7 Unique Things To Do In Romsdal In Norway

It’s official, Romsdal in Norway has become one of my favorite travel destinations! During our 2 week road trip through the West Fjords and National Parks in Norway we bumped into so many amazing places but the area of Romsdal truly takes the cake!

Romsdal has everything! There’s endless mountain peaks, beautiful valleys, turquoise rivers and enough hiking adventures that could last a lifetime. And still, Romsdal isn’t on a lot of tourists radar. Most of them stick to the area around Preikestolen and Trolltunga. But let me tell you, they are missing out big time!

In this article I’ve listed the top things to do in Romsdal. But besides only discovering the most breathtaking places I’ll also share some of the top activities to do in the area. Wether you want to go on an adventurous hike, go wild camping or sip on a cocktail with one of the most beautiful views in Norway at your feet. I’ve got you covered!

And just like always with my guides I have done every single activity on this page myself. I find it the only way to give you proper advice and to help you plan the best trip possible!

Unique Things To Do In Romsdal In Norway

Romsdal is a district in the Norwegian county Møre og Romsdal, located between Nordmøre and Sunnmøre. It is named after the valley of Romsdalen, which covers part of Rauma.

There are so many fun things to do in Romsdal and with this guide you’re set on discovering the most spectacular places in the area.

Planning your trip to Norway

🏨 Find the best accommodations on Booking.com
💰 Get reliable travel insurance from World Nomads
👩 Find a reliable tour guide, such as this Troll Road Private Tour

🚘 Rent a car to travel around Norway with SunnyCars.com

🎒 Pack a power bank, hiking shoes and trekking poles.
📚 Read Nordic Tales, Lonely Planet’s Norway and Nordic Islands by Stefan Forster

🗺 How to reach Romsdal

Romsdal is located in the northern part of the Norwegian West Fjords and can be easily reached by both public transport as by car. The biggest town in Romsdal is Åndalsnes, the mountain capital of Norway. The easiest way to get around in this part of Norway definitely is by car.

We rented a camper van from WeCamp and it was an amazing way to discover the most beautiful parts of Norway! I love how it gives you the freedom to go wherever, whenever you want and that you have tons of flexibility. Cause imagine you’ve planned out your itinerary but by the time you arrive to let’s say Romsdal they’re predicting 3 days of non stop rain. Ain’t nobody want to hike through that shit show. That’s why I LOVE traveling with a camper van! It gave us the possibility to change up our plans and to follow the sunshine!

FROM OSLO

🚘 BY CAR

From Oslo it’s a 6,5 hour drive to reach Åndalsnes and you’ll be driving an average of 490km. You’ll be driving up the E6 and on your way you’ll drive through some of the most beautiful national parks in Norway such as Reinheimen and Rondane.

🚘 Rent a car to travel around Norway with SunnyCars.com. They offer excellent car service and every car insurance you can think of is included in their price!

On your way from Oslo toÅndalsnes you won’t have to take a ferry boat.

✈️ BY PLANE

The two closest airports toÅndalsnes are in Kristiansund and Molde. Both of them are connected to Oslo by direct flights but while these may get you closer to Romsdal in less than an hour the real hurdle only starts once you get off the plane. To reach your final destination ofÅndalsnes you’ll have to take a bus, a ferry and a taxi. As you can see it’s not the most convenient way of traveling.

🚂 BY TRAIN

The train network in Norway is very good so it’s no surprise that traveling by train in Norway is pretty straight forward. From Oslo Central Station you jump on the train to Lillehammer station which runs hourly every single day. It does get a little trickier from here and you’ll have to plan out your itinerary according to the train schedule. You’ll want to plan your trip on a weekday cause that’s the only time that there’s a direct train from Lillehammer to Åndalsnes.

Why you should visit Romsdal in Norway

Romsdal is one of the most beautiful places in entire Norway and has activities for all types of travelers and ages.

You can go on an adventurous hike and dangle your feet above the highest cliff in Europe but you can also sip on a delicious cocktail at a fancy restaurant while you’re looking out over the bay of Åndalsnes. And while not all activities may be suitable to do them with young kids or with your dog, a lot of them are totally worth it and everyone will have an amazing time!

