Luggage, accessibility and children on the train
Find out what you can bring on board the train, info about traveling with children, where to go for lost property, and how to ask for assistance at the station.
Luggage and pets on the train
You may bring up to three pieces of luggage (suitcases, bags and backpacks) with a maximum total, combined weight of 30 kilograms. You are responsible for your own luggage during your journey and you must be able to carry it on board and place it in a suitable location – either by your seat or in one of the luggage racks in the carriage.
It is not possible to purchase a separate seat to accommodate extra luggage.
You may also bring aquarium fish provided they are securely and responsibly carried in containers. Other types of animals are not welcome on board our trains; these include insects, spiders, reptiles and amphibians.
Dogs and other pets may not be brought into sleeping compartments, Plus carriages, our onboard Kafé, as well as family-friendly or animal-free zones. Guide and other service dogs are exempt from this rule and are permitted in sleeping and family-friendly carriages, in connection with pre-booked wheelchair spaces.
Space on board
On the Bergen Line there is a limited number of spaces available for pets on each train departure. Spaces for pets are located in designated, marked areas in separate marked areas, so keep in mind that there may be several pets in the same area at any given time.
When you buy a ticket, you can reserve a seat/buy a ticket for one pet per traveler. On local trains and regional trains in carriages without seat reservation, you can bring two small pets per traveler. It is the train staff who determine whether there is room for more pets on board. Look for the sign on the door for animal-friendly carriages.
Pets cannot sit in the seat, but must lie on the floor. This applies to both large and small pets and on trains with and without seat reservation. On longer journeys, we recommend that you bring a non-slip blanket for your animal to sit or lie on, as the floor on board can be slippery.
Tickets for pets
Pets with a shoulder height that exceeds 40 centimeters pay 50 per cent of the standard adult ticket. You can also buy a season ticket with a student discount for your pet. On the Bergen Line, you are allocated an extra seat so that the animal can be on the floor by the window, while you sit in the aisle seat.
Pets whose shoulder height is less than 40 cm accompany you free of charge. The pet must be on the floor by your feet and you will not be given an extra seat. If you travel with the Bergen Line and want an extra seat for more floor space, you can buy a pet ticket even if the animal has a shoulder height of less than 40 cm.
Guide dogs and service dogs
Guide dogs for the blind and visually impaired which have been registered with the authorities, travel free of charge when working. This presupposes that the dog is equipped with a harness and handle for the visually impaired individual. The service dog must be wearing its vest to ensure that the conductor is able to see that the dog is working.
If a guide dog is taken on trains that are subject to reservation, a (free) ticket must be booked for the dog in advance via our customer service team. In the case of trains that are not subject to reservation, there is no need to book a ticket for the dog in advance.
Dogs from Norske Redningshunder
Search and rescue dogs trained by Norske Redningshunder that are travelling to training sessions or are in service, travel free of charge provided they display their triangular badge. Additionally, dog handlers must present valid Norske Redningshunder identification to conductors.
Travelling with animals to/from Sweden
Please note that if you are travelling to or from Sweden with animals in your care, it is important that you thoroughly familiarize yourself with customs rules and regulations ahead of your journey so that your pet will not be quarantined.
Dogs must have a microchip implant with an unique ID-number, a valid passport and documentation showing that the dog has received preventative treatment against the cyclophyllid tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis, mainly found in foxes. Such ‘fox tapeworm’ treatment must have been administered by a veterinarian, no later than 24 hours prior to crossing the border into Norway. The veterinarian must certify the treatment in the dog’s passport.
One stroller is allowed per adult traveller — free of charge. All trains have space for strollers and you may carry on one folded-up pram/stroller as hand luggage. Remember to reserve space in advance for journeys on the Bergen Line.
The number of stroller spaces that are available depends on the number of passengers, wheelchairs, and strollers that are on board, as we must ensure good accessibility on our trains. Train personnel retain ultimate authority to decide if there is space on board for more strollers.
Designated stroller spaces on the Bergen Line
To make a reservation for your stroller, choose «Stroller» as an additional option when you book your journey. This service is free of charge. You are then guaranteed space for your stroller and will be seated next to it, provided you have reserved a seat. Only one adult will have priority to sit alongside a stroller; other travellers will be seated nearby.
It is not necessary to book a seat in addition to a stroller space for a child who will remain in its stroller during the journey. If the child needs his or her own seat, remember to add the child as a passenger when you book your journey.
Skis and snowboards must be placed in designated areas; however, you remain personally responsible for your equipment throughout the journey. Skis must be securely contained and stored.
