Port information

Technical port information

The port's own answers to the annual port questionnaires, on one dated page — quotable, archivable and forwardable without asking again.

Updated 16 October 2026

Why this page exists

Three questionnaire rounds reach the port every year asking for the same data. The sections below follow the order a questionnaire asks in, and where the port's own documents contradict each other the open question is marked rather than papered over.

Security level, the Declaration of Security and pier access are on Access & security. Anything else: post@skjoldenport.com, +47 458 98 229.

Oblique aerial view of the finished cruise pier: the concrete deck running out along the shore with black fenders down its face, the white gabled terminal building where it meets the land, a timber-clad building with a dark roof on the apron at the far end, and the marked road, green fields and red farm buildings behind — The cruise pier as it stands: 127.5 m of quay, 12 m alongside, black fendering down the face, terminal building at the landward end, marked coach standing area behind it.

The approach

There is no short way in

The fairway is the full 205 kilometres of the Sognefjord, and it is deep the whole way. The Sognefjord reaches 1,308 metres, and neither approach shoals below 50 metres.

What limits a vessel here is not the water under the keel, but a power line strung between two summits and a basin to turn in at the end. Pilotage is compulsory for the whole passage.

205 km: of fjord to the berth, sailed in and sailed out again
50 m: minimum depth in either approach fairway
1,000 m: turning basin at the head of the fjord, 25 m deep
45 m: charted clearance at the overhead line crossing — the one limiting dimension

The two approach fairways to Skjolden.
Fairway	Name	Narrowest width	Minimum depth
Northern	Tollesundet	620 m	50 m
Southern	Havhella	750 m	50 m

A yellow mooring bollard and the painted quay edge in the foreground, with the fjord running straight out between the mountain walls and a cruise ship standing off under a bank of low cloud — From the quay, looking back the way the ship came. The fairway holds its depth to the last metre of it.

Pilot boarding position and notice period: not yet published by the port. Boarding position: Kvanhovden (north), 61°02.0'N 004°06.0'E, approx. 136 nm / 8 h · Fedje (south), 60°51.4'N 004°39.0'E, approx. 125 nm / 7 h. Notice period for pilotage itself is not separately documented — confirm directly with the pilot service before publishing a deadline. A chart sheet of this approach exists as a scan but carries no visible cartographer's credit, and stays off the page until that is settled.

Overhead power line on the approach

The facts

45 m charted clearance

The charted clearance applies to the lowest point of the span, mid-fjord. The cables run summit to summit, so clearance increases substantially towards the sides.

What the port asks of you

Vessels with an air draft approaching or exceeding the charted clearance must clear the passage with the pilot service. Statnett is notified of cruise calls and avoids line work on call days.

The port issues no passage instructions. Navigational advice for the approach is the pilot's responsibility, and the pilots hold the current navigational warnings for the fairway. Pilotage is compulsory — +47 33 03 48 00.

Berths and quay data

Straight-down drone view of the cruise pier with a service building at each end and the deck connecting them — Straight down on the cruise pier: a service building at each end, the deck between, the coast road behind.

Two berths. Cruise vessels use the Cruise Pier alongside, the Tender Pier when at anchor.
Berth	Length	Depth alongside	Notes
Cruise Pier	127.5 m	12 m	ISPS-approved, monitored access
Tender Pier	36 m	5 m	Floating, 3 × 12 m sections

Download the Port Operations & Muster Plan (v4, 19 August 2026, PDF) →

Schematic map of Skjolden showing the Cruise Pier and Tender Pier along the western shore, the disused hydro quay at the head of the fjord, the anchorage marked in the fjord and Lake Eidsvatnet behind the village — The berths on one sheet: Cruise Pier and Tender Pier on the western shore, with the anchorage marked off them. The map also shows the disused hydro quay at the head of the fjord — it is not a berth.