Romsdal is also home to some hidden gems in Norway and you can have some of these places all to yourself. In this guide I will also explain how to do just that so you’re ensured to have the best time possible at each location.

🗓 When is the best time to visit Romsdal in Norway

The area of Romsdal is a true hiker’s paradise so if you want to be almost certain of good hiking condition I suggest that you plan your trip during the summer months.

Around halfway through June all of the snow will be gone for sure and you’ll be able to enjoy lots of daylight hours. During this time it almost doesn’t get dark in Norway! This especially comes in handy if you’re a little short on time and you need to plan multiple activities per day. You’ll probably end up dead tired at the end of each day but nothing a good night’s sleep can’t fix!

Then there are of course the months of July and August! Weather wise these two months are the most ideal but this is also peak season in Norway. So expect a lot of foreign tourists but especially a lot of locals out on the trails and visiting the main attractions in Romsdal.

And finally September! We did our 2 week road trip through Norway in the middle of September and I thought it was excellent timing! The weather was still good and we had a lot of days with sunshine and only 2 days of rain. The temperature does drop during this time of the year but so do the amount of tourists. I call that a win win for sure. An additional bonus is that fall arrives earlier in Norway than the rest of Europe. So halfway through September you can already see the most beautiful fall colors throughout the country.

🏨 Where to stay in Romsdal

The area around Åndalsnes is filled with stunning camp sites and we had the pleasure to stay at two of them! We stayed at the Åndalsnes Camping & Motell and the Trollveggen Camping. Out of these two the Trollveggen Camping is definitely the most scenic one! Here you’ll set camp right next to the impressive Troll Wall. And yes, we did see our camp site all the way down in the valley when we reached the Stabbeskaret viewpoint!

Another camping option is the Trollstigen Camping and Gjestegård, it’s located only 15 minutes driving from the bus station in Åndalsnes and has been named one of the best and most beautiful camp sites in entire Norway. Unfortunately I only found out about it after our visit to the area. Otherwise you can bet that I would have spent a night here as well!

If you’re not a fan of camping and you fancy a little more luxury you can take a look at the hotels in the Åndalsnes area below!

Booking.com

Awesome things to do in Romsdal

1. Hiking the Romsdalseggen Ridge Trail – The most popular thing to do in Romsdal

Romsdalseggen ridge is one of the most spectacular backdrops in the world and one of the top hiking trails to do in Norway. The long and narrow Romsdalen valley has many impressive mountain tops such as Kongen, Dronningen, Romsdalshorn, Store Trolltind and Store Venjestin.

The Romsdalseggen ridge is located in the heart of the Romsdal valley and once you reach its top it offers 360° views over the surrounding area.

The Romsdalseggen Ridge Hiking Trail is a point to point hike, just like that other wonderful hike in Norway the Besseggen Ridge Trail. But in contrary to that one there’s only one way to complete this hike and that’s from Venjesdalsetra, a car park in Vengedalen, to Åndalsnes.

There’s a dedicated Romsdalseggen bus that will take you to the car park in Vengedalen. This bus leaves from the bus station in Åndalsnes and will drop you off at Venjesdalsetra. It costs 200NOK per person and you can park your car or camper van at the long term parking lot in Åndalsnes.

Hike Distance – 10.3km (6.4 miles)

Hike Duration – 6 to 8 hours

Route Type – Point to point hike

Difficulty – Hard. The Romsdalseggen Ridge Trail was by far the hardest out of all the hiking trails that we completed in Norway. It involves a lot of scrambling and some exposed parts where you have to hold on or pull yourself up with the help of a chain. Not to mention, the final 2km’s are brutal for the knees due to the steep descend.

Elevation – 970m

📖 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE ROMSDALSEGGEN RIDGE TRAIL READ MY GUIDE ON HIKING THE ROMSDALSEGGEN RIDGE TRAIL INCLUDING A TON OF PHOTOS AND MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ON THIS TRAIL.

