chris

Just returned last night from 15 days in Norway. 1 week in the Lofoten Islands north of the Arctic Circle. Stayed 2 nights each in Stamsund, Reine, and Aa. <BR> <BR>And 1 week in the Western Fjords area- 2 nights each in Aalesund, Geiranger and Lake Lovatnet (near Loen and the Jostelbreen) and 1 night each in Flaam and Bergen. <BR> <BR>It was a fantastic and relaxing holiday. Norway is so beautiful and we acutally found it to be quite affordable. Any questions?

Paige

Cool! Can you tell me about the Lofoten Islands? Where did you stay and what did you do? Did you hike a lot everywhere? I'd love to hear all about it!

francesca

Norway is on my list of places to go, too. I hate mosquitoes; were they a problem? Also, could you have done this trip with small children? How did you get from place to place? Car or boat? Did you organize the trip yourself or with a tour co.? Thanks!

Ess

Yes! Trip Report...pleeeeeze?

chris

Hi Paige, no we didn't get to do as much hiking as we had hoped for a few reasons. one being rain and the other being our travel companions who we thought would know better and did not bring the appropriate clothing (i.e. good hiking boots instead of day trekkers and rain pants). We found the Lofotens to be much more rugged then we expected after being so used to the Swiss wanderwegs and most of the trails were incredibly slippery and steep-not a good combination with the abundent damp moss and slick rocks! But we ended up just relaxing and enjoying the beautiful little fishing villages in a few rented "Rorbus". We did go on a few day hikes, rented some bikes, and a "sea rafing" excursion out to the Maelstrom and also went for a glacier walk. <BR> <BR>I will post more of our trip in between catching up with all the chores neglected over the past 2 weeks...

chris

Francesca, having heard the mosquito warnings (and learning a very uncomfortable lesson canoeing in Boundary Waters Minnesota last year) alas, we came to Norway armed with 100% Deet and various other bug potions. Alas, we did not come across one single mosquito. I think they tend to stay in-land. <BR> <BR>I do not have children and admit I have not spent much time around small children but I think that the Fjords region is very much a family place. I saw many Dutch, Norwegian, and German families. If your children like the outdoors, boats, and camping Norway would be a great family destination. We stayed at several of the delightful Hyttes and Rorbus (small furnished cabins) that are available for rent just about everywhere. They can range from very basic to quite luxurious. I think these would make ideal family accomodation. <BR> <BR>For the long sections of our trip (Oslo-Lofoten and Lofoten-Aalesund) we flew on SAS and Wideroe. On the Lofoten Islands we relied on public busses to get around. We picked up a rental car in Aalesund for our week around the Fjords and returned the car in Bergen. We found this combination of transportation worked great for us and allowed us to really maximize our time in the places we wanted to be. <BR> <BR>We did this trip independently and I started planning it in Janaury. <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR>

