@theatrelover - that is so strange you had the same experience in June. Maybe they are no longer planning to keep the place up.

Finally back with the next installment, this first week of school is kicking my butt--and my kids are self-sufficient. I don't know why I've been so busy.

Copenhagen

Thursday 7/26 to Monday 7/30

Pictures can be found HERE

As mentioned above, we took the train from Stockholm to Copenhagen. The train was uneventful and took about 4 � hours to get to Malmo. We arrived on the normal tracks and had to transfer to the B platform which required a walk to the right and down a flight. We had SJ tickets through to Copenhagen and there were local commuter Danish trains leaving on the opposite track. Our train arrived about 5 minutes late and we were off for the 30 min ride to Central Station arriving around 16:40.

Copenhagen is another wonderful city with even more of a mix of old and new architecture and it has a really great vibe to it. Since the water isn’t quite as prominent as Stockholm throughout the city, it felt more like a bustling city. Every person we spoke with was extremely friendly, helpful and kind. Temperatures remained warm in the mid 80s and a bit more humid with the same absence of air conditioning. Turns out that 7-11s are a little oasis there. Full on air conditioning and a little seating/lounge area with free wifi. We definitely used a couple as a nice respite in the middle of the day.

The Danes are very good looking people as a whole. The city seemed to have disproportionately many more young people than other cities or maybe I was only noticing the young, attractive crowd, ha!. I was left wondering why I chose to do my junior year abroad years ago in England and not Denmark! And they all ride their bikes, looking very chic and effortless. The bike lanes are on every street and, not being accustomed to them, you really have to think twice before stepping off a bus (often into the bike lane) and crossing the streets (especially if you are jaywalking--shh! don't tell the Scandinavians that we jaywalked.)

People were out and about on the water in all manner of boats plus sunning themselves along the waterfront and swimming in the canals. Anytime you passed a residential building, the people were out in mass in beach chairs along the water. Coming from NYC and Philly areas, I can’t imagine people swimming in the water surrounding the cities. I wish it were as normal and safe at home.

We also saw a lot of dogs/pets with people in all three countries, the golden retriever seeming to be one of the most popular breeds. I have a pic of one that had a harness on but I couldn’t tell its owner. He was just hanging out by the hot dog stand near the Round Tower.

Accommodation-- We used Airbnb and rented the first floor of an old house with a garden on a quiet dead-end street in Fredericksberg near the intersection of Gammel Kongevej and Falkoner Alle. It had 3 bedrooms and 1 bath plus a large eat in kitchen, living room and very comfortable sun porch. We loved spreading out and the kids loved having their own rooms. Because it was an old house, the windows were placed as such to receive wonderful cross breezes. So even though it was hot outside, the house remained relatively cool. And, again, no issue with bugs coming in through the open windows. If only we had that here at home. This was the first home I’ve rented that was actually someone’s full-time home. The owner was on holiday in Sweden at the time. I have to admit it was a bit strange to have all of their stuff everywhere, a full fridge/freezer and pantry.

Even though we were about 2km from the city center, Bus 9A stopped nearby and was a straight shot to downtown and the train station area in less than 10 minutes. The metro stop was about a 10 minute walk up Falkoner Alle and then one stop to Norreport and two stops to Kongens Nytorv near Nyhavn. And there were plenty of restaurants and shops nearby. So it wasn't an issue at all not staying in the center. Copenhagen is quite compact and walking from one end of the city center to the other isn’t very far.

Passes-- We got the 72 hour Copenhagen Card and it was a great deal as it covers every attraction plus transit throughout Zealand so we could use it for our day trip. You don’t need to clock in and out of the Metro and just had to flash it at bus drivers. At attractions, you still had to get in the ticket line to scan the cards. We purchased the pass before we left home, printed out the voucher and brought it to the information desk at the train station to exchange for the actual cards.

Rejseplanen is a great site to map out your transit journeys. And their app was a lifesaver more than once.

Bakeries and Food: I think I enjoyed the pastries from the Copenhagen bakeries even more than the Stockholm ones. We had breakfast at Grod one morning which is basically a fancy (meaning expensive) oatmeal/porridge place with toppings. We each got a small portion with 2-3 toppings and it was a huge amount of food. I couldn’t finish mine. I can’t imagine ordering the large. We ate at a couple food markets which we really enjoyed and I’ll mention below.

Laundry—Laundromats do not seem to be as ubiquitous in Scandinavia as in other parts of the world. A week into the trip, we needed to do laundry. Luckily, there was a laundromat, Smallegade M�ntvaskeri, about � mile from our house that we visited on Friday night. English instructions were online. To do two loads of washing and drying did cost about $35 so it was not cheap. And it only took coins.

NEXT: Did you really go to Copenhagen if you didn't get a pic of Nyhavn?

On to what we visited while in the city...

Note: At most palaces and castles in Copenhagen you had to place any bags in a locker before entering. Some required a 20 DKK coin and if you did not have one, which we did not, they loaned you one and you returned it when you were done.

Tivoli Gardens—This stop was a must-do for my family and we closed the park down on our first night in town. Walt Disney reportedly spent time here taking copious notes before designing Disneyland and, while we love Walt, he sure did rip off a lot of ideas. It is a charming park, filled with music and gardens and some very fun rides. Our favorite, which we rode many times, was the old wooden roller coaster built in 1914 with the brakeman on board. The brakemen have a great time and put on quite the show. For a simple ride, it was fantastic and my son says it has made his list of top 5 coasters of all time. That is saying a lot in the age of giga coasters and intense thrill coasters. This park is worth a walk around even if you don’t want to go on any rides, and park entrance is included with Copenhagen Card. Unlimited rides cost $38/person.

Rosenborg Castle and Kings Gardens—What was built as a summerhouse 400 years ago, is a beautiful museum today decorated in the style of the various kings over time. It is very ornate, dark and the ceilings are spectacular. It houses the room with the throne flanked by three large silver lions. It was fun to see photos elsewhere of the more recent monarchy seated in that room. It was the most crowded place we visited. We did not arrive until about 10:30/11 and the Chinese tours were there in force. You receive a timed entry ticket so that groups are going in every 10 minutes to help spread out the crowds. We had about 30 minutes before our entry so we wandered around the pretty and parched gardens. The crown jewels and treasury are in the basement of the castle.

Round Tower—Not far from Rosenborg, you climb up the continuous spiral ramp to the top of the Round Tower for nice views over the city. Next door to the tower is an Internet famous hot dog stand. We grabbed a quick lunch here supplemented with chips and drinks from a nearby Netto. I thought the dogs were ok, not as good as the hype and nowhere near as good as the gas station dogs in Norway.

Hay/Illum Top Floor Views—from the Round Tower we wandered down a main pedestrian shopping street. I loved the architecture of the old buildings but the storefronts are mostly large international chains. At the intersection of Kobmagergade and Stroget is a nice piazza with fountain. Illum department store and Hay House sit on the square next to one another. We went to the top of the Hay House for a nice view of the city. Illum supposedly offers the same nice view from the top.

