Flåm





What is it that draws around 450 000 tourists and every cruise ship to a tiny village of 500 people? A 20 kilometer long strech of railway!!! Located in the The railroad is one of the kind, one of the steepest rail roads in Europe that is using just adhession to gain grade and because of the line's steep incline and scenery, it is a major tourist attraction.









The Flåm Line was built in order to provide a line of communication between Sognefjorden and the main railway. The resolution to make such a line was passed in Stortinget in 1908 and the route was decided in 1916. The route chosen was a difficult one. Construction on the line started in 1923 but the construction was not complete before 1947, although trains started operating on it a few years earlier. Eighteen of the twenty tunnels were dug out manually.



The line was opened in 1940, but passenger traffic did not start until 1941. The line was electrified in 1944. Since the line was completed during World War II, the line was not "officially" opened then, and the official opening was in fact not till 1980. The operation of the line was privatized in 1998 (actually transferred to a municipality owned company), though the line itself is still owned by the state through Norwegian National Rail Administration.



One thing for certain the rail road is being busy with all the tourists who comes by the sea or by bus. The station is for the number of people living there most impressive in size. The old station is now part of the Flåm-line museum and houses everyhing from full sized engines to various photos. It is free of charge to pay a visit in the small museum and if you are intersted in trains, it is worth a visit.



One feature that is rather amaizing is the sizeable souverier shop in the current station buliding, which by far exceeds anything I have seen in any rail road station. Also it houses an internet café and a resturant.



There are lots of tourist in town as the ships come in. It is allways alot of action there, besides the large cruise ships there are a plenty of excursion boats and ferries to take you out along the Aurlandsfjorden and the mighty Sognefjorden. And comparing the cruise ships to those canotes for rent, you have I guess the optimium choise of vessels. Besides if the prices on the train is a bit too stiff, there is a small red train taking you out on the streets...



It is allways pretty fun to watch and guess the origin of various tourists, but in all they seem to be very attached to their guides who here try their best to get them to the best window seats on the train,and th boarding of the train is amusing show to watch. Both times I was there it was a bit of chaos as appearently the tourists did not allways go to right passenger car nor speak English. There is alot of "Disneyland" around the docks, like a church which vaguely follows the lines of the stave churches around the area. But it is not allways peacefull there. The two wooden coaches in these photos now acting as seatings in a café was actually victims of a raging storm in the 1980.s. The cars were to used on excursion trains by a rail preservation group. But instead of scrapping they were chopped of their roofs and now serves as a nice café.... as long it is not raining. If it is raining there is anumber of a hotels in the village.

(Aurland) (Laerdal)
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