If you’re planning a trip to Bergen, you may well have heard about the Bergen Card, which gives free entry to more than 30 museums and attractions in the city.
The card also includes travel on Bergen’s buses and light railway, plus discounts on a variety of tours, restaurants, parking, bike hire and cultural events.
It’s true that Norway is one of Europe’s most expensive countries, so could buying the card save you a load of cash on your trip to Bergen?
We’ve done the maths for you, so read on and find out if the Bergen Card is for you!
So, what exactly is the Bergen Card and how does it work?
The Bergen Card comes in 24hr, 48hr and 72hr versions. You simply show it at the attraction you wish to visit or on the bus or train and you’ll get free admission.
Once you buy the card you write the expiry date on the back and can use it until it runs out.
What’s included with the Bergen Card?
The Bergen Card gives free entrance to some of the city’s top attractions, plus others that are a little more niche, but still surprisingly interesting – anyone fancy a trip to the Museum of the Norwegian Knitting Industry?
The card also provides unlimited travel on the Bergen Light Railway and on Skyss buses in the city and throughout the surrounding Hordaland region.
You can even travel by bus out to explore the surrounding fjords. Buses to the Hardangerfjord and the Aurlandsfjord are included as is the bus to Odda, for the stunning hike up to the iconic Trolltunga.
The journey to and from the airport on the light railway is included, but not on the airport bus. Note that the Bergen Card is not valid on Vy regional and intercity trains.
Here are some of Bergen’s top attractions that are included free with the Bergen Card.
- Bergen Maritime Museum
- Bergen Kunsthall
- Fantoft Stave Church
- Fjell Fortress
- Håkon’s Hall
- Herdla Museum
- Horda Museum
- Lysøen Island, and Ole Bull’s Villa (not including the boat to the island)
- Norwegian Fisheries Museum
- The Rosenkrantz Tower
- Old Bergen Museum
- The Bergen Aquarium (free from November to February; the card gives a 25% discount from March to October).
- The Bergen Science Centre (free from August 20th to June 22nd; the card gives a 50% discount from 23rd June to 19th August).
- The Fløibanen funicular (free from October to April; the card gives a 50% discount from May to September).
The card also provides discounts of around 20% on admission to other attractions, such as the Hanseatic Museum and the Ulriken cable car. Click here for full details of what’s included and what’s not.
How much does the Bergen Card cost?
| 1 day | 2 day | 3 days |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Adults | 280 | 360 | 430 |
| Students and seniors | 224 | 288 | 344 |
| Children (3–15 years) | 100 | 130 | 160 |
All prices are in NOK and correct at time of publication.
Where can I buy the Bergen Card?
The easiest option is to buy the Bergen Card in advance online. Your ticket will be emailed to you – then you can just take it to the tourist office at the Fishmarket and exchange it for a Bergen Card.
The Bergen Card is also sold in various places around the city including the tourist information office at the Fish Market (open daily: June–Aug 8.30am–10pm; May & Sept 9am–8pm; Oct–March 9am–4pm; Nov–Feb closed on Sundays) and at the airport (24hrs a day).
You can also buy it at most campsites in the city and at selected hotels and ferry terminals.
The million-dollar question: is it worth buying?
Well, of course that depends on what you want to see in Bergen and how busy you plan to be. If you just want to wander the streets and take in the atmosphere of the city, it may not be worthwhile buying.
But, if you intend to see the main sights, visit a few museums and head out to explore the fjords by bus, then it will almost certainly save you some cash. You can buy the card here.
To help you decide, we’ve put together a sample three-day itinerary covering the main sights and some of the less well-known attractions, so you can work out whether the Bergen Card is right for you.
Three days in Bergen: would you save cash?
| The DIY option | 72hr Bergen Card | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | n/a | 430 |
| Entry to the Bergen Science Centre | 180 | n/a |
| Trip on the Fløibanen funicular | 90 | n/a |
| One-day bus ticket to Odda | 255 | n/a |
| Entry to the Fjell Fortress | 100 | n/a |
| Entry to Håkon’s Hall | 100 | n/a |
| Entry to the Bergen Maritime Museum | 90 | n/a |
| Entry to the Old Bergen Museum | 120 | n/a |
| Total cost (NOK) | 935 | 430 |
All prices are in NOK and correct at time of publication.
We’ve assumed a three-day visit in April when free admission to the Bergen Science Centre and the Fløibanen funicular is included in the card.
If you visited five of Bergen’s museums over a three-day period, took a day trip out to the fjords and rode on the iconic Fløibanen funicular, you’d save yourself a whopping 505 NOK by buying the Bergen Card.
Yes, it would be a busy trip, but you’d see some of Bergen’s best sights for less than half the price you’d have paid for each attraction individually.
And if you factor in the cost of the bus or light railway journeys (which are free with the card) to get to each attraction, the card becomes better value still.
The Bergen Card: our verdict
Even if you visit in summer when some of the museums only offer discounted rather than free admission, buying the Bergen Card still makes sense if you want to see the best of the city’s sights and surrounding countryside.
And you don’t have to be a massive museum fan to make the card worthwhile: two day trips out to the fjords, and one journey on the Fløibanen funicular alone would set you back 600 NOK. That’s 170 NOK more than the Bergen Card!
So, if you want to explore the city and its stunning hinterland and visit just a couple of museums and sights, you’ll almost certainly save money by buying a Bergen Card.
See also:
A lot of attractions we would have liked to see were closed. For us it was a very bad deal.
Interesting! Was this during covid?
We’re coming into Bergen tomorrow, then have two full days. Can you tell us what was closed?