chris

Part 1 <BR>My husband and I traveled with another couple-all early-mid 30?s. Because we all travel a lot we are somewhat budget-minded. We usually stay in budget accommodation and prepare our own meals about 2/3 of the time. We also find that budget places often elude much more charm then you'll get at a sterile 3-4 star hotel. <BR> <BR>We arrived in Oslo on a late evening flight and took the express train into the city center (to Oslo S-runs every 10-20 minutes). We met our friends from the US in Oslo-they had arrived 2-days prior. The Albertine Hostel was only a 10-minute walk from the train station. (http://www.anker.oslo.no standard hostel with average cleanliness, some noise when the young people came home early in the morning, beds were comfortable though-Double Room with private bathroom 290NOK, great breakfast buffet 55NOK pp) The next morning we had just enough time for a short walking tour of Karl Johans up to the Palace before we headed to the airport to catch our early afternoon flight to Bodoe (SAS approx. $300pp RT OSL-BOO-OSL), from Bodoe we caught a connecting flight to Leknes (Wideroe approx. $125pp RT BOO-LKN-BOO). From Leknes Airport we took a taxi to Stamsund (15 minutes, 300NOK) as the next bus wasn't for 3-hours (weekday bus schedules are much more frequent). <BR> <BR>In Stamsund we stayed in a 4-bed basic cabin with shared facilities at the Justad Youth Hostel (www. 90NOK pp/pn, average cleanliness, quiet, comfortable bunks, shared kitchen was very busy, very popular with backpackers). We spent the evening exploring the immediate area and admiring the Arctic island views. Roar, the owner of the hostel is quite a character with a real eagerness to chat and willingness to impart with his knowledge of the local environs. The hostel is a collection of authentic bright red fishing buildings located on a dock and it was fun watching some of the other hostel occupants excitedly coming back with their day's catch. One Japanese young man in particular proudly shared his 17 fish with anyone who would have one. The only real noteworthy meal we ate out on the entire trip was at the restaurant-bar (there's only one) across from the Coastal Steamer Dock (the mixed seafood baked in a cream sauce was delicious). On our second day in Stamsund we rented a few rickety (remember back-braking anyone?) bikes from Roar and spent a few hours making our way laughingly around to Steine and further up the inlet from Stamsund. In the afternoon we took the bus to Borg (via Leknes) to the Loftr Viking Museum (80NOK pp). The Museum is a very atmospheric and interesting full-scale furnished reconstruction of a Viking Chieftain's home that was found on the site (the largest discovered in the world). You get a powerful sense of what life must have been like in Viking times. There are costumed guides (we had a free private tour) and a replica Viking ship (daily 2pm rowing trips). We passed the rainy evening reading in our cozy little cabin and making comments like ?gee, it's midnight (or 1am, 2am, 3am, etc.) and look how light it is? or ?it's 4am and Roar is out there cleaning fish?. <BR> <BR>Consequently, one of the affects of the midnight sun is wacked sleep patterns (I was cursing the lack of shutters on windows like I have at home). It seemed that most of the other guests would stay up to 3 or 4am and not get up until 11 or so. But it was also refreshing not having to worry about getting out early to enjoy the day as you never had to worry about sunset. <BR>

chris

Stamsund Hostel: http://www.vandrerhjem.no/new/www/en...taark/24.phtml <BR> <BR>P.S. sorry for all the ?. My german keyboard does funny things when I copy over my text from Word.

Ess

I'm enjoying your trip report, Chris. Sounds great - keep it coming!

chris

Thanks Ess, I'll try my best as I know Norway info is woefully lacking on this forum. <BR> <BR>Part 2-Onto to Reine <BR>Took the bus to Reine (via Leknes, 2 hrs, approx. 125NOK per couple. Note that there is a 50% family rate for the second person traveling together over 60km). A very pleasant and scenic bus ride. Reine is in a striking location surrounded by calm lagoons and "straight-up" summits. We were absolutely delighted with the Rorbu we rented over the water with unbeatable views of the small wooden fishing boats in the harbor and the surrounding peaks. Immaculate 2 bedrooms (1 w/double bed and 1 w/4 bunk beds) and a very spacious living area and kitchen oozing with charm, on-site laundry facilities, fantastic deck for soaking up the sun or dining al fresco. The pleasant owner even took our neighbors out fishing in his small boat for free after learning they had been unsuccessful on their commercial fishing trip. (Reinevaeg Rorbuer http://www.lofoten-info.no/Reinevag.htm 605NOK/pn, ). After settling in we decided to scramble up the very steep path to the summit of Reinebringen (3 hrs RT). Tremendous, heart stopping views of Reine over the cliff-not for the faint of heart though! The next day we rode the Reinefjord Ferry (21NOK OW) to Vinstad and strolled through grazing sheep over an easy pass to the sandy beach at Bunes for a picnic. A satisfying way to spend the day but I cannot say that Bunes Beach was too impressive with the amount of washed up garbage on it. As the ferry schedule is very limited and varies daily I would also be wary of going on a day when I would be stranded there for more then 4 hours. Also take note there are no restaurants or stores in Vinstad. As it was the ferry that was supposed to pick us up was at capacity and they had to come back to get us after depositing those passengers back in Reine (adding an hour to our wait). In retrospect I would have preferred to have done the day hike Forsfjord - Munkebu – Sřrvĺgen. Another rainy, tranquil evening spent reading and stealing peaks out the window at the little wooden boats swaying at their moors. <BR> <BR>On our way to Aa (8 busses daily midweek), we stopped at the Tourist Information in Moskenes to book a "Sea rafting Adventure" for that evening (approx. 4 hours, 590NOK pp) through the notorious Moskenestraumen Maelstrom and to Refsvikhula Cave to see some supposedly 3000 year old cave paintings. Aa is mostly given over to the Norwegian Fishing Village Museum with plenty of cod drying racks, red rorbuer and other 19th century historic fishing buildings-the accommodation is even "part" of the museum. It was raining and quite miserable on this day and because I was not feeling so well I was happy to rest in my room for the afternoon in the very shabby but historic and strangely charming Hennumgaerden Sjoehus (http://www.lofoten-info.no/Aa-hamna.htm 200NOK per double room with shared facilities, average cleanliness but the comforters were definitely filthy! Advise to rent extra sheets). After preparing an early dinner we made our way out to the floating dock for our rafting adventure but were met by a Representative who told us that because of rough seas the trip was cancelled at the moment but would try for midnight-we passed but said we would go the next day. By this time the rain had subsided and we spent the rest of the evening strolling around the rocky headlands. <BR> <BR> <BR>

