Plan your trip to Norway

Entry requirements for UK passport holders

• Passport. GOV.UK says your passport must have been issued less than 10 years before you arrive, and must expire at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area.
• No visa for short visits. You can travel without a visa to the Schengen area, which includes Norway, for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Visits to other Schengen countries in the previous 180 days count towards the 90. Overstaying can mean a ban from Schengen countries for up to 3 years.
• Entry/Exit System (EES). Visit Norway says it is fully operational at all border crossing points in Norway and the Schengen Area. It registers your identity, travel document and biometrics, including a facial image and fingerprints, on first entry.
• ETIAS. Visit Norway says ETIAS is not yet operating and is expected to begin in the last quarter of 2026, with the exact date to be announced. It is a travel authorisation, not a visa. The GOV.UK entry page does not mention it, so check both before you book.
• Customs. Declare anything prohibited or subject to duty, and cash or travellers' cheques worth 25,000 Norwegian krone or more.

Norway is not in the European Union, but it is part of the European Economic Area and the Schengen Area.

Getting there from the UK

Visit Norway gives about 2 hours for a flight from London to Oslo or Bergen, and names Norwegian and SAS among the airlines. Edinburgh Airport's destinations page lists Bergen (1h30) and Oslo (1h45) with Norwegian. Other international airports in Norway include Bergen, Kristiansand, Sandefjord, Stavanger, Tromsø and Trondheim. Airline routes change, so check the airlines for your departure airport.

There is no regular passenger ferry from the UK. Visit Norway lists routes from Denmark, Sweden and Germany only, and the last UK to Norway ferry ran in 2008, according to Time Out.

Getting around

• Train. The Bergen Railway between Oslo and Bergen is a seven-hour trip, according to Visit Norway. It connects at Myrdal with the Flåm Railway. Tickets are sold by Vy, which showed a notice about train cancellations from strike action when we looked, so check before you rely on a departure.
• Coast and fjords. Ferries and express boats cross fjords and run along the coast. The Hurtigruten and Havila Voyages sail between Bergen and Kirkenes, six to seven days one way, with voyages from 2 to 12 days.
• Bus. Long-distance buses link Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger, Haugesund and Trondheim. Visit Norway gives the direct express bus from Bergen to Ålesund as 9 hours 45 minutes.
• Flying within Norway. Oslo Airport is the main hub, with Widerøe, Norwegian and SAS on domestic routes.

Driving

• Licence. GOV.UK says a UK photocard licence can be used for up to 90 days. Car hire may need a licence held for at least a year.
• Rules. Dipped headlights must be on at all times, and GOV.UK says on-the-spot fines can reach 10,000 NOK. Drink-driving is a serious offence. Give way to traffic from the right on roads without a yellow-diamond priority sign.
• Speed. Visit Norway gives a general limit of 80 km/h, up to 110 on some dual carriageways, 50 km/h in built-up areas and 30 km/h in residential ones.
• Tolls. Visit Norway says all drivers, whatever their nationality, must pay Norwegian road tolls, and almost all stations are automatic. AutoPASS says foreign vehicles can avoid lookup fees by registering with Epass24, or sign an AutoPASS agreement with a toll tag for a 20% discount per transaction. Most ferries are paid via AutoPASS, with FerryPay for cards. Book popular ferries, such as Geiranger to Hellesylt and Lauvvik to Lysebotn, in advance.
• Winter tyres. GOV.UK says you must use winter tyres with at least 3 mm of tread if snow or ice covers the roads. The Public Roads Administration allows studded tyres from 1 November to the first Sunday after Easter Monday, and from 16 October to 30 April in Nordland, Troms and Finnmark. Visit Norway gives slightly different northern dates, so check the Public Roads Administration's page.

Visit Norway adds that prices vary greatly by season, location and comfort level. Its money-saving tips are to travel off-season (May, early June, late August and September) for cheaper lodging and transport, to drink the free tap water, to buy beer from a grocery shop and to enjoy the many free nature activities. Another Visit Norway page gives Norwegian Trekking Association hiking cabins at NOK 400 to 1,600 a night per person, but that page is undated.

Money

Visit Norway says debit and credit cards are accepted almost everywhere, with Visa and Mastercard the most widely taken and fewer places accepting Amex or Diners. Post offices and some grocery shops do not accept foreign credit cards but do accept debit cards. It advises keeping some cash for small purchases, since foreign currency is rarely accepted.

Health insurance

GOV.UK says a GHIC or EHIC covers medically necessary state healthcare but is not an alternative to travel insurance.

The right to roam

Visit Norway says you may camp almost anywhere in the countryside, forests or mountains at least 150 metres from the nearest inhabited building. Staying more than two nights in one place needs the landowner's permission, except in mountains or very remote areas. Campfires in nature are prohibited from 15 April to 15 September, with exceptions where fire risk is low, and in extreme drought even stoves can be banned.

Staying safe outdoors

Visit Norway says weather in the mountains can change quickly even in summer, and that many hikes are dangerous or inaccessible in winter. It points to yr.no for forecasts and varsom.no for avalanche, flood and ice warnings. GOV.UK advises checking avalanche risk before entering mountain terrain, notes that winter temperatures can fall to -25°C or lower, and says Arctic areas have limited emergency medical assistance and search and rescue. The Norwegian Mountain Code, as published by Visit Norway, includes these rules:

• Plan your trip and tell others your route.
• Adapt your plans to your ability and the conditions.
• Pay attention to weather and avalanche warnings.
• Be prepared for bad weather and frost, even on short trips.
• Bring equipment to help yourself and others.
• Choose safe routes, and learn to recognise avalanche terrain and unsafe ice.
• Use a map and compass.
• Do not be ashamed to turn around.

Read the full code before a mountain trip.

A classic first trip: Norway in a Nutshell

Visit Norway's listing describes Norway in a Nutshell as a trip of one day or more with daily year-round departures. Starting at Bergen station around 08:00, it takes the Bergen Railway to Voss, a bus through Nærøydalen, a Nærøyfjord cruise and the Flåm Railway, with an optional overnight in Flåm or Gudvangen. The return is between 18:00 and 21:00 depending on the season. See the fjords and Bergen.