eFoil on the Oslofjord: Flying Above the Fjord at Malmøya

An eFoil is an electric hydrofoil surfboard that lifts the rider 30–60 cm above the water at speeds up to 40 km/h. The Oslofjord operator runs sessions from Malmøya, ten minutes from central Oslo by car. Lessons cost roughly NOK 2,500 for 90 minutes including instructor, board, and wetsuit. No prior surf experience required. Season runs May to October.

The Oslofjord is well suited to it: sheltered water, predictable wind, almost no swell inside the inner basin. Once you have stood up on the board for the first time and the foil has pulled the hull clear of the surface, the closest comparison is flying.

What an eFoil actually is

The name is short for electric hydrofoil. Take a surfboard, attach a mast underneath with a hydrofoil wing at the bottom and a silent electric motor, and add a handheld wireless remote that controls the speed. As the board accelerates, the wing generates lift. At around 15–20 km/h the board rises out of the water entirely and you are flying, balanced on the foil, 30 to 60 centimetres above the surface. Top speed is around 45 km/h, though most people cruise between 20 and 30. The battery lasts roughly 90 minutes on a charge.

No waves needed. No wind needed. No boat to tow you. The motor does the work and the fjord provides the one thing eFoils love most: flat, sheltered water with minimal current. Traditional foil sports need swell or wind. An eFoil needs a calm surface and some nerve. The Oslofjord on a still morning is as close to a perfect eFoil venue as exists in Northern Europe.

It is also completely silent. This matters more than you expect. You are moving at speed across the water and the only sound is a faint hum from the submerged motor and the whisper of the foil cutting through beneath you. No exhaust, no spray, no roar. Just flight.

Malmøya: the spot

The main eFoil operator on the Oslofjord is Oslo Efoil, and they run out of Malmøya, one of the inner Oslofjord islands connected to the mainland by a short bridge. The location is ten to fifteen minutes from central Oslo by car or public transport. It does not feel like it. The launch beach faces south across open fjord water with a view of the outer islands and, on clear days, the blue edge of Nesodden across the water. Behind you is a private garden area with a waterfront cabin and an outdoor jacuzzi overlooking the sea.

The jacuzzi is an interesting tactical move. You finish a session, your arms are tired, the wetsuit is half-peeled off, and someone hands you a towel and gestures towards a hot tub with a fjord view. It is very effective.

There is something else about Malmøya that most visitors won’t know. The island sits on a geological oddity: the shoreline drops off steeply on the southern side, meaning deep, clean water starts just a few metres from the beach. This is why the water there stays clearer than in the shallower bays around Gressholmen or Langøyene. It also means the foil has depth immediately, which is exactly what you want when you are learning and falling off every ninety seconds.

The learning curve

This is where you expect the catch. A board that flies above the water at speed sounds like something that would take weeks to learn, not a single afternoon. It does not. The sessions at Oslo Efoil run two hours and start with a safety briefing and land-based instruction before you get on the water. A qualified instructor stays with you the entire time. Most people manage to get the board out of the water and onto the foil within 20 to 30 minutes. “Getting up” is the phrase, and the moment it happens is unmistakable: the drag vanishes, the board lifts, the noise disappears, and you are suddenly moving in a way that doesn’t feel like any other water sport.

You will fall. Repeatedly. The water is 15–20°C in season and they provide a full wetsuit, buoyancy vest, and helmet, so the falls are warm enough and soft enough that they stop being annoying and start being funny after the third one. The remote has a dead-man switch: release it and the motor cuts out instantly, so the board stops right there. No runaway surfboard scenario. The safety design is well thought through, which matters when you are letting beginners ride an electric board at 30 km/h.

No prior experience needed. No balance training, no surfing background, no fitness requirement beyond being able to swim and stand on a board. I watched a woman in her sixties get up on her fourth attempt and cruise a clean line across the bay while her husband filmed from the beach, shaking his head.

