Otternes Farm

Otternes is a preserved historic farmstead on a hillside terrace between Flåm and Aurland, about 4 km from the village by a steep footpath. The farm consists of 27 traditional red-painted buildings from the 16th to 19th century, clustered on a ledge with vertiginous views down to the Aurlandsfjord. It is one of the best-preserved examples of a traditional Norwegian farmstead in the western fjord region.

The farm is open to visitors in summer, with guides explaining how the community lived and worked in this isolated mountain location. The walk up from the fjord road takes about 45 minutes and is steep but well-marked. The views from the farm terrace, with the fjord far below and snow-streaked mountains behind, are exceptional.

things to do sight museum
A story
Otternes was continuously inhabited from the medieval period until the 1990s, when the last resident left and the farm passed to preservation. The layout of buildings clustered together on a terrace above the fjord is characteristic of how Norwegian farm communities organized themselves — the buildings are not isolated but grouped for mutual warmth and protection. The farm operated without road access until the 20th century; everything came in by boat or on foot.