteries that are charged with electricity from short-distance hydroelectric power. The boat trips are both sustainable, climate-friendly and silent, which makes the trips on the fjord an even better experience.
Numerous wild and beautiful waterfalls and rivers characterize the landscape, crossing the rugged mountains and deciduous and coniferous forests on their way down to the fjords.
Beautiful villages with a sustained cultivated landscape with remainders of old farms and mountain pastures and unique cultural monuments gives a extra dimension to the dramatic natural landscape. Season: all year.
Fjordsplorer – Rent an Electric Bike
Rent an electric bicycle and explore the area around Aurland and Flåm from the seat of a bicycle. There are two stations you can rent bikes from, one station in Aurland and one in Flåm. There are options for both charging and renting bicycles at these stations. From an electric bicycle you come into close contact with nature in a sustainable way.
Skjerdal Stølsysteri and Café
Meet goats, sheep and horses at a traditional Norwegian mountain farm. The brown and white goats cheese has been produced in this valley for hundred of years.
Experience the life on the farm and taste traditional, local food at Skjerdal Stølsysteri and Cafè. The mountain farm is about 30 minutes hike from Skjerdal outside Aurland. Follow an old farm road up through steep landscape, with beautiful views over the Aurlandsfjord and the surrounding steep mountains.
You can combine a Fjord Safari on the Aurlandsfjord with a visit to Skjerdal Stølsysteri and Cafè, then you need to walk from the fjord and up to the café. This service is provided by FjordSafari in collaboration with Skjerdal Stølsysteri and Café.
FjordSafari – Activities on and around the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord
FjordSafari offers guided activities, adventures and fjord excursions by RIB boat where you will get to explore the UNESCO world heritage site on and around the Aurlandsfjord and the Nærøyfjord.
The area represents an extreme, dramatic and a fantastic fjord landscape.
Their slogan is BOAT – HIKE – BIKE – SNOW, and they give you experiences that you will remember for the rest of your life.
Season: The activities and excursions can be done all year round, but they vary between summer and winter excursions.
Otternes farmyard between Aurland and Flåm
Otternes farmyard is a cluster of 27 old buildings from the 1700s. The view towards the Aurlandsfjord and to Flåm from the farmyard is fantastic. Look south and you see the innermost part of the Aurlandsfjord towards Flåm. In the other direction you will see out the Aurlandsfjord towards the mountains which encircle Aurland.
Stegastein Viewpoint and Aurlandsfjellet Mountain Road
Stegastein Viewpoint is part of the Aurlandsfjellet National Tourist Route, 650 meters above Aurland and the Aurlandsfjord. Great view from the viewpoint towards the Aurlandsfjord and the surrounding mountains. Stegastein Viewpoint is a wooden platform, made of of glulam, which juts 30 meters out from the mountainside by the Aurlandsfjellet National Tourist Route. The panorama-view, 650 meters above Aurland and the Aurlandsfjord, is one of the best views in the fjords.
At Flåm you can rent a small electric car, and you can experience Stegastein Viewpoint and the area around Flåm and Aurland. The electric car is an urban two-seater which is fun and easy to drive, and the GPS-guide will supply you with loads of interesting things along the way. Season: Summer, check Norway´s Best website.
You can also join a sightseeing bus from Flåm to Stegastein Viewpoint. Departures at Flåm and Aurland. The tour will take one to two hours.
The Aurlandsfjellet Mountain Road
The road across Aurlandsfjellet is a journey across a mountain landscape of snow and rocks with the occasional sprig of grass.
Aurlandsfjellet National Tourist Route is a 47-kilometer-long stretch of road between Aurland in the Aurlandsfjord area and Lærdal by the Sognefjord. Aurlandsfjellet Mountain Road is the starting point for many hikes in the area.
Stegastein Viewpoint is part of the road, 650 meters above Aurland and the Aurlandsfjord. Great view from the viewpoint towards the Aurlandsfjord and the surrounding mountains. The road up to Stegastein is open all year, but during winter the road is closed just above Stegastein Viewpoint.
Hiking the Aurlandsdalen Valley
If you want to have a day or two hiking in the Aurland and Flåm area, you should hike the Aurlandsdalen Valley. Many people combine this hike with biking along the Rallarvegen (the old Navvies Road), that is an excellent option if you have the time.