Quay data and vessel limits at the Cruise Pier.
Item	Value
Quay height	3.1 m above lowest astronomical tide
Fendering	Yokohama, 2.4 m
Maximum LOA / draft / beam	400 m / 12 m / no restriction
Largest vessels handled	Queen Mary 2, 345 m — the longest. By lower berths: Arvia, 5,200.
Turning basin	1,000 m wide, 25 m deep
Shore gangway	Not provided. Ships use their own gangway.
Gangway to the coach standing area	70–100 m, level and paved

The new service building on the quay: its glazed front and first-floor balcony along the left, an external stair at the far end, and the new timber deck running out to a railing above the fjord with a snow-streaked mountain opposite — The service and market building on the deck, opened for the 2026 season. Not the terminal: port office, dispatch and PFSO sit at the landward end of the quay.

Survey plan of the cruise pier showing the quay structure, the service buildings at each end and the charted depths along the quay face, reading 13.2, 12, 13.2, 12.3, 15.7 and 16.7 metres from the northern end to the southern — Charted depths along the quay face, north at the top. The 12 m in the table above is the shallowest, in the northern half; the berth deepens to 16.7 m at the southern end. Base map: Kartverket.

The cruise pier from the air in its setting: the deck and its two buildings on the point below a steep wooded mountainside, a coach standing on the shore road, the small-boat harbour further along the shore, and turquoise fjord water filling the foreground — The same quay from the water, on its point below the mountain wall. Either side alongside. No obstructions on the quay.

The quay reached its present width in the rebuild before the 2026 season — what the pier widening changed on the ground. Pier access and the ANPR gate are on Access & security; berth allocation is on Schedule & booking.

Mooring and bollards

The berth is 127.5 m long and the stated maximum is 400 m LOA. It is not a misprint.

Vessels longer than the quay overhang it fore and aft. Lines are taken both to bollards on the quay structure and to shore bollards along the shore beyond each end of it, which is how vessels of up to 400 m are moored against a 127.5 m quay.

Eight bollards: the four springs, 75 t, stand on the quay structure itself; the breasts at 200 t and the outer pair at 150 t stand on shore, clear of each end of it. Combined strength is 1,000 t across 8 bollards.

Linesmen are provided locally and ordered through the agent with the call. Fendering is Yokohama, 2.4 m.

Map of the cruise pier with the eight mooring bollards numbered 1 to 8 — four on the quay structure itself and two beyond each end of it along the shore — and a legend giving their safe working loads — Where the eight bollards stand. Numbers 3 to 6 are the springs, on the quay structure; 1 and 2 to the north and 7 and 8 to the south sit clear of it along the shore.

Number, placement, function and safe working load per bollard. Loads confirmed by the Port Director, 11 August 2026, superseding the undifferentiated “50–200 t” heading in the older material.
Bollard	Placement	Function	SWL	Metres
1	On shore	Outer, north	150 t	65.8 m
2	On shore	Breast, north	200 t	78.61 m
3	On the quay	Spring, north	75 t	28 m
4	On the quay	Spring, north	75 t	70 m
5	On the quay	Spring, south	75 t	28 m
6	On the quay	Spring, south	75 t	81.26 m
7	On shore	Breast, south	200 t	28.44 m
8	On shore	Outer, south	150 t	—
Total, 8 bollards			1,000 t	—

The metres column is empty on purpose: the earlier technical sheet gives a metre figure per bollard but not what it is measured from, and the figures are not monotonic along the quay. Confirmed 26 August 2026 (SED answer bank): distances are bollard-to-next along the quay and shore — 1→2: 65.8 m · 2→3: 78.61 m · 3→4: 28 m · 4→5: 70 m · 5→6: 28 m · 6→7: 81.26 m · 7→8: 28.44 m. Bollard type and spacing, the storm bollard and maximum berthing speed against the fenders are unsettled too. Further mooring particulars — bollard type, storm bollard and approach-speed limits — are provided by the port office on request.

A cruise ship lying bow-in at the cruise pier in early morning light, her flared bow overhanging the water beside a yellow mooring bollard, with three port workers in high-visibility vests and hard hats standing on the timber deck — The same arrangement with a ship in it. Line handling is a port service: the crew on the deck are the port's.

