The Flåmsbana railway between Myrdal and Flåm
One of the steepest adhesion railways in the world. 20km of switchbacks past the Kjosfossen waterfall stop where a hulder dances on the rocks. The signature Flåm experience and the gateway out to the Norway-in-a-Nutshell ride.
Tied to Flåm
The Flåmsbana climbs from sea level at Flåm to 866m at Myrdal in 20km of switchback — one of the steepest standard-gauge adhesion railways in the world, no rack-and-pinion, just five separate brake systems on every carriage. Construction took from 1923 to 1940 and electrification followed in 1944; eighteen of the twenty tunnels were dug by hand. Heritage-style red carriages run alongside the newer green ones.
Partway down, the train stops at the Kjosfossen waterfall and a recorded voice introduces the legend of the huldra while a costumed dancer appears on a rock ledge by the falls. A piece of folklore-as-tourism the train has staged for decades — earnestly cheesy, and somehow beloved. The Ungdommene (the Youngsters) reach Myrdal on the Bergensbanen and ride the Flåmsbana down to Flåm, where the fjord cruise is waiting. The ride itself is the connector inside Norway in a Nutshell rather than its own destination, but it carries the weight of the afternoon.
What we plan to do
Arrive at Myrdal on the Bergensbanen and board the Flåmsbana down to Flåm. Watch for the huldra at Kjosfossen on the way down. Step off at the Flåm wharf for the fjord cruise onward.