chris

Part 3 <BR>The next morning we rang the Tourist Info to confirm the rafting trip at Noon and rushed to the Lofoten Stockfish Museum to get in a tour before our sea adventure. The museum is definitely worthwhile, not so much for the exhibits but for the highly entertaining guide who obviously has spent his entire life in the dried Cod industry and is happy to tell you all about it. We wish we had more time to devote to the Museum and we missed the codfish oil tasting. The raft finally showed up an hour late. We were provided with sea survival suits and just as we took off it really started to downpour. Except for the painful shards of rain beating my face the rigid-hull inflatable was terrifyingly great fun (we crashed over one wave that had us all clinging to the side rope for dear life as the behinds of 12 passengers simultaneously soared a foot off the tube). My nervousness mounted as we came near the headland since I knew we were getting very near the Maelstrom. Luckily the rain had stopped and yes, it was frightening watching the waves bubble and froth and make strange patterns, but there were no giant whirlpools or 20-meter waves-at least at the moment. I questioned our guide’s sanity as he stopped the engine to let us "feel the power". I eyed the bigger monsters in front of us praying that we would not be attempting to "feel" their power. Alas, our guide was quite sensible and miraclously found us a gentler path to our destination on the other side of the island. <BR> <BR>We landed and walked about 20 minutes to the gaping Refsvikhula Cave where we were handed helmets (you can only enter with a guide). I was rather under whelmed by the cave paintings-and me a lover of all things Anthropological. To me they just look like rusty stick figures. I am quite skeptic about their authenticity because they weren't discovered until the 1980’s by a group of archaeology students even though the cave has been used by locals for generations who don’t recall seeing them before then and no scientific dating or excavations have yet taken place. But the trip to this side of the island was definitely worth it for the tranquility and SUN. We enjoyed lazing in the grass waiting for the raft to pick us up and the ride back was relatively smooth and genuinely fun. The Maelstrom was nothing like it had been and we stopped near some rocks and watched some seals for a while, one grandfather in particular was very interested in us. <BR> <BR>In the evening we went out for a rather uninspired meal in the over water restaurant. Unfortunately because of the change in the rafting we did not get to do an actual tour of the Fishing Village Museum or get to do the hike from Aa to Stokkvikskaret Pass that we had planned. <BR> <BR> <BR>

