dukkar

Hi:

Do you recommend commencing the NIN trip from Oslo or Bergen to avoid the crowds in mid-August?

I am planning on spending a couple of nights in Balestrand so from a logistics perspective it made sense to start the NIN from Oslo. We plan to drive since we will have kids under 7 years so we need that convenience. For example:

1. Drive from Oslo to Myrdal. Spend the night in Myrdal.
2. Morning, do the NIN tour: train (Myrdal to Flam)-boat (Flam to Gudvangen)-bus (Gudvangen to Voss).
3. Afternoon, catch the Bergen-Oslo train from Voss to Myrdal. Pick up the car and drive to Balestrand. Spend the night in Balestrand.
4. Spend a day or two in Balestrand.
5. Drive to Bergen to drop off the car.

I am not sure how I can do the stay in Balestrand, if I were to do the NIN from Bergen. I would definitely want to have a car for our travel in/around Balestrand. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
D

historytraveler

I am not an expert on Norway but in researching my own trip for May/June 2012, I have come across the following websites which provide valuable information. Please note that the 2012 schedules are not out yet but should be in the next couple of months. Also be aware of the exceptions/notes for days and times of operation ( ferry/bus/express boats.

www.fjord1.no

www.tidefjordcruise.no

www.nsb.no (for train schedules and prices)

www.balestrand.com

I will assume you are aware that NIN just provides the transportation portion of the trip. You may find it more convenient in scheduling if you do it on your own. This is what I've done. It's not any cheaper using NIN.

If you go to Trip Advisor and the Norway Forum you'll find there are several Norwegian experts who'll be happy to answer your questions and who provide excellent information. It's really a much better site that Fodors in regard to questions about Norway.

historytraveler

Sorry I sent post too soon.

There is nothing in Myrdal except the train station. Staying there is not an option.

I sincerely doubt that it makes any difference in regard to crowds as to where you start or finish your trip. August is high season in Norway which ever place you choose or direction you go.

DebitNM

Although it was April, we drove from Oslo to Voss, stayed there for 2 nights and did NIN from there. Took train to Myrdal from Voss and then from there with Flam railway, then the cruise and finally the bus back to Voss.

https://picasaweb.google.com/DebitNM...nANutshellTour

historytraveler

If you are coming from Oslo I'd take the train to Flam ( Flamsbana) via Myrdal then ferry to Balestrand. This will be the www.tidefjordcruise.no site. It is not a car ferry but does get you to Balestrand where I believe you can rent a car. Need to double check that. From Balestrand take the ferry back to Flam then boat from Flam to Gudvangen and bus to Voss. This portion can be done in reverse order depending on what schedule works best.

The train from Oslo to Myrdal where you easily connect with the Flamsbana takes about 4 hours. I believe the ferry Flam/Balestrand or Balestrand/Flam takes about 2 hours. The Flamsbana is about an hour and the ferry from Flam to Gudvangen is again about 2 hours. The bus from Gudvangen to Voss takes about takes a little over an hour.

dukkar

Thanks for all the replies. This is really going to help me with the planning.

Can someone answer these two questions specifically?

1. Are the crowds in mid-August significantly less for the NIN trip originating from Bergen as opposed to the one originating from Oslo?
2. How do I get to Balestrand by car from Bergen, if I was planning on doing the NIN from Bergen? I am perfectly okay doing NIN on one day and then driving to Balestrand on the next day, but the question is how to get to Balestrand? I haven't found any information on roads and car ferries for that route.

Thanks,
D

historytraveler

Go to the following website and post your questions there. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum...50-Norway.html
As I mentoned in my earlier post there are a number of Norway experts that will accurately and quickly respond to your questions.

I'm not familiar with the road system as I don't plan to rent a car and can't answer your question about August crowds on NiN.

Have you considered taking the train? I believe they have family cars, and if you take advantage of the mini-pris prices it may well be cheaper than renting a car.

dukkar

historytraveler:

Thanks for the TripAdvisor link. I already got a response there!

To answer your question: I did consider taking the train from Oslo. But since we will have kids under 7 years, we wanted to have the convenience getting in/around Balestrand by car. So our plan would be to either:

(1) rent car in Oslo, and drive to Myrdal (spend night here or in Flam), and then do the NiN next day, and then the same day, continue with the car to go to Balestrand for two days and then drive to Bergen to return the car, OR

(2)take the train from Oslo to Bergen, then do the NiN one day, and then next day, rent a car in Bergen to drive to Balestrand for two days and return the car in Bergen.

My selection of (1) or (2) purely depends on where I would get the least crowds for the NiN trip. I read here on the forum (someone had posted this in September) that the boat from Gudvangen to Flåm had 50 people while the boat from Flåm to Gudvangen had 150 people! Of course, that's just one poster so I am looking to see if there are others who have had similar experiences. Also, the fact that I have not found this information on Rick Steves, Frommers, Fodors, etc. leads me to believe that the difference in the crowds must be insignificant whether you do the NiN from Bergen or Oslo.

historytraveler

I did see your post and the responses. Great information. I doubt if there is much difference in the crowds from either Oslo or Bergen. I did check and you can rent a car in Balestrand, but it does need to be pre-booked. This might be an option as you can likely take the passenger ferry from Flam to Balestrand (2 hours) then spend one or two nights there and return to Flam by ferry or possibily return car to Bergen or Oslo. There is also an express boat traveling Flam/Balestrand/Bergen and the reverse.

As I mentioned in an earlier post the trains do have family cars. The kids might be more comfortable in a family carriage on a train than in a car although the train from Oslo to Bergen or Bergen to Oslo would probably be too long a trip for little ones. Oslo to Myrdal is about 4 hours.

flygirl

Check out the itinerary Backroads uses. I am pretty sure it is online. I'd consider doing that instead of your plan. In talking to the guides, who have spent a lot of time designing these tours and using them/tweaking them, they decided our route was the best for beauty and avoiding the tour bus crowds. I went in July - click my name and you will see the start of a trip report. Mostly just photos right now.

TC

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sssteve

Dukkar:

Check out my web page on our trip to Norway last summer. It includes very detailed information regarding NIN. Maybe it will help you in your planning.

http://www.travel.stv77.com/norway/norway.htm

Michael

I am aware that you state that for convenience you need a car, but enough of your travel seems to be by train, bus and ferry that I can't understand the convenience of getting a car for the Oslo-Myrdal part of the journey, because I would think that it is more convenient to go from Balestrand to Bergen by boat.

historytraveler

Dukkar has gone to the Trip Advisor (Norway) forum where I believe his questions have been addressed.

asmama

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