Lego Store—down Stroget sits the Lego flagship store. Our kids were very much Lego kids up until a few years ago. We have many buildings and sets on display in a spare bedroom we call the Lego Room. We stopped in to see if it had any special sets not found elsewhere but it didn’t seem to. The Lego displays of local landmarks were great. When my husband went through his photos, he realized that he took a picture looking up Stroget at the Illum and Hay buildings. His very next picture was from in the Lego store of that exact same scene built out of Legos. I put the two photos in my photo gallery.

Magstraede—Not far from Lego down by the canal is one of the oldest streets in Copenhagen. I loved the architecture of these colorful old buildings and the feel of the place. I had read Gorm pizza here and elsewhere in town was a good pizza place. We didn’t eat there though.

Christiansborg Palace—We really enjoyed this stop and felt like we had it mostly to ourselves. No crowds at all. The reception rooms were quite large, grand, light and airy, the complete opposite of Rosenborg Castle. The kitchens were nothing to write home about but we enjoyed seeing the carriages at the stables. The horses were all at their summer homes. My favorites were the sleigh carriages, especially those built for the children. My son loved the medieval ruins but I wasn’t too interested. It is free to anyone to go up the tower for views but the line was long and not moving. I guess they only let so many up at a time and we decided not to wait having seen other views of the city.

Canal Tour—Included with the Copenhagen Card and it gives you some history and hits many of the landmarks from the water. It was very nice to sit for about an hour and sail around the water looking at the views. You can use one of two companies and both depart from either the canal across from Christiansborg Palace or from Nyhavn. Because we were there, we got on a Stromma boat across from Christiansborg. This meant we did not go down Nyhavn canal. While at first I was a bit disappointed, I later realized that the view from down low in the water isn’t as good as walking along the canal and we didn’t have to do the 50 point turn to turn around at the end of the canal. But the most disappointing feature of our canal tour is we got stuck on a boat with a roof and the roof inhibited open views. We sat on the back deck, again not wanting to sit under a glass roof in that sun, and looked longingly at all the other tour boats that were open topped. The commentary was quite good and very self deprecating about the Danes. The waterways were jammed with people sunning themselves along the edge and swimming in the water. You could tell when you got to a residential building as there didn’t seem to be any open spot along the water. I could never imagine people swimming in the rivers in NYC so it was mind-boggling to see it here.

The Lakes area—One evening we wandered around the Lakes area and grabbed dinner at a pretty good waterside pizza place, Gran Torino. Unfortunately, all outdoor tables were taken with a waitlist. So we sat inside near the open windows and it wasn’t too stuffy. A lot of people were out and about, just hanging around with their friends, especially on the Queen Louise Bridge. As we finished dinner, we noticed the sky becoming very dark and the wind picking up as a thunderstorm moved in. We quickly hoofed it to the Metro stop but no one around us seemed too concerned and continued just chilling out on the bridge, lightning in the distance.

Church of Our Savior Spire—We arrived here not long after it opened and happy we did, as the there is only one staircase shared by those going up and down and crowds would have made it difficult. The views from the top were great. The last 150 steps are outside spiraling around the spire which was a great feature and not scary at all. My husband hates heights and enjoyed this. You could just see the bridge crossing to Sweden in the distance.

Christianshavns Canal—This was one of my favorite areas and is a fun area to walk around and enjoy the many boats, the boat traffic and the buildings that line it

Nyhavn—We didn’t make it to Nyhavn, the most iconic spot in Copenhagen, until the afternoon before we left. Though it was crowded with tourists, it still is a beautiful line of old colorful buildings along the canal and definitely worth the photo op.

Reffen Food Market—Copenhagen Street Food on Paper Island popped up everywhere in recommendations of where to eat/go in Copenhagen. But, it closed last winter and the owners opened a new spot up on Refshaleoen. The location isn’t as convenient and I don’t think all the food vendors followed them up to the new spot but it consists of about 45 food vendors selling all sorts of different kinds of cuisines. You can either take the 9A bus to the end of its route or ferry 991 or 992 across from south of Kastellet and then walk about � mile to the food market. It was a great option for us as we all prefer different types of food and our son’s picky ways didn’t hinder our selection of food. I enjoyed a sandwich from Miss Piggy which was a riff on the classic Danish fl�skesteg but with pulled pork and pork rinds instead of a slab of roast pork with crackling. There was seating all over, out in the sun, under pavilions and under umbrellas.

The ferries come about every 30 minutes. We waited at the Nyhavn terminal to get one to go over to Reffen. There were only 2 people waiting when we arrived at the terminal. But more people came during the 10-15 minute wait. When the ferry arrived, it was packed. A good number of people disembarked but the guy said he could only take 10. I wish we had started a line when we arrived but figured it wouldn’t be an issue. People swarmed to the entrance and I was able to push up but we were only number 9 and 10 and he wouldn’t let the kids on. Frustrated and not wanting to wait another 30 minutes to have the same thing happen again, we walked down and across the river to grab the bus. On the way back though, the ferry guy saw us coming from pretty far away and waited for us to get to the ferry. So karma came back to help us out.

Little Mermaid—After Reffen, we took the ferry back over to Kastellet and since we were nearby, we decided to take the short walk up to the most disappointing tourist attraction in the world. It isn’t really, but there really are a lot of people that go to look at the little statue. It is more amusing to watch the spectacle of tourists and their attempts at selfies with the mermaid than to see the statue.

Amalienborg Palace—The current home of the royal family and it houses a museum about the family that I actually enjoyed. I also loved the 4 identical palaces situated in a circle around the center plaza. Each one being home to a member of the family plus one for guests.

Go Boat—Our last evening in town, we rented a GoBoat for an hour to tool around the canals on our own. It is a solar powered boat that goes about 6mph, seats 8 and has a table in the center so you can enjoy food and drink you bring aboard. It is quite easy to operate, just turn the rudder and twist the handle to steer and go. It was a beautiful evening, very little boat traffic and we quite enjoyed the putter about while snacking and imbibing. You pick the boat up at Islands Brygge next to a manmade swimming hole on the canal which was crowded with people enjoying the water and towers to jump from.

Frederiksberg Park—Since we were staying close to the park, one evening my husband and I dumped the kids, grabbed a bottle of wine and sat on a bench in the Park in a pretty spot near the Palace, a plain yellow building. There were a number of couples lazing about on blankets, young families kicking around a soccer ball and many people jogging or strolling through the park.

NEXT: Day-trippin' to a couple castles

I'm really enjoying your trip report. The 7-11s crack me up!

It is great you went to Tivoli Garden. As a kid, I read about it in a book called Bright Candles--A Novel of the Danish Resistance. One of the scenes before the occupation is set there. It sounded enchanting.

