Norway & Iceland - DIY or cruise?
 

We're looking at a 14 night Iceland and Norwegian fjords cruise for next summer, but unfortunately it doesn't go to Oslo, nor would a pre/post cruise tour be practical as the cruise is out of Southampton. Am just wondering if it might be better to do this on our own and would like your suggestions about an itinerary, also comparitive costs.

Why do you want to go to Oslo and what is the issue with Southampton?

You can do a fair bit of the the Fjords on the postal packet or on a cruise out of Newcastle. Norway is pretty expensive so staying on a cruise may prove good value, however the Norweigen government do things like support "tourist meals" in some towns and do hotel vouchers some years

Iceland is very easy to do and prices are still reasonable though accommodation is limited as it is a very small population

I went on a 2 week trip to Scandinavia about 9 years ago and I found Oslo to be the least interesting city on that entire trip. Frogner Park was nice but other than that you are not missing much.

I agree with P_M. You won't be missing anything by not seeing Oslo. Your cruise sounds fabulous. Go enjoy. The other cities cruise ships stop at in Norway -- like Bergen -- are far better. Bergen is bright and crispy, lively and gorgeous. Oslo is none of those.

Well Oslo does have three viking ships and the Kontiki but I prefer Bergen

To get an idea of prices in Norway you could read my trip report; click on my name to find it. I do not give prices for everything, but enough that you can have a sense of costs. As for car rental, this is what I reported:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-vs-kemwel.cfm

Thanks guys for your suggestions, we've decided to take the cruise as we'll get to see Iceland, the Faroe Islands and the Norwegian fjords. Guess we'll have to pass on Oslo, but we go to Bergen, Molde, Geiranger and Flam, which are said to be beautiful. Michael, loved your trip report, sounds like you had a wonderful time. Thanks again!

where do you go in Iceland?

Annhig, our cruise is for the first week of July, we go to Iceland first, then the Faroe Islands and Norway last. Hopefully we'll have good weather...!

Annhig, I see you were in Iceland recently, did you do the Fire & Ice flight, is it worth the $$$? We have 2 days in Reykjavik and want to do the Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon, also go on the glaciers. Did you do a 4x4 tour, could you recommend someone? Thanks in advance.

hi geetika,

if you click on my name and look for my trip reports, you will find the one on Iceland. we did hire a 4x4 but the terms of icelandic car hire insurance forbid hirers from going off road so we stuck to the A & B roads. and we didn't do any internal flights either, just a self-guided tour round [mainly] the west of Iceland.

if you want to go to the glaciers, I would strongly suggest a tour as they will know just where to take you; if you just drive up to one like we tried to, you can end up looking at a sludgy mess!

can i suggest that you go to the Iceland tourist board site and have a look for their recommendations for glacier visits?

otherwise, you can easily do the Golden Circle and Blue lagoon very easily yourselves.

Thanks Annhig, was actually planning to take a glacier tour, much simpler. Haven't had a chnace to read your trip report but will do so soon. Thanks again, Geetika