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Fjords without a rudder or exhaust fumes: 5 ready-made "train + bus + boat" loops

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Norway is an amazing place to travel in a loop, swapping wheels for rails, the deck for a bus seat, and getting a new view of the fjord every hour. Electric trains are powered by water energy, regional buses are perfectly synchronised with ferries, and tickets can be easily combined into a single checkout via the Entur app.

Below are five circular routes that have been tested by backpackers and students. They care about price and ecology as much as they do about panoramic views. I'm thrilled to tell you that each track fits into the format of routes through Norway's stunning national parks, and offers at least one "postcard" peak from the list of the best national park hikes in the country!

"Sognefjord Classic" — Norway in a Nutshell ring without a tour package

Step Transport Time Cost
Bergen → Voss Bergen Railway 1 hour 15 minutes 199 NOK (Low Fare)
Voss → Gudvangen Skyss Bus 950 50 min 129 NOK
Gudvangen → Flåm Eco-catamaran Future of the Fjords 2 hours 390 NOK
Flåm → Myrdal Flåmsbana 55 min 430 NOK
Myrdal → Bergen Bergen Railway 2 hours 20 minutes 299 NOK

* Prices for 2025, early booking

Hike bonus From Flåm, climb the Prest scenic trail (6 km / +650 m): the mirror-like Aurlandsfjord and the sound of electric catamarans below will remind you that you got here with a passenger ticket, not petrol fumes.

2. Hardanger "Cider Loop" — cider gardens without a rental car

Bergen → Voss train → bus 925 to Nærheimsunna → Norled Eco-Ferry to Utne → local bus through the cider farms of Kinsarvik → Eidfjord → evening bus/train back to Voss.

Budget: ~650 NOK, including cider tasting (0.15 l serving).
Trail of the day: Dronningstien ("Queen's Trail", 16 km / +750 m). Blooming gardens in May, red and gold Hardanger Cider Week in September.

Lysefjord "Stavanger Circle" — ferry + serpentine roads + Kjerag

Station Method Time
Stavanger Bus T. → Lauvvik Kolumbus R-100 1 hour 10 minutes
Lauvvik → Lysebotn Battery-powered catamaran 1 hour 30 minutes
Lysebotn → Øygardstølen Bus 120 20 min

4. Romsdal + Geiranger "Troll & Queen"

Start Dombås → Åndalsnes (picturesque Rauma Line). The morning bus 220 climbs the Trollstigen serpentine road to Valldal → rally bus to Eagle Road → descent to Geiranger. The liners leave, and you board the evening ferry Geiranger → Hellesylt (UNESCO-listed fjord without crowds) → bus Stranda / Sjøholt → Åndalsnes.

Included hike: Litlefjellet (2 km / +310 m) at dawn: the view of the entire Trollveggen is worth the early start.

Arctic "Senja by PT" — midnight sun without a rudder

Route Transport Details
Tromsø → Finnsnes Bus 100 Book a window seat on the left: views of Ullsfjord
Finnsnes → Senja (Gryllefjord) Fast Ferry 60 m; bicycle +0 NOK
Local Bus "Bergsfjord Loop" Bus 45 NOK
disembark at Segla trail Hike Segla & Hesten 5 km / +640 m
Swim in Mefjord Gryllefjord → Tromsø night ferry; midnight sun on deck

Budget ≤ 900 NOK, three modes of transport, one Arctic ridge. Hiking trails in Norway under the midnight sun in 24 hours — a dream come true for low-carbon panorama collectors.

How to build your PT ring

  1. Glue the nodes together — a train node represents a long transfer, a bus is a bridge over the void of timetables, and a boat is a "wow layer" above the water.
  2. Check with Entur: in the "Bicycle allowed" filter, the ticket shows whether you can take your bike with you if you want to cover the kilometre from the pier to the start of the trail.
  3. The Low Fare package is sold on Vy trains for 199–299 NOK, goes on sale exactly 90 days in advance and sells out within hours.
  4. Make anchor reservations only for the first train and fjord boat; buses usually do not require reservations, which means flexibility and savings.


All you need for amazing panoramas is a 40-litre backpack and timetables on your phone, and you're all set! Trains glide effortlessly through valleys, buses soar up to where sheep graze, and ferries dance across the water, creating ripples from their electric propellers. And you are at the top, looking out over the fjord, and you realise that it was a chain of tickets, not litres, that brought you here – and you feel a sense of excitement and accomplishment!

Try out different routes, mix and match your connections, and share your best tips for transfers, prices, and free drinking water sources along the way in the comments. Let's work together to create the most comprehensive guide to outdoor adventures in Norway! We can make every backpack lighter than a steering wheel and every peak more accessible to your wallet and the planet.