Thanks @5alive. It was funny, we walked into a 7-11 to ask directions and were like "why do we feel like this place is really nice?" and it finally dawned on us that it was A/C we were feeling. We later went back when we had to kill time and learned about the free wifi and this one had stool seating along a bar. At another one, the girl working mentioned their back lounge to sit if we wanted. Too bad they are typically so crappy in the US.

Daytrip Outside Copenhagen to Frederiksborg Castle and Kronborg (Hamlet’s) Castle

Photos found HERE

Saturday, July 28

Since transportation and admission were all covered by the Copenhagen Card, it was an easy decision to travel north about an hour to visit Fredericksborg and Kronborg Castles. We had also thought we’d visit the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art but the family decided to bag out on that due to weather and tiredness.

They were doing track work this summer along some of the train lines so replacement buses were used. When we exchanged our vouchers for actual Copenhagen Cards at the tourist office, the woman explained the replacement bus issue to us. When we mentioned wanting to see Frederiksborg Castle as well, she basically said that we did not want to waste our time there. We did not listen to her and I actually enjoyed that castle more than the Hamlet Kronborg Castle.

The transit site rejseplanen.dk and corresponding app are great for planning the journey. If you want to go to Frederiksborg, Kronborg and the Louisiana Museum I think the easiest way is to go in that order. You can take a train to Hiller�d, train to Helsing�r and then a bus to Humleb�k.

Frederiksborg Castle

We took the metro to N�rreport and transferred to the S trains for the train to Hiller�d. I knew Frederiksborg castle was about a mile from the train station. When we arrived at the station, I expected signposts pointing the way or at least a bunch of other tourists looking for the castle. Nothing. We stopped into the 7-11 (the beautifully air-conditioned oasis) and asked an employee. We could take the 301 or 302 bus or walk and he pointed out the route. We decided to walk and he sent us through town to a little flea market in a town square by the lake rather than the more direct route around town on a busy road. From there, we asked someone and she sent us the “pretty” way around the lake instead of the short way. About 25 minutes later, we finally made it and while it was quite a nice nature walk around the lake, we were now very hot and tired. And, another Chinese busload pulled up as we crossed over the castle drawbridge.

This castle is architecturally beautiful and situated in a very pretty setting on the edge of a lake. Inside, it was over-the-top ornate in its decor. The ceilings were beautiful but out of control in the level of detail. The castle was also jam-packed with a ton of stuff and exhibits about Danish history. I’m sure a modern day minimalist would get heart palpitations walking through it. If you had an interest in Danish history, you could spend all day there. I actually quite enjoyed it and was extremely surprised to learn that others don’t think it is so great.

Kronborg Castle

Once we were done, we hopped on bus 301 from the bus stop across from the castle and rode back to the train station to travel to Helsing�r.

You take the L930R train which runs on a different line than the S trains. When we arrived in the morning, I noted the track for that line and it came to a dead-end right next to the side of the station building. Therefore, I (wrongly) assumed the trains came in and out on that one line. As the time approached for our train to depart, it was listed on the board but there was no train on or approaching the track. I can’t recall if there was a track number, it might have said 14 and we were standing at 13. The time of departure came and went, the train disappeared from the board and we stood there wondering what the heck happened. It wasn’t until then that we thought to look over on the other side of the station house for another L track and, sure enough, there was the sister track with a dead end at that side of the station! Unfortunately, that train is once an hour at :55. A train departing at :59 takes you part way and you transfer to a bus for the remainder of the trip and it is about 20 min longer. But I was too discombobulated to figure out what train that was and to hop on it as it was pulling out. So we were stuck. Using our favorite 7-11’s free wifi, I looked at the journey app and saw we could take a train back toward Copenhagen to Hellerup (I think) and hop on a replacement bus and arrive in Helsingor about 40 min later than we would have arrived originally. We decided we’d rather be moving than sitting around with nothing to do but feel stupid for an hour, so we ran and hopped on that train. Turns out the replacement buses were large charter buses with very cold A/C. We had a nice comfortable 30 minute ride on the bus so it wasn’t so bad after all. Most especially because we weren’t under any time crunch.

On the train to Hellerup, we jumped on a car with two woman, an older mother and middle aged daughter with bicycles. We wanted to confirm we were on the correct train and what ensued was a lot of confusion due to mispronunciations. After we confirmed we were headed in the right direction, they asked where we were going and we said Helsing�r. Because we mispronounced the �, they thought we said Helsinge, a town where the mother grew up and they were very excited we were going there but worried we were definitely headed in the wrong direction. I said something about the Hamlet castle and she then got very distraught because that is nowhere near Helsinge. We came to our stop and they cautiously bid us good luck. We had a good laugh the rest of the day that we were probably the subject around their dinner table that night—those poor tourists sent on a wild goose chase looking for Hamlet’s castle and ending up miles away!

Helsing�r is a delightful town on the water with a lot of street activity, great old houses and wonderful shopping streets. As we were walking through the streets on the way to the castle, it started to drizzle slightly. A Danish family was loading up their car and got very excited when they felt the raindrops. People were dying for rain.

We went to V�rftets Madmark, a street food market near Kronborg castle for lunch. Luckily it is housed in a warehouse type building because that light drizzle turned into a little downpour while we ate. There were about 15-20 vendors offering all kinds of different food. I enjoyed the classic fl�skesteg and it was wonderful. I had read that Isted Grill in Copenhagen was a dive place to get the sandwich and getting there just didn’t fit into the schedule, especially given I was the only one who wanted to try the sandwich. So I was happy to get a chance to eat it here. My husband and daughter got the fish and chips which seemed to be the most popular stand at the market. My son got a burger.

Our tummies happily full, we headed to Hamlet’s castle which sits out on a point on the water—the closest spot to Sweden? During the summer, the castle has actors throughout the castle playing the parts in Hamlet and you can watch them act out different scenes and scenarios around the castle (I have a little video snippet in my photos). Most of the castle was quite empty, even more noticeable coming from Fredericksborg, so this and the cool setting was the only real draw to the castle for me. But the rest of family really enjoyed the place. We climbed up to the roof and enjoyed the view. You could watch the ferries coming and going from Sweden and overlook the cute town of Helsingor. It started drizzling again as we were getting ready to leave so we stayed ducked into a doorway looking out onto the large main square courtyard in the middle of the castle. Hamlet, pretending to be a lunatic, came running out of another doorway and ran around laughing maniacally with his arms spread wide and face up to the skies relishing the rain that everyone was dying to come. It was quite a funny moment of improv.

Unfortunately, the only thing the rain did was make it feel that much more muggy and hot. I next wanted to visit the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art as I had heard it was set on beautiful grounds by the sea. But my family was turned off by the idea of a modern art museum and the rain and heat was putting a damper on the thought of wandering around outside. So I lost that battle and we headed back to Copenhagen on a nice air conditioned charter bus transferring to the S train again at Hellerup Station.

