russia and scandinavia for honeymoon - suggestions please...
 

Good day

I am from South Africa and are quite interested in going to Russia and Scandinavia for a honeymoon of about 2 weeks in August 2013. Russia, because we like museums and its very different culture, and Scandinavia (especially Norway) because we would like to see some ice and glaciers (and possibly do some hiking). I like the rest of Europe as well, but am a bit weary of too many other tourists at that time of year...

Anyway, so my rough plan was to fly to Moscow (spend 2 days), train to St Petersburg (spend 3 days), train to Helsinki (try and coincide and run the Helsinki marathon and spend the night), fly to Stockholm (2 days) and fly to Oslo (spend 3 days in Norway).

We are quite active (hence the marathon and hiking) and thus a laid back island holiday isn't really our scene. I have very little experience in Europe so your suggestions about the feasibility and cost effectiveness of such an itinerary would be greatly appreciated. Also if you think the itinerary is perhaps a bit too strenuous (especially on a young marriage!), I will definitely heed your warnings ;-)
Best wishes
B

It doesn't look like you are going to be anyplace that will have ice and glaciers in midsummer.

for that I think you need to go to the top of some of the Alps in Switz or Germany. Perhaps very far north in Scandinavia - but nowhere near Stockholm or Oslo.

And you need to be prepared that Scandinavia is incredibly expensive - assume costs at least double - well, I don't know costs in SA - but at least double western europe or big cities in the US (hotels, meals, etc.)

Well - I just found some very interesting info. If you use a Big Mac Meal as a standard (not that you should eat one - but it's a place you find around the world) - the cost in South Africa is a shockingly low $2.66 in USD (in the US the average is about $8 USD) while in Scandinavia the cost is around $16 USD - so about 5 times as much as in South Africa.

So - your first step may be to check out prices for lodging and meals - before deciding to visit one of the most expensive areas of the world.

Well leaving aside the ice and glaciers which you may have to plan carefully to see, I think this would be a hugely interesting honeymoon.
I have been to Scandinavia many times but when we planned a grand tour in 1996 by car we found that the cost was easily going to mount up. We sailed from the UK to Hamburg in Germany. Then from Rugen to Bornholm. Then to Ystaad and up to Stockholm and over to Finland. From there we returned to Stockholm and over to Oslo, finally returning to Goteborg and the UK. With time to plan (we were four travelling) we managed to book hostels, purchase city passes(the one in Oslo was particularly good value) and eat out. At the time the meal we had in a restaurant in Oslo was the most expensive ever (but it has been exceeded many times since).
If you plan you can see whether it is affordable. If you leave it to chance and turn up you will find it very expensive indeed.

Agree that this would be a wonderful trip. Russia is fascinating and I love Scandinavia - but you have to do your homework and be prepared. It's possible to do for less if you plan well - but it's never going to be inexpensive.

Although actually August is when most locals vacation - so hotels in the bigger cities are probably cheapest then. We got an incredible deal at the Grand Hotel Stockholm several years ago - not cheap but more than 50 % off rack rate.

Oslo is a day away from the fjord country. You will not have much time to see it except perhaps as a RT Norway in a Nutshell day trip (starting very early in the morning and returning late in the evening). An alternative to Oslo might be to fly to Bergen and perhaps get a couple of days in the fjord country.

For less expensive housing in Oslo and Bergen, take a look at my trip report; click on my name to find it.

Other suggestion will be Norwegian fjord or Northern capitals cruise. There are lots of them in the summer. It's probably more cost effective than land tour. Of course cruises don't cover Moscow.

Thank you for the helpful suggestions so far!
Regarding ice and glaciers, I assumed that some of the bigger glaciers were permanent (e.g. Jostedals glacier) and thus would be covered in ice also in summer? Excuse my ignorance, but South Africa is not really glacier country so this is all new to me :-)
Regards
B

I don't know if anyone has already mentioned this, but 2 days in Moscow is not enough time. If you like museums, art galleries, architecture and onion domed churches, you need more time. Just looking at the churches in the Kremlin can take half a day.

I'd probably sacrifice Helsinki in favour of another day in Moscow. Stockholm is a beautiful city best seen in the summer so perfect time to go. Scandinavia is great for outdoor activities.

Yes, the glacier you refer to exists all year round - but according to info on it it's melting fairly quickly and continues to exist because of the very heavy snowfall in the area in the winter.

It's about a 7 hour drive from Oslo - so to get there, make a tour, visit, hike, etc and return to Oslo would be a 3 day trip - which would be all of your time in Norway. There may be a different way to get there that's faster, but the glacier park website provides only driving directions from Oslo.

<i>and continues to exist because of the very heavy snowfall in the area in the winter.</i>

That is usually the case with glaciers.

<i>It's about a 7 hour drive from Oslo</i>

The drive is shorter from Bergen (4.5 hours according to Google map), which is why I suggested flying in and out of Bergen. It would be tight, but possible. Arrive in Bergen one afternoon. Spend one night there. Leave the next morning for a town near the glacier, doing some sight-seeing on the way, perhaps visiting a stave church. Spend the second night there. Go to the glacier from there and visit the area for a shortened day and then drive back to Bergen. Spend the third night there and fly out the next morning.

You seem to have a few very specific ideas and I think that's good - in terms of not being disappointed. But, IMHO, your trip really is rushed - in terms of seeing major sights. I would need much longer than this (have been to St Pet twice, once for 2 days and once of 5 and there is still a lot I haven;t seen).

So - I would be sure you have thought out what you really want to see where - and have allowed enough time.

Thanks again for all the replies, they are really really helpful!