Norway

5-Day Trek in Norway’s Jotunheimen National Park: A Complete Itinerary and Guide

Our trek through Jotunheimen National Park was one of the best activities I’ve done on any of my trips. The mountains were gorgeous, alpine, and vast. It felt like we were deep in the wilderness, without losing the comfort of civilization. Despite it being one of my best trips, it was also one of the hardest to plan. Below I will share a quick recap of our itinerary, a packing list, and lessons learned. Feel free to check out my Adventuring in the Alpine blog post which provides a little more detail about each day. I do not make a commission off the links below – simply putting all our travel info in one place.

Itinerary

Day One:

8:00 AM – Caught bus from Oslo Bus Terminal to Bygdin Hotel

  • Bought round trip tickets here. 
  • About 3 hours in, there was a 10 minute layover for a bathroom break, to visit the gift shop, or purchase a quick snack.
  • The bus had outlets and a bathroom, but you could only bring a small bag on board.

12:15 PM – Arrived at Bygdin hotel with about an hour wait for the boat.

  • Food available for purchase at the hotel.
  • Bathrooms and a warm lobby.

1:15 PM –  2 hr boat ride to Fondsbu

  • A couple quick stops along the way
  • Indoor seating and small bathroom (very basic area)
  • Luggage was stored upstairs – covered but not enclosed.
  • Dogs allowed
  • The technical name is Eidsbugarden and we bought our boat ticket with our bus ticket.

3:15 PM – Arrived to Fondsbu and checked in 

  • Booked room here. 
  • 3:00 PM check-in

7:00 PM Sharp – Dinner

  • Vegetarian options available if you alert them upon check in.
  • Everyone eats together and your party will have an assigned table with others.
  • 3 courses – soup, entree, dessert.

Day Two:

7:00-9:00 AM – Breakfast (we ate around 8:00 AM)

  • More like a buffet with lots of meats, cheeses, vegetables, fruits, and toast.
  • Use the buffet items to make your to-go lunch.

9:00 am – Started Hiking Fondsbu to Gjendebu trail

  • Checkout not until 11:00 AM

3:00 PM – Arrived to Gjendebu

  • No cafe, but snacks and drinks for purchase
  • No service or internet
  • Booked room here. 
  • 3:00 PM check-in

6:30 PM – Dinner, first seating.

  • Also a seating at 8:30 PM
  • Same style as first day

11:00 PM – Bedtime (everyone else heads to bed around this time too)

Day 3:

 

7:00-9:00 am – Breakfast (we ate at 8:00 AM again)

  • Same style and process as last place.
  • Everyone checks out about 830/9 if they’re hiking.
  • Checkout is 10:30 AM

9:45 – Started hiking Gjendebu to Memurubu trail

4:00 PM – Arrived at Memurubu

  • This is a hotel with a private room.
  • Cafe and small shop.
  • Booked room here. 
  • 3:00 PM check-in

7:00 PM – Dinner

  • Similar to last couple dinners, slightly more entree and dessert options.
  • Can turn to two sittings at 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM if busy.

10:00 PM – Bedtime

Day 4:

 

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM – Breakfast (We ate at 8:00 AM)

  • Same style as last two huts

9:15 AM – Started hiking Memerubu to Gjendesheim via the lake trail

  • 9:00 AM Checkout

2 PM – Arrived at Gjendesheim

  • 3:00 PM check-in
  • Played Cards to pass the time.
  • Booked room here. 

3:30 PM – Cinnamon roll and food at the cafe on the water

6:30 PM – Dinner

  • I think they have a second seating too

11:00 PM – Bed

Day 5:

 

4:00 AM – Woke up and ate a muffin bought from the cafe the night before.

4:30 AM – Started Hike up Besseggen Ridge

8:30 AM – Arrived back at the hut and caught the end of breakfast. 