chris

I've finally had some time to write some more...if anyone is still interested... <BR> <BR>Part 3 <BR>AALESUND AND WE DRIVE TO GEIRANGERFJORD <BR> <BR>We took the early morning bus to Leknes Airport (bus Aa to Leknes, change to Svolear bus for airport). The Driver was even nice enough to make a detour to deliver us directly to the Terminal. “Scenic” flight to Bodoe via Svolear. We had a 3 hour layover before our next leg so we decided to take advantage of the quick 10 minute walk into Bodoe town center for some lunch. Not a whole lot to report on the biggest town in the Nordland. Caught afternoon flights to Oslo and finally Aalesund (SAS one-way OSL-AES approx. $85). Arrived in Aalesund early evening and took the very convenient airport express “Flybussen” into the center. Our home for the next 2 nights was the Youth Hostel. Shared a spacious, quiet 4-bed room with private bathroom, a TV and our own kitchenette (180NOK pp/pn average cleanliness, good breakfast, convenient location) http://www.vandrerhjem.no/new/www/en...taark/58.phtml. <BR>Aalesund is a delightful coastal town known for its Art Noveau architecture since it was completely rebuilt in that style after a sweeping 1908 fire. Since it was threatening to rain the next morning we decided to spend the day at the Atlantic Ocean Park about 3km from town (bus from the center, admission 75NOK). It turned out to be a mildly interesting aquarium. We enjoyed watching the divers feed the fish in the giant tank and getting to see what Cod look like before they become lutefisk. We took a walk around the park and investigated some Nazi era military remnants before getting soaked by a torrent. Our time probably would have been better spent at the Sunnmoere Open Air Museum. After drying out we took the very worthwhile walking tour of the city as outlined by the free pamphlet available at the TI. Highly recommend you take this tour (and do the FULL tour), even if you are only mildly interested in Art Noveau! Another pizza in the hostel. Take note that a prerequisite for budget traveling in Norway is a taste for seafood, spaghetti or pizza…though we did get creative with omelets <BR>

chris

Part 4 <BR> <BR>Our Europcar rental (actually rented through Europe by Car, $450 inclusive, midsize for a week-yikes rentals aren’t cheap in Norway) was delivered to us at the Hostel promptly at 9:00. After loading the Toyota, the women (henceforth renamed “The Backseat Dictators” by our husbands) demanded to be taken to a Sweater Outlet that we had read about on Rick Steve’s Message Board. Suffice it to say the promise of $20 last season’s Norwegian sweaters did not materialize despite driving nearly an hour out of our way. <BR> <BR>My already low opinion of Rick Steve’s further diminished; we drove through the rain toward Aandalsnes and the promise of an absolutely awesome natural wonder in the Troll’s Wall (Trollweggen). We stopped in not very interesting Aandalsnes for lunch (the apple danish pastries at the Maandalen Bakeri are yummy). By now the rain had subsided and the Mountain Climbing Husbands’ excitement mounted as we neared “the ultimate challenge among mountaineers”-the 1800m high overhanging Troll Wall. Do I even need to say that it was completely covered with clouds? Really we weren’t too surprised and in lieu of actually setting eyes on the awesome spectacle for ourselves, we bought a postcard of it. Spirits non-too-dampened we sped off towards our next adventure-the Troll Road (Trollstigen). The guidebooks all describe the Troll Road as a thrilling 11 hairpinned bends. I don’t know if it was the dreary weather or the fact that having lived in Switzerland for the past 2 years and driving mountain roads on a weekly basis. Once again I wasn’t exactly awed. The drive is nice though as is the view from the top. We also stopped at the Gudbrandsjuvet canyon further down the road (about 15km from Valldal). We were REALLY impressed though by the freshly picked strawberries we bought at one of the many roadside stands down the valley towards Valldal-so much so that we had buy a second basket before even leaving the driveway. Now we understand why Valldal is called the “Strawberry Town”. <BR> <BR>After the mild disappointments of the day we were finally rewarded by the scenic and delightful drive down Oernevegen that winds down to Geiranger. <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR>

Eva Tanner

I am enjoying reading yours accounts of your travels in Norway. I am currently looking into doing something similar with my husband and 3 boys. We intend to fly to Oslo and take this train &lt;norway in a nutshell to Bergen. In Bergen, I thought about taking the Hurtigen ship morthward to Tromso or to the end at Kirkenes or whereever you may recommend. I like the idea of flying back south and renting a car to discover a little more the fjord regions. Do you highly recommend the Lofoten Islands?<BR><BR>We are in the mountains constantly here in CH, so are looking more for fantastic seaviews with mountains.<BR><BR>Thanks