Anchorage

Minimum depth at the anchorage: Approx. 40 m. Swinging radius has never been answered in writing: Swinging room at the anchorage is assessed per call with the pilot — request particulars from the port office.

Anchoring here is routine, not exception — see the calls-at-anchor figure above. Conditions in the bay are normally calm; wind and current are in the weather table below.

How a call at anchor runs

The position is confirmed in writing with the booking, not decided on the day.
Dropping the anchor for testing is permitted, on notice to the port.
The Tender Pier is allocated to the ship for the call, with an ISPS guard posted throughout.
The speed limit at the entrance is 5 knots, and it applies to the ship's tenders too.
Vessels at anchor are not charged quay or mooring fees. Passenger and security fees apply, for one day. The tariff is on Pricing.

Tender operations

Tender Pier — floating, 3 × 12 m sections.
Item	Value
Length	36 m
Width	3.6 m
Minimum depth alongside	5 m
Freeboard	Approx. 0.5 m
Tenders alongside at the same time	Maximum 2
Speed limit at the entrance	5 knots
Distance from the anchorage	600 m
Fendering	Timber along the side. Tenders use their own.
Security	ISPS guard posted throughout the operation

The tender pier from directly above: the floating pontoon with two RIBs alongside and its gangway to the shore, the paved yard behind it with coaches drawn up in rows, racks of bicycles along the road, and the barrier on the access road at the top of the frame — The whole tender arrangement in one frame: floating pier with RIBs alongside, the gangway ashore, and the coach standing area above it behind the port's gate.

Sheltered behind the breakwater; the ship has the pier to itself. Shared with local RIB traffic. The ship works the pier from the outer, eastern side and has the whole of it for the call. Behind the breakwater the landing stays workable in wind that would make an exposed one uncomfortable.

The exit from the gangway area leads onto a gravel apron with a step up onto the tender gangway; the coach standing area is immediately above, on private ground behind the port's own gate. The pier is shared with local RIB traffic serving shore excursions, coordinated by the port.

Guests who need help to transfer should be flagged in advance so the pier can be staffed for it — see Access & security.

Passengers walking up a metal gangway from a tender boat into a ship's side door — Guests between tender and ship.

Weather, tide and current

Standard values from the port's operations plan.
Item	Value	Notes
Tidal range	1.5 m	Quay height is stated above lowest astronomical tide
Maximum current	0.5 kn	Stronger in the fjord when the rivers run high with meltwater
Swell	None at the berth	The berth lies at the head of a 205 km fjord, with no open-sea fetch
Prevailing wind	South-westerly	Follows the direction of the fjord; normally light, but can blow strongly into the bay and raise a significant sea
Ice	None	The fjord is ice-free, and the port takes calls throughout its mid-April to mid-October season

Conditions on the day are discussed with the ship on arrival; whether a tender operation runs or is held remains the ship's decision.

Pilotage, tugs and linesmen

Pilotage is compulsory. Tugs are not stationed in Skjolden and are not compulsory.
Service	Status	How it is arranged
Pilotage	Compulsory	Norwegian Coastal Administration pilot service, +47 33 03 48 00
Tugs	Not stationed, not compulsory	Order via national agent (nearest Florø or Bergen). Booking deadline 36 hours. +47 33 03 48 00
Linesmen	Provided locally	Arranged by the port. Ordered through the agent with the call.
Mooring boat	Port-operated	An 8 m aluminium boat with a diesel water-jet drive — no propeller to foul on a line. Line handling is a port service; ships do not arrange their own. Specification
VHF	Ch 12 / 16	Channel 12 is the working channel, with Channel 16 on standby. Applies to all movements at Skjolden, including the ship-to-ship transfer. The port operations plan supersedes the Channel 13 in one agent's form.

Arrival must also be notified through SafeSeaNet Norway (shiprep.no) to NOSLN, Skjolden Cruisekai AS — a separate track from the commercial booking, and both are required.

Before the call is confirmed

The vessel particulars the port works from

A berth request is answered from the vessel's particulars, not from its name. Against each field is what it settles. Nothing here is collected for the file.