  • Great breakfast selection
  • Packed food for bus
  • 10:00 AM checkout

10 AM – Caught bus back to Oslo. It was the same route as the bus there and Bygdin is along the route.

  • A lot of stops along the way
  • Short layover with food, bathrooms, and small gift shop again.
  • Booked on same site as bus out.

3:30 PM – Arrived back at Oslo train station.

Packing Guide

  • Underwear and extra underwear
  • 7 socks – combo of wool and regular
  • 3 short sleeve shirts
  • 2/3 pairs of pants (depending on season)
  • 2/3 pairs of shorts (depending on season – mostly wore pants anyway)
  • Pajamas (something clean)
  • Toiletries – toilet paper for the hike
  • Book/cards – it is nice to have something to pass the time, or to help unwind at night.
  • Sun hat and sunglasses
  • Gloves – make sure these are waterproof. Mine weren’t and I regret it.
  • Winter hat
  • Down Jacket – Never actually had to use this, but glad I had it. My boyfriend used his.
  • Really waterproof rain jacket and pants
  • Really  waterproof hikings shoes/boots
  • Plastic bags (these are good to put dirty clothes in, condense clothes, keep clothes dry, put food in, etc.)
  • Headlamp – not necessary unless you want an early start.
  • Chargers/electronics
  • Protein bars and snacks
  • Backpack rain cover
  • Water bladder – 2/3 liters
  • Sunshirt and light jacket (to wear under rain jacket, or if it’s not freezing)
  • Sunscreen
  • Cash – although you likely won’t need this. 
  • Indoor shoes – you need to leave your hiking shoes outside.

My boyfriend and I fit all this in a 20 L and 34 L backpack. He carried the toiletries.

Lessons Learned

  1. We used the train station storage lockers for our luggage. A medium sized locker fit two carryon sized bags. There are a couple lockers in the bus terminal, but many more in the train.
  2. You have to pay for bathrooms in the bus and train stations – about 2 USD.
  3. Choose sturdy hiking shoes/boots over trail runners.There were a lot of rocks and steep parts of the trail.
  4. Waterproof everything. Like seriously waterproof. Half the trails are streams and when it rains, it pours.
  5. Hikes will take between 3-8 hrs depending on pace. We did a lot of lolligagging and enjoyed it, but could also hustle when needed.
  6. Pack one protein filled sandwich and one sweeter one. You’ll appreciate the sugar.
  7. Make sure you are always in sight of a cairn or on a well defined trail. These look like either red T’s or rock piles. You are making your way up and down steep terrain and it’s easy to get cliffed out.
  8. There is no service at some of the huts or in some areas of the hike. It’s not really needed, just make sure anyone who would want to know, knows.
  9. Prepare to eat what is served, that’s all there is. There are vegetarian options though, but try to let them know ahead of time or at check in.
  10. Rooms are basic and can get cold. The comforters they provide are amazing, but it sucks leaving that warmth.
  11. You will be sharing bathrooms and showers with other people. Some of the showers don’t have a door, just a communal area. Some of the huts only have 2-4 single person bathrooms and you have to share with the entire floor. Never really had a problem finding a bathroom, but something to consider.
  12. There is often only one outlet per room and a couple small lights, including a reading light.
  13. Each hut has some items for purchase, like meds and snacks. In general, bring anything you might need.
  14. Having a lighter day pack is soooo worth it. We paid for linens at each place and don’t regret it.There is a boat that runs between Gjendebu, Memurubu, and Gjendesheim. You can use this service to ferry luggage, although we didn’t try it. It runs several times a day and tickets can be bought on board. More information can be found here. 
  15. Check here for updated weather, but remember weather can change very quickly. The people at the front desk are very knowledgeable, and if you’re unsure of your abilities, don’t go.
  16. We paid for a DNT membership because the savings outweighed the cost.
  17. Many of the huts have dry rooms – they stink but are effective.
  18. If you can’t hike Bessegen ridge, due to weather or ability, there is a route along the lake that meets up with it in Memerubu.
  19. There are no facilities along the trail – pack in, pack out.
Elise Fortino

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