Denmark, Sweden and Norway

We did a 10 day trip to Sweden and Denmark and thought it was too short. Adding Norway to the mix would have thinned it down even more.

I would stick to two countries.

With ten days, I'd focus on one or two of these countries. If you are determined to go to all three, maybe, focus on Norway and Denmark and do Sweden as a day trip from Copenhagen (accross the Oresund Bridge, this will give you the thrill of stepping on Swedish soil, but you will miss the best sights of Sweden. If it was my trip and I had to limit it to 10 days, I'd concentrate on the Norwegian coast, depending on what time of year your are going.

thanks. ok so we cut it down to two. by the way we want to do the trip at end of july beginning of auguast 2009 so there is not a lot of planning time. is it best to hire a car or use public transport? we are ready to forgo thrills of where our feet go and concentrate on the things that are still interesting but more practical to do rather than try the impossible. we did that when we were younger.

Which 2 did you narrow it down to? I definitely hope Norway is still one of them! I think it doesn't matter too much whether you use trains/busses or a car because regardless of what you want to see, transport is VERY very good all over Europe, including the far north. A car would probably give you more independance though, so in the end, the difference is probably in what things cost and what you're willing to spend, how much control over travel times you want to have, and whether looking for parking spots is something you want to do.

Hi; With only 10 days you should consider a tour company. While it will be structed, there will be no wasted time. Try www.cheapertravel.com They work with all the major companies and a 10% discount usually is offered. Dick

> ytzme on Jul 4, 09 at 03:58 AM <

Which 2?

well norway is one and now i have to decide on sweden or denmark as no. 2.......... or maybe just see norway for all the ten days? is that really a good idea?

While Norway is interesting I think both Sweden and Denmark have more to see and do, In 10 days you can;t really see much of the counties, but can see some areas.

For instance, you could do Copenhagen with a day trip, then head up to Stockholm (1 night on the way) and spend the rest of the time there. IMHO Stockholm has far more to see than any other city or area - unless all you want is outdoorsy.

I have only been to Stockholm in Sweden and then Oslo/Flam in Norway via train. My husband and I are 50, enjoy history and natural beauty; don't care about luxury hotels or food. My observations:

We liked the scale of Olso. People often say there is not much to do there. We found plenty to fill two days and most of it was in close proximity so we could walk/tram, return to hotel, which we like. We went to Viking museum--great for 1+ hour, folk park-good for 1-2 hrs especially if on Sunday when more going on, OK ferry ride over. We did not go to the other maritime museums. The fortress was nice, but small. The town hall had interesting murals. Other museums and parks OK, but just depend on your personal interests. Cost of food was extremely high.

Train ride to Flam was very scenic. Ferry ride on fjord scenic. Possible to kayak, cycle, hike, etc. in the area. If you like boating, then you can also take trips to Balestrand, Bergen, etc. I can't wait to get back and go to other mountain destinations to hike and soak up the scenery.

Most direct train ride between Stockholm and Oslo was hot (no a/c) and 50% scenic, 50% relatively boring. Better to fly or we were given recommendation to take the northern train route from Stockholm up and over to Norway for scenery, but we did not have time on our trip. Would like to next time.

Stockholm is a pretty city of architecture, water, bluffs, etc. It is a busy city with more traffic. However, the waterfront is gorgeous, the Vasa Museum fascinating, town hall interesting mosaic. I haven't made it through the palace and associated museums, but have heard great things there. You can take a ferry to an island to walk/picnic, shop in artist's shops, eat in a restaurant. I could easily spend 3-4 days there.

We avoided driving--we always do first time in a country. I have seen some postings on this board about the high cost of renting a vehicle.

Another idea for some transport--we took one short ride on a Fjord1 bus in Norway from Aurland and found it to be great--modern, comfortable, air conditioned, on time. We would not hesitate to take a longer trip on one of those buses.

A couple of years ago we traveled to those countries via Grand Circle Travel but it is doable on your own. And we were older than you are. You haven't indicated your interests other than"experiencing new places"...scenery, history, entertainment, museums, just strolling, etc. You would enjoy Copenhagen and also Oslo and could consider that "Norway in a Nutshell" trip via the fjord cruise over to Bergen which we very much enjoyed. Stockholm and Helsinki are very nice but maybe another time.
Ozarksbill walongman@yahoo.com

thank you all so much the help and interest

We had a nice trip with a flight to Helsinki. We spent 2 nights in Helsinki. The 3rd day we left Helsinki about 5:30PM on an overnight ferry - Silja Line - to Stockholm. We were in Stockholm a couple of days and went by train in the early evening to Oslo. We were in Oslo a couple of days and then took the Norway In a Nutshell tour returning to Oslo. We then went by train to Copenhagen - think it was an overnight train.
You would need more than 10 days to do all of this but it was a fun way to see a lot. If you only have 10 days then I would leave out Denmark.
We like to travel and that is why we really do "travel" when we go. Actally, from Denmark we went to Brugges and then on to Paris for 4 days and then home.

I was in Copenhagen and Stockholm a few years ago. It was in the dead of winter and we only did the cities. I liked Stockholm better than Copenhagen, but like anything else, you don't know til you've been there, so I would not discourage you from seeing Copenhagen if that's what you choose.

I thought Stockholm was prettier than Copenhagen and I loved the Vasa and the Nobel museums. We stayed in Gamla Stan and I really liked that area and it was convenient for walking lots of places and the Palace, the Stockholm Cathedral (dating from the 1200's) and the Nobel museum were right there. It was an easy walk to the waterfront to catch the boat over to the island where the Vasa museum is. I also loved having the water all around.

we had ten days in norway
definitely get a car
it is good driving but slow because of the mountains
av speed is 50 -60 km perhour
we wouldve been frustrated by the pace of a tour

but we did stop whenever we saw a bus tour - they do know where to go!
lots of info at tourist bureaux- all speak english

great for independent travelling