nomad23

Hello! I have decided that for my 25th birthday (late May 2016) I want to treat myself to a trip! I decided on Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark as the places I would love to visit. The 4 cities I am going to stay in are: Bergen, Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki. I have done the math as accurately as I can this far in advance but would like some input as to what I will actually need to pay for and what I won't.

Broken down I have:

Transportation: $1450-1600 (includes airfare, city bus passes, ferries and train)

Food: $750-1100 (50/day to 70/day)

Accommodations: $400-1000 (this varies widely based on if I have a friend come with me, or if I am going alone, haven't decided yet)

Total: $2570-3700

What I am wondering is if these numbers sound correct to other people? Do they seem too low/too high? Is a bus pass necessary for Bergen, Oslo and Helsinki? Or can I just walk everywhere? Is 15 days enough time for 4 cities, or should I cut one out? Which one, in your opinion?

Thanks in advance for any input!

colduphere

I think that is five cities.

kja

"Is 15 days enough time for 4 [or 5] cities, or should I cut one out?"

It really depends on what you want to see and experience, but I must admit that I think you are pushing it to try to see all of these places in that time frame. Once you consider time to get from one place to another, you really have little time to actually see these wonderful locations.

I recommend that you identify the things you most want to see in each location, note their opening/closing times, and mark them on a calendar. Then pencil in your transportation, add some time on either side (for getting to/from the train/bus station or whatever, checking in/out, packing/unpacking, getting oriented, etc.). Then see how things fit together.

Happy Birthday!

nomad23

You are correct! Sorry about that!

nomad23

Thanks for your input kja! I have it all written out with days for travel and everything, but seeing as I have never been to Northern Europe, I am not sure how much time each city will need.

What I have so far is:

1 day for getting to Bergen from USA (it would be an overnight flight with a stop in Iceland)
2 days in Bergen
1 day for train ride to Oslo (heard the train ride is beautiful, so I do not count this as a lost day)
2 days in Oslo
Overnight ferry to Copenhagen (also heard the beginning of this ride has great scenery)
2 days in Copenhagen
1/2-1 day for flying to Stockholm
3 days in Stockholm
1 day and overnight for ferry to Helsinki
2 days in Helsinki
1 day to fly home

While this is technically 16 days, it would still work. Is that enough time in each city? Would I be missing out on great things if I did not go to Helsinki?

kja

"I am not sure how much time each city will need."

Always hard to tell, and always a personal choice -- that's why I recommended sitting down with guidebooks, marking opening hours, etc.

FWIW, I thought Stockholm merited at least 5 days (which would include a day trip to Uppsala + half-day boat through the archipelago). I thought Copenhagen merited at least 4 days (including a day trip to Roskilde). I thought 2 days sufficient for my interests in Helsinki. I haven't been to Norway yet.

BUT it all depends on what YOU want to see and experience, whether things are open when you will be there, etc.

maxima

There is a high speed train between Copenhagen and Stockholm. It will take you from the center of one city to the other. Flying between cities will require that you travel from city to airport and then have to a lot time for security and pre-flight boarding etc.

you should look at some guide books, especially Let's Go and the Rough Guide, as they are better for travelers in your age range. You need to decide what you want to see/do in each place in order to determine whether you should drop a city.

isabel

I think your timing looks adequate - actually very nicely planned out.

But your expense estimates I think are quite off. What did you find for airfare to/from the US? I see you aren't planning this for next year so it's too early to buy flights, but you can see what they are now. I flew IcelandAir from Boston to Bergen this past June and it was $446 one way. I just looked on IcelandAir's site and round trip Boston to Bergen/Helsinki to Boston for next May is almost $1000. Hard to predict, but unlikely to go <i>down</i> the next year. And Boston is usually the cheapest US city to fly (IcelandAir) form. That leaves you only $600 for two overnight ferries, a flight, and a train. FYI the NIN train roundtrip from Bergen last summer was $181, I think continuing on to Oslo rather than returning to Bergen is even more. If you are going Bergen to Oslo you should definitely do the Norway in a Nutshell 'side trip' (the train/bus/boat to the fjords). Also, things like the bus from the airport to city centers, etc. can add up.

Your food budget will do, but know that it will mean sandwiches and such, not sit down meals.

But it's your hotel budget that I think is way off. Go to booking.com and check out prices. Maybe you are thinking of staying in hostels, that might help. But I stayed at a really nice, but one of the least expensive B&Bs I could find in Bergen and it was $122 a night. I was in Copenhagen and Stockholm 8 years ago and was horrified how expensive it was, and I'm sure it's worse now.

Scandinavia is beautiful and very worth visiting, but it's about the most expensive place in Europe that you can go. I travel mostly to other places in Europe and the daily expenses are often half what I've needed to spend on my two trips to Scandinavia.

colduphere

You might consider dropping Helsinki and staying a night or two in Reykjavik. It's a bit expensive to get into the city from the airport but once there you will find a lot of people your age. Pretty neat place with an active music scene. The stopover is free as of now on Icelandair.

You can stay in nice hostels for about $40-70 a night in Scandinavia. They are very civilized:

https://m.hostelworld.com/hostels/Bergen/Norway

colduphere

You may not be a backpacker but some of this info might be helpful. Keep scrolling down to get to Scandinavian cities:

http://www.priceoftravel.com/1979/eu...kpacker-index/

nytraveler

I think you are trying to stuff too many cities into too few days (agree that Stockholm needs 5 days/6 nights and Copenhagen 4 days/5 nights). I wasn't that enthused at Helsinki and would drop it for this trip.

But I am VERYT concerned about your budget. Scandinavia is VERY expensive - even if you survive on picnics/no alcohol and staying in dorm rooms in hostels. I would look NOW at costs for hostels to see what they are - and assume inflation for when you will be going.

Suggest you look at Let's Go student guides and other super budget/backpacker sights for hints and tips. We don;t travel at this level so can;t help with specifics - but know that costs for Scandinavia are quite a bit higher than almost all of europe except Swtiz and are often shockingly higher than NYC.

travelingaunta

Not to pile on, but I agree you need to look again at your budget. I'm planning for next year and even hostels are more than I expected. Also don't forget that a lot of sights you might want to see will charge admission. The cities all have passes available - the Copenhagen pass in particular seems like a great deal because it includes the train to Roskilde and other day trip locations. But do the math to see if you think it will be worth it for what you plan to do.