Culture and Waterfalls

The tour starts near the railway station in Flåm and continues out the beautiful bay towards the area’s municipal center, Aurland. On the way out the fjord, we will stop at Otternes bygdetun for 15 minutes, where you can walk around in a cluster of 18th-century farm houses. Local history believes that people have lived here since 300 AD. You will also have a beautiful view back at Flåm, and out the fjord.

After the 15 minutes stop at Otternes, the tour continues out the fjord and stops at the municipality centre, Aurland.

Here we will stop for 35 minutes. The travelers decide for themselves whether they want to visit the old stone church Vangen church, or the Aurland shoe factory, or both. Vangen church is an old stone church where local history says that the first stone was laid in 1202. Aurland shoe factory claims that the founder Nils Tverranger made the world's first Penny loafer in 1926. In the shoe factory, it is possible to study its history on boards and pictures, or download an app (audio guide - additionally NOK 90), where you can listen to an audio guide in various languages.

Be aware that the shoe factory and the factory outlet is closed on Sundays.

Visit Aurland shoe factory's own website.

Then the tour takes the traveler in the fjord again to Flåm. At Rjoandefossen waterfall, 4 kilometers up in Flåm valley, the tour makes a 10-minute stop. Breathe in the fresh air, and take pictures of the beautiful Rjoandefossen where the largest drop has a free fall of 140 meters.

The tour then takes you down to Flåm church, a wooden church from 1667. It is located 1 kilometer further down, in a place in the Flåm valley that the locals call Flåm. Here the tour takes a 10-minute break so that travelers can take a quick look inside.

On the way back to the bus stop on Fretheim (Flåm) where the tour started, the bus makes a stop at Brekkefossen waterfall. Here the passengers can decide if they want to end the journey, and walk stone steps ut to Brekkefossen waterfall. The Brekkefossen waterfall is a popular destination for the visitors of Flåm. It is not far from the center, only approximately one kilometer up in the valley. Sherpas from Nepal have made the stone stairs that take you from where the track starts by the river, and up to the waterfall (the first 100 meters is a gravel path). The travelers can also skip the walk up to the waterfall, and join the bus back to the bus stop. Beware that if you choose to walk up to the waterfall, you have to walk the one kilometer back down to the center by the doc. The bus will not wait for you.