NEXT: The last leg of our trip up in the gorgeous Lofoten Islands

7-11 to the rescue again! Love it.

Your pictures of Fredericksborg Castle remind me of some of the ostentation I saw in Hampton Court. That amazing green bed you photographed. I loved that timbered ceiling at Hamlet's castle. I would say it's to die for, but this is Hamlet so maybe not.

@5alive - Ha!

Lofoten Islands, Norway

Monday, July 30 to Friday, Aug 3

Pictures of too much scenery can be found HERE. I did include some photos of the actual hiking trails at different points to give an idea of what they were like.

Midday Monday, we packed up and did a 180 degree turn from our city sightseeing by leaving Copenhagen to fly to the Lofoten Islands. Back in 2000, my husband and I spent a week in Norway enjoying Oslo, Norway in a Nutshell, Bergen, some extra time on the fjords. This time, we wanted something different and after learning about the Lofoten Islands, we couldn’t stop thinking about it and researching it. We are so happy with our decision and it was our kids' favorite place on the trip which surprised us. You can use every one of the superlative adjectives to describe this area way up north just above the Arctic Circle. And they all would be fitting. Drop dead gorgeous scenery around just about every turn.

We had been thinking the Lofoten Islands were going to be a wonderful respite from the heat as temperatures had been in the low to mid-60s prior to our arrival. But, no. Temps got up to 88 on Monday as we arrived.

As mentioned above, we flew from CPH to EVE-Harstad/Narvik via Oslo on SAS. We had no delays and arrived at EVE at 17:30 that evening, got our rental car, stopped at the Circle K right next to the airport for some drinks and took off for Svolvaer, about a 2 � hour drive with the jaw-dropping scenery that got better and better the further west you drove. Mountains towering over turquoise blue clear water with little communities of charming homes nestled at their feet. It is breathtaking.

We arrived in Svolvaer around 20:30 and checked into our hotel for that night. We stayed at Lofoten Rorbuer which wasn’t a traditional rorbuer but rather a newer hotel that offered 2 bedroom suites with living room and kitchens. The suites were all in one large building and each suite opened to a dock that surrounded the property overlooking the harbor. Svolv�rgeita, “the goat”, towered above the hotel and you could easily see the people that had climbed to the horns and were jumping from one to the other. I was happy to observe, I had no intention of trying it myself. You do need to hire a guide if you do want to climb it.

We drove downtown to grab some pizza and pasta for dinner at Fellini Svolvaer. Then we stopped at the grocery store to purchase some food for breakfast and the next few days.

Our suite was great, if it had been cooler. One room with 2 narrow twin beds and another very narrow room with a set of bunk beds. A fully stocked kitchen with every appliance/utensil/vessel you could want and a nice living area with a sectional and tv and a dining area with small table. There was also a small table out on the dock. The downside—it felt like it was 100 degrees inside. The windows opened just about 3 inches and the only windows were at the front of the suite. There was zero cross ventilation and with temperatures so high that day, it was an oven. I didn’t sleep well in Copenhagen so I think I got the most sleep that night. The kids slept poorly and my husband quickly gave up on the bedroom and camped out on the sectional or out on the dock trying to get cool. I did wake up around 1am and went looking for him. He was out on the dock and, even though the sun had set at 11:10 and would rise around 3, it was very light outside. I wouldn’t even call it as dark as dusk or dawn.

There are many ways to enjoy the area. Just driving around or visiting Njusfjord (an historic fishing village) or doing some serious hiking and camping or going on adventures like renting a boat or kayak or horseback riding (apparently Icelandic horses originated in the Lofoten) or taking a cruise or speed boat up the Trollfjordan (although all reviews say you are dive bombed by seagulls so that did not interest us.) Our goal in the Lofotens was to drive the length of it, enjoy the spectacular scenery, and to do some easy hikes. There are a number of hikes that are moderate to difficult or that take hours to do that are considered wonderful. We weren’t interested in those. First, though we are currently moderately fit, I think those moderate hikes, by Norwegian standards, would kick our butts. My husband is also nervous of heights and exposed ridges really freak him out, especially with our kids involved. We also did not care to camp and some of the more popular hikes require a night or two of camping. And, lastly, and probably most importantly, given that we were traveling for 2 weeks and most of that time was spent in cities, we didn’t want to lug a bunch of hiking gear with us. We all brought some athletic wear and low, waterproof hiking shoes which were trim enough to wear while in the city and sufficient for our hikes. Our plan was to find what is considered by Norwegians to be easier hikes, around 1-2 km, and offer a big payoff in views. And we definitely found some great ones. It did rain one day so we couldn’t do all the ones we had planned.

I also want to point out that we only saw one other American family the whole time we were in the Lofotens. It was a college-aged kid wearing a Bowdoin t-shirt with his parents in Reine. Other than that, I didn’t hear or see any other Americans. Though lots of kids were wearing NY Yankees baseball hats and t-shirts and when my husband would call it out, they would look at him quizzically. On our first hike, we passed a family and the dad looked like he walked straight off the Jersey Shore with his American tank top, trucker hat and his Italian looks. Shocking to hear him speak German. Amusingly, all 4 of us noticed him independently and commented on him to each other once the hike was over. And since I look Scandinavian (Mom is Swedish heritage), I would choose to either say “hey! “ and pretend to be Swedish or “hi!” and pretend to be Danish or Norwegian as we passed people on the hikes.

Tjeldbergtind Hike

The next morning after a quick breakfast, we packed up our stuff and the car and headed out to our first hike. We started out with the Tjeldbergtind hike as the trailhead was just west of Svolvaer near the Esso station. There were about 4 parking spaces at the trailhead and luckily one spot was still open.

It was warm, high of about 85 degrees. The hike starts out on a pretty steep gravel road to a radio tower and then goes straight up the mountain through some low brush and trees and rocks to the summit ridge. It is steep but relatively easy. It took us less than an hour to climb to the summit. There were a few other people that we passed on the way but not at all crowded. Once up on the summit, you were rewarded with gorgeous views looking down on Svolvaer and its surrounding mountains to the east and Kavelbag and its towering mountain to the west. And of course, all surrounded by sparkling water. What I think was the Hurtigruten ship was sitting out off the Svolvaer harbor during our climb. It looked like it from afar at least.

I actually have a harder time going down than up. Descending steep hillsides, sometimes with loose dirt and rocks underfoot is not that fun, and I was definitely using those trees as safety posts. It also really hurts my knees and my toes jam into the top of my shoe, so I was walking funny for a few weeks after the trip.