2. Hike up Trollveggen to the Stabbeskaret viewpoint – Experience a hidden gem in Norway

If there’s one hike in Norway that’s completely underrated then it’s the Trollveggen Hiking Trail up to the Stabbeskaret viewpoint! It’s one of the most beautiful and impressive hiking trails near Åndalsnes.

You’ll hike through a spectacular landscape where you can start at one of the most impressive trailheads I have ever seen. It’s not everyday that you can start a hike by looking down on one of the craziest roads in entire Norway! The Trollstigen road is world famous due to the fact that it creeps up the mountain in incredible loops and to top it off there’s a giant waterfall at each side.

The final viewpoint is located at the vertical cliff of the Trollveggen wall. So once you’re up there it’s a steep drop down into the Romsdalen valley. Make sure to be very careful around the edges and take care if you have a fear of heights. The view is however absolutely amazing and totally worth the trouble of the hike.

Hike Distance – 10.2km (6.3 miles)

Hike Duration – 6 hours

Route Type – Out & Back

Difficulty – Hard. The hike up to Stabbeskaret is pretty demanding. Especially halfway through the hike it’s non stop climbing and scrambling over boulders. The hiking trail is well marked and the views are absolutely stunning but you do need to be in good condition to complete this hike.

Elevation – 754m

📖 FOR MORE INFORMATION YOU CAN READ MY FULL GUIDE ON HIKING UP TROLLVEGGEN INCLUDING A LOT MORE PHOTOS AND MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ON THIS HIKING TRAIL

3. Drive up the Trollstigen Road – An iconic thing to do in Norway!

If there’s one road in entire Norway that you have to take for a ride it’s the Trollstigen road near Romsdal. It’s a serpentine road and absolute masterpiece in engineering in the midst of majestic natural landscape.

The eleven magnificent hairpin turns of Trollstigen and its incline of 10% offer numerous highlights of fantastic scenery along the mountain road. Each bend has its own name, often named after the person who supervised the construction work on that particular section. At some locations you will even discover that the road is carved into the mountain itself and in other places built in stone.

Trollstigen is part of the Norwegian Scenic Route Geiranger – Trollstigen, a two-hour drive with spectacular views and sights that runs all the way from Trollstigen to the bottom of the famous Geirangerfjorden. The road normally opens at the end of May and closes in October / November.

If all of these hairpin turns weren’t enough already you’ll also come at a point somewhere halfway up where you’ll cross a small bridge. Behind it you’ll see the Stigfossen waterfall tumbling down over 300 meters.

4. Make a stop at the Trollstigen Visitor Centre

You can find the Trollstigen Visitor Centre at the top of the Trollstigen road. It’s a modern building and structure that challenges wilderness with a concrete and cor-ten steel structure that stretches dramatically into the fjord.

It’s a beautiful piece of architecture from where you can have an amazing view over the fjord and of course the serpentine Trollstigen road.

There’s a large parking space behind the visitor’s centre but overnight camping is not allowed here! This is also where you park your car when hiking to the Stabbeskaret viewpoint up Trollveggen. If that’ one of the things in Romsdal that you really want to do you can easily combine number 2,3 and 4 in this post.

5. Watch the sunset at Litlefjellet – A fun thing to do with kids in Romsdal!

Litlefjellet is one of those places in Norway that seems to keep on flying under the radar. But doesn’t this sound perfect? A short (but steep) hike up followed by one of the most stunning views in the entire area of Romsdal.

From Litlefjellet you’ll have a direct view over the impressive Trollveggen mountain range and if you’re up for it this is one of the most beautiful places in Norway to go wild camping!

The hike up to Litlefjellet starts at Vengedalen and to reach it you’ll have to drive up a toll road which costs 100NOK. There isn’t a lot of parking space available but all. ofthem are for free. We drove up with our WeCamp camper van and while the road gets pretty narrow sometimes we managed to drive up and down the mountain without a hitch.

Hike Distance – 0.6km (0.37 miles)

Hike Duration – 1 hour

Route Type – Out & Back

Difficulty – Easy. It’s. avery short hike but it does involve some scrambling up at some point so if you bring your kids make sure to keep them at a safe distance.

