Norway, Bergen: one-day "tour" through the fjords. Norway for horseless people Excursions without a car around Bergen Norway

July 29th, 2012

Friends, I wrote a post to the community ru_travel .
I bring it to you here.

For those who plan to admire the fjords, eat plenty of fresh fish and seafood and get acquainted with European Scandinavian culture - from the Middle Ages to the futuristic design of today's cities, but do not take a car with them and prefer to travel independently - this story of mine may be useful . During my trip, I did not meet many compatriots in Norway, and this fact seemed to me an unfortunate omission, because the fjords are undoubtedly one of the most beautiful and environmentally friendly places on the planet.

To travel on your own, you will need a minimum knowledge of spoken English, because almost all Norwegians speak good English, are polite and friendly. In addition, the country does a lot to make travelers feel comfortable there: tourist information points exist everywhere, public transport is very convenient, clear and punctual, on schedule.

1. Planning the travel route

I suggest you start with travel planning for two reasons: firstly, planning your holiday in detail is a pleasant experience, and secondly, and this is the main thing, a detailed travel plan will help you get a Norwegian Schengen.

In a week and a half I was able to live in a village, surrounded by fjords and waterfalls, visit the ancient city of Bergen and see the sights of the Norwegian capital Oslo. I will tell you about my experience, and you can design a more detailed plan of your own, with fishing on the fjord, or kayaking, cycling or hiking, or maybe you would prefer a trip to a mountain farm with goat cheese, or a short trip on a real sailboat

I had these main route points:

Oslo - because the capital of Norway and many cultural sites;

Bergen - because the capital of the fjords, a charming city, a famous fish market, a castle fortress; Bergen is closer to the country's Atlantic coast, while Oslo is closer to Norway's eastern border.

Dragsvik (a suburb of Balestrand) - because it is a village in the middle of mountains with waterfalls and fjords, on the most beautiful, as it seemed to me, fjord - Sognefjord. (If you wish, from Balestrand you can take a ferry or ship to Flam, and from there take a train excursion (the tour takes a couple of hours) to the waterfall). Around Balestrand and Dragsvik there are nature trails of different categories: yellow, red, blue - for hiking enthusiasts, all of them are marked in the forest with markings of their color (yellow are the easiest).

To begin with, I compiled a detailed chart-table with dates, names of cities and hotels, flight numbers and departure and arrival times of ships. This schedule must be submitted when submitting documents for an application for a Schengen visa to Norway. By the way, if you live in Moscow, then you can use the services of the Norwegian visa center on Suschevsky Val, just fill out an electronic form on the website and schedule a date for submitting documents. There is also a visa center in St. Petersburg, and in some other cities of Russia, detailed information can be seen on their website here: http://www.norwayvisa-russia.com/. There were no queues at the visa center, and there was no pre-registration when I submitted my application. Please attach copies of hotel reservations, tickets, insurance, etc. to your application. The visa is issued for the duration of the trip, at least that’s what they gave me.

So my route was like this:

Flight Moscow-Oslo-Bergen (connection between flights SU 2230 (Aeroflot) and SK-267 (SAS) is about two hours - convenient even in case of a slight flight delay).
3 days accommodation in Bergen, trip to Sognefjord on the 4th day
4 days accommodation in Dragsvik, a suburb of Balestrand, on the Sognefjord
Day 5 - return to Bergen, one night in Bergen
Flight Bergen-Oslo SK-284 (SAS)
2 days in Oslo
Flight Oslo-Moscow

This route allowed me to feel quite relaxed during the trip and avoid long, tiring journeys. After all, it's a vacation.

You might also want to visit the northern fjords. Then you should go to Ålesund (spelled Alesund), where there are glaciers, and it is more convenient to get there, in my opinion, from Bergen. Or by plane from Oslo.

Tickets

I booked flights Moscow-Oslo-Moscow in advance on the Aeroflot website aeroflot.ru.

I booked air tickets Oslo-Bergen-Oslo with Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) through the website trip.ru, the flight is only 45 minutes and does not include lunch, so it is quite inexpensive.

I booked tickets for the ship Bergen-Balestrand (Sognefjord) -Bergen on the website of the Norled company, www.norled.no (route Bergen Strandkaiterminal-Balestrand kai), two weeks before the trip, and took an electronic printout of this ticket with me (this is important , check the availability of paper tickets on the ship before boarding or during the voyage).

Scandinavian Airlines on the Oslo-Bergen-Oslo route allows hand luggage up to 8.8 kg; if you are carrying an iPad, place it on top of the bag during security screening; all liquids up to 100 ml must be packed in transparent bags in advance.