Carrier sleds, steered toboggans, and kicksleds are bulky items that are difficult to stow on onboard luggage shelves. Accordingly, you must book space for such items in advance, following the same routine as for bicycles. You must purchase a bicycle ticket and are responsible for loading and unloading said sports equipment.
Personal transporter, such as Segways, are only permitted on board the Bergen Line. You must reserve a bicycle space, and then the two-wheeled vehicle will have its own space in a suitable cargo compartment for bicycles. Get in touch with Customer Service well before departure to check if there is space for your personal transporter on that specific train departure.
You can bring small unicycles and hoverboards, electric skateboards and electric scooters as long as they’re not in the way for the conductor or other passengers. Such small vehicles should not be placed on the luggage/hat shelf. They must also be placed or packaged so that oil and dirt from wheels do not damage seats, furnishings on trains or other travellers’ clothing or luggage.
The conductor has final say as to whether or not you can bring the vehicle on board.
Small electrically-powered vehicles must be visibly labelled with the manufacturer's name, type designation and fabrication number.
If you are travelling long distances on one of our regional trains, you may book space for your double bass in a freight room, space permitting. Please contact Customer Service well ahead of your departure date to book space for your double bass.
On short-haul regional and local trains, you may bring on board your double bass if space permits and safety considerations are met.
The charge for bringing a double bass is the same as the bicycle ticket for that journey.
The following are examples of items that are forbidden to bring on board our trains:
- Flammable and explosive substances and other items of luggage that pose an obvious safety risk. For example: mopeds/motor bikes and gasoline-powered vehicles and toys. Also, prohibited are weapons carried on the body, for example in a sling strap or holster.
- Items that are over-sized and do not fit easily on our luggage shelves or overhead racks, such as surf boards, large bicycle travel bags, kayaks, or canoes.
- Animal cages that are too large to fit in the space in front of your feet
- Electric-powered mopeds and scooters and regular scooters
- Christiania bikes, tandem bikes, cargo bikes, Fatbikes and other types of large bikes (read more about bicycles)
We do not offer freight transport or parcel transport. This includes the transport of, for example, cars, motorcycles, furniture, TVs or packages.
Train accessibility
The Bergen Line
Local and regional trains
On train routes without seat reservation, you do not reserve a wheelchair space in advance. You buy the ticket you want, without adding a wheelchair as an additional option.
If you want to let us know that you are travelling, you can contact the customer service centre in advance, who will inform the staff onboard that you will be travelling.
Aids such as guide/service dogs, walkers or wheelchairs are welcome, and you can bring them on board our trains at no extra charge, provided that the wheelchair does not exceed the specified size limitations for the train journey. You can book a place for the guide/service dog at the customer service centre.
Onboard spaces for wheelchairs meet international standards of 70 x 120 cm. Wheelchair weight may not exceed 250-350 kilos, including its occupant. Provided these requirements are met, we will be able to secure your wheelchair during transport and as a wheelchair user you will have access to disabled toilet facilities, ramps, and lifts wherever they are available.
Wheelchair lift capacity varies among our train types. If the combined weight of the traveller and wheelchair exceed these limitations, the lift will be inoperable. Aids such as tracks have an upper limit of 250 kilograms; for ramps located at stations that limit is 300 kg. Further, passengers’ motorised wheelchairs must be type-approved by the Norwegian national reimbursement program for assistive devices.
Wheelchair users who are unable to satisfy the requirements set forth above cannot expect space on board Vy's trains and Vy is unable to offer such travellers alternative special transportation services.
It is unfortunately not possible to charge electric wheelchairs on the train.
Exceptions regarding The Bergen Line
Please note that it is not possible to use ramps (tracks) at certain low platforms. This applies to: Vikersund, Flå, Nesbyen, Ål, Ustaoset, Haugastøl and Finse.
The adaptation requirement for wheelchairs of 70 cm was established in 2011. The trains running on The Bergen Line were in operation before this date and the requirement does not apply to these trains. Norske tog AS is in the process of purchasing new trains, and Vy is assisting them in the work so that these trains are equipped with good solutions for our different customer groups.
You will find lifts and tie-down strapping to secure wheelchairs on board our trains. On the regional and long-distance train there are also handicap-accessible bathrooms. Older trains have access ramps and tracks which will entail more assistance at boarding and descending from trains.
Our newer trains and most of Vy's older trains have designated priority seating. These seats are primarily for travelers with reduced mobility. Passengers for whom priority seating is important include the physically impaired, elderly, growth impaired individuals, children, pregnant women, adults traveling with small children, and the visually impaired. We ask our riders to be aware of fellow passengers who have a special need to be seated, and to give the seat they may be occupying to that person. This request to relinquish seats only applies in trains or compartments without seat reservations.
