The best time of day to hike Preikestolen
The crowd curve
It is driven by two things: the bus timetable and how long people take to get out of bed. Early morning is locals, photographers and a few determined visitors. From about ten the first coaches and the morning buses have delivered their loads and the stone staircases fill; by midday the boulder sections move at the pace of the slowest person in the line, and the plateau has a queue of people waiting to stand at the edge for a photograph. It thins from around three and by five in the afternoon in high summer you can have long stretches to yourself. Full treatment on the crowds page.
The early start
Leave Stavanger before seven, be walking by eight, and you will do the hardest climbing in the cool, get a space in the main lot, and meet the crowd on your way down rather than on your way up. This is what I do and what I recommend without hesitation. If you want first light on the plateau you are into a different plan and a headlamp for the ascent: the sunrise hike.
The late start, and why it works in June
Rogaland is well south of the Arctic Circle, so there is no midnight sun here, whatever the brochures imply about Norway in general. What there is, in late June, is an evening that refuses to end: people set off at eight in the evening and come down near midnight in light that is still usable. The trail is nearly empty, the fjord goes the colour of old metal, and the car park has space. It is my favourite way to do it.
Two conditions. You need to be honest about your pace, because four to five hours from eight in the evening takes you to the edge of the light even in the best week of the year. And you need a headlamp in the pack regardless, because that margin evaporates if anybody in the group is slower than expected. See how long it takes.
What time of day does not fix
Cloud. The plateau sits high enough to be inside the weather, and a clear morning in Stavanger is not a promise of anything at 604 metres. Starting early gives you the best statistical shot at settled conditions, and no more than that: weather and rain.
If you are on somebody else's schedule
The seasonal bus fixes your start and, more importantly, your return; from around 20 June to around 13 September there are enough departures to choose an early one. A guided day has a departure time you do not set, which is the trade for not having to think: the terminal departure is the earliest-finishing of them at six hours: the guided hike. With hotel pickup you gain the lie-in and lose an hour to the collection round: the pickup version.
In July, an eight in the morning start and a four in the afternoon start are both quiet. The four o'clock start is the one nobody thinks of, and on a long evening it gives you the plateau with a handful of people on it.
Booking a departure
Availability for the terminal departure is below; every format and its hours are on the bookings page.
A reminder about what that widget is. It books the ride out of Stavanger and, on most of these, a guide. It does not book Preikestolen. Nobody sells a ticket to the trail: it is free, open and unguided, and you can walk up it without paying anyone a thing.
Frequently asked questions
What time should you start the Preikestolen hike?
Before eight in the morning to miss the crowd, or late in the evening in June when the light holds: the crowds page.
Is there midnight sun at Preikestolen?
No. Rogaland is well south of the Arctic Circle. Late June evenings stay light very late, which is not the same thing.
Can you hike it in the evening?
In late June, yes. People start around eight in the evening and come down near midnight in usable light. Carry a headlamp anyway.
When is the plateau least busy?
Early morning and late afternoon or evening. Roughly ten to three is the crush: best time to visit.