Hirtshals to Larvik ferry prices
The advertised fares, what affects them, and the costs that come on top once you have booked.
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The Hirtshals to Larvik ferry costs from €53 per person one way with a car, and from €107 per person for a motorhome, as advertised by Color Line in August 2026. Color Club members pay €€51 and €102. Booking a return rather than two singles takes 10 percent off the return leg.
These are the lowest advertised fares, available on the cheapest dates of the year. The fare you are quoted depends on the date, the departure time, your vehicle and the number of passengers.
The advertised fares
| Fare | Standard | Color Club | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car crossing | from €53 pp | from €51 pp | Car up to 5.00 m long, 1.95 m high, up to 4 people |
| Motorhome package | from €107 pp | from €102 pp | Motorhome up to 5.00 m long, 2.55 m high, up to 2 people |
| Return booking | 10% off the return leg | 10% off the return leg | Booked as a round trip, not two singles |
Example fares
Calculated from the lowest advertised fares. They are examples, not quotes.
| Party | One way | Return, after the 10% discount |
|---|---|---|
| One person, car | €53 | approx. €101 |
| Two adults, car | €106 | approx. €201 |
| Two adults and two children, car | from €212 | approx. €402 |
| Two adults, motorhome | €214 | approx. €407 |
| Motorcycle, one rider | Quoted separately, the cheapest vehicle class |
Fares in late July are considerably higher than these figures. In November they are close to them.
What affects the fare
1. The date, by a wide margin
The date matters more than anything else. A Tuesday in early November and a Saturday in late July are not the same product at a different price. School holidays in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway all land on this route, and the fare responds to all four.
The most expensive period is roughly mid July to mid August, when school holidays in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway overlap. Fares are lowest in October, November, January and February, when the route still sails daily but carries far fewer passengers.
2. The time of day
On a day with two or three departures, the midday sailing is usually the most expensive. An early morning or late evening crossing is often the cheapest option on an otherwise expensive date. Whether that suits you depends on how far you have to drive to Hirtshals, which getting to Hirtshals covers.
3. Your vehicle, and specifically its height
The 1.95 m limit in the standard car fare is not a formality. A roof box, roof-mounted bikes or a tall van puts you in a different fare class, and the gap between the car fare and the motorhome fare is roughly double. This affects more travellers on this route than anything else, which is why taking a vehicle covers it in detail.
4. How far ahead you book
This matters less than the date, the departure time or your vehicle. In high summer, booking early is mainly about availability: vehicle spaces on popular sailings do sell out. Outside the peak season, choosing a different day of the week usually makes more difference than booking further ahead.
How to pay less for the crossing
Works well if
- Travelling midweek and outside the school holidays of four countries
- Booking the outbound and return together, for the 10 percent return discount
- Taking the least convenient sailing on a busy date
- Measuring your loaded vehicle before booking, so the fare class is right at check-in
- Joining Color Club if you expect to sail this route more than once
- Travelling with a full car, since the vehicle fare is shared across everyone in it
Look elsewhere if
- Comparing booking channels, since Color Line is the only operator on this route
- Booking a year ahead outside peak season, which buys little
- Assuming a cabin is available instead of a hotel, since SuperSpeed 2 has no cabins
- Treating the advertised €53 as a budget figure for two people with a car
What is not included
Worth knowing before the total surprises you at checkout.
| Extra | Roughly what it adds | Worth it when |
|---|---|---|
| Voyager Class seat | Per person supplement | Summer sailings, or travelling with children |
| Business Class seat | Higher supplement, includes Wi-Fi | You want to work, or it is a full sailing |
| Meals | Restaurant, cafe and bar prices | Three restaurants and a bar on board, none included in the fare |
| Wi-Fi | Chargeable outside Business Class | You need to work rather than browse |
| Pets | Booked as an add-on | Always, if the dog is coming |
There is an ATM on board handling euro, Danish kroner and Norwegian kroner, which matters on a route between two countries where neither currency is the euro.
Without a car, and with a bicycle
Foot passengers pay less, because the vehicle is the expensive part. A bicycle is carried for a small supplement on top of the foot passenger fare, and a motorcycle sits between a bicycle and a car.
The catch is not the ticket, it is the geography. Hirtshals is a port built around vehicles: reaching it without a car means a train to Hjørring and then the local Hirtshalsbanen line to the port. Larvik on the Norwegian side is far better connected, with rail and bus up the coast towards Oslo. A car-free trip on this route is easier northbound than southbound, and worth planning in that direction.
Changing or cancelling
Fare flexibility is set by Color Line and varies by ticket type, so check the conditions attached to the specific fare before you book rather than after. The pattern on this route is the same as most ferry operators: the cheapest fares are the most restrictive, and a flexible ticket costs more up front but can be moved.
Two things worth knowing regardless of ticket type:
- Missing check-in is not a cancellation. Check-in closes 15 min before departure, and after that you are dealing with rebooking terms, not a refund.
- A no-show on the outbound can affect the return on a round-trip booking. If your plans change, tell the operator rather than simply not turning up.
The cost after the ferry
Two Norwegian costs regularly surprise people, and both are avoidable in part.
Fuel is significantly more expensive in Norway than in Denmark. Filling up in Hirtshals before you board is the easiest saving on the whole trip, and doing the reverse on the way back is worth the same again.
Norwegian road tolls are automatic and invisible. There are no barriers; cameras read your plate and the bill follows you home one to three months later, with a lookup fee if you have not registered. Ordering an AutoPASS visitor tag two to three weeks before you travel is the cheapest route. The detail is on onward from Larvik.
Comparing this against other routes
If price is the deciding factor, do not compare fares, compare the total cost of the day. A cheaper crossing to a port 4 hrs further from your destination is not cheaper once you add the fuel and the driving. The full arithmetic is in the Norway route comparison.
See what your dates cost
Fares on this route swing more with the date than with anything else. Put two or three candidate dates side by side and the pattern shows itself immediately.
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Questions people ask
How much is the Hirtshals to Larvik ferry?
Color Line advertises the car crossing from €53 per person one way, or €51 for Color Club members. The motorhome package starts at €107 per person, €102 for members. These are the lowest fares, available on the cheapest dates.
What does it cost for a family of four with a car?
At the lowest advertised fare, four people with a car is from €212 one way, or about €402 return after the 10 percent return discount. On a peak summer date the total is substantially higher.
Is there a discount for booking a return?
Yes. Color Line applies a 10 percent discount to the return leg when you book a round trip rather than two separate singles. If your return date is known, booking both at once is worth doing.
When is the crossing cheapest?
Midweek, outside the school holidays of Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway, and on the first or last departure of the day. Fares from October to April are well below those in July.
Is Color Club membership worth joining?
Membership is free and takes about €2 per person off each crossing on this route, so a family of four travelling both ways saves roughly €16. Choosing a cheaper date saves considerably more.
Does the price include a seat?
No. A standard ticket covers passage, not a specific seat. Voyager Class and Business Class are reserved lounges booked as an extra. On a full summer sailing they are worth considering, since standard seating is not allocated.
Do children pay full price?
Children travel at a reduced rate and infants normally travel free. The exact age bands are set by Color Line at booking. Because the fare is charged per person rather than per vehicle, the number of passengers has a large effect on the total.