Touring Norway is an unforgettable experience—but it’s also full of choices! Riders come here with many different dreams: seeing dramatic fjords with blue skies, reaching the Arctic Circle, or even conquering the North Cape from Oslo in 3 days with a reasonable amount of effort.
What we’ve learned—both from our experience and from listening to stories of our guest riders—is that the best trips come from planning realistically around your own true priorities. So instead of trying to do everything or trying to do what someone else has done, start with these two questions:
- What do I really want from this trip?
- What am I willing to experience?
Below, we’ve gathered some of the most common rider priorities—and our best tips for how to match them with the realities of Norway—to ensure you get the adventure you actually wanted.
1. If Your Dream Is Twisty, Scenic Roads
You’re in the right place. Norway is packed with curvy roads—but some are more technical than others.
What to Expect:
- Sharp hairpins, steep grades, and narrow lanes—especially in fjord areas and mountain passes.
- Some roads are not beginner-friendly, especially on a large touring bike.
Our Tips:
- Research roads before you ride them. Look up routes like Gaularfjellet, Lysebotn, or Aurlandsfjellet. Have a good look at them, for example, via Google Maps.
- Consider taking a smaller, more agile bike.
2. If Your Priority Is to Ride the Fjords
The fjords are stunning, wild, and absolutely worth it—but they come with weather and logistics to plan around.
What to Expect:
- The most majestic and famous fjords (Geiranger, Nærøyfjord, Lysefjord) are in Western Norway, and they often get a lot of rain.
- The roads are slow, narrow, and in summer a bit busier with other tourists.
Our Tips:
- Bring serious waterproof gear—not just a jacket claiming to be somewhat water-resistant (really think about keeping your whole body dry—including your hands and feet!).
- Keep daily distances short—250 km in fjord country feels like 400 km elsewhere.
3. If You Want to Ride Epic Mountain Passes
Norway’s high-altitude roads are a dream—but they’re seasonal and colder than you might expect.
What to Expect:
- Passes like Trollstigen, Sognefjellet, and Valdresflya reach over 1,400 m.
- Even in July, you might see snow by the roadside and temperatures near freezing.
Our Tips:
- Pack thermal base layers, a mid-layer, and insulated or heated gloves and socks.
- Always check road openings on vegvesen.no before you go, as some higher mountain passes don’t open until late spring or even early summer due to snow and avalanche risk.
4. If Your Goal Is the Arctic Circle, Lofoten or the North Cape
Chasing the Arctic Circle, Lofoten, or the North Cape is where an adventure turns into an expedition and a real challenge—that is remote, colder, and requires serious preparations.
What to Expect:
- Long distances—you’ll need several days to get north. Yes, you can get to the North Cape from Oslo in 3-4 days, but expect 10-12 hours of daily riding time. 7 days would still be considered a fast-paced ride up.
- Weather changes fast. It can be 5°C and raining in July.
Our Tips:
- Really think about how many hours per day you want to ride. For a leisurely ride up, free up at least 10 days (and 10 days back to Oslo).
- Now you will need to combine the thermal layer with the waterproofs.
5. If You Want the Best Chance of Sunny Weather
We’ve seen many riders give up on the dream of riding in Norway just because they got scared about the weather. The truth is there are actually regions where the chances of sunny days are quite high—South and East Norway!
What to Expect:
- More relaxed, subtle scenery.
- You might get hooked to come back for more.
Our Tips:
- Think of anything you might miss from the West and North, and try to find it in the sunny land (Oslo has a fjord, Rondane a mountain pass, reaching Røros, a historic Norwegian town, can be a smaller expedition).
- We actually offer a unique pre-made Tour Book that takes you through the best of Southern Norway via lower altitude scenic roads that can be ridden from early spring to late fall. Check out our The Southern QUEST – a fully digital, self-guided 5-7 day itinerary that includes curated roads, top attractions along the way, and accommodation tips, but also a quest-like experience, enriching the ride with the historical context of how people moved through Norway from the Stone Age to Modern times, daily cultural challenges, and GPX files.
Final Thoughts
Despite all the “Ultimate Route to Tour Norway” articles (including ours! 😉 ), there’s no one “right way” to tour Norway—only your way. The key is matching your route and setup to what you really want out of the trip. Whether you’re chasing curves, fjords, fish (never mentioned that before… right—maybe next article?), or just a bit of sun and silence, planning around your own priorities will help you get the most out of your dream Norwegian motorcycle tour.
Take Care Until The Next Time,
Your Nordic Riders