Elevation – 140m

6. Take the cable car up to Rampestreken

As of May 2021 the city of Åndalsnes has a new toy. TheÅndalsnes cable car, also known as the Romsdalsgondolen will take you up to Rampestreken. It’s the longest cable car in entire Norway and is open every single day during the summer season.

Opening hours – 11am – 9.30pm, depending on the month and day of the week. For the exact timetable you can check here.

Price – One way is 300NOK, Up & Down will set you back 450NOK

At the top of the cable car you’ll arrive at Nesaksla, from here it’s only 15 minutes walking until you reach Rampestreken.

Another way to reach this stunning viewpoint is to hike up from the centre ofÅndalsnes. It’s a 1,5 hour hike to get there but keep in mind that it’s. asteep hike up and down.

You can also choose to hike up and then take the cable car back down.

There are several way to buy a ticket for the Romsdalsgondolen:

• You can do so at the counter in Åndalsnes at the information desk
• At the bottom of the Romsdalsgondolen there’s also a ticket machine
• You can also buy your ticket online

It’s best to buy your tickets from before, even if you’re only taking the cable car back down. At the top there’s no information desk or a ticket machine so you can online buy your ticket online. And if you’ve been hiking in the mountains before then you know that cell service up there isn’t always the most reliable.

7. Have dinner at Eggen restaurant – One of the fanciest things to do in Romsdal

Eggen restaurant opened in 2021 and is located 708 meters above sea level. As a matter of fact, it’s located right next to the cable car station. Here you get to enjoy a combination of delicious food and spectacular 360° views over several mountain tops such as the Romsdalshorn, Store Vengetind and Kirketaket.

Eggen restaurant has a capacity of 170 persons so make sure to make a reservation on time if you want to have lunch or dinner here!

💡 TIP – Every Sunday there’s a buffet from 12am until 8.30pm. For 545NOK you can indulge in several delicious meals and the price for the Romsdalsgondolen is included in your ticket!

Tips for visiting the Romsdalen area

Now that you know all of the top things to do in the area of Romsdal it’s time to give you some of my best insider tips! Follow these and you’re guaranteed to have an amazing time here!

TIP #1 – Make sure to bring comfortable hiking shoes with you

If you want to go on any of the hikes in this list then you better make sure to bring your hiking shoes with you! You’ll be doing almost all of your exploring outdoors and at times the trails can become slippery.

And honestly, there’s nothing worse than not being able to do something just because you didn’t bring the right things with you.

Whenever I go on a hiking trip I even bring two pairs of hiking boots with me. Just to switch it up now and then and make sure that I don’t get any blisters.

I love my Meindl Mountain Trail Boots for longer hikes and my Danner Mountain Light Boots for daily wear and shorter distances. Although this last trip I’ve also been wearing my Danner boots for longer hikes and they felt awesome in my feet!

TIP #2 – Take your time and plan in 2 or 3 days

The hikes that are listed in this list aren’t the easiest so make sure that you calculate in enough time. In my personal opinion you can easily spend 2 to 3 days in the area of the Romsdalen valley. You can hike the Romsdalseggen Ridge on day 1, Hike to Trollveggen and Litlefjellet on day 2 and enjoy an incredible lunch at Eggen restaurant on day 3.

TIP #3 Travel Norway with a camper van

By traveling with a camper van you get all the flexibility that you need. You can plan out your itinerary so that you can chase the sunshine and make last minute changes. Things that aren’t possible if you book your accommodation from before.

The campsites in Norway are very well maintained and have some of the most picturesque backdrops in the entire world!

TheTrollveggen Camping is one of those places where you can wake up, open up the doors of your van and be blown away by the surrounding views. Here you’ll camp right next to the steep cliffs of the Troll Wall. And yes, when we were at the Stabbeskaret viewpoint on top of the Troll Wall we could see this campsite from above!

