Trollstigen

Trollstigen Road is an impressive mountain road with eleven hairpin turns in the Romsdal Valley. Due to several rockslides, the road was closed for the 2024 summer season, so our original tour was cancelled. Fortunately, we were able to book a tour with Trond from Local Trips to reach the scenic overlook. The viewpoint from the Trollstigen plateau is gorgeous. Nice to be able to make several stops along the way to view steep mountains, towering waterfalls, deep fjords and lush valleys. The view platform itself is actually suspended 200 meters above the ground, but the solid steel and glass construction is sturdy. Not so crowded when we visited, probably due to the road closures making it more challenging to reach the viewing platform. Trollstigen is surrounded by colossal mountains, such as the Bishop, the King and the Queen. Bispen, Kongen and Dronninga. Imagine this road being built almost a century ago. Definitely a highlight of our trip to Norway.

Very cool road with awesome views. I had assumed that it would be a fun drive due to the tight turns but you need to take it quite slow because it's narrow with blind turns. Unfortunately not too many places to pull over to take pictures. They do have a few including a big stop at the end (with a huge parking lot) that has restrooms, food, store, view points etc. Was a unforgettable experience.

Fantastically breathtaking road! I would highly suggest driving it on your own so you can make stops wherever you would like, and to have some peace from the hordes of tourists. Leave early in the day and aim to be off the road before 11am so that you do not get stuck behind the massive tour buses. The visitor center at the top had good prices and it is nice to stretch your legs after driving up the road. Definitely make a plan for this if visiting Norway!

PROTIP: For those taking an excursion to Trollstigen from a cruise ship, it's going to take the entire day. Our tour of Ålesund would take us to the mountains. The first stop on the tour overlooked Ålesund proper, and the pictures we took were postcard quality. The city looks like something out of a fairy tale. Eventually, we left major civilization and rode alongside fjords and through small towns on the way to the mountain range where Trollstigen stood. The main attraction at Trollstigen is a set of three mountains known as the Bishop, King and Queen. Our tour guide told us the legend of Norway's trolls, and the wedding ceremony at sunrise that resulted in their creation. Our first major stop was the tourist center alongside the mountains leading down the road. After taking a break and photographing a sheep that was just walking down the road, we began down the series of hairpin turns. Groups of bicyclists slowly made their way up the hill in the opposite direction. After reaching the bottom of the road, we continued on our trip, stopping for a complementary lunch at another tourist center. They had a lot of fish. The buses soon left and took us to another viewing point of the mountains before finally starting the journey home. Trollstigen is an impressive view and a worthwhile trip while in Ålesund.