If you have a SAS ticket, then upon arriving at the airport, you independently check in for the flight using electronic terminals (they look like blue ATMs with the inscription SAS), select a menu in English (if you, like me, don’t know Norwegian) and enter Reservation number. All! The boarding pass is printed out for you and you go with it either to check in your luggage or immediately to security control. Of course, if this is possible, during many transfers it is more convenient to take with you a minimum amount of things, only the essentials, so you will save time waiting for luggage.

How to get from the airport to the city.

You can, of course, take a taxi from the airport to the city (in Bergen it will cost you about half an hour and 400 NOK, and in Oslo - an hour, if there are no traffic jams and 900 NOK. To understand the approximate price in rubles, multiply by a factor of 5.3). It is clear that taxi prices are very approximate, depending on your luck with the driver and traffic jams. In my opinion, it is more advisable to take a bus (from Bergen airport to the center approximately 33 NOK, from Oslo airport to the final destination in the city center - 135 NOK, or 250 NOK round trip). The buses are comfortable, with a compartment for luggage, the stop is right at the exit from the airport, you buy tickets from the driver.

Tell the driver the name of your hotel - he will tell you the nearest stop.

The Oslo map can be obtained free of charge at the airport at the tourist information desk, and the Bergen map can be obtained free of charge at your hotel.

In Bergen, the pier with boats (rocket ships, ships on the fjords) is located in the city center, getting there is elementary, this is the street - Strandkaien embankment, boarding the ship is 20 minutes before departure. The journey by water from Bergen to Balestrand on the Sognefjord will take 4 hours 50 minutes, during which time you can admire the most beautiful views of the mountains and villages around, inside there are comfortable seats, a compartment for families with small children (there is a TV with cartoons and toys), toilets, buffet. The cost of the trip cost me NOK 515 one way.

Weather in Norway in summer

I can recommend visiting Norway in the summer, because nature and the urban landscape look very beautiful at this time: wild blueberry fields along the banks of the fjords and in the forest (the forests there are dense, mixed, similar to those near Moscow. Full of all kinds of living creatures, the fauna is trusting to people.), numerous wild and forest flowers, bright city flower beds, well-groomed gardens, fountains in park areas.

Especially on the fjords, the weather can change up to 10-12 times during the day: from rain to bright, burning sun. From plus 13 to plus 25. Therefore, when leaving the hotel, always wear very summer clothes, but also be sure to take windbreakers with hoods: tourists are usually too lazy to carry an umbrella. You should dress warmer when traveling on water, along fjords; the weather is warmer in Oslo.

Where to settle?

Everyone knows that Norway is a rather expensive country. Therefore, I would recommend that you choose a decent three stars in Bergen (there are a lot of them there) in the city center, after reading the reviews on booking.com, tripadvisor.com. Some three-star hotels offer their guests not only breakfast, but also free tea and coffee (and sometimes biscuits for tea) throughout the day. If, like me, you are planning a trip by water to the fjords, it would be logical to choose a hotel near the pier.

In Oslo, prices are more tourist-friendly, so you can afford a slightly better hotel there, but it is important to choose a hotel in the city center: this way you will save on transport; all the attractions in Oslo are located in the city center quite compactly.

In Balestrand the choice of hotels is not huge, but you can rent a clean apartment there from 375 NOK per day, or you can stay in a three-star hotel at a more expensive price.

6. Where to eat?

Although the prices for everything are quite high, you always have a choice between an expensive restaurant in the most touristy place, or a pizzeria in areas more distant from the tourist trail, or a fast food chain restaurant, or even just a snack from a pie from a cafeteria or yogurt from a supermarket. Although, again, you should look for a hotel with additional free options for food and hot drinks.

7. Attractions.

There are a lot of museums in Norway, for different tastes. There are many other attractions - art objects among the natural landscape, for example. If you have a minimum of time to stop in each city, I would advise visiting the main, in my opinion, attractions.

Oslo: National Gallery, Royal Palace, Akershus Slott Fortress and Fort,

the famous sculpture park - Vigelandsparken. Locals also highly recommend visiting the Kon-Tiki Museum (there are artifacts from Thor Heyerdahl, if you remember he crossed the Pacific Ocean in 1947 on a sailboat designed according to ancient drawings - Ra).

Fans of the work of the artist Edvard Munch can also recommend Munch-Museet. Well, there are many other interesting museums, if you have time, you can look there too.

Descriptions and addresses of each museum are available in any hotel and at the reception of any museum - free of charge.

Bergen: Briggen - the old quarter and the Briggen Museum, fish market, ancient churches Domkirken (cathedral 12-13 centuries), Korskirken (17th century), Rosenkrantztarnet fortress, rise above the city by funicular to the observation deck. If you have time, you can take a walk in the University Botanical Garden, see the Bergen Aquarium, and listen to a concert in the current Johannes Kirken church.

