Fløyen or Fløyfjellet is one of the "city mountains" in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

Hordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Municipal ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. Its highest point is above sea level. The name could originate from ''fløystangen'' or a

weather vane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...

that was set up to indicate the direction of the wind for sailing ships. The view of the Bergen peninsula makes Fløyfjellet a popular attraction among tourists and locals alike. It has a

funicular A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...

system called

Fløibanen The Fløibanen is a funicular railway in the Norwegian city of Bergen. It connects the city centre with the mountain of Fløyen, with its mountain walks and magnificent views of the city. It is one of Bergen's major tourist attractions and one of N ...

that transports passengers from the center of Bergen to a height of in roughly eight minutes.

Hiking

There are several hiking options on Fløyen itself, or one can continue further on to Vareggen or over Vidden to

Ulriken Ulriken (or the older, ''Ålreken'') is the highest of the Seven Mountains, Bergen, Seven Mountains ( no, De syv fjell) that surround the city of Bergen, Norway. It has a height of above sea level. Ulriken has an aerial tramway, Ulriksbanen, that ...

. Fløyfjellet provides signed hiking roads to Blåmannen, Rundemannen, and Sandviksfjellet. At midtfjellet at the foot of Blåmannen there is a kiosk called Brushytten. The roads and paths down from Fløyen are floodlit in the winter months and are popular for sledding.

Fløibanen

Fløibanen is an -long electric cable funicular that pulls two wagons between Fløyen and the station at Vetrlidsallmenningen in Bergen city centre. It also has three stations: Promsgate, Fjellveien and Skansemyren and it was opened in 1918. Since the opening Fløibanen has carried over 48 million people to and from Fløyfjellet. Over the past few years passenger numbers have averaged 1 million per year. Over the years, Fløibanen has cemented its position as Bergen's most popular tourist attraction and according to the Norwegian Council for Tourism, Fløibanen was Norway's fourth most visited tourist attraction in the 2001 summer season. Most of the traffic occurs in the summer months from May to September. Fløyen station is above sea level and it is the last stop at the top. There is also a viewpoint. In 2002 the site was rebuilt for 46 million NOK, the viewpoint was extended and is called Fløytrappene. This is a broad staircase which goes from the station stop to Fløien Folkerestaurant. There are countless hiking paths, and there is one road intended for cars.

References

External links

"Floyen.no"
Company site of the Funicalar company.
"Bergenbyarkiv.no"
"Encyclopedia about the history in Bergen.
Walks and hikes on Fløyen
Mountains of Bergen Tourist attractions in Bergen {{Vestland-mountain-stub