Afterward, we were hot and so thankful for A/C in the car. We backtracked to the Circle K in Svolvaer for drinks. But their refrigeration system wasn’t doing well in the heat and the drinks were warm. We returned to the Esso, hoping to get some hot dogs as well, but a family had just come through and cleaned them out of their cooked dogs. So we took off heading west toward our next hike, hoping to come across some food along the way. There was nothing. Every now and then you’d see a sign for a camping ground that also advertised some food but it didn’t seem worth stopping at those places. I had one place noted in my notes between Svolvaer and Leknes that had good reviews but it was closed. We pushed on to Leknes, another larger town like Svolvaer but not as nice, and checked out a few places to eat. We ended up getting hot dogs at the Circle K there. This would become a recurring theme for us. Thank god for cheap, tasty Circle K dogs.

We passed the Viking museum on the way to Leknes. We had considered visiting but at $70 for our family, decided it was just too expensive for the amount of time we would probably spend there. But it does look very cool.

Mannen Hike

Not far from Leknes are Haukland and Uttakleiv beaches. There is a third beach further down from Haukland which I think is just considered an extension of Haukland. The Mannen Hike climbs the mountain directly behind Haukland and above the tunnel to Uttakleiv.

We arrived at Haukland beach, which has a large parking lot, and it was crowded with people enjoying the warm temperatures. People were sunning on the beach, playing in the water and there was even a beach volleyball game in progress. We found one of the last parking spots and got ready for our hike.

To start the hike, you follow the road and power lines up to the mountain and then follow the well worn trail switchbacking up. At one point, the road is washed out which was a bit treacherous but you just pick your way along the rocks trying to keep heading up. Eventually, you head up to the ridgeline. This hike wasn’t quite as steep as the first one but it was longer and also hotter since it was the afternoon. Once at the summit, you have a gorgeous view of the 3 beaches below with their white sand beaches and turquoise water and mountains in the distance. It is spectacular.

Once we descended, we headed straight to the water to wade in and cool off. The Arctic Ocean was freezing! My feet became numb quite quickly like they were in an ice bath. And a bunch of people in bikinis were swimming like the water temp was 80 degrees. Crazy! The water was crystal clear and the white sand was soft and powdery. Such a special place.

A tunnel goes under Mannen and takes you to Uttakliev Beach, another beautiful beach. This one had more campers and less day-trippers than Haukland.

Hamnoy

From here, we made the drive west to our hotel for the next two nights in Hamnoy. The scenery became more and more dramatic the further west we drove. The mountains became steeper and more craggy. You wanted to pull over at every curve to take another photo. Unfortunately, that is not my husband’s style so I was snapping pics left and right from the moving car hoping some would capture the beauty.

We arrived in Hamnoy around 18:00 at our hotel, Eliasson Rorbuer, the classic red fisherman cabins on stilts on the water. It is situated on the Reinefjordan surrounded by towering, beautiful mountains. The setting could not be any more stunning. When you make your reservation, you select the cabin you want. We had selected #22, a two bedroom right on the water with mind-boggling views of those mountains on the Reinefjordan from the living and dining room windows. The cabin was great, updated with two bedrooms, each with a bunk bed with full size bed on bottom and single bed on top. Sectional couch plus large dining table. Nice kitchen, not quite as well stocked as the last place, but certainly everything you needed. It was everyone’s favorite place we stayed and all the windows opened wide so we had wonderful cooling cross breezes. Everyone was so happy to sleep well.

We headed down to the Coop grocery store on the way to Reine to buy some food for breakfast and dinners. On the way back, we stopped at Anita’s Fish House, part of the Sakrisoy Rorbuer. We had also considered staying here but the views didn’t look as nice for the same price. And I confirmed that they were not as nice while we were there. Anita’s is known for their fish sandwiches which you can have topped with shrimp and/or salmon. Served on a bun with a special sauce. It gets great reviews so my husband and I each got a sandwich and it was ok. The bun fell apart horribly making it difficult to eat. At almost $20, I wouldn’t get another one. My son got a beautiful piece of salmon for about $7 that I fried up for him back at our cabin. My husband wished he had done the same.

NEXT: The world's best cinnamon buns, a rained out day and Orcas!

Love your enticing photos of the Lofoten Islands. What incredible scenery. It's been added to my travel "wish list" (and I haven't yet read about your orca encounters).

The "easy' hikes you wrote about sound somewhat challenging. A couple of questions: Did you encounter any mosquitoes or midges? About how many daylight hours did you have?

My husband and I were in Copenhagen in early June and were also caught off guard by the extreme heat. On one of the days we were there, Copenhagen's temperature was the highest in Europe. I'd planned to visit several of the Copenhagen attractions you reviewed, but couldn't bear walking around in that heat. However, I did go to the Louisiana Art Museum. For future reference, I think your teens would have enjoyed it, because of its setting, its sculpture garden surrounded by ample picnic spots and seating facing the sea, and its exhibitions (especially the dazzling Yayoi Kusama installation). There's a beach below the museum and a small lake on the property. It was also cooler there than in Copenhagen.

On this same trip, we were also in Bergen, Oslo, and did NIN. We'd read Norway could be cool and Bergen wet in early June, so brought thermals and waterproof clothes. Instead, we went about in tee-shirts and shorts. In planning our trip, I tried to convince my husband to extend the Norway portion of our trip, but, as we were escaping winter on the South Island of New Zealand, he insisted on spending time "someplace warm" hence we traveled from Norway to Spain. Who could have anticipated that Norway would be so warm?

Looking forward to the rest of your trip report.

Fabulous photos, especially those of the Lofoten islands. I think I'm going to have to take a trip to this corner of the world...and hope that it's not sweltering.

Thanks again for posting. This is a really helpful and interesting report.

I so appreciate the detail of your trip report. We are planning something similar and this is incredibly helpful. And I love the pictures. I'm also very impressed with your mastery of the mass transit. Do you think it would be challenging for those of us who are a bit older?

Public transportation in Sweden & Denmark is very easy to take. Train services can be unreliable and there has been a lot of disruption this summer. In some cases, a rental car is a better option as in the OPs day trip out of Copenhagen to North Sj�lland. That way the scenic coastal route north of Copenhagen could have been taken and could have stopped at fishing villages eg Gilleleje or seaside resorts such as Hornb�k which would have been perfect for swimming this summer etc as well as seeing the castles. As I mentioned before, English is spoken everywhere.

