Don’t get into a tourist trap while in Bergen. Enjoy it like a local!
After living for over a decade in Bergen, Norway, I’ve done a lot of things and had a lot of experiences. While most of the lists for tourists include things to do in Bergen, I thought it would be nice to include what one should avoid doing in Bergen. Don’t get me wrong, you might still enjoy doing something from this list, it’s just I don’t think they are worth your time or money with better alternatives. And I do provide the alternatives.
No matter what you decide to do or not to do in Bergen, I hope you enjoy this beautiful city as much as I enjoy it every day. And yes, we are the rainiest city in Europe, but I wish you a sunny stay!
Table of contents:
- Don’t come here for food
- Don’t go on a Fjord cruise
- Forget about Hop On-Hop Off city bus tours
- Don’t eat at the Fish Market in Bergen
- Don’t hike outside of the popular trails…
- Forget about Helly Hansen
- Skip Aquarium in Bergen
- Don’t go out
- Don’t go to certain parts of the city
- Don’t pay for kayaking! Get it free
- Don’t expect to see the Northern lights
1. Don’t come here for food.
Or don’t expect much from it. I’ve heard so many times from my Italian, French, or even Polish friends how the food here wasn’t up to their standards. And they are not particularly wrong, unfortunately. There are many reasons for that, but hey, we don’t have as much sun as Italians or the French, so paper-tasting tomatoes is something we have to deal with ourselves. But let’s see who has better lamb or fish. Okay, that’s more of a supermarket talk. What about the restaurants?
I used to work as a chef in Bergen, so I know what I’m talking about. This sushi plate was made by me in one of the popular sushi place back in the days.
As a tourist, you are likely more interested in the local restaurants. Well, bad news, my comment applies to the restaurants, too. By the way, I forgot to mention that I used to work as a chef in a few pretty popular places in Bergen. Moreover, I still keep in touch with chefs in the city. So, what I say is not solely based on me eating out with my friends, but it’s based on me both cooking and eating out.
Okay, but what’s so bad about the food in the restaurants? Well, Norway is an expensive country. Chefs in Bergen earn about 245 kr per hour (22 EUR or 25 USD). Ingredients are expensive. Rent is not cheap. Suddenly, your very basic dinner costs 250-300 kr per person with tap water. Add another 50 for a small cola or 100 for a beer. It’s already expensive as is, and if you think the restaurant owners won’t try to cut costs, you are wrong. Be ready to eat pre-cooked pasta, and if you ask for al dente, most likely you won’t get it.
Another thing, most places in Bergen serve similar-ish stuff. That’s why we have two gazillion burger and pizza places. There are exceptions, of course. If you are not sure about the place, you can ask me about it in the comments, and I’ll try to help with your choice. Don’t rely on TripAdvisor. I know chefs from two top-10 restaurants, and I know the kitchens there are dirty.
What to do instead
Braised beef cheek from Jens Eide with mashed potatoes and demi-glace at Marg & Bein. It’s a small portion for 150 kr, which is only available during a special promo week. Regular portion is available throughout the year, and it’s delicious.
Try smoked salmon or trout from a supermarket. Or the Norwegian cheeses. Try whale steak. Deer or elk. Something you can’t get from your local supermarket but can get here in Bergen.
If you want to eat out, eat a deer hotdog from an 80-year-old food stall, Trekroneren. That’s one of the places I always take my friends to after hiking Mount Fløyen. And don’t forget to ask for “saft, please”. It’s a drink, and it’s free 🙂
If you actually want to sit down and eat, check out Marg & Bein, Moon, or Pingvinen. For vegans, go to Daily Pot; their vegan bowl is delicious. Lerøy Mat and Meny are a bit pricey supermarkets, but you might find a little better vegan selection in there.
2. Don’t go on a Fjord cruise
I might get a lot of hate for this one since pretty much every tourist that I met told me they wanted to do a fjord cruise. But honestly, it’s just fjords and mountains, and you are in Norway. Fjords and mountains are all over the place in here. And you will be inside on the ferry anyway, looking at everything behind a window, unless you get a good, warm, windproof, and maybe waterproof jacket. Because trust me, I took many ferries, and even on the hottest day, there’s not that much time you want to spend outside on a moving ferry.
Typical view during a fjord cruise. I took this picture in 2014.
But don’t get me wrong, if you want to do it, go for it. After all, it’s your vacation. Maybe just don’t take the short ones and the ones near Bergen. Hardangerfjord or Flåm are beautiful, though.