All rail replacement buses must have at least one wheelchair space, so this means that you are guaranteed space if you are the first passenger travelling in a wheelchair. In some rare cases, there is no wheelchair lift. If so, the wheelchair must be placed in the coach luggage hold.
If the wheelchair space is already in use by someone else, your wheelchair must be folded and placed in the coach luggage hold. We will book a maxi taxi with a wheelchair ramp if you cannot get out or be lifted out of the wheelchair.
The buses can only transport wheelchairs that are within the dimensions 70 x 120 cm.
For travel with for example Ruter og Skyss, it is their conditions of carriage that apply.
Publicly certified guide dogs for the blind or visually impaired travel free of charge when in service. Guide dogs on duty are required to be equipped with a harness and handle for the visually impaired. Guide dogs in training (accompanied by its handler) will travel free of charge when equipped with harness and handle.
Service dogs are required to wear their harness/vest so that a conductor on board can readily establish that the dog is in service.
Guide dogs and service dogs are allowed in carriages marked ‘Dyr tillatt’ (Animals allowed), in addition to Sleeper, Plus and the café carriages.
Who can get a senior citizen discount?
How to buy a senior citizen ticken at vy.no
- In the journey planner, enter where you want to travel from and to, select a date and time and optionally add a return journey.
- In the ‘Traveler’ field, change from Adult to Senior citizen.
- Press Search and select the desired departure and ticket type. The discount is automatically included in the price calculation.
How to buy a senior citizen ticket in the Vy app
- Go to Ticket in the app, press Buy ticket and choose between Single and Season ticket.
- Enter where you want to travel from and to, and in the ‘Traveler’ field, change from Adult to Senior citizen.
- Continue through the purchasing process, and the discount is automatically included in the price calculation.
Travelling with children on the train
One stroller is allowed per adult traveller — free of charge. All trains have space for strollers and you may carry on one folded-up pram/stroller as hand luggage. Remember to reserve space in advance for journeys on the Bergen Line.
The number of stroller spaces that are available depends on the number of passengers, wheelchairs, and strollers that are on board, as we must ensure good accessibility on our trains. Train personnel retain ultimate authority to decide if there is space on board for more strollers.
Designated stroller spaces on the Bergen Line
To make a reservation for your stroller, choose «Stroller» as an additional option when you book your journey. This service is free of charge. You are then guaranteed space for your stroller and will be seated next to it, provided you have reserved a seat. Only one adult will have priority to sit alongside a stroller; other travellers will be seated nearby.
It is not necessary to book a seat in addition to a stroller space for a child who will remain in its stroller during the journey. If the child needs his or her own seat, remember to add the child as a passenger when you book your journey.
Family-friendly carriages (Family) are available on the Oslo–Bergen route.
Please state the number of adults and children when booking your ticket for these routes – you will be asked at a later stage in the journey planner if you want to reserve seats in the family-friendly carriage. If you state that you will have a stroller with you, you will automatically be allocated a seat in the family-friendly carriage.
We do not provide travel assistance to children travelling on their own. Onboard train personnel, unfortunately, are not able to care for children travelling alone. Carefully assess whether the child you are responsible for is sufficiently experienced and mature to travel solo. Train staff has no legal obligation to provide extra care for your child during the journey.
We have no minimum age limit governing children travelling without an accompanying adult. Thus, it is up to parents or guardians to decide whether the child is able to travel alone, keeping in mind that unforeseen incidents may occur.
Please make sure that the child can show a valid ticket for the entire journey.
Advice ahead of a child’s solo travel
- Prepare the child for the experience of travelling alone.
- Agree on what your child should do if something unexpected occurs
- Make sure your child’s mobile phone battery is fully charged and that the phone has all necessary contact phone numbers.
- Remain available to your child during the journey and when the train arrives at its destination.
- Consider travelling with your child the first few times so that both children and adults feel confident.
If the stroller does not fit inside the bus, you can fold it and place it in the coach luggage hold.
In the event of disruptions, we also cooperate with other public transport companies, and refer to their ordinary offers on certain train routes. Then the rules for this company apply.
Yes, you may do so in our café, if there’s one on board your train.
Baby-changing tables are available on our long-distance regional lines, such as Oslo–Bergen. Some departures on the Østfold line (including all Flirt-type trains) have baby-changing tables. Local trains do not have baby-changing tables, except those with Flirt-type trains.