Norway – Flåm Fjord Cruise

Best Photos

I took my favorite photos of the Flåm Fjord Cruise at the front of the boat, where you could a gorgeous photo of the upcoming landscape or catch specific beauties in every direction. When we turned down the Nærøyfjord initially, we were facing the sun. I thought this would blow out the shot, but these were actually lovely, despite myself being a bit windblown.

You should take an opportunity to take photos all around the boat if you can manage it. By that, I mean up front on the bow, at the back with the Norwegian Flag flying, off the sides with waterfalls, and etc. As the scenery passes, the lighting and clouds change, making each area of the fjords a little different.

Once you disembark in Gudvangen, I recommend grabbing a cider from the bar and taking a few pictures with the Viking ship replica and the fjord behind you. Holding onto your cider during the pictures isn’t necessary, but I kind of love the Viking effect.

Boat Logistics

I hinted towards it earlier but wanted to mention that the boat felt very packed on the upper deck. It is not that the boat was full because inside there were many open seats, but that there is limited outdoor space. There were at least two or three large tour groups on board. We may be been there only single ticket holders, which was a bit strange. Some of the men from the tour groups decided to smoke a cigarette on the upper deck, making it uncomfortable for us to stay there. Then the front of the boat was very cold, so we would need to warm back up inside or on the upper deck. So around and around we went. But hey, we got great photos and exercise! I tried not to let this bother me because the fjords were a highlight of our entire Norway trip.

In Gudvangen, where everyone disembarked, there was a gift shop just inside. Once I was in the store, the same people from the boat were talking around me and bumping into me. After spending two hours doing the same thing, I’ve had enough and walked over to get a cider from the empty bar. It’s not that they were unkind, I just needed some space to actually enjoy this beautiful country. Perhaps it wouldn’t feel this way if I signed up for the tour group and this was part of the tour. If a crowd doesn’t bother you, then this is a great fjord cruise.

What to Pack for a Norway Fjord Cruise

The weather in Norway is variable, especially so in autumn. I ended up bringing many light layers so I could adjust to the various weather conditions and wind while on the fjord cruise. Here are a few items that came in handy:

• Rain Jacket and/or windbreaker, especially for the fjord cruises where it’s extremely windy at the front of the boat.
• Puffy mid-layer that packs up small like the Patagonia nano-puff jacket. Or for something a little more casual looking, I’m trying out the Patagonia pack-in jacket. the maroon jacket you see in the photos is a casual jacket I picked up from Marshalls but I was freezing, so I wouldn’t recommend it! It might have worked with a rain jacket or windbreaker on top.
• Wool layering long sleeve, like this one from Smartwool. Or consider a tank top to wear UNDER your cute sweaters for extra warmth.
• Leggings – athletic ones are always great to have, but also consider bringing a base layer with wool to wear under your pants.
• Lightweight fleece gloves were handy (pun intended)! I ended up wearing them on the fjord cruises and in Bergen where it was cooler. These ones from REI are supposed to allow you to touch the screen through the gloves – that would have been amazing because I kept having to take one glove off to take photos.
• Cute fleece-lined beanie.
• Extra large scarf or scarves! H&M typically has some cute chunky scarves each fall.
• Boots that you can comfortably walk in, but also keep your feet warm. The ones you see in the photos look good, but are often not warm enough! Consider some cute but functional boots from Clarks or Sorel.
• A handy dandy refillable water bottle is ALWAYS a good thing to bring with you.