@ Diamantina - Thank you. The "easy" hikes are considered easy by Norwegian standards which are quite different than ours. The two we did our first day are considered afternoon strolls for locals. We saw all ages from 5 to probably 70 on the trails. They were not challenging in the fact that there isn't any technical climbing, exposed ridges, tricky areas to navigate, or long. But they are steep (not steep enough to need chains like on some routes) so you would need to be fit enough to climb up the steep hillside and scramble over rocks. As I mentioned, going down was much worse for me. But, I would be lying if I said I was disappointed the rain gave us a day break between hikes.
We did not see any bugs at all. We had our windows, without screens, wide open in the archipelago, Copenhagen and the Lofotens and no bugs came into the rooms and we had no bites or bothersome things flying around our heads on our hikes. It actually surprised me because I had heard mosquitos could be bad and we were ready with bug repellent wipes in our bags. Maybe their mosquitos don't do well in the heat!
I wish we had made it to Louisiana but it was 3 against 1. I think if the storm cells weren't moving in from Sweden I could have convinced them.
New Zealand is also an absolutely beautiful country! I've only been there once in July '94 after a year in Asia so I loved the cooler temps. It is actually the only place I've ever skied, mainly because why else wouldn't you ski in July if you could. We did one day on the Remarkables, mostly the bunny slope tho! Also got snowed in at Mt. Cook for 2-3 days with a huge storm. We had wanted to fly up to the glacier but my friend wanted to wait until morning to get the best light for photos and the storm came in and we never made it to the glacier. Still upsets me to this day.

@Leely2 - Thank you. I highly recommend a trip to the region, it really is wonderful. And hopefully, the heat wave was a fluke and not what many fear is the new norm with climate change.

@lauramsgarden - Thank you, I'm happy to be able to provide you with some logistic details. Mass transit is extremely easy to master in these cities, the hardest part is getting used to the names of stops! The apps, SL in Stockholm and Rejsplanen in Copenhagen, are extremely helpful. I like to figure out routes before we leave home so I have an idea of what timing is going to be or any transfer points so I recommend doing that on their websites. Just to make you more comfortable. Also, once in the station or at many bus stops, they have screens telling you how long until the train/bus arrives and then, once on board, screens announce what stop is next. That eliminates a lot of stress that you'll miss your stop. Since we don't have free international data on our mobile plan, when on wifi I would take screenshots of the "journey" for the longer trips so I could follow along on my phone. On the Rejsplanen app, you can look at the map view and see where the buses are at the moment. When we left for the airport, we sat in our house watching the map and then left in time to grab the bus without waiting a while at the stop. If you have the transit pass in Stockholm, you just tap in and out at the subway stations or when you get on the bus. In Copenhagen, you don't have to tap in and out with the Copenhagen Card, just have it on you. It makes it super easy. If you are paying as you go, you can purchase a ticket on the app and it is good for 75 min I think. And, again, everyone is so helpful and speaks very good English, so just ask if you get confused.

@Odin - we did consider renting a car but since the cost of transit is included in the Copenhagen Card we decided it wasn't worth the extra money. Also, given the suggestions of time needed at each stop, we didn't think we'd have enough time to do things other than the 2 castles and museum. In hindsight, especially with the weather, we probably would have been better off with a car.

I have been impatiently waiting for this installment because I've wanted to visit the Lofoten Islands for years. Thanks for the detailed report and the gorgeous photos!

Leaving for Oslo, Alesund and Stockholm in 2 weeks, need to study this further.

@Diamantina - I realized I missed your daylight hours question. In the Lofoten Islands, while the sunset around 11 and rose around 3, it never got dark. As my husband said, it was light enough at 1 or 2 in the morning to go play a round of golf. So it wasn't even as dark as it is at dusk or dawn. I was actually surprised by this as we were past the midnight sun time.

@ Fra_Diavolo - thank you! you should visit, it does not disappoint!

@Wekiva - Enjoy your trip! I think I've convinced my 82 yo mother that I need to take her over to Sweden to visit her homeland. And hit Norway while we are there. So hopefully I can make a return visit soon!

The Tip of the Lofotens

The next morning, we awoke to beautiful blue skies. We decided to drive down through the rest of the towns to �, the southernmost/westernmost town on the islands. We drove by the small towns Reine, Moskenes, Sorvagen and Tind to get there. Each one charming. A popular way to get to the islands is to take the ferry from Bodo to Moskenes and there are a lot of famous hikes on this island known as Moskenesoya. We noticed a lot more serious backpackers, hikers and campers wandering around the area than we saw further up island. Many people come into Moskenes and walk or hitchhike to get around (and we did see many hitchhikers), camping at night wherever they find themselves.

Once again, the scenery on the drive did not disappoint and frankly, did not seem real. The mountains in this area are the most dramatic. The road ends at � which has the best bakery. Founded in 1844, it turns out countless cinnamon buns in its old stone oven. No exaggeration, it was the best cinnamon bun I have ever had. With skinnier strands of dough that were wrapped around, over and under, not in a typical spiral, the sugar beautifully caramelized sweet and crunchy on the outside, the inside just the perfect side of gooey and the cinnamon not too overpowering. Heaven on earth. Thank god I bought more than one to have later but it wasn’t as good as fresh out of the oven. Here, and in the other little villages we passed out this way, you find the drying racks used to freeze dry the cod each winter. Of course, they were empty now.

On our way back to Hamnoy, I made my husband stop at just about every turnout to take photos. I finally got out of the car at Sakrisoy, sent him on and walked back to our cabin, snapping pictures along the way. I passed a group of 4 hikers, sleeping in the long grass just off the side of the road right before the last bridge to Hamnoy. No tents, just bodies sprawled out on the grass half wrapped in sleeping bags. As I was crossing that bridge, I looked back to the west and the sky had darkened and a storm was quickly moving in. Those hikers were about to get a rude awakening. It would pour rain off and on for most of the day. And it finally cooled off to the low 60s. Yay!

Orcas!

We had planned to hike to Kvalvika Beach and up to the Ryten summit that day. But, with the rain, we happily stayed put and relaxed, enjoying the amazing views snug in our comfortable cabin. Late afternoon, the rain was misting and we decided to head into Reine to look for something to eat and check out the town. My daughter was taking her time getting ready, as 15 yo girls can do, and my husband, son and I were standing out on the rocks alongside the water taking in the scenery, waiting for her. I had just turned to start walking back up to the parking lot when some guy drove up yelling and screaming out of the car window. I finally made out the word “orcas!” and saw him gesturing. I turned to see a pod of at least 4 killer whales moving from right to left through the fjord, right in front of us, jumping out of the water (I think it is called porpoising) one after the other. It was thrilling to see them so close. Their backs were the blackest of black and their bellies were bright white. They swam through the fjord, under the bridge and then out to sea. Completely stunned, I didn’t have the wherewithal to grab my phone and photograph or video it until the very end and you can just see one jumping. My husband did catch them porpoising on video as they approached the bridge. After they disappeared, the guy had gotten out of the car and was laughing and saying in broken English that we must have thought he was crazy but he wanted us to see the whales. Forever indebted to him. We took off in our car and a fairly large crowd had gathered at the bridge with cameras and pointing out to sea so they obviously had seen them too.

Reine is a larger village with accommodations, a Circle K, and a casual caf�. There might even be a more expensive restaurant there too. Both our hotel and the one in Sakrisoy have fine dining restaurants. It seemed you had a choice of expensive, excellent dining or Circle K hot dogs and burgers/ bakeries and cafes/ grocery store food. Not much choice in between.