What it costs

A two-hour session at Oslo Efoil runs approximately NOK 1,500 to 2,500, depending on group size and whether you book a private or shared session. That includes all equipment (board, wetsuit, vest, helmet), expert instruction for the full two hours, and use of the beach area and facilities before and after. They also offer e-scootfoiling, SUP rental, and kayak rental if someone in your group wants a calmer option.

Group and event bookings are available for larger parties. The beach and garden area can host private gatherings, which makes it work well as a half-day outing if you combine the eFoil session with grilling and the jacuzzi afterwards. At least two bachelor parties have done exactly this, with mixed results on the eFoil and excellent results on the BBQ.

eFoil versus other water sports on the fjord

Oslo has become surprisingly good for water sports. You can kayak the harbour and island circuit, swim from the islands, SUP around Aker Brygge, or take a private boat tour through the archipelago. The eFoil sits in its own category. Kayaking is meditative and slow. Swimming is immersive. A boat tour covers distance and history. The eFoil is pure adrenaline layered on top of total silence, which is a combination that shouldn’t work but does.

If you are planning a summer trip to the Oslofjord and want to pack in activities, the eFoil works well as a morning session before an afternoon or evening on the water by boat. The conditions are actually best in the morning anyway, before the thermal winds build after noon. Book your eFoil for 9am, be back on dry land by 11, and head out for a sunset cruise that evening. Two completely different ways to experience the same fjord in one day.

Best conditions

Calm mornings. That is the short answer. The Oslofjord funnels southwesterly wind up its length and on summer afternoons that wind builds enough to create chop, which makes foiling harder and less pleasant. Before 11am the inner fjord is often glassy, especially in the sheltered water south of Malmøya. The instructors at Oslo Efoil will tell you the same thing. Their early sessions get the flattest water.

Mid-June through August is the core season. Late May works if the weather cooperates. September is possible but the water temperature drops and the wetsuit becomes less optional and more essential. We see the same seasonal pattern from the boat. June has the longest light, July has the warmest water, August has the most reliable weather. For eFoiling specifically, June is probably the sweet spot: long calm mornings, warm enough water, and the fjord hasn’t yet filled up with weekend boat traffic.

The Norwegian angle

Norwegians have a complicated relationship with new technology on the water. This is a country where rowing and sailing are cultural identity, where the word sjøvett (sea sense) gets taught in schools, and where a significant portion of the population owns or has access to a boat. Electric propulsion is gaining ground fast here, partly because Norwegians adopted electric cars faster than anyone and the same instinct carries over to the water. But there is still something faintly absurd about hovering above the fjord on a battery-powered surfboard in the same waters where Viking longships once rowed out towards England. The contrast is part of the fun.

The boards themselves are not cheap, but Norwegian tax incentives on electric watercraft are making them more accessible than you might expect, and the used market is growing. Oslo Efoil is the place to try one before you decide.

Practical details

Book at least a few days ahead in peak summer. Oslo Efoil runs a small operation and sessions fill up, especially weekend mornings. Weekday mornings are quieter on the water and easier to book. Bring a swimsuit and a towel. Everything else is provided. If you wear glasses, ask about a strap. You will fall in, and the fjord does not return spectacles.

Getting to Malmøya: by car it is a straightforward drive south from the city centre with parking near the island. By public transport, bus routes from the city centre get you within walking distance. Check Ruter for current routes. The island is connected by bridge, so unlike the other Oslofjord islands you do not need a ferry. For more on the islands and how to reach them, the island guide covers the full archipelago.

Common questions about the Oslofjord, including water temperature, safety, and what to expect on the water, are covered in our FAQ. And if you want to see the fjord from the water without the learning curve, our fjord tours run all summer.

One last thing. The first time you get up on the foil and the drag drops away and the board lifts and the surface of the Oslofjord is just sliding underneath you in silence, your brain will take about three seconds to accept that what is happening is physically real. Then you will start grinning. Everybody does. The instructors say they have never seen anyone not grin. I believe them.

Sunscreen. Water shoes if you have them. Book the morning slot.