Vessel data, and what each field determines at this quay.
Field	What it settles
Identity and statutory What the call is registered against.
Vessel name as it stands in the ship's papers	The call is registered against the vessel, and every later message in the thread is matched back to it.
IMO number	One key that survives name changes and years — the safest way to match a season list to the right vessel.
Call sign	VHF working and statutory reporting.
Flag state	Clearance, immigration and ISPS.
Dimensions and capacity Measured against 127.5 m of quay, 12 m alongside, 45 m charted clearance on the way in, and a ceiling of 5,500 lower berths in the port at once.
Gross tonnage	The basis on which quay and mooring dues are calculated. The rates are public — see the tariff.
LOA, beam and draft	Settles pier or anchorage before anyone has to ask, and how the ship is moored — vessels longer than the quay take lines to bollards beyond each end of it.
Air draft	The power lines cross the fjord on the approach. A vessel near the charted clearance clears the passage with the pilot service.
Passengers in lower berths	What the port plans the day against, and what both capacity ceilings apply to.
Preferred position pier or anchorage	Say it if you have one. The port answers with the position it can actually confirm, and why.
Shore power Recorded, not used — there is nothing here to connect to.
Shore power details connection side, distance from the stern, voltage and frequency	Skjolden has no shore power connection — shore power has been studied, nothing is built. The port records what ships carry, because that is what any future installation would have to serve.

Capacity is stated throughout as lower berths, never maximum occupancy. Dates, ports, turnaround and immigration belong to the booking itself, on Schedule & booking.

What the port answers with

The confirmed position — pier or anchorage — stated explicitly.
The confirmed time window.
Whether any other vessel is scheduled on that date.

One practical request

Send the particulars as text, not as a pasted picture: a pasted block has to be retyped at this end, and retyping is where a draft becomes a beam.

Berth requests to ships@skjoldenport.com; the shore excursion programme is a separate track to shorex@skjoldenport.com.

Port services, waste and discharge

A deep-water berth in a village of a few hundred people, and the service list reflects that. Several entries below have been answered every year since 2024 and still sit incorrectly in agents' systems.

Services at the quay, published so the answer can be quoted rather than requested.
Service	Available	Detail
Fresh water	No	Not available at the quay. No fresh water bunkering in Skjolden.
Shore power (OPS)	No	Not available. Studied, not built — see Sustainability.
Bunkers (fuel / LNG)	No	Not available. No bunker, water or garbage barge.
Shore gangway	No	Not provided. Ships use their own gangway.
Lifting equipment	No	Not available.
Garbage removal	Yes	Order at least 3 working days before arrival.
Grey water reception	Yes	On request. Discharge of sewage and grey water in the fjord is prohibited.
Sludge / waste oil	Yes	Ordered directly from the supplier by the agent. Notify the port in advance for logistics.
Medical assistance	Yes	The port arranges appointments at Luster urgent care clinic (Gaupne, ~30 min) and pre-books taxi. Nearest hospital: Lærdal, 95 km; most cases requiring acute hospital care are taken to Førde (~2.5 h).
Customs & immigration	No	No facilities or booths at the port. Schengen transit calls. Authority: Bergen Regiontollsted.

What the table does not say

Sludge and waste oil are ordered by the agent directly from the supplier. Tell the port in advance so the movement fits around passenger and coach traffic.
The port requires no ballast water report.

What is not here, and will not be

Fresh water, bunkers and shore power: all three a No in writing every year since 2024. Shore power is treated in full on Sustainability, fees on Pricing, and discharge in the waste conditions in the terms.

Permissions in port

The agents' annual permissions list, answered in the port's own wording. Lifeboat drills, chipping, painting, hull washing and hot work must be notified in advance, to be fitted around passenger and coach movements.