What to do instead
Go hiking up Fløyen on Rundemanen. Or any other mountain. You will have a better view of the Byfjorden and get a little exercise. Pretend you are a local, that’s what we do here – we hike. Of course, if for some reason you can’t go hiking, but still want to check out the fjords, well, in that case, you can use one of the free ferries. On skyss.no or fjord1.no, you will see an overview of the free (for passengers) ferries. For example, you can do Klokkarvik–Lerøy–Bjelkarøy–Hjellestad with Skyss or Hufthamar-Krokeide with Fjord1.
3. Forget about Hop On-Hop Off city bus tours
This is another extremely touristy thing to do. Maybe for a large city it can work, but Bergen is pretty small, especially the city centre. A complete tour costs around 450 kr and lasts an hour. You can literally walk it yourself, and it won’t take you much longer than that. And some parts of the tour, especially by the docks, are pretty boring. Trust me, those parts are going through the official Bergen City Marathon route, which I do every year. If you really want to take a bus tour, a regular bus ticket costs 51 kr and lasts 60 minutes. But honestly, just walk around, especially if the weather is nice.
View from Fjellveien at night
What to do instead
If you want to see the city, go for a walking tour through Fjellveien. That’s our main hiking street, which is a bit elevated and goes right from one part of the city to another. Or use one loop of the Bergen City Marathon, and you will do a half-marathon and really see the city centre from all sides.
4. Don’t eat at the Fish Market in Bergen
There are two parts to the fish market: the outside one with red tents, and the inside one in the glass building where the Bergen Tourist Information Centre is located. I used to work in the latter one as a chef. So, trust the local, I know the place in and out.
The outside fish market is pricey; most of the people working there come for the season, and they are underpaid and overworked. It is pretty popular among large Chinese travel groups, and if you’ve ever seen how they eat, you probably want to avoid this place. You will be sitting in a dirty tent, with the smell of burned oils on the grills; it will be loud and crowded. Avoid this place.
Back in the days when I used to work in the inside part of the Fish market.
The inside fish market is currently divided into two restaurants, but it used to be three when I was working there. If you really want to eat at the fish market, you can check out Fjellskål Seafood Restaurant. It’s pretty alright. You can choose your own seafood, and they will cook it for you there. Is it expensive? Yes. Pro tip: ask about the origins of the food you choose. Not everything is Norwegian 😉
What to do instead
If you really want to eat at the fish market, go to Fjellskål. Or you can always grab smoked whale, smoked salmon, or oysters, and just sit outside on a public bench; there are a few of them. Alternatively, during the high season, the Rema 1000 supermarket across the street has some cheaper options of seafood, but the selection is not impressive. Supermarkets like Lerøy Mat or Meny have a nice selection of seafood, too.
5. Don’t hike outside of the popular trails…
…Unless you are “fit for fight”. There are two main reasons for that:
- If you are not used to hiking, don’t have the necessary gear, and the last time you did a demanding physical activity was five years ago, chances are high you won’t enjoy your outdoor experience. Especially if you don’t check the weather beforehand, and it starts raining.
- Unless you want to see more around Bergen, Fløyen and Ulriken will show you everything you need to see. Honestly, there’s a reason why these two mountains have funiculars.
On the left: my childhood friends and I on top of Stoltzekleiven. On the right: Saga enjoys Fløyen.
Of course, if you know what to do, and come to Bergen to enjoy its beautiful nature while being so close to the city, then go for it and enjoy all the 7 mountains. We even have an annual organised event called ‘7-fjellsturen i Bergen’, which is basically a 35 km long hike (22 miles) with an elevation gain of 2400 meters (1.5 miles). I’ve done it myself, it’s fun, but you will get tired.
What to do instead
Check Fløyen and Ulriken. Or if you don’t have much time, Fløyen alone will do alright.
6. Forget about Helly Hansen
For some reason, Helly Hansen is really popular among tourists. While it is a “Norwegian” brand, it hasn’t been such for many years now. It was under the Canadians before, and now under the Americans. And while it used to be an authentic local brand, it’s not anymore, which affects how Norwegians see it. So, you don’t see it as much on the streets as elsewhere in the world. You can, of course, check their shop in the city on Strandgaten 18, and maybe get something. But it might be a bit cheaper to buy it in your country.
What to do instead
Get something truly Norwegian. If you are into premium clothes, go for Norrøna. If you want really local, go for BRGN. Other brands to look at: Bergans, Devold, or Swix. I personally tried all of them, and they were all good.
