New attraction in Voss: The Voss Gondol opens in July 2019

In July, Voss Gondol, a new mountain gondola will open at Voss. With a cost of NOK 350 million, this is the biggest investment that has ever been made in a ski destination in the Nordic region. The gondola, which has 9 cabins with room for 34 people in each cabin, is the largest gondola built north of the Alps.

"For Voss Resort, it has long been a goal to establish a gondola starting in the centre of the main tourist streams between Bergen, Flåm, Hardanger and Sogn. Annually, more than 1.5 million tourists will walk past the Railway Station in Voss, where the gondola is located. This gives us business opportunities that we have never had before,” says CEO in Voss Resort, Øyvind Wæhle.

New traffic hub in Voss. Over 1 Billion NOK invested

From the lower station at Voss railway station (53 masl), the gondola will take you 2020 meters, ending at the Hangurstoppen (820 masl) in just 6 minutes and 48 seconds.

The railway station of Voss is located approximately an hour from Bergen and travel from Bergen to Voss is easy. Hence, guests staying in Bergen can visit Voss to go skiing, snowshoeing or enjoy other activities in winter time. During summer they can us the different hiking trails or go biking in the mountains. The cabins of the gondola offer enough space to take bikes, push chairs or ski equipment. The link between the gondola and the train, and how they connect Bergen and Voss, is unique in the tourism context in the Nordic countries. "The new gondola will have great significance for the further development of not only Voss Resort, but also for the travel business sector in Voss and the region in general," says Sigbjørn Slåtten, COO in Voss Resort.

From the the train station, the walking distance to Voss’ three large city centre hotels, is less than 100 meters. The last hotel is under construction and will open in January 2020 with a capacity of 215 rooms.

A total of NOK 1 billion has been invested in hotels (380 MNOK), gondola (350 MNOK) and the railway station (380 MNOK for new tracks and platforms, underground passage, waiting room, toilets).

The new traffic hub in Voss is highlighted by The Confederation and Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) as a parade example of good socio-economic development and successful collaboration between private and public actors.

Fact box Voss Gondol:
Type of gondola: 3S Leitner Ropeways
Length: 2020 meters
Height difference: 768 meters
Travel time: 6 min 48 sec.
Cabins: 9 with (constructed for 13)
Capacity per cabin: 34 people
Capacity: 1069 people/hour (at 13 cabinets 1544/hours)
Start level: 53 meters above sea level – Voss Railway station
Top station: 820 meters above sea level – Mountain of Hanguren
Restaurant capacity: 450 people. The largest restaurant in Voss.