The quick version
- Ships dock in town, a 2 minute walk from the cruise port into the city, so the first café or bakery is minutes from the gangway.[1]
- The guided food walking tour runs 3 hours from US$152, rated 4.93 from 74 reviews, with a bakery, bars and a pizzeria along the route.[2]
- Fjord tour with a gourmet lunch at Rekkedal Gjestegard: 7 hours, from US$210, limited to 10 participants and a live guide in English.[3]
- The guided fishing trip with fresh fish tasting starts from Ålesund harbour, lasts 4 hours and costs from US$221.[4][5]
- Ålesund to Geirangerfjord round trip on a hybrid electric boat: 8.5 to 9.5 hours, from US$202, rated 4.75 from 758 reviews.[6]
| Food walk | Fjord and lunch | Fishing and tasting | |
|---|---|---|---|
| From | from US$152[2] | from US$210[3] | from US$221[4] |
| Duration | 3 hours[2] | 7 hours[3] | 4 hours[4] |
| Guide | English and Norwegian[2] | English[3] | English, Norwegian, Danish[4] |
| Rating | 4.93 from 74 reviews[2] | No reviews yet[3] | 4.19 from 5 reviews[4] |
| Cancellation | Free, 24 hours before[2] | Free, 24 hours before[3] | Free, 24 hours before[4] |
Your 4-hour journey starts from Ålesund harbor, where Art Nouveau buildings frame views of the open Atlantic. As MS Gamle Havstein sails toward fishing grounds near Alnes and Godøya, your crew shares stories about coastal fishing traditions while preparing equipment suited to current conditions.
Where to eat in Ålesund: our verdict
Worth knowing first
Where to eat in Ålesund: the practical answer
Cruise ships dock at a spot right in the town of Ålesund, literally a 2 minute walk from the cruise port into the city.[1] That makes eating ashore unusually easy. You step off the gangway, walk past the harbour edge, and you are already among the cafés, bakeries and restaurants. The centre is compact enough to cross on foot, with the waterfront on one side and the Art Nouveau streets running back from it.
In 2024, Ålesund had 290 cruise ship arrivals.[11] On the busiest days it pays to reserve a table in the morning, or to pick somewhere a street or two back from the harbour. The guided food tours in town are built around a series of small stops rather than one long sitting, which lets you try more in a short visit. Bakeries and cafés generally open earlier than restaurants, so an early arrival is no problem. If your time in port is short, stay within a few streets of the harbour and save the longer trips for a day when you have more hours ashore.
What to eat in Ålesund: fish, baked goods and coastal classics
Ålesund sits on a cluster of islands, with the open Atlantic on one side and deep fjords on the other, and the cooking follows the water. Fish soup is the classic warm start, often creamy and served with bread. Cod appears in many forms, and klippfisk, dried and salted cod, is a coastal staple that turns up as bacalao, a slow cooked dish with potatoes and tomatoes. Smoked salmon, prawns and crab are common too, often served simply with lemon and mayonnaise.
Leave room for baking. Sweet cardamom and cinnamon buns, known here as skillingsboller, are sold warm from bakeries across western Norway, and svele, a small soft pancake, is a local favourite with coffee. Brown cheese on toast, lamb and root vegetables round out the savoury side, and cloudberries appear in desserts when the season allows. If you would like help finding it all, a cultural walk with a taste and scent of Ålesund runs 2 hours and costs from US$52.[7]
Wooden boats and Art Nouveau rooftops share the same waterfront in Ålesund.
Food walks and tasting tours in town
The Ålesund: Guided Food Walking Tour runs 3 hours with a live guide in English and Norwegian and costs from US$152, and it is rated 4.93 from 74 reviews.[2] Its stops include Vinni bar og restaurant, Stuen AS, Nonna Lina ristorante pizzeria, Walderhaug Bakery and Confectionery, Brosundet Gjestebrygge and Hotel Brosundet. Expect a mix of bakery samples, small plates and a sit-down stop rather than one large meal.
Two shorter tastings suit a tight port schedule. The Cultural Walk with a Taste and Scent of Alesund takes 2 hours, costs from US$52 and is rated 4.90 from 13 reviews, with a guide who speaks English.[7] The Guided Food Walking Tour takes 3 hours, costs from US$152 and is rated 4.93 from 74 reviews, with guides in English and Norwegian.[2]
All of these are walking tours, so wear shoes you can spend a couple of hours in. The food walk follows Kongens gate and stops along the waterfront around Brosundet. Book ahead if your ship is in on a busy day, and leave a little slack in your plan for a slow course at the end.
Eating on a fjord day out
Several of the area's food experiences take place on a boat, and they double as sightseeing. The fjord tour with a gourmet lunch at Rekkedal Gjestegard lasts 7 hours, costs from US$210 and is limited to 10 participants, with a live guide in English.[3] These are half-day or full-day outings, so treat them as the main event of the day rather than a quick bite between stops.
