The village of Skjolden (pronounced Sholden) is situated in the municipality of Luster in Vestland County, Western Norway. It is at the head of the Sognefjorden the longest navigable fjord in the world and is 130 miles from the sea making the sail in an event in itself.

With a population of just 300 if  the hustle and bustle of the big city is what you are after then you are in the wrong place, however, if its peace and tranquillity combined with stunning scenery then you are definitely in the right place.

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Skjolden is known as the gateway to the national parks as it has three of the most famous national parks Jotunheimen, Breheimen and Jostedalsbreen within very close proximity to the village. It also boast 20 of the highest peaks in Scandinavia and if that’s not enough it also has the oldest Urnes Stave Church in the world and the Jostedal Glacier, the largest glacier on the European mainland.

Skjolden is fairly small, however there is a hotel and visitors centre and cafe which is a short walk from the port, just follow the road past the white houses go left over the bridge and you will find them there.

The visitors centre is also a big part of the community and also boasts a swimming pool, a climbing wall, a 25 metre pistol shooting range, a fitness studio and a 15 seater movie room.

It’s hard to find anywhere in Skjolden that doesn’t have an amazing view and the cafe at the visitors centre is no exception, but as with everywhere in Norway the beautiful comes at a price with a Pepsi and a bar of chocolate costing 67 Nok (about £6) so almost triple the price of the UK. If essentials are what you are after there is also a small supermarket selling anything from deodorant and toothpaste to fresh breads and pizza. We have also included the prices of other groceries in our Skjolden Vlog you will find below.

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Our must do in Skjolden is definitely the rib adventure, a rigid inflatable boat that picks you up about a five minute walk from the cruise dock and takes you on a beautiful scenic ride down the fjord taking in some of the most spectacular scenery. We booked this prior to our Cunard Queen Mary 2 cruise.

All equipment is provided by the rib operators, waterproof suits, hats, goggles and gloves and cost us £60 each which we thought was excellent value for money and we loved every minute!

We booked this tour independently through Adventure Tours Norway and it was extremely easy.

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Another recommendation comes via our good friends Bob and Holly of Innocents Abroad and that is a visit to Skjolden llamas a family run llama farm started in 2005 with just two llamas but now have a heard of 30, the tour includes seeing how they live feeding them and even taking them for a walk.

Bob and Holly were joined by friends Alfie and Jackie and they all agreed it was great fun and definitely worth a visit, you can even buy untreated llama wool at the end of your visit. They booked this excursion through the cruise line but we are sure it would be easy to book it direct with Skjolden llamas, prices start from 150 nok £13 for up to 3 people for a 30 minute visit but longer tours are available.

You can find out more about Bob and Hollies llama visit by watching their video all about it here.

There is no doubt skjolden is one of the most beautiful ports we have visited and we would definitely recommend a visit. With potential rule changes regarding cruise ships entering Norwegian Fjords in 2026 we suggest you do it sooner rather than later!

We loved our visits to Skjolden and will definitely be back!

Relevant reading and videos –

For more information about destination visit our Norway Page

Find our Norwegian Fjords Vlog Series Here

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