Norway bakery stops: the buns and cafés we loved
Somewhere between the fjords and the campsites, this trip became a very serious bun investigation. We tried plenty, had a few average coffees and found one warm cinnamon bun in Åndalsnes that was pretty hard to beat. These are the stops I'd save for the drive, with the honest verdicts included.
The warm cinnamon bun at Sødahlhuset in Åndalsnes was the one we kept talking about. It wasn't too sweet, and it was exactly the sort of stop I wanted after days of driving and campsite cooking. If it fits your route, this is the bun I would save first.
Sødahlhuset was our favourite bun stop
We stayed at Mjelva Camping nearby. A morning in town worked naturally with that overnight stop, rather than needing a big detour purely for a café.
Vik and Flåm were lovely breaks in the drive
Vik Bakeri in Eidfjord gave us coffee and pastries during the Hardanger part of our trip. The photograph of the buns on the wooden table is from that stop. I'd check the current opening hours before relying on it for breakfast on the way to another activity.
Flåm was another bakery stop, with the scenery around the village adding to it. One of our buns there was cardamom, not cinnamon. Both belonged to the experience of the trip, but I wouldn't pretend every pastry was the same thing just to make a ranking.
Gudbrandsjuvet for the setting
Gudbrandsjuvet was as much about where we were sitting as what we were drinking. We had coffee and hot chocolate beside the glass walls with the gorge outside. It was a lovely pause on the route between Geiranger and Trollstigen.
The stop makes most sense when you are already travelling that way. Check road conditions and café opening times before building a day around it. A scenic-route photograph doesn't tell you whether the business or mountain road is open on your date.
The other stops along our loop
Our route also included Minibakeriet in Stryn, Sjodalstugu and Kafe & Konditori Kringle in Hønefoss. These were breaks along a moving road trip, so I would save them to the map and use them when the timing works rather than trying to visit every one.
We had coffee in Oslo at the beginning too, including Hakone Coffee and Tim Wendelboe. Keep city stops separate from the fjords driving day: picking up the van, learning its controls and buying groceries already take more time than you think.
Not every coffee was a favourite
The coffee around our Bokhandelen and Otta stops was less memorable for us. That's part of the honest version of this trip. A pretty place or a convenient location doesn't mean every order becomes a recommendation, and another visit may be different.
I'd keep the strongest food stops in the plan, then leave the rest flexible. We cooked in Posty as well, which made a bakery visit feel like a treat rather than something we needed to find every time we were hungry.
Make a food route that fits the road trip
Save the cafés you like, check opening hours close to the day and place them between your actual overnight stops. Don't add a big return drive for a bun when there is a lovely campsite waiting in the other direction. Our full Norway guide puts the cafés alongside the campsites and viewpoints.
If you're planning a similar van trip, we found Posty through MyCamper. Having a fridge and cooking setup meant we could buy groceries, make dinner and still leave room in the budget for the stops we really wanted.
Plan the rest of your Norway trip
Get our Norway Fjords guide for the web guide, downloadable PDF, place map and editable itinerary. Read these next:
Watch our Norway road trip
Watch our Norway road trip on YouTube, 68m46s. It is also our latest public full-length upload at publication. Visit Ellen’s YouTube channel.
Frequently asked questions
What was our favourite cinnamon bun?
The warm bun at Sødahlhuset in Åndalsnes was our favourite of this trip.
Should you visit every café on the list?
Save the ones that fit your route and check opening hours. We would not add a long return drive just to tick off every stop.