Balestrand. If you come to Balestrand, it means that the main thing there is nature and the fjords. As a tourist attraction, there is the Kvikne’s Hotel, where royalty stayed, and anyone can come in and admire its ancient interiors. Another attraction is the wooden Anglican church built in 1897, under the administration of the Episcopate of Gibraltar.

From Balestrand (the tourist center right next to the marina) you can book any excursion - from a trip to a cheese farm to a visit to Urnes Stave Church (the oldest church in the country, built in 1132, a UNESCO heritage site). But it’s more logical in these places to just go hiking, fishing, and boat trips.

And further.

It should be remembered that on Saturday and Sunday the transport schedule in Norway (with the exception of connections to the airport) is very thin, many shops are closed, and the Oslo-pass ticket does not apply to either private museums or the Royal Palace.

By the way, the cost of the Oslo-pass (“single” for tourists, for travel on any public transport and free entry to Oslo museums) varies greatly depending on whether you buy it at the reception of an expensive hotel, or in a tourist center (cheaper).

You can find photos of Oslo, Bergen, Balestrand, Dragsvik on my page in the magazine here:

How do you spell:

Balestrand - Balestrand

Bergen - Bergen

Dragsvik - Dragsvik

Sognefjord - Sognefjord

Well, that is, it is written as it is heard :)

Where can I exchange rubles for Norwegian kroner? In fact, cards are accepted almost everywhere, but you will have to enter your PIN code every time you make a payment. But if you need a little cash, then it seemed to me that the rate for buying Norwegian kroner for rubles is better in Russia.

Mobile connection. In Norwegian supermarkets like Seven-Eleven (yellow-green 7-11 logo) and some others, as well as at gas stations, you can purchase special LEBARA mobile SIM cards for 99 NOK (supermarket commission on sale is about 50 NOK or 260 rubles, and 49 crowns is the remaining balance), and talk at a cheap rate with Russia. The tariff is very attractive, but there are disadvantages to such a purchase: 1) when purchasing, you fill out a form (it’s even in Russian), indicate your passport details, and whether the supermarket is responsible for their safe storage - I don’t know 2) the manager/director of the trade activates the card points (and this may take several hours until he gets around to your problem) 3) if you inserted the card into a telephone set, it is valid only for this telephone set and you can take it out and use this card next time.

In general, I wish you to visit Norway - with or without a car, on your own or with a travel agency, in any case - new positive impressions are guaranteed to you

For some reason, it is not customary to travel to Norway on your own, without a tour and without a car. The ideal option for traveling around this country is to travel in a rented (or maybe your own) vehicle. The advantages are clear - complete freedom of movement, the opportunity to get to places that have beaten the least number of hiking boots and go off untrodden (or at least not very traveled) paths, as well as the ability to fill the trunk with things that are very necessary for saving, which are not very pleasant to carry in a backpack behind your shoulders, starting from the primus stove, ending with a tent and a sleeping bag. But I don’t have a car and I don’t know how to drive one. I didn’t even consider the possibility of using the second popular alternative method - going on a tour due to my categorical dislike of them. I just resolutely and categorically - I don’t like it, that’s all. There was nothing left to do but plan an independent trip, because I really, really needed to go to Norway... I will describe what we did in this story.

Puzzled by numerous statements from bloggers that there was nothing to do in Norway without renting a car, I began planning my trip by moving with cautious and timid steps, as if I were walking blindfolded through an unfamiliar room and was afraid of stumbling into something big, unknown and painful in the event of a collision)) In other words, I looked at a Norwegian website that offers a lot of different variations of the “Norway in Miniature” tour. When purchasing such a tour, the tourist receives a set of tickets for all kinds of necessary types of transport, clearly connected to each other in time, a description of the route and some freedom of choice. For example, if the Oslo-Bergen route with a stop in Flåm and Voss is designed for 2 days, then you can spend more time on it by stopping at any intermediate point for an additional overnight stay. Hotel accommodation is not included in the price of such tours; only a list of items is offered for reference. After spending a little time studying these offers, I realized that I could handle buying tickets myself just fine, and I could also save money, because by purchasing train tickets in advance, for example, in Norway you can get significant discounts. () There, on this site, I looked at the main tourist destinations and places considered a must see, because despite the fact that I had been dreaming about Norway for a long time, my desires were not formalized into anything specific. This country was for me the most beautiful, magically attracting, incredibly mysterious, but solid spot of snow-white color. Now, looking back and evaluating my trip, I can say that I had my own “Norway in miniature”. I probably didn’t see the most beautiful waterfall, didn’t walk the path with the most breathtaking views, didn’t climb the highest mountain, didn’t see the northern lights. But I can safely say, despite the fact that I don’t have a car and I didn’t choose a ready-made tour, I saw Norway, I lived in it for ten whole days, I managed to feel its pulse, get used to it, love it and definitely wanted to go back there again.

