Editor Pick
A Funicular Taking You to the Best View of Bergen!
- July 21, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
karly07 from Belfast, United Kingdom
Even though Bergen held up to its title of the wettest city in Europe when we arrived there, after seeing no rain on our trip in Norway for almost two weeks, it did not dissuade us from taking a trip on the floibanen funicular up to Mount Floyen to get some superb views over Bergen.
The Floibanen funicular is apparently Scandinavia's only cable railway, and is an extremely popular attraction in Bergen. This funicular was first operated in 1918, and continues to take visitors all year round up Mount Floyen. In the peak season from May to August, the funicular runs from early morning to Midnight, where you can enjoy those long long evenings, when the sun hardly goes down. During the remainder of the year, the funicular operates from morning until 11pm. The train itself runs approximately every 15 minutes, but this is usually increased during peak season, with the journey only lasting 7 minutes.
If you arrive in the centre of Bergen, the floibanen is very easy to find and walkable to, even in the pouring rain. It is situated only 150 metres away from the famous Bergen fish market, and close to the coloured houses/shops of Bryggen.
As of last summer, tickets for the Floibanen cost 70Nk (£7) for a return ticket for an adult. Child return tickets cost 35Nk (£3.50), but there is also a family ticket (2 adults, 2 children) costing 175 NK (£17.50). In comparison to a lot of attractions in Norway, this is actually quite reasonable value.
There are two funicular carriages taking visitors up and down from Mount Floyen, each able to carry 100 passengers. It is also worth noting that the trains are designed in such a way as to have easy access for both wheelchair users and those with prams, which is a first for many of the attractions we visited in Norway.
The funicular trains take you 320 metres above sea level, where when the rain clouds clear (which thankfully they did for us for a little while) you get panoramic views of Bergen and its surroundings mountains and fjord. At the top there is a very modern looking viewing point allowing visitors to get those terrific shots, and pick out some of Bergne's other key attractions.
There is also a little souvenir shop at the top of the Mount which sells alos sells hot dogs etc. A restaurant is also located at the top (Floien Folkerestaurant), however be warned this is pricey. with an a la carte menu. During the day, I think that they offer more reasonably priced food with a snack menu, but unfortunately the evening menu was a little out of our league in terms of budget. The restaurant does however offer visitors clean free restrooms, and ist is worth making use of these, because Norway is notorious for not having many public restrooms, or ones that you don't have to pay for.
If the weather is good or simply dry (!) you can take advantage of some of the beautiful walks that are marked out around the area through forests and lakes. The ticket office at the bottom of the funicular with give you a free map of these walks. We managed to walk around a small lake on one of the marked footpaths before the rain came on again, and we decided to take the funicular back down and try and find some reasonably priced eatery for our dinner that evening, if one actually existed in Bergen.
All in all, the floibanen funicular is a must for any visitor to Bergen. The train journey is very comfortable and pleasant, and young children will be sure to love it, but it is really the views that most people come up to Mount Floyen for. You will be disappointed if the weather is bad, because you will not see anything, however you could be lucky enough like us, leaving the city centre in rain, but by the time we got to the top, the clouds have cleared, somewhat temporarily, and we saw some of the views Mount FLoyen had to offer, albeit not in glorious sunshin,e but you have to make the best of it. We would have loved to have walked more around some of the marked paths at the top, and if you are in to walking, and have all the right waterproof gear with you, even the wet climate of Bergen, shouldn't stop you from exploring these paths more. A great attraction with a reasonable ticket price!
From journal An Independent Tour of Norway on a Modest Budget!