Balestrand

Balestrand is a village on the northern shore of the Sognefjord, in Vestland, Norway, roughly 160 km north of Bergen by water. It is reached by the Norled Sognefjord express boat from Strandkaiterminalen in Bergen, which leaves at 08:00 in season and runs towards Flåm; the Flåm to Balestrand leg takes about 1 hour 20 minutes, and stops, times and fares should be checked at norledfjordcruise.no. The journey takes several hours each way, so the day trip is long and mostly spent on the water, and many visitors treat Balestrand as an overnight stop. The village is known as a place where nineteenth-century artists and travellers came for the fjord light, and it has a quiet, scenic setting with fruit orchards, a shoreline path and the English church, St Olaf's, a wooden church built in the late nineteenth century in a style influenced by the stave church tradition. The Kviknes Hotel, a large historic wooden hotel on the waterfront, is a prominent landmark. The Sognefjord Aquarium and the Norwegian Museum of Travel and Tourism are also located in the village area and offer indoor options. A realistic day on the boat means arriving around midday, walking along the fjordfront and to the church, having lunch in the village, and catching the afternoon boat back, so a check of the return timetable is essential. The best season is May to September, when the express boat runs on its summer schedule and daylight is long; out of season, sailings are limited. Dining options include hotel restaurants and cafés in the village centre. Visitor information is available at visitsognefjord.no.