Hundreds of winter trips to Trolltunga – no Norwegians though

TrolltungaHordaland. Trolltunga (Tongue of the Troll).Photo : Jenny Pettersson / TT kod

300 tourists have booked winter guiding tours to the so-called Trolltunga in Hordaland, all of which are foreigners, mostly from the US and UK. This might be because the 14 hour hike is much tougher than anticipated.

According to NRK, the number of people who book tours using the company Trolltunga Active has increased significantly since last year. Only for the Easter week there are about 200 slots filled, up from five to six each day last year, CEO Jostein Soldal states.

– They are all foreigners. Today, there are people from Panama, Mexico, Spain and so on. They come from all over the world, but not from Norway. This is becoming a foreign attraction. Norwegians do not choose guided tours in the winter, Soldal tells NRK.

This list shows that the majority are coming from the US and the UK, followed by Spain, South Korea and Japan.

Little suggests that Norwegians choose to make the trip on their own, since the guides have not met Norwegians taking the journey lately.

The rock formation Trolltunga (Tongue of the Troll) is located 1,100 meters above sea level above the Ringedalsvatnet in Odda municipality. In recent years there has been a huge increase in tourism to the place. This year there is expected around 80,000. There has also been a corresponding increase in the number of rescue missions as it is tougher than most visitors anticipate.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today