Sail the whole Lysefjord

Do Lysefjord cruises go all the way to Lysebotn?

No. They turn at Hengjanefossen, about a third of the way in. Flørli, Kjerag and Lysebotn are reached by the local ferry, Rødne's car ferry, a taxi boat or the Flørli RIB day.

Every way onto the inner fjord, side by side:

Prices are one way, from Lysefjorden365, Rødne and Flørli. Rødne also lists a weekend passenger boat from Stavanger to Lysebotn with calls at Lauvvik, Oanes, Songesand and Flørli; check its dates for your summer before you count on it.

How does the Kolumbus ferry from Lauvvik to Lysebotn work?

It is the public boat for the fjord's roadless farms and quays. It runs all year from Lauvvik, calls at small quays on request, and you should book a seat.

Since autumn 2026 the route is sailed for Kolumbus by Rødne's new fully electric ferry, MS Rygerlys, on a ten-year contract (Shippax):

• One boat for people and cars: room for 97 passengers and 12 cars.
• About 1.5 hours from Lauvvik to Lysebotn on the current timetable, longer when it calls at the small quays.

Older pages, including some tourist-board listings, still name the previous boats, MS Rygercruise and MS Sveio.

It calls at Forsand, Bratteli, Bakken, Songesand, Kallali, Flørli and Håheller on the way. Fares are public-transport prices: NOK 83 for an adult, NOK 42 for ages 6 to 17, and NOK 283 for a car up to 6 m (Lysefjorden365).

Three traps. Kolumbus says advance booking is necessary for guaranteed docking and boarding, and outside summer a booking is how a small quay knows to expect you. Tickets open about a month ahead, released in batches. And according to Flørli's ferry page, the Kolumbus boat does not sail on Saturdays. A winter timetable applies from October.

What is Rødne's scenic car ferry, and is it worth it?

A summer sightseeing ferry on the same water, from Lauvvik to Lysebotn in about 2.5 hours, with a lounge, sun deck, kiosk and audio guide. Worth it if you are driving to Kjerag.

Rødne runs it daily from 15 May. For 2026 its own page gave the last sailing as 27 September, with only one return crossing a day from 18 September; Flørli quotes 30 September. One way costs NOK 595 for adults and NOK 350 for children aged 4 to 15. A car up to 6 m, driver included, is NOK 1,290, or NOK 1,990 as a package for a car and up to five people.

It calls at Lauvvik, Forsand, Songesand (book ahead), Flørli (foot passengers only, no vehicles) and Lysebotn. Vehicle space is limited and summer sailings fill, so book early and be at the quay 30 minutes before departure. It is not subsidised public transport, which is why it costs several times the Kolumbus fare. You pay for the commentary, the sun deck and the certainty of a seat.

How do you get to Flørli and the 4,444 steps?

By water only: the Kolumbus boat, Rødne's car ferry as a foot passenger, a taxi boat, or the Flørli RIB day from Stavanger.

Flørli is a roadless hamlet on the south shore (SNL) with a hydropower station that opened in 1918. Beside the old pipeline climbs the longest wooden staircase in the world: 4,444 steps, 1,470 m long, rising 740 m from the quay to the lake at the top. Fjord Norway puts the round trip at about 5 km and 3.5 hours, says the season runs from mid-April to the end of October, and advises against walking back down the stairs. The trail down is the safer way.

The café in the old power station opens every day in July and on most weekends (florli.no). On the ferry, check that your return sailing leaves you enough time; on the RIB day the crew handles that for you. Their listing gives about 1 hour 15 minutes each way by RIB and about 4 hours at Flørli, with a 750-step short route if the full climb is too much. Minimum age 8.

A RIB from Stavanger deep into the fjord to Flørli, then four hours to climb the wooden stairs or sit in the café by the water.

★ 5.0 · 7 hours · from $204

Explore the Flørli RIB and stair hike → Tour details

How do you get to Kjerag from Lysebotn?

Up the road to Øygardstøl at the top of the 27 hairpins, by car or on the shuttle bus that meets the boats. The hike starts there.

From the Lysebotn quay a shuttle bus (fee) runs up to the Kjerag car park at Øygardstøl, and in summer an express bus also runs from Stavanger straight to the car park (Fjord Norway). The hike is about 11 km there and back, roughly 6 hours, with about 750 m of climbing and chain handholds on the steepest slabs. Fjord Norway rates it challenging and recommends it from May to October.

Kjeragbolten, the boulder wedged in a crack, is about 1,000 m above the fjord. From the ferry you can look up at the Kjerag wall; from the cruises out of Stavanger, you can't see it at all. For the easier clifftop, Preikestolen is the one to do.

Can you drive the Lysebotn road?

In summer, yes. It climbs about 900 m in 27 hairpin bends, including a hairpin inside a tunnel, and it closes from the first snow until about mid-May.

The road from Sirdal down to Lysebotn is one of the steepest in Norway (Wikipedia). Driving it in one direction and taking the car ferry in the other makes a classic loop from Stavanger: ferry from Lauvvik to Lysebotn, up the hairpins, and home over the mountains, or the reverse. Book the car space on the ferry before you set off.

The road usually closes at the first snowfall, in October or November, and reopens around mid-May (Fjord Norway). Rødne's car ferry runs from 15 May, so early June to mid-September is the safe window for the loop.

Can you sail the whole fjord as a day trip from Stavanger?

Yes, with planning. Drive to Lauvvik, ride a Kolumbus or Rødne boat to Lysebotn and back, or book the Flørli RIB day, which takes you deep into the fjord.

Three ways we would do it:

• The ferry round trip. Drive to Lauvvik, take a morning boat to Lysebotn, have lunch, and ride back. It is a long day: check that the return sailing leaves you time ashore, and avoid Saturdays on Kolumbus.
• The Flørli day. The RIB from Stavanger goes past Pulpit Rock and the Whisky Falls to Flørli, gives you about four hours there and brings you back. No car, no timetable.
• The weekend boat. If Rødne's Stavanger to Lysebotn passenger boat runs on your summer weekend, it leaves from the city itself.

Private charters exist too, and Flørli lists taxi boats from Stavanger from NOK 6,000 for a small boat or NOK 14,000 for a 12-person RIB (florli.no). Split between friends, that is not as wild as it sounds.

When does the ferry run, and when should you book?

Kolumbus all year, with a winter timetable from October; Rødne from 15 May to late September. Book both: Kolumbus about a month ahead, Rødne as soon as summer bookings open.

• Summer, mid-May to September: both ferries, the Lysebotn road open, the Flørli stairs in season. The best time for the whole fjord.
• April and October: Kolumbus only. The Flørli stairs are open until the end of October; the road to Kjerag may be shut.
• Winter: Kolumbus only, on a reduced timetable. The road is closed and the stairs icy. Ride it for the scenery, not the hikes.

Rødne's 2027 bookings open in November 2026 (Lysefjorden365). For what changes next summer, see the 2027 ferry season post. Whichever boat you take, sit on the left going in for Preikestolen and the falls, and switch to the right after them: Flørli and Kjerag are on the south shore.

Frequently asked questions