Before you go
What to wear on a fjord cruise from Bergen
The best of the trip happens on an open deck, and the deck is colder and windier than the quay you left from. In a city with rain on roughly two days in three, what you are wearing decides whether three and a half hours is wonderful or long.
Quick answer
A windproof and waterproof outer layer, a hat, and shoes you do not mind getting wet. That is the whole list. Every boat here has a heated saloon, so nothing you bring is compulsory — but the people who write the best reviews were standing outside, and the people who found it long were sitting in.
The kit, at a glance
- Outer layer
- Windproof and waterproofthe wind matters more than the rain
- Hat
- Yesthe bow is windy in every month
- Shoes
- Closed, and expendablethe deck gets spray
- Gloves
- Oct – Aprand useful in May
- Sunglasses
- Worth havinglow sun on water is bright
- Camera cover
- A bag or a pocketspray comes over on the strait
- On RIB trips
- Suits are issuedworn over your own clothes
- Inside
- Heated saloonon every boat on this page
- Bergen rain
- About 2 days in 3the boats sail anyway
- Umbrella
- Nouseless in fjord wind; wear a hood
What to wear, in order of what people get wrong
Five things, and none of them specialist
The mistakes are always the same: dressing for the city, and bringing an umbrella.
- A windproof outer layer with a hood
The wind on an open bow at fifteen knots is the thing that makes people go inside. A hood beats an umbrella every time — an umbrella is unusable out there.
- A hat
The simplest upgrade to the whole trip, in July as much as in January.
- Closed shoes you do not mind getting damp
The bow takes spray, especially through the strait and on the way home.
- A warm mid-layer, even in summer
Bergen at eighteen degrees and an open deck in fjord wind are different temperatures.
- Something to keep a phone dry
A pocket that closes, or a small dry bag. Spray, not rain, is what catches people out.
The RIB trips are different
Suits are issued, and what goes under them
Suits are provided; bring closed shoes, gloves outside summer and nothing loose.
On the two RIB trips, floatation suits are handed out at the dock. They go on over your own clothes, they are warm and they keep the spray off, so you do not need a waterproof of your own.
What matters underneath is your feet and your hands. Closed shoes, and gloves outside the summer — a RIB at speed is a windy place.
Leave anything loose behind. Hats can go over the side at thirty knots. If you want one, bring a beanie that stays on rather than a brimmed hat.
Common questions
Clothing, answered
What should I wear on a fjord cruise from Bergen?
A windproof and waterproof outer layer with a hood, a hat, a warm mid-layer and closed shoes you do not mind getting damp.
Is it cold on the fjord?
Colder and windier than in Bergen, in every month. The open bow is the coldest place on the boat and the best one to be.
Do I need an umbrella?
No. It is unusable in fjord wind. Bring a hood instead.
Can I stay inside?
Yes — every boat here has a heated saloon with coffee. But the strait and the waterfall are much better from the deck.
What about the RIB trips?
Floatation suits are issued at the dock and worn over your own clothes. Bring closed shoes, gloves outside summer, and nothing loose that can blow away.
What should children wear?
The same: a hood, a hat and warm layers. The wind is the issue rather than the temperature.
Go deeper
More on fjord cruises from Bergen
What it costs
From $68 to $427, and what an hour on the water is worth.
The verdictWhich cruise is best
All eleven ranked, and the three that are one trip.
The classicThe Mostraumen route
Three and a half hours through a strait fifty metres wide.
HardangerThe Hardangerfjord
A hundred and seventy-nine kilometres, and how to reach it.
RosendalRosendal and the manor
Seven hours, and a house built in 1665.
UNESCOThe Nærøyfjord
Two hundred and fifty metres wide at its narrowest.
