Ålesund Airport to the City: Bus, Taxi, Car Hire and the Cruise Dock

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• Winter fjord cruise from US$325 Duration9 hours^[8]Rated4.76 from 105 reviews^[8]How you travelBoat out and backGood to knowLive tour guide on board^[8] See this tour
• Hjørundfjord round trip from US$115 Duration5 hours^[9]Rated4.58 from 282 reviews^[9]How you travelBoat out and backGood to knowEnglish live tour guide^[9] See this tour

Ålesund Airport on arrival: what to expect

Flying into Ålesund Airport, you land on the coast, where the runway sits low beside the water and the first thing you notice is how open the sky feels. The terminal is small and calm, and you are through it quickly, with baggage and exit signs easy to follow. Outside, the air is cool and damp for much of the year, and taxis, buses and pre-booked drivers wait close to the door. If you have booked a transfer, your driver will often be holding a name board; if you are taking the bus, the stop is a short walk from the arrivals exit. Either way, you can be moving towards town within minutes of collecting your bags.

Ålesund itself sits on a knot of islands and peninsulas, so almost every journey here involves a bridge, a tunnel or a boat. That shapes your arrival: the run into the centre is short, but roads bend around water rather than cutting straight through it. Cruise passengers have the easiest deal, because ships dock in the town itself, a 2 minute walk from the port into the city.^[4] Everyone else arrives by bus, taxi or hire car and then walks, which works well because the centre is compact and the waterfront is where most people want to be.

The Airport Express Bus into Ålesund sentrum

The Airport Express Bus, the Flybussen FB65, is the straightforward option for most arrivals. It runs between the terminal and Ålesund sentrum in roughly 15 to 25 minutes depending on traffic and your exact stop.^[1] You settle in with your bag beside you and watch the water and the low hills slide past the window. Because the centre is small, you step off within a short walk of the main streets, the Art Nouveau facades and the waterfront hotels, which makes the bus a good first look at the place you have come to see.

For the return leg, the same bus is the easiest answer to how to get to Ålesund Airport for an early departure: check the timetable at your hotel or at the stop, and give yourself a comfortable margin rather than the bare minimum. Early departures can be busy with people heading for the same plane, so allow a little extra time at the stop. If your flight leaves before dawn, a pre-booked driver removes the guesswork, and the ride is short enough that you are not paying for a long transfer. Either way, keep your passport and booking details to hand.

The fjord boat slides past the Seven Sisters waterfall on the way to Geiranger.

Taxi and private transfer options from the terminal

If you would rather not think about timetables, private transfers are listed for this route. One is the Alesund Airport (AES) one-way transfer to or from Alesund, a private group service with an English-speaking driver and a duration of 30 minutes, listed from US$134 and rated 5.00 from 1 reviews.^[2] Another is a private transfer to or from Ålesund Airport and the city, also 30 minutes, from US$116, wheelchair accessible and with pickup included, so you meet your driver instead of hunting for a rank.^[3] Both are door to door, which matters when you are tired or carrying more luggage than you planned.

Taxis wait outside arrivals, and for a group of three or four the difference between a taxi and a pre-booked transfer is often smaller than people expect. Ask about the fare before you get in, and have the address of your hotel or your ship ready in writing, because Norwegian place names can be tricky over a car radio. If you arrive late at night, pre-booking is the calmer choice: someone is expecting you, and you are not standing outside in the cold wondering whether you have missed the last bus of the day.

Car rental at Ålesund Airport and driving onward

Driving gives you the most freedom on this coast, and car rental at Ålesund Airport is the usual starting point for travellers heading for the fjords, the fishing villages and the mountain passes. Book ahead in summer, when demand is highest and the choice of vehicles thins out, and add a day of slack to any plan that leans on a single ferry. Ålesund and Geiranger are 67 miles (108 km) apart,^[5] and on this coast the clock matters more than the map, because tunnels and ferry queues can land in the same afternoon.