TIP #4 Get decent travel insurance

I highly recommend you to get a travel insurance before your trip cause the risks are never worth the costs. If you’re going on a more adventurous trip you can always get yourself injured! So far I have sprained my ankle in Jordan, got food poisoning in India, turned snow blind in the Dolomites and have fallen multiple times during many hikes. It’s always best to be safe than sorry in such cases and with a good travel insurance you don’t have to worry about medical bills piling up.

I personally love World Nomads, their prices are affordable, their coverage is great, and they also offer 24/7 on-call customer service! When I got super sick in India they even covered an extra night for me at the hotel that I was staying it and rearranged my flight home at no extra cost!

📸 My Norway Camera Gear

• Canon EOS 6D Mark II – My go to camera body for the past 3 years
• Main Lens – Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II
• Zoom Lens – Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6
• Wide Angle Lens – Canon EF 16–35mm f/2.8L III
• Tripod – Manfrotto Tripod
• Drone – DJI Mavic Mini 2 Fly More Combo

You can find my complete list of photography gear here

🧳 Norway Hiking Packing List

Hiking shoes – You will definitely need a pair of these. Even that some attractions are located right next to a parking lot you’ll pretty much always have to hike over a rocky terrain. I love my Meindl Mountain Trail Boots for longer hikes and my Danner Mountain Light Boots for daily wear and shorter distances.

Trekking poles – These will especially come in handy cause a lot of the hikes in these guide can be rather strenuous on the joints. I used the Leki Adventure Light trekking poles for all of my hikes in Norway!

Back Pack – You’ll want to bring a back pack with you to carry your camera, some snacks and your refillable water bottle. I love the Kanken No. 2 back pack from Fjallraven and pretty much take it with me everywhere I go.

Refillable Water Bottle – The water in Norway is some of the freshet in the entire world so there’s no need at all to buy plastic bottles. Simply find the nearest stream to fill up your bottle and you’re good to go.https://00d0052cfae4fb80bf8af6da581d287a.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

Another option is to use a back pack which has a water reservoir built inside of it. For instance this 3L Hydration Bladder is leak proof and can be stored inside a back pack.

Trail Leggings – I love hiking in leggings and have lately been loving the Abisko Trail Tights from Fjallraven.

Fast Drying Shirt – When hiking you tend to sweat, especially when climbing a mountain. One of the best things to wear is a shirt that quickly dries so you don’t get cold high up the mountain.

Insulating Jacket – Depending on the temperature you’ll either want a thicker or lighter jacket. If it’s pretty cold outside I always go for my Fjallraven Vidda Jacket. Otherwise I go for their High Coast Light Jacket which is super light weight.

Woolen cap – The perfect accessory to protect your ears from the cold and to cover your hair after a few days without a shower.

Protein Bars – Make sure you have a couple of these stowed a way in your back pack to boost up your energy level during the hike.

Sunscreen – Make sure to re apply to your face regularly cause pretty much all of the hikes that we did in Norway were exposed most of the time. I love this one by Neutrogena which feels like a face mist but also provides SPF 50 protection!

Merino Wool Socks – My go to brand has always been Falke and I love how fast they drive after a long day of hiking. Plus since they’re made of merino wool they don’t smell and can be worn for a couple of days.

🇳🇴 Other Norway Articles that might interest you

• Norway – The 20 Most Beautiful Places in Norway for the Outdoor Lover
• Romsdalseggen – Romsdalseggen Ridge Hike – The Most Spectacular Hiking Trail In Åndalsnes
• Hiking – Norway Hiking Guide – 14 Best Day Hikes In Norway
• Wildlife – Where To See The Musk Ox In Dovrefjell National Park In Norway
• Trollveggen – The Ultimate Trollveggen Hiking Trail – Hiking Stabbeskaret On The Troll Wall In Norway
• Jotunheimen National Park – Besseggen Ridge Hike Guide – The Best Hiking Trail In Jotunheimen National Park
• Trolltunga – Trolltunga Hike – Everything You Need To Know About Hiking Norway’s Most Famous Trail
• Norway Road Trip – The Ultimate 2 Week Norway Road Trip Itinerary Perfect For The Outdoor Lover

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Every photo in this article was edited with the help of my Minimal Preset Pack

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