What may be carried out while alongside or at anchor in Skjolden.
Activity	Status	Conditions
Hull washing with the ship's own fresh water	Permitted	—
Environmentally friendly soap	Permitted	—
Chemical cleaning agents	Not permitted	—
Painting from the ship's own paint raft	Permitted	Not from the quay, nor on the side of a vessel lying alongside.
Chipping	Permitted	—
Rust remover	Permitted	—
Lowering the paint raft	Permitted	—
Lowering lifeboats and lifeboat drills	Permitted	Ship's alarms during drills are accepted.
Dropping the anchor for testing	Permitted	—
Hot work inside the vessel	Permitted	—
Hot work on deck or outside	Not permitted	—
Public address system	Permitted	—
Ship's horn or whistle	Not permitted	Farms with young livestock lie close to the port.
Zodiacs and ship's boats	Permitted	—
Bicycles ashore	Permitted	Parked on the pier side, outside the terminal area
Operating an exhaust gas cleaning system in port	Under review	No scrubber condition is imposed as a requirement for berthing; washwater is raised through the EPI cooperation.

Two sheep grazing on a steep green pasture behind a post fence, with the white superstructure and bow of a cruise ship rising over the crest of the hill and cloud lying across the mountainside behind her — A ship alongside, seen from the farmland above the port. This is how close the livestock are, and why the horn is refused outright.

Medical, customs and transport

Medical assistance

The port books appointments at the Luster urgent care clinic and pre-books a taxi to be waiting on arrival; capacity is limited and cannot be found on the day. Referrals should reach the port as early as possible.

Nearest hospital: Lærdal, 95 km. Emergency numbers in Norway are 113 for ambulance, 112 for police and 110 for fire.

Luster legekontor, Øyagata 7A, 6868 Gaupne — out of hours call 116 117.

Customs and immigration

No customs or immigration facilities and no booths. Skjolden is a Schengen port and cruise calls are transit calls: officials do not board, and the port issues no shore passes.

The responsible customs authority is Bergen Regiontollsted; the nearest police station and immigration office is in Sogndal (approx. 55 km). Anything outside an ordinary transit call goes to the agent well before arrival.

Transport and distances

Quay to Bryggjehuset: 900 m
Quay to the village centre: 1,200 m
Gangway to the coaches: 70–100 m
Sogndal Haukåsen (SOG): 70 km
Hospital, Lærdal: 95 km
Taxi: +47 57 68 16 20

Must be pre-booked. Limited local capacity. No public transport at the quay. Accessibility, gate procedure and operator access are on Access & security; what these distances reach is on the destination page.

Routing

Who to write to

Two tracks reach the port for the same call, years apart, handled by different people. A berth request sent to the excursion inbox waits, and the reverse.

Mailboxes, and what belongs in each.
Mailbox	What it is for
ships@skjoldenport.com	Berth requests, call bookings, amendments and cancellations.
shorex@skjoldenport.com	Shore excursion programmes, capacity, numbers and tour lists.
post@skjoldenport.com	Everything else, and anything you are unsure where to send.

Viggo Sundvold — Port Director, PFSO and PSO: The port itself: security, infrastructure, tariff and everything ISPS. viggo@skjoldenport.com · +47 458 98 229
Christian Hellumsand — Shorex Manager & Dispatch: The shore programme and the transport that delivers it — coaches, guides, dispatch on the pier. christian@skjoldenport.com · +47 949 89 908
Halvard Johan Bolstad — Booking Manager and Assistant PFSO: Call bookings and berth requests, and port security alongside the Port Director. halvard@skjoldenport.com

Excursions are operated by Skjolden Explore, the port's own guide and coach company. Capacity and deadlines: Shore excursions, Fleet.

Documents and photographs

Agents archive and forward documents rather than links, which is why the items opposite are in preparation. One is finished: the one-page fact sheet.

Every photograph here was taken by the port itself and published as web renditions; press-resolution files on request to post@skjoldenport.com.

Nautical questions, answered

Can our vessel pass under the overhead power line on the approach?

The charted clearance at the crossing is 45 m — see the overhead line section above. The port issues no passage instructions; that is the pilot's call.

What vessel particulars does the port need to confirm a call?

The list is in the vessel particulars table above, with what each field settles. Send them as text, not as a pasted image. The port answers with the confirmed position, the time window, and whether another vessel is scheduled that day.

All frequently asked questions →