Debbie

Chris-Wonderful trip report! We're headed to Oslo for a week in early June, so won't experience Norway as you did simply for lack of time. Thanks for being so diligent in writing your travel journal-this has been not only interesting reading, but provides helpful information to those planning a trip to this region. ENJOY !

chris

Oh my, realized I never really got around to finishing reporting on this trip!<BR><BR>Geiranger was wonderful, one of the highlights really. We loved the little cabin we rented on the Fjord (http://www.grande-hytteutleige.no/). And really enjoyed taking the sightseeing boat (you have to let them know you want to be dropped off) to the Skageflae farm and then hike back to Geiranger. This definitely was one of the most amazing days of our trip.<BR><BR>We then drove via the Gamle Styrnefjellsvegen (weather was uncooperative to really see anything) to the Kjenndalsbreen tongue of the Jostedalsbreen Glacier. We spent 2 nights in this area in a fantastic private apartment on Lake Lovatnet (at Helset, near Loen). It was so peaceful and the lake is really beautiful- perfectly still aqua water and glaciers hanging from the cliffs across the lake. We also went to Briksdalbreen tongue and did the glacier walk (quite easy) that I highly recommend.<BR><BR>Next was the drive to Laerdal and Borgund. Definitely another highlight and don't miss was the Borgund Stave Church. We then drove the very scenic "Snow road" to Aurland and Flaam. <BR><BR>We did the Norway in a Nutshell from Flaam, and honestly we weren't all that impressed with it since we felt we had already seen much better (and less touristy/developed areas) in the Northern Fjords area. Besides the bus portion that takes you on Norway's steepest road through the Stalheimskleiva gorge, we felt for us it was a waste of time and we wish we would have spent our time hiking or mountain biking portions of the spectacular region along the railway "above" Flaam. From Kleivane to Upsete and down to Flaam for example, along what I think is called the Rallarvegen (you would take the train to the starting point).<BR><BR>We spent our last night in Bergen. Again we were not very impressed and felt that Aalesund is a much more charming coastal city to visit. Don't get me wrong-Flaam, the Nutshell Tour, and Bergen are all lovely, but we honestly felt that we had seen much better further north (and we weren't sharing it with so many other people). Our favorite places/things were the Hostel in Stamsund (such a quirky place), Reine, the art noveau architecture in Aalesund, Geiranger and the hike from Skageflaa, our apartment on Lake Lovatnet, glacier walk at Brikdalsbreen, Borgund Stave Church, view of Aurlandsfjord coming down from the snow road, and the Stalheim road portion of the Nutshell Tour. <BR><BR><BR>

Chris

other places we stayed were the Flaam Hostel at the campground (very nice spacious "cabin", drawbacks were limited cooking facilities and long walk outside to campground WC's) and the Montana Hostel in Bergen (absolutely filthy and way overpriced).<BR><BR>Eva, I think that too long on a boat may be very boring for your boys, depending on their age. I don't know though since we didn't do a long boat tour ourselves. Put this question out as a new thread maybe? Lofoten is a long way to go, but we really enjoyed it. But I understand that there are lots of coastal communities in the Northern Fjords regions with the same "feel" as the Lofotens. I live just south of Luzern and we were still awed by the scenery-it is VERY different from CH.<BR>

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Nick

Going to Norway in Mid October - We'd like to head north, but are a bit cautious due to the weather up there? Is it worthwhile heading north of Trondheim in mid-october, or will the weather be too much to bear. We thought we'd like to get to Lofoten, and if not, maybe atleast Bodo. Ideally, I'd like to take the ferry all the way to Kirkenes.<BR><BR>It is my wife and I, and our 18 month old daughter.<BR><BR>Thanks

kirikou

Nick: The only thing certain about Norwegian weather in mid-October is that it's uncertain... I live in the west, and autumn's definitely here already. It might be sunny days up to 20 degrees, but if you stay for a while you'll definitely also experience the rainy, cloudy, chilly days. There's no problem going north of Trondheim, and weather might as well be nice there as further south, although on a general note a bit colder. Just bring warm clothes. Lofoten should be fine, going all up to Kirkenes isn't something I'd do at this time of year, simply as it's likely to be very grey and cold.