3 weeks in Norway and Sweden. Comments, advice please!
 

My husband and I (I'm 68 and he's 70) started planning a maximum 3 week trip to Norway and Sweden. And possibly also Iceland.

I was thinking that it might be nice to just leave from Stockholm and go directly home. What do you think of having the fjord trip first and ending in Stockholm? Should I flip it? I do like the idea of starting more rural and ending in a metropolis. It makes getting home less of a shock. :-)

And do I have enough or too many days in each location? This is our first trip to this area and my heritage is Swedish so we're really looking forward to it!

We're going late May or early June 2017.


Scandanavian itinerary

Day 1. Leave Philadelphia

Day 2. Arrive Bergen

Day 3. Bergen

Day 4. Board Hurtigruten

Day 5. Floro, Maloy, Torvik, Alesund, Molde
Tour Ålesund for 2 hours

Day 6. Kristiansund, Trondheim, Rorvik
Free time in Teondheim

Day 7. Bronnoysund, Sandnessjoen, Nesna, Ornes, Bodo, Stamsund, Svolvaer
Free time in Bodo
Disembark in Svolvaer

Day 8-9. Svolvaer.
Rent a car

Day 10. Svolvaer to Oslo.

Day 11. Oslo
4.5 hour guided bus tour in Oslo.

Day 12. Oslo to Gothenburg.
Afternoon train.

Day 13. Gothenburg

Day 14. Gothenburg to Stockholm.
Train to Alingsas for a fika tour. Then Alingsas to Stockholm.

Day 15-18. Stockholm
Evening food tour of Gamla Stan, boat to Drottningholm, sailboat ride through the archipelago.

Day 19. Stockholm to Reykjavik.

Day 20-21. Reykjavik.
Cooking class at Salt Rldhus, jeep tour of the Golden Circle.

Day 22. Leave for Philadelphia.
Morning at the Blue Lagoon.

Should be a great trip!

You might want one more day in Stockholm. Unfortunately, I haven't been to Norway yet....

You might want to take a look at my trip report on Norway and Stockholm; click on my name to find it.

Sounds good. I did Hurtigruten last year, but stayed on longer. Click on my name for the TR.

Thanks everyone! I'm now thinking to drop Iceland for another trip. Add a day at least to Stockholm. And maybe extend the ferry trip a day or two more.

Also maybe move our trip to July to get less rain???

The closer to the summer solstice, the better IMO! :-)

My neighbor whose mother lives in Stockholm says that June is very cold and rainy. That's what I'm basing the change of dates on.

I should have said often is very cold and rainy.

So late June and early July may be best?

For average temperatures and other climate information, check wunderground.com

New itinerary, skipping Iceland and adding a day to Stockholm. I did check the weather and it seems it rains half the days no matter what month until September! So I'm back to June and catching that summer solstice.

Scandanavian itinerary

Day 1. Leave Philadelphia

Day 2. Arrive Bergen

Day 3. Bergen

Day 4. Board Hurtigruten

Day 5. Floro, Maloy, Torvik, Alesund, Molde
Tour Ålesund for 2 hours

Day 6. Kristiansund, Trondheim, Rorvik
Free time in Teondheim

Day 7. Bronnoysund, Sandnessjoen, Nesna, Ornes, Bodo, Stamsund, Svolvaer
Free time in Bodo
Disembark in Svolvaer

Day 8-9. Svolvaer.
Rent a car

Day 10. Svolvaer to Oslo.

Day 11. Oslo
4.5 hour guided bus tour in Oslo.

Day 12. Oslo to Gothenburg.
Afternoon train.

Day 13. Gothenburg

Day 14. Gothenburg to Stockholm.
Train to Alingsas for a fika tour. Then Alingsas to Stockholm.

Day 15-19. Stockholm
Evening food tour of Gamla Stan, boat to Drottningholm, sailboat ride through the archipelago, rent car or public transportation to tour outside of Stockholm one day.

Day 20. Leave for Philadelphia.

<i>ceezee on Sep 4, 16 at 9:56am
New itinerary, skipping Iceland and adding a day to Stockholm.</i>

Suggest you consider an overnight ferry to Helsinki, spend the day, and return the next night to Stockholm. The buffet dinner on board is fantastic. http://www.tallinksilja.com/en/web/int/book-a-cruise

BTW, if you drink buy a duty free bottle before you arrive in Sweden or Norway. Booze up there is EXPENSIVE.

You just have to get lucky with the rain; three years ago in late June/early July we had mostly sunshine in Stockholm and Bergen. But remember the joke about Bergen: a tourist asks a young boy when it doesn't rain and he replies, I don't know, I'm only 12.
We only did the one day Norway in a Nutshell trip through the Fjords, but it is one of our all-time great vacation days. As for Stockholm, we stayed 5days/4 nights and never were without things to do, places to go, etc. Enjoy, it looks like a fabulous trip.

<i>BTW, if you drink buy a duty free bottle before you arrive in Sweden or Norway. Booze up there is EXPENSIVE.</i>

It is not expensive in Sweden. It is the same price as booze anywhere else. I buy wine regularly in systembolaget & you can check out the prices online.

<i> My neighbor whose mother lives in Stockholm says that June is very cold and rainy</i>

You can't predict the weather as accurately as that. It might be rainy, it might not be. Past couple of years the weather has been great in June.