7. Skip Aquarium in Bergen
I might be a party pooper, but the Aquarium in Bergen is just not worth visiting. Personally, when I grew up, I stopped going to zoos or aquariums. Don’t get me wrong, you can do as you please, but I don’t find it amusing to look at an entrapped animal. I can’t imagine myself being locked in a cage for the rest of my life. That being said, the reason I don’t recommend it is that it’s pretty small and boring. Check the official video below. That’s pretty much it. And for a family of four, it costs about 90 EUR (108 USD).
Official video of the Akvariet i Bergen
What to do instead
I can’t really think of anything to substitute for an experience in the Aquarium. Eat a fish, maybe?
8. Don’t go out
If you are a party person and looking to explore nightlife in Bergen, I have bad news for you: nightlife here is horrible. And it hasn’t changed much in the last decade. Bergen is a small, old, and pretty compact city. Nightclubs here are small and expensive. Nevertheless, every Friday and Saturday bergensere come together and get shitfaced. Literally. That is because people here can’t drink, but we are aware of that 🙂
I should mention that the party doesn’t start in the city till around 22:00, and doesn’t last past 02:30 in the morning. Simply because all alcohol sale is prohibited after that time.
Students party like crazy in Bergen. One of those parties when I was studying.
What to do instead
Party like a local! We start with a pre-party (vorspiel) at someone’s place. Mainly because instead of 100+ kr per beer in a bar, we are paying 30+ kr. Then we are going out until 2:30 in the morning, after which we have a pit stop at McDonald’s or another open place for junk food. And then an after-party (nachspiel) at someone’s place. If you were lucky enough to make friends during the main part of the night, you will have a place to enjoy the afters.
If you really want to drink out early, but don’t want to spend a lot of money, the cheapest places for beer are Hectors Hybel, Los Tacos, and Dogtails. The latter one has a discounted price on beer until 21:00. Gefühlen is also pretty alright priced.
Regarding the clubs, check out Østre, Landmark, or Vaskeriet. Avoid Zachariasbryggen at all costs if you are below 45. Even then, there are better places than that. If you use Facebook, check out Bergen Underground page; sometimes they organise “raves” in cool places. But those are Norwegian raves, with official security and other restrictions.
9. Don’t go to certain parts of the city
Bergen is still a pretty safe place. However, it does have a drug use problem. You will see some people on the streets who look like they don’t belong among all the beautiful houses, mountains, and fjords. And those people have their favourite spots to hang out. Let’s say, right in the city centre, next to the Cathedral Vågsalmenningen is one of those spots. Just take a look at Google Street View of Nedre Korskirkeallmenningen 16. Yeah, avoid that place.
And pretty much around every Addiction treatment center in Bergen. Don’t get an Airbnb near:
- MO-senteret Gyldenpris
- MO-senteret Nesttun
- MO-senteret Wergeland
Especially the first one, the old Strax-huset, now it’s called Doloris, and it’s located at Damsgårdsveien 106. Under the bridge called Puddefjordsbroen and tunnels around there. Just stay away. That’s the place where you can get robbed. I made a little map, so you can see these places:
What to do instead
Enjoy the rest of the city. Once again, it’s safe here. And you will feel waaay safer than in pretty much any major city around Europe.
10. Don’t pay for kayaking! Get it free.
t’s so much fun to go kayaking and explore the city on the water. But quite often it’s not that cheap. But there’s a way to do it completely free while helping the environment.
Did you know that GreenKayak has three locations in Bergen? Well, unless you are from the Nordics or Germany, you probably don’t know about this initiative. With all my heart, I love the Danes and Denmark, and GreenKayak is one of the reasons for that. This NGO offers free kayaks for those willing to clean the sea a little bit.
How it works: you book a time slot for your cleaning at GreenKayak, but beware, it’s not available all year round, only during the warm months. You go kayaking while collecting sea trash, and make a post on your social media. That’s it! Fun, free, and good for society activity.
11. Don’t expect to see the Northern lights
While it is possible to see the aurora borealis in Bergen, it’s not something you should expect. Mostly because it’s often raining and cloudy here. In the city itself, because of the light pollution, it’s even harder.
Visible Aurora borealis from my old place in the western part of Bergen.
Nevertheless, occasionally it happens, and then all the local Facebook groups are full of pictures people post. I have a few of my own, but generally, I simply ignore the occasion. Mostly because it won’t be a very strong aurora borealis, at least not what anyone would expect.
What to do instead
Go to Tromsø or any other northern town. The Northern lights will be stronger there, and the chances of seeing them will increase.
Bonus tip: don’t buy an umbrella
You can always see tourists with an umbrella or wearing a cheap plastic rain poncho. If you can afford a good rain jacket, get yourself a Norrøna or BRGN. It will always remind you of Bergen, the rainiest city in Europe.
