msjean

We will be visiting Paris next June for a few days. We then want to go to Bodo, Norway for a wedding. I am not sure the best way to get there. I was thinking US to Paris, Paris to Oslo to Bodo. This is my first time in Europe and am at a loss how to book these tickets.

Also, I plan on meandering back to Oslo, maybe by train, after the Bodo visit. Any suggestions about this plan?

Thanks!

michelhuebeli

SAS flies from Paris to Bodø, mostly with just one switch in Oslo, some flights with a switch in Oslo then another in Trondheim.

It may or may not make sense to do the entire trip on one single ticket - like your home airport to Bodø with a stopover in Paris (you will have to nominate that stopover when booking), then a return home from Oslo to your home airport.

See if your home airport is served by an airline that A) flies you to Paris on a good route and at a good fare, and B) if that airline is affiliated with Scandinavian SAS so that you can do it all on a "airline partner" ticket.

But these days, on many airlines, one-way tickets aren't automatically astronomically more expensive than half a return ticket, so you could maybe book "home" - Paris, Paris - Bodø, and Oslo-"home" on three separate tickets - at whatever best rate you get for each.

You simply have to look them all up, add them up, and compare.

www.itasoftware.com is a good one to start looking - it doesn't sell, and it doesn't bring up 100% of all airlines (no website does 100%), but it, and www.kayak.com, are good starting points.

www.hurtigruten.com is the company that runs the boats up and down the coast of Norway, check them out for the return.

You may want to combine boat and train travel - for Norway's trains start looking here: http://www.visitnorway.com/us/Gettin...ins-in-Norway/

Hope this helps.

msjean

Thank you! You have given me a great place to start.

Cowboy1968

If you opt for seperate tickets, Norwegian has one connection per week via Oslo for 140 euros one-way in June 2014.

Dickie_Gr

Norwegian.com is cheap as long as you book well in advance.

Alway try skyscanners.com best flight search engine by far.

Ackislander

There used to be frequent non-stop flights from Peshawar, Pakistan, to Bodo. No more.

Sorry to hijack this thread with an in-joke, but I have never seen Bodo mentioned on Fodor's before, so I can't resist. Anyone old enough to know what I am talking about?

Dickie_Gr

The Norwegian coast is frequently mentioned.

I suggest you take your in-jokes to the lounge, where dim people will appreciate your sense of humour.

hetismij2

Bodø is often mentioned. Personally I don't like the town, though the cathedral is beautiful in very understated way.

You could be adventurous and take the train to Bodø. It is the northernmost station on Norwegian Rail.

msjean

The Hurtigruten Line is a great idea for the Bodo to Bergen to Oslo return. The accommodations seem a bit basic (at least on the vessel running on the date we want) but to see a bit of Norway on our first-ever trip to that country by boat makes up for the very tight quarters and lack of a private bath.

Thanks for your suggestions.

hetismij2

Lack of private bath? Must be the Lofoten then, which is the oldest ship in the fleet, and very popular because of that. Wait a day and you can have a more luxurious ship if that's what you want.
You could take it only to Trondheim and train from there. Trondheim to Bergen is not very interesting on the Hurtigruten in my experience.
Or just get a train from Bodø.

Ackislander

Dickie, my sweet, you will find that if you have a nice cup of tea and a biscuit before you post, it will improve your blood sugar so that you can offer the sort of helpful information you offered on Snowdon and not the sort of gratuitously nasty comments you have made to me or to people seeking advice on their Scottish itinerary.

Unlike you, I have never posted in the Lounge, so I cannot say whether intelligent posters here become
"dim" when they enter its portals. Somehow I doubt it.

Bodo, Norway, was the northern terminus of U-2 spy flights. The southern terminus was in Pakistan.

hetismij2

There is a museum at the airport/airbase devoted to the U2. I am told it's quite interesting if you are into that sort of thing. I'm not, so I haven't been.

Dickie_Gr

I think you will find that I was returning the warm approach, so adequately displayed to me when posting on a simple thread about teenagers visiting Europe.

You seemed to have missed the irony of the post, maybe it was wasted.

hetismij2

Lets not turn this thread into a slanging match chaps!

Dickie_Gr

Too many of those recently, sorry!

Hets,

Thanks for the re-kindling memories of Norway, I think we may visit again next winter. We did many trips with our son aged 3 to 7. He just can't remember much now (age 8), remembers a husky stealing his glove but not the incredible Northern Lights show we experienced.

Nor does he remember swimming with dolphins, sailing round Greece, snorkeling with Tiger sharks or Orcas trips in Vancouver......that's about £30,000 down the drain!

HappyTrvlr

The air museum in Bodo is very very well done and quite interesting. WWII history, the U2. We enjoyed our visit there.