By motorhome on a Norwegian farm – our visit to Åmli Gårdsmeieri

Text and photo: Helena Bergström

In scenic surroundings, in the southern part of Norway, lies Åmli gårdsmeieri. Here, Arno and Selma Landman run a living dairy farm with cows, chickens and goats – and a small farm shop filled with local products. We came here with our camper van for a Nortrip overnight stay and ended up in the middle of farm life, among tractors, animals and pleasant conversations.

Åmli farm dairy – a living farm in southern Norway

Åmli farm dairy is a living farm with a large number of cows, both young and dairy cows, as well as chickens and a few goats. The farm has a popular farm shop and it is also possible to stay overnight with a camper, via Nortrip.

The farm is located about 4 kilometers from the center of Åmli in southern Norway.

From the Netherlands to a dairy farm in Norway

The farm is run by Arno and Selma, who moved from the Netherlands to Norway almost 20 years ago to make a dream come true. After first working with dairy farming in Isfjorden for several years, they eventually had the opportunity to buy the Gjermundnes farm and develop it into a dairy.

We had a nice chat with the couple, who run their farm with great commitment. It's clear that they are passionate about both the animals and the local food industry.

Overnight stay with a camper in the middle of the farm

We had booked accommodation in advance, via North trip, and when we drove the camper into the yard, we were greeted by the owners who waved us in to our place to stay.

We had to park the camper in the middle of the yard. And we really mean it. in the middle of the yard. Outside the windows, cows and chickens were moving around, while tractors and four-wheelers were driving back and forth. Work was simply going on as usual.

For us, it was interesting to take part in everyday farm life, and we always had something interesting to watch, regardless of whether the cows were being picked up from the pasture or milked.

It wasn't a completely silent overnight stay, but on the other hand, it was very charming to wake up to the lowing of cows and the clucking of chickens.

The farm shop at Åmli farm dairy

What attracts visitors to Åmli farm dairy is primarily the nice farm shop. In fact, there was a strong current of visitors who would shop for dairy products, or enjoy an ice cream with the children.

The store mainly sells dairy products, such as yogurt, butter and ice cream, but also meat, eggs, red cabbage and honey. Most of the products come from the company's own dairy, while some, such as the honey, come from neighboring farms.

For our part, we bought eggs, ice cream and honey, and we enjoyed the ice cream for dessert that same evening. What an ice cream, absolutely fantastic!

Our first meeting with Vipps

When we first entered the self-service store, we were struck by the thought that we might not could shopping – it said you could pay with either cash (which we didn't have) or Vipps (which we didn't have either).

After some Googling, we realized that as a Swede, you can easily download and use Vipps – Norway's equivalent of Swish. The only requirement is that you have a Swedish bank ID. Installing Vipps on your phone only took a minute, and then you were free to shop.

We can also say that we were impressed by Vipps, which is both very flexible and can be used as a payment solution in several Nordic countries.

A different campervan overnight stay in Norway

Åmli farm dairy was not a stop filled with major sights or spectacular nature experiences. Instead, we got something else – a little insight into everyday life on a Norwegian farm, local flavors and pleasant encounters with both the hosts and other visitors. And it is precisely such experiences that are often the ones we remember best from our travels.

More Nortrip hosts to visit

We visited several Nortrip hosts during our trip around Norway. You can read more about them here:

• Vestre Sorken Holiday Farm – farm museum and reindeer
• Drågen Smokehouse in Bud – coastal environments and smoked salmon
• Dirdalstraen Farm Shop – locally produced products
• Ørnahaug Farm in Bryne – simple overnight stay near shops
• Naked Island in Grimstad – brewery with guided tours