Bryggen Bergen in Norway

Getting To Tyskebryggen

You’ll want to fly into Bergen (Airport Code: BGO) or into the Norwegian capital city of Oslo (Airport Code: OSL) and take the train to Bergen which takes about 6-7 hours. Though this is a super long journey time, the terrain that the train takes you through is incredible to see, so if you have some more time in your itinerary, I would recommend this train trip.

Upon arriving at Bergen airport, you can take either a taxi, light rail, or an airport bus transfer to get to Bergen city center. For me, I found it very convenient and cost effective to take the light rail, or tram line. The Bergen Light Rail Line 1 takes about 45 minutes and costs 47 NOK for an adult, taking you from the airport to the very center of Bergen. The airport bus, or the Flybussen, takes about 30 minutes from airport to Bergen City center, and costs about 149 NOK.

When to see Tyskebryggen

The best time of day to see Bryggen is definitely not at peak times so therefore the morning or evening golden hour light is best. Bryggen sits on the Northeast side of Vågan harbor so seeing the sunrise behind it would probably be out of this world for colorful photos. Bear in mind though that the weather in Bergen is notorious for being cloudy so your mileage may vary.

Nonetheless, a warm summer day is the best time of year to take photos of Bryggen. As with most things in the Nordics, you can always get some amazing shots during winter as well when there is a blanket of snow on the ground. This would especially be nice, contrasting with the bright reds and yellow of the Bryggen buildings.

Photographing Tyskebryggen

Once you arrive at Bryggen, you will realize just how many vantage points there are for photographing the UNESCO World Heritage Site. First and foremost, just walking up to the series of buildings with a standard focal length lens, 24-70 mm, will do the job for the shots you are trying to get. Furthermore a wide angle lens of a 10 mm focal length is great for capturing many of the buildings in the same shot.

If you head across Vågan harbor, specifically near the stop Strandkaiterminalen, then you can get a great view of Bryggen with a telephoto lens, something at least 200 mm focal length. I did this when the weather was gloomy but around dusk so the effect I got was something very moody but warm, as the reds and oranges of the Bryggen buildings contrast well against the blue and gray backdrop.

For those of you with a drone, you can check the Avinor drone website and specifically look at locations in Norway on where you can fly. When I checked then and when I check now, there appears to be no restrictions on drone flying in Bergen, especially when it’s over the water in the harbor. Nonetheless, be careful where you fly as Bergen city center can be quite congested with people, so best to fly in the mornings. The drone will give you such a good wide angle shot of the entire Bryggen area!

Purchasing Photos

Conclusion and Further Resources

I got so lucky the third time visiting Bergen as the skies seemed to just open up and give sunshine for three straight days. I hope that you have the same such luck upon your visit to Bergen. Even in gloomy skies, you may be able to really pull off some amazing and dramatic photos of Bryggen as well.

If you like cities and the landscapes of Norway, feel free to check out my blog posts below on other Norwegian destinations.

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