Wild scenery, wild rivers, narrow valleys, much history from old Norway and how they lived at that time. Many people consider this as the most beautiful and wildest hike in Norway.
The lower part of Aurlandsdalen is the most dramatic. It is a 20 kilometer long hike that starts at Østerbø and ends in Vassbygdi by Aurland.
There is now a bus-service that has made it easy to travel to and from the start and end of the Aurlandsdalen hike. The bus will transport you between Flåm, Aurland, Vassbygdi and Østerbø. This Bus-service is delivered by Norway´s Best.
Salmon fishing in Aurlandselvi
Where there is a fjord, there is also a river. Salmon fishing is a dear hobby for many. Western Norway with its countless rivers is an eldorado for salmon fishermen, and as a bonus they get beautiful and wild nature in return.
Most of the rivers in Norway are gathered in a common web portal; Elveguiden. For the salmon fisherman, Elveguiden is a perfect website and app for buying fishing licenses and for reporting the catch. A simple and complete solution with information and an overview for the fishermen.
The river Aurlandselvi, which runs between Lake Vassbygdivatnet and Aurland by the Aurlandsfjord, is one of the rivers in which Elveguiden offers salmon fishing. There is salmon fishing in several spots in Aurlandselvi.
In Norway, the salmon fishing season in the rivers usually lasts from 1 June to 31 August. In some rivers the season is shorter.
Skaldegard Historic Farm
Skaldegard is an old farmstead that clings to the mountain-side with great view down to the Aurlandsfjord and towards the surrounding mountains. Skaldegard invites small groups to come and learn about the local area’s natural environment, history, agriculture and way of life, both past and present. The farm is situated at Skjerdal above the Aurlandsfjord, outside Aurland.
Flåm by the Aurlandsfjord
Flåm is one of several fjord villages located by the Aurlandsfjord. Flåm is a fantastic starting point for many great adventures in beautiful and wild nature.
Where the Aurlandsfjord ends, the Flåmsdalen Valley starts. If the Aurlandsfjord is an adventure, the Flåmsdalen Valley is an even more beautiful adventure, and both should be experienced.
It is easy to travel to Flåm. “All roads” leads to Flåm, and you can also get there by train via the Bergen Line and Flåm Railway. If you take the Flåm Railway down to Flåm, you will experience the beautiful Flåmsdalen Valley at the same time.
You can experience and do a lot with Flåm as a starting point. A fjord cruise on the Aurlandsfjord and the Nærøyfjord or a trip on the fjord with Fjord Safari is a must. So is a visit to Flåm Bakery, located on the quay near where the fjord cruise starts.
You can see and do a lot with Flåm as a starting point. In Flåm there are many places to eat and sleep. It is also a short distance to other beautiful fjords where you can visit idyllic fjord villages and experience beautiful and dramatic nature.
Undredal fjord village
Undredal is an idyllic little village down by the Aurlandsfjord which is known for the many goats and the local white and brown goat´s cheese.
The movie Frozen I is inspired by this small village, with the surrounding steep mountains rising straight up from the fjord.
You do not need to go hiking or onto a fjord adventure when visiting Undredal. Many people just want so see and experience this beautiful village and the fjord from land, to buy some goat cheese from Underdalsbui and to learn about the tradition of goat cheese and farming in Undredal with tasting at Eldhuset by the pier.
Undredal Stave Church in Undredal is Norway’s smallest church. In Undredal you will also find what is believed to be the smallest fire station in Europe.
Winter in the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord area
It was winter and we visited Aurland and Flåm by the Aurlandsfjord, seeking for some cold adventures. And we got what we wanted; Frozen Fjords. The fjords is a great playground for those who want to ski, go snow-shoe hiking, take a winter-cruise or join a RIB-boat on the fjords or just take in the cold, crispy air and enjoy the beautiful winter-landscape.
It is easy to understand why more and more people are discovering how beautiful and exotic the Norwegian fjords are in winter.
Local food
Aurland, Flåm and Undredal have long traditions in producing local food. The most famous products are the Underdal cheese, Ægir and Norway’s best cured ham from Haugen Gardsmat. You are welcome to drop by on a brewery or a farm visit when you are in Aurland and Flåm. Vangsgaarden Gastropub in Aurland offers good dining experiences. The kitchen works closely with local farmers and fishermen and serves great local food and drinks both indoors and outdoors.