Given the rain, we were surprised to see people up on top of Reinebringen, probably the most Instagram famous view of the Lofotens. (Google image it, it is stunning) It is known to be a slippery, muddy, steep climb on a good day. So many people have done the climb, the trail has severely deteriorated and the Norwegians have “closed” it due to rocks falling from above and the dangers that pose to those climbing below. They are building a new trail but it hasn’t been completed yet. People still need to get that photo, so they climb it, warnings be damned.

NEXT: Our last day in the Lofotens and one exhausting hike

Kvalvika Beach/Ryten Hike

The next day was a mix of low clouds and sun and about 63 degrees. We packed up and headed out to do the Kvalvika Beach/Ryten hike and then to work our way back to the airport for our morning flight the next day. I’ll go into more detail for this hike, as I wish I had read this detail before we’d done it.

This hike is one of the more popular hikes and while there were definitely others around us, it really felt quite quiet. People talk about the Lofotens getting too crowded with tourists, long back-ups on the roads and crowded trails. We did not experience this at all. The only back-up we had on the road was getting behind one guy, probably local, driving exactly the speed limit. On the trails, every now and then, someone would pass us. When we got to Ryten summit, there was a group of about a dozen people there and they were headed out and we were up there with maybe 4-5 other people. And you’d think the end of July/early August would be high season. I also read a lot about very muddy trails. I guess it must have also experienced the drought too because we had no mud, even after the rainy day.

You have a choice of trails with this hike. You can hike up and over a pass and down to Kvalvika beach which takes about an hour and is relatively easy. A lot of large rocks or small boulders at the pass which can be a pain to scramble over. On the way out, I was getting tired and lazy and scraped my leg a couple times on the rocks. Then once at the beach, you can climb up to Ryten. Or you can skip the beach and walk directly to Ryten from what we noticed were three different trailheads. Unfortunately, the trailheads are a few kilometers apart so if you chose to hike to Ryten, down to Kvalvika and then out to the road (which would have been my preference), you’d not be near your car. We decided to do beach, Ryten, beach, back out and it took just over 4 � hours and was exhausting. I’m happy we visited the beach because it is beautiful and empty with just some campers in tents up on the grass. But it was a very steep, seemingly never-ending climb up to Ryten. I can’t be sure, but my guess is the hike directly up to Ryten from the road is less steep.

There is a parking lot at the trailhead and, as seemed our fate each time, we snagged the last spot. They’ve laid boards out in the first part of the hike to cover what is usually mud so that was nice. When you reach the top of the pass, the empty white sand beach, turquoise water and towering mountains on either side is quite the sight. I had read some camping reviews that complain about the sheep getting in their business and laughed when I noticed groups of sheep grazing right next to the tents.

We decided to start the climb to Ryten and visit the beach afterward. There is a small rocky stream that runs down the hill and provides drinking water. The path follows this stream up the extremely steep hill. When we reached the top of that part, we saw we could continue walking forward and up quite a ways and then do a switchback or take a very steep shortcut straight up. We had noticed a couple taking the shortcut and there was a couple not too far ahead of us that chose the switchback. We decided to take the shortcut and it was literally as steep as climbing a ladder. On all fours using dirt and rocks to pull yourself up. This was not the best decision.

At the top of that hill, the summit kept seeming to move further away and up, and while still steep, it was more manageable than the shortcut. We climbed another hill. I was ahead of my crew and my husband yelled out not to let him know if we weren’t near the summit at the top as he wanted to stay optimistic. It was hard to hide my disappointment that we weren’t even close. A couple hikers were coming down and they said it was another 20-30 minutes but was worth it. At this point, the switchback intersected and an older gentleman, I assume a local, breezed past me and almost ran up to the summit.

My daughter noticed when I was going through the photos and groaned, “I never thought we’d get to the summit. Every hill you’d think was it and you’d get to the top and it was just another hill to climb.” Thank god it was a cool day. But we finally made it the top and were rewarded with incredible views. The water truly is that bright turquoise color. As you can see in the photos, there is a rock that overhangs the mountain. From looking at photos beforehand it looked like an optical illusion where there really was ground beneath it. This didn’t turn out to exactly be the case. There are some outcroppings below it but not much is keeping you from plummeting. But if you google it, people hang from the rock for photos. We posed just in from it and were happy with that. To the north, it was sheer cliffs down to the sea. The couple that took the switchback path arrived about 15-20 minutes after we did and they had been moving faster than we were. So while we did save time with the steep shortcut, I don’t know if it was worth the energy expenditure.

Going down was much easier until we reached the first steep part near the beach. That was a knee killer, I did tiny little switchbacks down to make it easier. We did see a number of dogs going up the mountain with their owners, at least 3 were golden retrievers. One smallish white fluffy dog we had noticed coming down when we first arrived at the beach, was heading up with another person as we descended. We stopped to pet him and she said that he was not happy to be going again but she wanted the company. Once back at the beach, we headed to the water to cool our feet. A couple people ran in to swim. I’ll reiterate that this water is freezing!

My husband said, “ok, someone can bring the car around” and I just about died because I realized we weren’t even close to being done, having another hour’s hike to get back to the car, and all I wanted was for someone to drive me out of there.

An hour later, happily back in the car, with snacks in hand, we drove over to check out the gorgeous Ytresand Beach. People were climbing the mountain next to the road so I believe this is another trailhead to Ryten. Then we drove to Leknes for a late lunch. Kids went to the gas station, my husband and I got sandwiches at the bakery across the street which were too much bread to filling ratio, but we were happy to just get some nourishment.

We decided to check out Henningsvaer on the way back east. You turn off the main E10 road and drive about 25 minutes south to reach the arched bridge to the town. The road is about 1 � cars wide and they have turn outs all along the route, so you are pulling over for cars coming toward you. The town is very cute, larger than the ones out west, and more charming than Svolvaer, but it was the most crowded place we visited. There might have been some tour groups walking in town making it feel like this. I thought it was definitely worth the visit and happy we made the detour.

Along the road to Henningsvaer, there are sheer granite rock faces popular with the rock climbers. We stopped on the way back up to check out the climbers. With my zoom lens, I was able to zero in on the climbers heading up. Not something I’d ever be interested in doing but I definitely have respect for those who can pull themselves up vertical rock faces attached with just their fingers and toes.

Now we faced the 3 hour drive back to the airport where we had an Airbnb about 5 minutes from it to make our morning flight easier to catch. The scenery made the long drive much more enjoyable. Our Airbnb was a 4 bedroom house on the edge of a pretty lake, in the middle of an RV park. Despite its extremely dated furniture, the house was comfortable and extremely quiet inside given it was next to the airport and in the middle of a bunch of campers.

NEXT: Oslo and then home

Lolfn, thanks for answering my questions. It sounds like you made the most of those long days. That's interesting about the absence of mosquitoes. I'd read they were a problem in summer, too, but maybe they're not as much of a problem on the coast?

