If you are in Balestrand with children, here are some tips for things to do in the village or less than two hours away.

Sognefjord Aquarium

The Sognefjord Aquarium is in the center of Balestrand, and is open from May 1st to September 15th. It’s open from 9:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. The ticket to the aquarium costs 75 kroner for adults, and 35 kroner for children, including an hour rental with a canoe or rowboat. Children under 16 can’t take out the rowboats without an adult. You can also rent canoes and rowboats by the hour without a ticket to the aquarium. The aquarium contains many of the fish that live in the Sognefjord, and most of them are caught by students that take part in a nature program that happens there.

Public Beaches and Playground

There are two public beaches in Balestrand and one in the arboretum in Dragsvik (See the map at the bottom of this post). In the summertime the water temperature can reach 20 degrees Celsius. There is also a good climbing playground and football field by the primary school.

Morning Trip to Vik

If you are up early you can take the 7:50 a.m. express boat to Vik to see the Hopperstad stave church. The boat ride takes about 20 minutes, and it takes about 20 minutes to walk up to the church. You can book the boat tickets online or at the Tourist Information Office in Balestrand. To come back you take the boat at 11:35 from Vik, arriving back in Balestrand at 11:55. This works every day except for Sundays.

Family Fjord Safari

Balestrand Fjord Angling has a trip designed for families called the Family Fjord Safari which includes trolling in the Fjærlandsfjord and pulling pre-set nets. It takes 3 hours, and the price is 3,000 kroner for up to four guests, then 600 kroner for each additional guest (max 2).

Short Hikes

Balestrand is small, and the roads that go through the village have little traffic, and they make a good stroller route if you have small children. There are also a few short hikes that are good with kids. There is a very short loop starting from behind the school with signs in English and Norwegian describing different plants and animals that live in the forest. There is a longer loop out to Skåsheim that takes about 2 hours. It is also possible to shorten the loop by half by taking a shortcut near Sandstølen. A good hike for kids that takes you up higher is Orrabenken, or further to the hut at Balastølen. Here there is a small library of children’s books written in New Norwegian, the language of Western Norway.

Høyangerbadet Swimming Pool

In Høyanger, a 45-minute drive from Balestrand, there is a public swimming pool with an indoor and outdoor section. It is especially popular to go there in cold, rainy weather. There is a waterslide and several diving boards. The price for families is 250 kroner (for two adults and their children). The pool is closed on Mondays, and is open from 5:00 p.m. to 9 p.m. on all other weekdays. On weekends they are open from noon to 6 p.m.

St. Olaf’s Church

For fans of the Disney movie Frozen, St. Olaf’s Church is good to visit. The inside of the church was the inspiration for the church in the Else’s coronation scene.

Balestrand Movie Theater

There is a small volunteer-run movie theater in Balestrand called Friberg Kino, inside of the Village Hall. It shows premieres at the same time as the cities, and all movies are in the original language with Norwegian subtitles, except for movies for small children, which are dubbed. Most films cost 95 kroner, and they take only cash.

Balestrand Fjord Sightseeing

Every day from April 1st to mid-October at 13:00 and 15:00 there is an 80-minute RIB tour, Balestrand Fjord Sightseeing. The price is 800 kroner for adults and 500 kroner for children 15 and younger.

Fjord and Glacier Tour

Every day from June 1st to September 15th there is a passenger ferry that goes at 12:10 from Balestrand to Fjærland. The trip takes about an hour and a half each way, and you can get a package ticket, the Fjord and Glacier Tour, that gets you up to the Glacier Museum and to the Jostedalsbreen Glacier. After the glacier visit, the bus goes back to the harbor in Mundal. If you just take the ferry up and back, you can visit the Norwegian Book Town.

The tour is a good way to learn about glaciers: the boat goes up a fjord arm that was carved by a glacier, and the museum teaches you how glaciers work, and you see a part of the glacier that shaped the Fjærlandsfjord.

The boat returns to Balestrand in time for the Express Boat to Bergen. The price is 885 kroner for adults and 443 kroner for children.

Sognefjord Snowshoeing

In the wintertime, from mid-January to mid-April, there is a short snowshoing tour leaving at 10:00 daily from the Tourist Information Office. From here you take a minibus to Saurdal, 600 meters above sea level. Then your guide will help you put on snowshoes, and you walk together a half kilometer to a traditional Norwegian wooden lean-to where you make a campfire and eat a small lunch before walking back to the minibus. The price 790 kroner for adults and 375 kroner for children 15 and younger.