Some hidden treasures
When you are in Aurland, you should visit these local hidden treasures:
Marianne Bakery and Café at Aurlandsvangen serves you a good atmosphere, the best of baked goods and a good selection of coffee and other drinks.
Merete Rein Glassworks is also located in the center of Aurlandsvangen. Here you can see and buy beautiful local glass art, inspired by the fjord and nature in the Sognefjord area.
Aurland Skofabrikk in Aurland produces the famous Aurland shoe. In the shoe factory in Aurand you can see, try and buy shoes from the last surviving shoe factory in Norway. You can also have a tour inside the factory.
Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord – What to See and Do
Flåm, Aurland and Gudvangen are perfect starting points for experiences in and around the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord, two of the world’s most beautiful and dramatic fjords. On 14 July 2005, the Nærøyfjord together with the Geirangerfjord became part of our common UNESCO’s world heritage.
From Flåm you can take part in a fjord safari or a fjord cruise on the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord. You can take this fjord cruise as a round trip (both ways) or one way combined with bus between Flåm and Gudvangen. See the great view from Stegastein viewpoint, 650 meters above Aurland. Taste the local goat’s cheese in Undredal or in Skjerdal, two villages by the Aurlandsfjord.
Flåm Railway is the train journey from fjord to mountain, perhaps the most beautiful railway in the world. You can combine this train journey with cycling along Rallarvegen which goes from the high mountains via Flåmsdalen Valley to Flåm. Aurlandsdalen Valley is one of Norway’s most popular hikes. The lower part of Aurlandsdalen, which is also the most popular, starts from Østerbø and ends at Vassbygdi in Aurland.
The Flåm Valley is a beautiful adventure. The valley between Myrdal (866.8 masl) and Flåm by the Aurlandsfjord is 18 kilometer long. The valley is narrow and the mountains are steep, and there are waterfalls and rivers wherever you turn around. Flåm Valley is a great place for hiking and biking. Flåm Zipline sends you off at over 100 kilometers per hour, you are just hanging in a thin steel wire high above the valley.
By the Nærøyfjord, we have the small villages of Gudvangen, Bakka, Styvi and Dyrdal. Styvi is the only place without permanent inhabitants during the winter, and is together with Dyrdal without road connection. Gudvangen is one of two ports where the iconic ferry trip along the inner part of the Sognefjord departs and arrives. Visit the Viking village Njardarheimr in Gudvangen and experience the history and culture of the Viking Age.
The Nærøyfjord and Aurlandsfjord are both part of the 204 kilometer long Sognefjord which is located in the northern part of the county of Vestland, in the middle of Western Norway.
Hotels and accommodation in the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord area
Overview of hotels and other places where you can spend the night in the area around the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord.
Sakte – Stay and Explore the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord
“Sakte” is a collaboration between companies that provide adventures, accommodation, dining and short-travelled food- and products. “Sakte” are located in the area around the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord and is an offer for those who want to contribute to a sustainable society in the world heritage area.
How to travel to the Aurlandsfjord and Nærøyfjord area
It is easy to travel to Flåm and Aurland, the Aurlandsfjord and the Nærøyfjord. Almost “all roads” go to Flåm and Aurland, and you can also travel there by train, bus and boat. It is only a short distance between the two neighboring villages of Flåm and Aurland.
You can start this fjord adventure by train from Oslo or Bergen to Myrdal station. Then you get to experience the Bergen Railway between Oslo and Bergen and Flåm Railway, one of Norway’s most spectacular railway lines, from Myrdal station to Flåm, which is located down by the Aurlandsfjord. If you take Flåm Railway, you get to experience the beautiful Flåmsdalen valley at the same time.
There are several daily bus departures between Oslo/Bergen and Flåm.
The nearest airport is Sogndal Airport at Haukåsen near Kaupanger. Most flights that go to and from Sogndal Airport come from and go to Oslo and Bergen. From the airport to Flåm, it is 70 kilometers by road, including a wonderful crossing of the Sognefjord by ferry.