The Most Beautiful Train Journeys in Europe
Across the roof of Norway
The Bergen Line carries you from the capital to the coast over the bare white tableland of the Hardangervidda, the largest mountain plateau in northern Europe. For an hour around Finse the train runs above the treeline through a world of snow, frozen lakes and reindeer, the highest mainline railway on the continent. Then it tips down through Voss and the fjord country to finish in the wooden streets of Bergen. It is a full crossing of a country in a single unforgettable day.
Distance
496 km Oslo to Bergen
Duration
About 6 hours 30
Highest point
1222 m at Finse
Crosses
The Hardangervidda plateau
Interrail
Covered, reservation recommended
"For one white hour around Finse there are no trees, no roads and no people, only the train and the snow.
"On the Bergen Line
Change at Myrdal for the Flam Railway and the fjords, the most loved detour on the route.
It runs all year, and a clear winter crossing of the plateau is the most dramatic of all.