After reading your latest Lofoten posts, I viewed your photos again to spot more gems like the orcas, the sign for the village simply called �, Kvalvika Beach's campground with its sheep. What a charmed journey.

I very much enjoyed vicariously following along on your spectacular trip through the Lofoten Islands, though those Norwegian-rated "easy" hikes were tough. I looked up the vertical gain for the Ryten Mountain hike; it goes from sea level to 542 metres (1782.5 feet). In real life, I don't think my crumbly knees could handle those climbs or descents. But I'm hoping I might be able to put your other travel tips to use on a future trip.

Diamantina - I hope you'll be able to plan a trip there, you don't need to hike to enjoy it. And the first two hikes we did were definitely more manageable. Especially if you take it slow.


Before I leave the Lofoten portion, I wanted to mention that the hikes we had been considering if it hadn't rained were Offers�ykammen, considered a popular ‘Sunday hike’ among the locals (ha!) and Festvagtind which overlooks Henningsvaer. We did look at that trail as we drove past and I don't think we would have decided to do it after all. First, there were a lot of people going up and down that afternoon. The first part you can see from the road and is a very steep boulder field. After climbing over smaller rocks on previous hikes, I wouldn't have taken that on. They say it wraps around the mountain as you get up toward the summit so not as steep up top. But that first bit would have been a no from me.

Oslo

Friday, August 3

We chose to take the early flight back to Oslo in case weather or something else disrupted our flight. We had to be back for our flight home the next morning. We arrived in Oslo mid-morning. Our flight home departed at 8am so we stayed at the Radisson hotel at the airport. We walked over to store our bags and then went back to get the train to Central Station. There are two trains you can take. The Flytoget, which is the airport express train, and the regular Norwegian rail train. The Flytoget is about twice the cost so we took the regular train to town which I think took about 25 minutes and seemed to depart every 15 min or so.

My husband and I had already spent some days in Oslo on our previous trip in 2000 and the kids were tired and done with sightseeing. And I really didn't put much time into researching the city knowing we'd be tired. So we really didn't do much of anything that would be of help. A few things are new since we were last there. The Opera House is worth checking out and a short walk from the train station. They have developed the waterfront into a promenade which we enjoyed strolling along. We walked through the fortress grounds and enjoyed the views as it sits up higher. The area around Aker Brygge seems quite upscale based on the clothing and handbags of the people walking around. We had a late lunch at Dognvill Burger, happily lingering over our meal outside enjoying the water views and ambiance. Like many of the burger places in the other capital cities, they pride themselves on only using top quality ingredients from grass-fed cows and local produce.

Late afternoon, we took the train back to the airport and checked into the hotel. We had reserved a family room which included a double sleep sofa for the kids. We figured it would be our most uncomfortable room on the trip. As it turned out, the room was huge, probably 3-4 times the size of our standard hotel room in Stockholm. The sleep sofa was already made up as a bed and was quite large and comfortable. The A/C wasn't working too well but they had two fans going in the room when we got there. We had dinner at the hotel, packed up for our flight and went to bed early.

At around 11:30, the fire alarm went off and then an announcement to evacuate. I must have been in deep sleep stage as I had no idea what was happening. The kids and I were stumbling around the room trying to figure out what to do. My husband was flabbergasted at our ability to handle a crisis! We finally got our shoes on and made sure the hall was smoke-free. We were on the top floor (6th I think) and at the end of the corridor. A fire exit door and outdoor staircase were right across from our room. Some other guests were already trying to figure out how to break the plastic covering to get the door open. My husband helped and we descended to gather around with all the other guests outside the hotel. One poor woman was wearing nothing but a towel and many young children were asleep in their parent’s arms. The fire trucks arrived and we were given the all clear to return about 15-20 minutes later. We never did find out what caused it.

Flight Home

One thing I want to note is flying from Copenhagen to EVE, EVE to Oslo and then Oslo home, they have little kiosks to print out your boarding pass, if needed, and your checked bag tag. These kiosks were for multiple airlines, we were flying SAS. Then you take your bag over to the conveyor belt, scan the tag yourself and off it goes. Since we had to check our bags on all these flights, we had to use the kiosks and it was a disaster for us everywhere except EVE. At CPH, it wouldn’t print the bag tags. We tried multiple machines, asked an attendant for help and no go. We then had to wait in a long line to check them in with a person. In Oslo, we printed the tags, attached them to our luggage and the little scanner that you use when you put the bag on the belt wouldn’t accept them. We again waited in line for an attendant. He explained that since we were continuing on to New York from London, we had to check in with him. He also said that we needed to pay for the checked bags. I explained that the reservation was made through United from OSL to EWR. We then had to go to another desk/person and she looked at everything and said we were good to go. Back to guy #1 and the bags were finally taken away.

We flew to London where we had a 3-hour layover that we enjoyed in the United Club eating and drinking as much as we could so we wouldn’t have to eat the airline food. Then home to Newark airport and my lost bag.

Final Thoughts

It was truly a fantastic trip and Stockholm and Copenhagen are up there on my list of favorite cities. The beauty, the history, the people, the ease of getting around and communication plus being surrounded by water, all add to the allure. They both just have really good vibes about them. I will hopefully return with my 82 yo mother in the next year to take her around Sweden and maybe Norway. I started lobbying for that as soon as we got home!

I’m forever thankful to the people on here who recommended the Lofoten Islands back when I was starting to research last fall. Such a magical, beautiful place. And the fact that it has the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude means that you can travel there most of the year without really freezing your butt off. It would be fun to return to see the mountains snow-covered or the northern lights. But maybe we’ll check out Senja next time, another place just north of the Lofoten that supposedly rivals it in beauty.

I’m also thankful to be able to travel like this with our teens. Only two more summers before we lose the first to college. While they aren’t necessarily the easiest of travel companions at times, especially when you have to figure out what they’ll eat, I love opening up their eyes to other cultures and parts of the world. Something that will pay off in the long run…hopefully. That being said, my husband and I jumped on Norwegian Air’s fare sale a couple weeks ago and just the two of us are going to Northern Ireland next spring. That will be a nice change of pace!

If you’ve read to the end, bless you. I know trip reports can get long and tedious. But I hope it has helped some in their own planning. I truly rely on other’s reports when I plan my own trip and love different viewpoints.

Thank you lolfn for the super report! We were also in Copenhagen and Stockholm this summer but mid June for Copenhagen and first week of July for Stockholm. The weather was pleasant but far from hot.
We loved both cities and want to go back, loved the mix of old and modern, the people, the food, the bike lanes, the ease of getting around, the feeling of being in a place where people are getting something for their taxes, both places just feel progressive to me.
And I have to agree about the people in Copenhagen: don't know what they put in the water there, but hands down the most attractive people of ALL ages! It was a treat for the eyes and I was wondering why oh why didn't I have a trip there when I was young and single. lol