We will stop at Flam Norway on a cruise ship May 21, 2017; we are scheduled to arrive at 8:00 am and depart 6:00 pm. We would like to experience the Flam Railway for the trip south from Flam to Myrdal and on the following train to Flam. As the ship will have 3000 passengers, and from what little I know about Flam, the train experience is THE (only) thing to do and I doubt the train carries 3000 passengers. How frequently do the trains run and does the "ships excursion” (any cruise line) guests receive priority over those who self-book (like we will do if we can)? I would appreciate any comments.
Posted by
Ajijic, Jalisco, Mexico
1927 posts
You can find the timetable for this year at https://www.nsb.no/en/timetables/timetables/_attachment/11164?_ts=15100f1c398, so this will at least give you an idea of the frequency. I can't answer your question about priority for cruise passengers, and I don't know when tickets go on sale for next May, but I'd start checking after the first of the year.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Rick's Northern Cruise Ports book has this note:
Warning: Morning trains sell out quickly, particularly when multiple cruise ships are in town; to book a morning ticket, order online in advance at www.nsb.no or get off your ship as quickly as possible and make a beeline to the train ticket office.
That web site doesn't always work with US credit cards, however.
Posted by
6 posts
I just returned from the area.
The Flam Railroad usually has 6 cars. Cruise groups are given 2-3 of the cars depending on demand. If you are not in a group, you book a specific time to depart Flam. They run about every hour or so. Generally, you should be able to book a time from Flam. Go to the ticket office next to the train station. For planning purposes you can see the times on the EURAIL web site under the "timetable" section. The return from Myrdal does not require a specific time. We stayed at a hotel near Myrdal and the train stopped and picked us up. They always stop there. The stop is "Vatnahalsen".
I would recommend, if you have time, to go up the Flam railway and get off either at Myrdal (nothing there but a small station, but it does have a cafe) or Vatnahalsen. From there you can spend some time in the mountains. Beautiful area, with waterfalls everywhere. You could do a short hike and catch the train back to Flam. The timetable for the train is in both the Myrdal and Vatnahalsen stations so you can plan your return.