Season matters more than distance for the high routes. The Norwegian Scenic Route Geiranger-Trollstigen is always closed in winter and normally open from mid-May to October/November, depending on when winter returns.^[6] If your trip falls outside those months, plan a coastal loop instead and keep a flexible day in hand for the weather. Fill up whenever you see a station, carry water and a warm layer, and do not count on a phone signal in every valley. Tunnels can be long and dim, so switch on your lights and take them steadily.

From the terminal to the cruise dock and the town

If you are joining a ship, the last stretch is about as easy as travel gets. Cruise ships dock at a spot right in the town of Ålesund, a 2 minute walk from the cruise port into the city.^[4] That means you can leave the gangway, walk into the centre and be sitting by the harbour with a coffee very soon after. In 2024 Ålesund had 290 cruise ship arrivals,^[12] so the waterfront is lively on port days, and the quiet corners of town are the nicer reward for an early start.

Flights, buses and ships all feed into the same small centre, which is why Ålesund suits a short stay so well. If you arrive by air and leave by sea, the hours in between are yours: walk the Art Nouveau streets, look at the fishing harbour and pick up anything you forgot. Hotels cluster within a few blocks of the waterfront, so you are rarely far from your bed, your bag or your boarding point. Keep your passport and travel documents with you rather than in a checked bag, and check your departure time twice on the day.

Getting around Ålesund without a car

Once your bags are dropped, the town is walkable and the sights sit close together. The Hop On-Hop Off bus in Ålesund offers commentary in eight languages,^[10] which makes it a relaxed way to get your bearings and to reach the viewpoints without climbing. If you are happy on your feet, walk up to the Fjellstua viewpoint on Mount Aksla: there are 418 steps from the town park up to it.^[13] The view over the islands and the harbour is the one everybody photographs, and the town looks very different from up there.

Families often make for Atlanterhavsparken, where the adult ticket price is NOK 275.^[14] The aquarium sits out by the water, so the journey there is half the outing. Closer in, the Art Nouveau centre and the small museums fill a wet hour, and the harbour is lively whenever a ship is in. Local buses and ferries link the surrounding islands for anyone who wants a beach, a lighthouse or a quiet walk away from the crowds. Comfortable shoes and a rain jacket are the two things you will be glad you packed.

Adding a fjord day to your arrival or departure

The big day out from Ålesund is Geirangerfjord, and it can sit neatly on either side of your flight or your sailing. The Geirangerfjord round trip on a hybrid electric boat runs 8.5 to 9.5 hours, is wheelchair accessible and carries an audio guide; it is listed from US$202 and rated 4.75 from 758 reviews.^[7] The boat threads Storfjorden and Sunnylvsfjorden before reaching the fjord itself and passing the Seven Sisters waterfall, which is 410 meters tall in total, with the highest of its seven streams falling freely for 250 meters.^[15]

This is UNESCO country, and the water tells the story. The West Norwegian Fjords, Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord, were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005.^[16] Geiranger sits at the head of the fjord, a small village between steep walls, and the return leg gives you the cliffs from a different angle as the light changes. If your time is tighter, shorter fjord cruises leave from the same harbour and the town itself rewards a slow afternoon. Book the fjord day for the middle of your stay, and keep the days either side of it light.

Your Ålesund arrival plan

1. Choose bus or driver

   The Airport Express Bus (Flybussen FB65) takes roughly 15 to 25 minutes to Ålesund sentrum.^[1]

2. Check your berth

   Ships dock in town, a 2 minute walk from the port into the city.^[4]

3. Collect a hire car

   Pick up your car and go, but note the Geiranger-Trollstigen Scenic Route is always closed in winter.^[6]

4. Plan your fjord day

   The Geirangerfjord round trip runs 8.5 to 9.5 hours, so give it a whole day.^[7]

5. Pack for the coast

   Average temperatures are 2.8 °C in February and 14.8 °C in August, so bring layers.^[11]

Answers before you go