Stay in Balestrand and not miss Naeroyfjord when doing Nutshell Bergen to Oslo direction?

Day 1: Bergen-Voss-Gudvangen-Flåm-Balestrand.
Day 2: Balestrand-Flåm-Myrdal-Oslo.

If your day 2 is on a Mon-Fri and your traveldate is June 18th or later, then you have another option:
Day 1: Boat Bergen-Balestrand
Day 2: Balestrand-Flåm (FlåmExpress), Flåm-Gudvangen-Flåm (boat/shuttle), Flåm-Myrdal-Oslo (train)

We'll be in that area Sunday and Monday, June 24th and 25th. How much backtracking time (and expense) would these ideas entail?

How much bactracking? At least 3 hours.

I know Rick commands people to stay in Ballestrand but it is okay to do something he doesn't suggest. Be a little adventurous.

Do the Norway in a Nutshell the easy way and stay in Flam.

Bergen to Voss---train
Voss to Gudvangen--bus--very scenic, windy roads,
Gudvangen to Flam-- ferry

Stay overnight in Flam.

Flam to Myrdal-- train (very scenic with photo stops)
Myrdal to Oslo-- train

Except in Bergen and Oslo you won't have to walk more than 100 yards between transfers nor take an additional boat to get to your hotel both arriving and leaving.

Different strokes for different folks. Old-world and quiet small-town charm of Balestrand (or Vik or Leikanger or Lavik or others along the Sognefjord) vs a more-energetic vibe of a small tourist town like Flåm (and its couple of thousand cruise ship passengers when one's docked). Enjoyed Flåm nevertheless but I'm glad I visited there for a few hours in lieu of staying overnight.

Just got back from our trip to Norway and wanted to follow up in case it helps others with the same question I had. We ended up going Bergen to Voss, Voss to Gudvangen, Gudvangen to Flam, then took the Norled boat from Flam to Balestrand. This year the Flam Express wasn't running on weekends so I thought we wouldn't be able to get to Balestrand from Flam (it was a Sunday) but learned of the Norled boat and was SO happy we COULD get there!! Balestrand was the highlight of our entire trip. It's a beautiful, quaint little village and it's very quiet compared to Flam. Amazing views from our hotel. Totally worth the 1 1/2 to 2 hour boat ride each way. We stayed two nights, then the following morning we took the Flam Express from Balestrand to Flam and reconnected with the Nutshell route by taking the train from Flam to Myrdal, and Myrdal into Oslo. Would go that route again with zero hesitation!

Thank you for this! We are going to Norway in one week, but we are staying overnight in Flam and Balestrand. Would love a trip report on your whole trip if you wouldn’t mind! What hotel did you stay at in Balestrand?

DL - My 2¢ about staying in Balestrand:

I stayed in the Kviknes Hotel. Original building dates from mid-1800s and is well-maintained. I had a room on the uppermost floor (of three) that had a huuuuuge balcony with a table and chairs. Very nice place to enjoy a glass of wine and the great view of the Sognefjord. Possible downsides for some would be the Jack-n-Jill shared bathroom (I don't know if that applies to all rooms in the building) and the lack of an elevator. Luckily for my son and I, no one was staying in the room on the far side of the bathroom. Wanted to stay in the historic building for its old school charm. The Kviknes also has a contemporary annex with elevators (and rooms with their own bathrooms, presumably). Great breakfast and dinner buffets. The Kviknes has an interior hallway that connects to the fairly-new "Norsk Reiselivsmuseum" - the Norwegian Museum of Travel and Tourism.

There are a couple of other hotels in Balestrand (including the "Balestrand"). Maybe other forum posters have stayed in one and can offer an opinion.

We stayed at the Balestrand Hotel and enjoyed it. The rooms were not fancy but were very comfortable and clean. We never heard a sound from other rooms and that was nice. They do have an elevator. We had a room with a balcony and LOVED having such a great view! The owners of the Kvicknes hotel are the in-laws of the owner of the Balestrand Hotel. We went to the Kvicknes Hotel for their buffet dinner one night and it was very good. LOTS to choose from! I liked the feel of the Balestrand Hotel and we'd return again in an instant.

Susan

I'm doing something very similar.

I will be leaving Bergen:
Day1: Friday aug 31 - start norway in a nutshell tour from Bergen
Night1: Stay somewhere... flam? Aurland? or balestrand?
Day2: Saturday Sep 1 - Head to Oslo

Any thoughts/insights would be much appreciated. I cannot see the train schedules for aug 31 and sep 1 as of yet...
Susan - do you know where I can find the boat schedules from flam to balestrand? Also - what did you do in balestrand and did you spend any time exploring flam?

thanks!
Michael