What is special about fika in Alingsås that you would go there especially? You can have fika anywhere.

You are taking the coastal cruise. I looked at reviews and did not take this when I went in 2000. Instead, I booked all three of the major fjord cruises and did not regret it. They are spectacular, even in a cold, rainy summer. There were cataracts of water cascading down the tall (rounded) mountains to the rivers, several hundred feet high. Food was excellent. Groups was groups of non-fluent English speakers from Italy and Israel, I paired with an Israeli couple born in Germany, fluent English speakers. Norway is worth re-visiting.

I found very few open stores such as drugstores and grocery stores in the towns. Everything closes early in the summer. I had a bad cough and was looking for cough drops after mine ran out. I presumed airily that there would be a Walgreen's somewhere, or its equivalent. There wasn't. Lots of Japanese, tolls, and Norwegian sweaters, though.

It was very easy to book the fjord cruises and connectors between them. Most Norwegians are fluent in English, and they have received droves of tourists wince the English invaded in the mid 1800's. Very safe. Marvellous people. I would return in a heartbeat.

Over the past three years and during 4 trips , we have covered most of your route and co incidentally we have a week in Iceland booked for next February.

The weather in Sweden is hard to predict as the main driver is the Russian continental high pressure not the North Atlantic drift. If the high pressure forms early you will enjoy the 85oC we did two years ago in July.

I'm glad you have decided to drop Iceland as over a three week trip the impact of the place may have been lost.

We love Trondheim, is has good shopping and a notable cathedral. If you fancy a swim the indoor pool complex is the best I have visited with huge glasses curtain walls facing the sea fjord. It also has the worlds only uphill cycle lift which is typical Norwegian decadence.

Hurtigruten : not sure what you are expecting but the boats are very comfortable but are post delivery boats cum ferries cum 4 star cruise ships. They are small in comparison to cruise ships and not as customer orientated. The ship trips are unque but exepensive. The standard of food on board is pretty good not sensational.

The main change I would make is the time spent in The Lofoten which are simply jaw droppingly beautiful. I would add at least a day and possibly look at flying from say Evenes to Oslo. The interior of Norway doesn't have the best reputation for notable landscapes but I haven't had chance to experience this.

Personally I think you are right to not go further north, I'd say going into the artic circle is a winter trip. Tromso is amazing in winter but a little drab in summer.

Sweden : Stockholm is one of our favourite cities, it has the feel of a place that has enjoyed wealth for centuries and is comfortable with its position. People seem generally rounded and laid back....it's not NYC!

We took the ferry out to Sandhamn in the archipelago. The island's aren't stunning as they are low in altitude but their number makes for a very pretty journey. The old fishing village of Sandhamn has enjoyed uber gentrification but is anything but flashy. Most of the multi millionaires seem to be pottering around in small sailing boats rather than triple deck gin palaces. There are good restaurants on the sea front.

A simple appraisal of your trip : wish I was doing it!

Everyone has been so helpful!

I've continued to fine tune the trip and after checking into flights I've moved the beginning around a bit. No non-stop flights out of Philadelphia but I can get it in Newark (which is easy to reach from here). So I've moved Oslo to the beginning and added the train trip to Bergen. We love train rides so that is a real bonus for us. We're also really looking forward to the ferry cruise. We're not cruise people so the idea that it's smaller and a working ship is also a big positive. Just give me good food, a view, and I'm happy.

Does seems better to you?

Scandanavian itinerary - Take 3

Day 1. Leave Philadelphia via Newark airport in order to get a non-stop flight.

Day 2. Arrive Oslo

Day 3. Oslo
4.5 hour guided bus tour in Oslo.

Day 4. Oslo to Bergen.
Morning or early afternoon train.

Day 5. Bergen

Day 6. Board Hurtigruten

Day 7. Floro, Maloy, Torvik, Alesund, Molde
Tour Ålesund for 2 hours

Day 8. Kristiansund, Trondheim, Rorvik
Free time in Teondheim

Day 9. Bronnoysund, Sandnessjoen, Nesna, Ornes, Bodo, Stamsund, Svolvaer
Free time in Bodo
Disembark in Svolvaer

Day 10-11. Svolvaer.
Rent a car

Day 12. Svolvaer to Oslo.

Day 13. Oslo to Gothenburg.
Morning or Afternoon train.

Day 14. Gothenburg

Day 15. Gothenburg to Stockholm.
Train to Alingsas for a fika tour. Then Alingsas to Stockholm.

Day 16-20. Stockholm
Evening food tour of Gamla Stan, boat to Drottningholm, sailboat ride through the archipelago, rent car or public transportation to tour outside of Stockholm one day.

Day 21. Leave for Philadelphia via Newark airport.

Oslo to Bergen should be the Norway in a Nutshell for best fjord scenery - https://www.norwaynutshell.com
In June you should also get a tour into Geirangerfjord with the Hurtigruten.

Thank you for the Norway in a Nutshell tip. I didn't know they had a one day trip? It's a 12 hour day but that's probably fine.

Is there a way to have the luggage transported from Oslo to Bergen? (I got totally spoiled in Japan. They have a whole cheap system. You basically never have to carry a bag even if you're not on a tour.)