Flåm

Flåm () is a village in the Flåmsdalen valley which is located at the inner end of the Aurlandsfjorden, a branch of Sognefjorden. The village is located in Aurland Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. In 2014 its inhabitants numbered 350.

Name

The name ''Flåm'' is documented as early as 1340 as ''Flaam''. It is derived from the plural dative form of the Old Norse word ''flá'' meaning "plain, flat piece of land", and it refers to the flood plains of the Flåm River. ("A plain between steep mountains" is the toponomy of the encyclopedia ''Store Norske Leksikon''.)

History

In 1670 Flåm Church was built, replacing an older stave church.

In 1908, the Norwegian Parliament approved the construction of the Flåm Line railway, though the funds to construct the railway were not allocated until 1923. In 1942, regular operation of (steam-powered) trains started on the Flåm Line.

"In the 1960s, cruise ships stayed on the fjord" ithout reaching the port according to Dagens Næringsliv.

In 2000, the "new pier" was referred to in a government document. ("The pier was built at the entrance to the new millennium", according to Dagens Næringsliv.)

Transportation

Air

The closest airport is Sogndal Airport, Haukåsen, approximately from Flåm.

Road

The European route E16 highway between Oslo and Bergen runs through Flåm. The village sits about southwest of the municipal centre of Aurlandsvangen, south of the village of Undredal, and east of the village of Gudvangen (through the Gudvanga Tunnel).

The Navvy road, Rallarvegen stretches from Myrdal down to Flåm. (Pedestrians and bicyclists still use it.) At Myrdal, it connects with the navvy road for the previously built Bergen Line.

Rail

Flåm is also connected by rail through the Flåm Line, a branch line of the Bergen Line, the line itself travels though picturesque views so is popular with tourists.

Sea

The port can take up to three cruise-ships a day though give a limit of 5000 passengers leaving the ship at a time, in 2020 in was announced they are adding a large (16MVA) power connection allowing ships to turn off their engines whilst docked (known as " Cold ironing") and in May 2025 a contractor was announced.

Tourism

The village of Flåm has since the late 19th century been a tourist destination. It currently receives almost 450,000 visitors a year. Most ride the Flåm Line between Flåm and Myrdal, one of the steepest railway tracks at 1 in 18 (not counting rack railways) in the world. There are also a few spirals. A former rail station building in Flåm now houses a museum dedicated to the Flåm railway.

The harbour of Flåm receives some 160 cruise ships per year.

Complaints about and suggested curbs on tourism

Air pollution in Flåm and Geiranger during the cruise season is similar to that of a big city. Cruise traffic in Norway, which is one of the largest exporters of oil in the world, emits more NOx than all road traffic in Norway combined. In a 2005 Bergens Tidende article, Kjetil Smørås (a hotel director and chairman of Fjord Norge said that "The cruise traffic pollutes more than several ten thousands of cars, and many of the worst ships sail up here (...) cruise tourists trod down the pristine Norwegian nature, and destroy the foundation for Vestlandet's four entries on Unesco's World Heritage lists".

In 2009, Jens Riisnæs (an author and NRK journalist) said "We have the world's most beautiful nation, we don't need to follow the cruise operators' premises. They can go other places with their polluting ships. It is unwanted noise."

In 2009, Dagens Næringsliv said that a report by '' Vestlandsforskning'' says that both "Flåm and Geiranger are nearing a limit in capacity. It might be an alternative and rather stand forth as a «relaxed», exclusive and somewhat less of a mass tourism, cruise destination."

In a 2014 Dagens Næringsliv article, a farmer said that "Previously the smell of summer was that of grass that had been cut. Now the smell is of heavy oil". Furthermore, "They retired coupletalk about fish that has disappeared from the fjord. In Norway, cruise ships are permitted to dump overboard their greywater in the postcard-narrow fjord-arms. Furthermore, the news article says that defecation in public by tourists, is already a problem; the village's train station has the only public toilets, and 200,000 tourists are expected in the summer season.

In 2014, tourism professor Arvid Viken said that "it is about time this ype oftourism is evaluated somewhat more soberly than how it has been done in many municipalities for some years". Furthermore, this tourism "has low profit per tourist, but is often associated with considerable costs for" the municipal administrations.Uvelkomne cruisegjester
nwelcome cruise guests/ref>

People

Flåm was the birthplace of the poet Per Sivle.

In media

Part of the book " The Ship of the Dead" is set in Flåm.

Media gallery

File:Flåm Church, Flåm, Norway - June 2022.jpg, Flåm Church, built in 1670
File:Kjosfossen.jpg, The Kjosfoss waterfall along the Flåmsbana, the railway line from Flåm to Myrdal
File:Trainstationinflam.jpg, Tourists at the railway station in Flåm. The station has the village's only public toilets
File:Flåm 51.jpg, Flåm harbour
File:MF Flåm.jpg, A catamaran in Flåm harbour
File:View of the Aurlandsfjord, Aurlandsvangen and Flam from below the Prest Summit.jpg, View of Aurlandsfjord and Flåm from a nearby summit
File:Last view on Flåm.jpg, View from Flåm
File:Bru over Flåmselvi 1.jpg, View of Flåm bridge with cruise ship behind
File:Flam.jpg, Flåm harbour and railway station
File:SS Norway in Norway.jpg, The SS Norway in Flåm, 1999
File:MSC Fantasia in Flåm (1).jpg, The MSC Fantasia in Flåm
File:T199612.jpg, Ægir, a micro brewery and pub in a traditional-style building
File:Flåm Norway P&O MV Britannia.jpg, P&O MV Britannia docked in Flåm
File:AIDAprima in Flåm, Norway - June 2022.jpg, AIDAprima in Flåm

References

External links

Flåm webcam

Visit FlåmFlam
a
Cruisemapper
on Tripadvisor

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flaam
Villages in Vestland
Aurland
Tourist attractions in Vestland