When
The season starts in April for the lower lying areas (below 600 metres) and May/June further up. It ends with the arrival of the snow in October or November.
Hiking possibilities
Sunnhordland stretches from the villages on the coast to the top of Folgefonna Glacier. Between these places you can walk in Folgefonna National Park, see the islands of Sunnhordland from Siggjo, Bømlo or get a great view of the Hardangerfjord from Melderskin in Rosendal; Stovegolvet on the island of Stord or Tysnessåta on the island of Tysnes.
A hike up along one of the world's most beautiful waterfalls, the Langfoss Waterfall along the Åkrafjord is impressive. In the same area you can also follow the old Postal Route through the Rullestad Gorge.
Guided walks across the Folgefonna Glacier are maybe the region's most "exotic" experience. You could also consider the easier coastal walk to Ryvarden lighthouse, Mølstrevåg in Sveio.
You will find more than 100 marked trails in the region. Self-guided walks are possible on all of these trails, and the level of difficulty goes from one-hour easy walks for families to demanding 10-hour walks to the highest peaks.
Top five hikes in Sunnhordland
Melderskin, Rosendal: “The Queen amongst the Sunnhordland mountains”, 1,426 metres above sea level (black route)
Bondhusdalen/Folgefonna National Park, Sundal: Easy walk suitable for most people, 189 metres above sea level (green/blue route)
Siggjo, Bømlo: Amazing views over the coastline (red route)
Postal Route in Rullestad Gorge, Åkrafjord, Rullestad: The old postal route (red route)
The North Sea Trail at Stolmen, Stolmen, Austevoll: Approximately 45-minute walk (green/blue route)
Guided hikes
Several guided hikes are available in the region, including guided glacier walks across the Folgefonna Glacier. Get in touch with the guide company Folgefonni Breførarlag for further information. For hiking trips in fjord landscape Åkrafjord Adventure provides fixed tours for individuals and tailor made tours for groups to beautiful and memorable locations. Langfoss Waterfall Fjord Cruise is their most popular tour.
Accommodation
Sunnhordland offers a choice of accommodation close to hiking areas. These include hotels, camp sites, cabins and holiday houses like Bømlo Hotell, Rosendal Turisthotell in Kvinnherad, Haaheim Gaard in Tysnes, Stord Hotel, Skånevik Fjordhotell in Etne (pages only in Norwegian), Bekkjarvik Gjestgiveri in Austevoll and Fitjar Sjø & Camping.
How to get there
The nearest airports are Bergen Airport, Haugesund Airport and Stord Airport (pages only in Norwegian). From Oslo you can follow E134 via Haukeli to Sunnhordland. The E39 runs through Sunnhordland, and express boats to and from Bergen and Stavanger call at Leirvik. See norled.no, rodne.no or flaggruten.no. Leirvik is the junction in Sunnhordland with busses that goes both to, from and around the Sunnhordland region.