The Fjord Tour with Lunch on MS Bruvik runs 7 hours from US$156 and is rated 4.54 from 19 reviews, calling at Sæbø.[12] A guided fishing trip with fresh fish tasting is shorter at 4 hours, costs from US$221 and is rated 4.19 from 5 reviews, with a guide in English, Norwegian or Danish.[4] That trip starts from Ålesund harbour and sails to fishing grounds near Alnes and Godøya.[5]
If your priority is the water rather than a set menu, shorter cruises fit around a meal. The Ålesund Sightseeing Cruise runs 2 hours from US$52, and the Ålesund Archipelago Cruise runs 2 hours from US$52 and is rated 3.94 from 76 reviews.[13][14]
from US$202
Ålesund to Geirangerfjord round trip on a hybrid electric boat, 8.5 to 9.5 hours, rated 4.75 from 758 reviews.[6]
The Geirangerfjord round trip and its meal stop
The Ålesund to Geirangerfjord round trip on a hybrid electric boat is the long day out, running 8.5 to 9.5 hours and costing from US$202. It is rated 4.75 from 758 reviews, is wheelchair accessible, and carries an audio guide in Danish, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian and Spanish.[6]
The route runs out through Storfjorden and Sunnylvsfjorden into Geirangerfjord, past the Seven Sisters waterfall and the Friaren falls, then calls at Geiranger before turning back. The Seven Sisters is 410 meters tall in total, and the highest of its seven streams has a free fall of 250 meters.[15] Geirangerfjord is part of the West Norwegian Fjords, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2005, and Ålesund and Geiranger lie 67 miles (108 km) apart.[16][17]
In Geiranger village the pier sits close to cafés, bakeries and hotel restaurants, so the stop is a good moment for a proper sit-down meal rather than a snack on the move. Take a warm layer even in summer: the deck of a moving boat feels cooler than the sheltered streets of Ålesund, and the light on the fjord walls softens as the day goes on.
Prices, booking and cancellation
Prices for food tours and cruises in Ålesund are from-prices in US dollars. The Ålesund to Geirangerfjord round trip, for example, can be booked with reserve now and pay later, and free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.[6] Tasting walks in town start lower, from US$52, while the guided food walk is from US$152.[2][7]
Boat trips with a meal sit in the upper range: from US$156 for the MS Bruvik fjord tour with lunch, from US$210 for the Rekkedal Gjestegard gourmet lunch trip and from US$221 for the fishing trip with fresh fish tasting.[3][4][12] If you want a break from eating, adult admission to Atlanterhavsparken is NOK 275.[10]
When to come, and how to fill the hours between meals
Ålesund's average temperature is 2.8 °C in the coldest month, February, and 14.8 °C in the warmest month, August.[9] Summer days are long and often mild, which suits a slow dinner by the water and a stroll afterwards. Winter calls for indoor tables, hot fish soup and a proper coat for the walk between them, and the town keeps its bakery and café habits all year long.
The Norwegian Scenic Route Geiranger-Trollstigen is always closed in winter and normally open from mid-May to October or November, depending on when winter returns.[18] Between April and August, more than 30,000 puffins come to the cliffs at Runde to breed.[19] From late September to late March, Ålesund sees northern lights during moderate to strong geomagnetic activity.[20]
For a view over the town before dinner, there are 418 steps from the town park up to the Fjellstua viewpoint on Mount Aksla.[21] If you arrive by air, the Airport Express Bus (Flybussen FB65) runs between the terminal and Ålesund sentrum in roughly 15 to 25 minutes.[8] A Hop On-Hop Off bus in Ålesund offers commentary in eight languages if you would rather ride than walk.[22]
From-prices for food and tasting experiences
Each bar is the US dollar from-price of a GetYourGuide listing.[2][3][7][12]
What a food day in Ålesund can cost
Adult from-prices in US dollars from these GetYourGuide listings:[2][3][4][7][12]
When to go, and what to plan around
How to plan a food day
Start at the dock
Ships dock in town, a 2 minute walk from the cruise port into the city, so a bakery or café is minutes from the gangway.[1]
Walk the centre
Wander the Art Nouveau streets and the waterfront, or join a food walk that points out the bakery, bars and pizzeria along the route.
Book one boat meal
The MS Bruvik lunch tour and the Rekkedal Gjestegard gourmet lunch trip each last 7 hours, so pick one as the day's centrepiece.[3][12]
Keep an evening free
Leave one evening without a tour for a slow dinner in town, when the harbour light softens and the streets empty out.
Pack for the month
Average temperatures run from 2.8 °C in February to 14.8 °C in August, so layers work in every season.[9]
Book the Geirangerfjord round trip and eat well along the way
from US$202Reserve now & pay later
