The 35-kilometre (22 mi) long fjord runs north–south between many islands leading from the open ocean to the city of Bergen.

It passes through the municipalities of Fedje, Øygarden, Alver, and Askøy.

The main shipping routes from Bergen to Shetland ran through Hjeltefjorden.

[1] Hjeltefjorden is a major shipping route into the city of Bergen, and it runs from the island of Fedje in the north to Byfjorden in the south.

Hjeltefjorden was the site of the closing stages of the Battle of Alvøen in 1808.