Narvik Transportation

Ofotbanen, called Malmbanan in Sweden, is the single-track railway line that connects Kiruna (in Sweden) to Narvik. The route of 168 Km, entirely north of the Polar Circle, goes along a fantastic landscape of mountains and finally along the Ofotfjord. The first part of the journey after leaving Kiruna is in a typical Nordic tundra landscape, then, after Gallivare station, the train starts to go uphill into a mountainous region. The line crosses the Abisko National Park and there is a stop at the very small station of Abisko that serves the tourist centre. When he train reaches Vassijaure you are at the most northern station of Sweden. The train crosses the border between Sweden and Norway at Riksagransen, which is also the point where the railway reaches its highest altitude. There is no customs to mark the border and the only thing that marks the change is the fact that the train now goes downhill.
I have described here just the trip from Kiruna to Narvik, but the train journey I made was actually all the way from Stockholm, on a train that has of course sleeping cars and restaurant. It departs from Stockholm in the afternoon, to arrive in Narvik in the afternoon of the next day.

Harstad/Narvik Airport (Code: EVE), while more distant (79 km/49 miles) from Narvik, has significantly more flight options than tiny Framnes Airport (Code: NVK). SAS Braathens and Norwegian Airlines provide service to Oslo, while Widerøe provides regional service to Bodø, Tromsø, and Trondheim. The terminal has a restaurant, an ATM, and car rental facilities.

UPDATE: New bus service is now available between Harstad/Narvik Airport and Svolvær. Take a look at this page (in Norwegian) for details.

There is bus service between the airport and Narvik; the 1 hour 10 minute ride costs approximately NOK 170. A taxi to Narvik will cost you about NOK 1100.

If you try to find a fly from Oslo to Narvik will be surprised by very high price that you find on your PC screen. It is because that netprogram found a airrout to narvik's own airport. But actually you must search for a nearby airport that called Evenes or "Harstad-Narvik lufthavn". It's about 75 kilometer til the airport and it costs about 500 NOK, almost. Norwegian is cheapest and SAS is best airline from Narvik to Oslo.

You must take bus from Evenes airport to Narvik and it costs about 200 NOK.

Strange as it sounds, the only way to get to Narvik by train is via Sweden. The Ofoten Railway works its way from Kiruna, Sweden to Narvik. The primary purpose of this railway is to transport iron ore from Kiruna to Narvik, but passenger trains also travel between Narvik, Kiruna, Boden, and Stockholm. Through June 2009, there are four direct overnight trains per week between Narvik and Stockholm (departing Narvik at 2:35 PM), and another daily train with a connection in Boden (departing Narvik at 10:42 AM). Travel time is 19 1/2 hours for the direct train, 20 hours with the connection in Boden. The departures from Stockholm are at 6:12 PM (direct) and 8:42 PM (transfer in Boden). Travel time is just under 19 hours for the direct train, just under 23 hours for the train with the connection in Boden.

Eurail and Scanrail are both valid for the base fare, but note that night trains departing before 7PM require the use of 2 Flexi days. Also, reservations are required and cost extra. I strongly recommend you book sleeping accommodations (at least a couchette) for this long trip. Note: Connex, the company that ran the train when we traveled in 2006, has been taken over by Veolia Transport.

If you're traveling in the summer, advance reservations are critical. Foreign tourists can go to the Veolia Transport ticket booking website (www.bokatag.se) , then click on the British Flag for English). You'll be given a booking code -- don't forget it. When you get to Stockholm, go to an automated kiosk, punch in your booking code, and the machine will print out your tickets.

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UPDATE: The express boat from Narvik to Svolvær has been discontinued, as a new bridge (the Lofotens fastlandsforbindelse or "LOFAST") opened in November 2007, and allows direct car/bus access between the mainland and the Lofoten Islands. Nor-Way Bus 760 provides daily service between Narvik and Svolvær, travel time just over 4 hours. This seems to be slower than the old express boat, but oh well...

A quick way to get to the Lofoten Islands is the express boat from Narvik to Svolvær. The boat is quite small, but it goes extremely fast. It makes the trip to Svolvær in 3 hours 25 minutes. Be advised that you must stay inside, and the trip is noisy and cramped. Because of all of the splashing water, it's not very photo-friendly either. But you can't beat the speed with which you get to your destination. The boat also stops at Lødingen, with stops on request at Liavika, Kjeldebotn, Holandshamn, Brettesnes, and Skrova.

The boats depart from the ferry dock, Pier 2. Through November 30, 2007, boats depart Narvik Sunday-Friday at 3PM. No boats sail on Saturday. As of June 2006, 1-way fare from Narvik to Svolvær was NOK 292, or NOK 442 for a couple traveling together.

Framnes, Narvik's municipal airport (Code: NVK) is located inside the town itself, not far from the Taraldsvik neighborhood. With a small terminal and only a single runway, Framnes does not receive any long-distance aircraft. Widerøe has 3 daily flights to and from Bodø, and 1 daily flight to/from Tromsø. For those who wish to fly from other locations, you are likely better off flying into the long-haul airport, Harstad/Narvik Airport in Evenes (EVE).

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There isn't a train linking Narvik to the south. Instead, there is an excellent bus service known as the Nord-Norgekspressen (NOR-WAY Bussekspress ) that operates between Narvik and Bodø. Just look out the red and blue-stripped bus in the central part of town. The terminal is located at the basement of the only shopping centre there. Tell the ticket agent that you are taking the Bodø-Fauske-Narvik route
The journey is from Narvik to Bodø is about 308 km (191 miles) and it is a sensational one.
For one thing, you'll get to go across a Fjord on the bus and see lots and lots of beautiful scenary.
I'm not pulling your leg about the Fjord bit, read my travelogue to find out more.

Click here for the bus timetable.

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This beautiful cable car will take you to the top of the mountain where you can have a wonderful view over the city, look at the sea and the midnight sun and of course, enjoy a cup of coffee at the local cafe.