So, we flew to Oslo.

“I’d like to see the fjords...” I said to the employee of the municipal tourist center. “You see, I came to Bergen for two and a half days, and I heard a buzz about the fact that you have fjords here that are inaccessible. But where they are, I don’t really know.”

“We have a tour - just what you want. It’s very popular - it’s called “Norway in a Nutshell”. Would you like me to reserve all the tickets for you right here?” So, for a mere trifle, about $160, I galloped across Norway.

// levik.livejournal.com

In general, to begin with, I’ll admit: I understood very vaguely what a fjord was. I knew approximately that these were such bays, long and squiggly, with high shores, that they existed in Norway and somewhere else. Here, in New Zealand, they call them “sounds”. But since I went to look, I had to find out a little...

// levik.livejournal.com

Fjords are formed by glaciers over thousands of years. The glacier constantly “slides” down from the mountains, and at the same time scrapes out the valleys that already exist beneath it, exacerbating their depth. The result is very deep, winding gorges with sheer walls, and when glaciers melt and sea levels rise, these gorges turn into bays.

The longest fjord in the world is in Greenland, but the second longest is the Sognefjord in Norway, just north of Bergen. If you look at the western coast of the country on the map, it is all cut up by these fjords, and Bergen itself is located right in the middle, which is why it serves as a center for fjord tourism.

The Norway in a Nutshell excursion can hardly be called an excursion - it’s just a set of tickets for various transport between very beautiful places. The main part of this is a boat that takes tourists along the Nærøyfjord (on the UNESCO World Heritage List) and a piece of the Sognefjord (the second longest in the world).

In addition to the boat, tourists are transported by bus and various trains. All this takes about ten hours if you leave and return to Bergen. There are also possible options with Oslo (for example, started in Oslo, finished in Bergen, and vice versa), but they take longer.

// levik.livejournal.com

Early in the morning, sleepy, I arrive at the station. The station in Bergen is not particularly impressive in size - this is not Shibuya. Before boarding the train, you should always approach a railway employee and ask which side will be beautiful. I find out that when leaving Bergen you should definitely sit on the left, because all the picturesque spots will be there.

By the way, the train is not a tourist train, it just goes to Oslo. True, about half of the passengers on this morning flight are tourists who were sold a trip to Norway in a Nutshell. Normal people don’t like to go to Oslo this early.

// levik.livejournal.com

First we drive along some fjord. Outside the window there is a surface of water, mountains, and greenery. We pass through a tunnel every couple of minutes. This makes it difficult to photograph from the train: just take aim, whoosh! and there is darkness outside the window.

// levik.livejournal.com

On the shore at the water's edge there are neat Scandinavian houses. I can imagine how all the furniture inside is probably from Ikea. I think these are some kind of dachas.

// levik.livejournal.com

We arrive in the town of Voss. Here half of the train unloads and transfers to buses. There may be several buses, depending on how many tickets have been sold.

// levik.livejournal.com

We pass a waterfall. The driver announces its name, which is impossible to remember. But the waterfall is beautiful.

// levik.livejournal.com

The bus gradually drives higher and higher until we find ourselves among very beautiful mountains. Their slopes are somehow cartoonishly steep.

// levik.livejournal.com

“There in the valley is the village of Gudvangen, where we are going,” the driver announces. I notice that there is a road along the valley between the mountains, next to the river.

// levik.livejournal.com

“The slope here is 18 degrees,” says the driver, making it clear that this is a lot. "From September to April it is closed for the winter." The road curves a lot. We descend slowly, almost stopping at every turn. There is beauty all around.

// levik.livejournal.com

Having descended and arrived in this same Gudvangen, we are dropped off. Here the valley between the mountains goes under water - this is how Nærøyfjord begins.

Tourists are given about forty minutes to take photos of everything around them and stock up at the local souvenir shop (not necessarily in this order). Many skillfully use selfifiers, others (like me) turn to their comrades for help.

// levik.livejournal.com

A “ship” is waiting for us in Gudvangen - a rather large ferry capable of transporting several buses.

// levik.livejournal.com

The captain of our schooner. You look at him, and it’s immediately clear that he’s a seasoned sea wolf, with salt water flowing through his veins instead of blood.

// levik.livejournal.com

Let's wind down. The picturesque Gundwagen remains astern.

// levik.livejournal.com

There is a kind of glass greenhouse on the deck. At first all the tourists hide in it, afraid to go out: it seems like it’s drizzling, and sometimes it’s even replaced by hail.

We are already tired of the hot southern sun and look to the north with undisguised admiration. Bergen is the second largest city in Norway, low-cost airlines fly here, fjord cruises depart from here - in general, this is a great place to start a trip to Norway or for a small northern weekend.

*Please note that prices are shown in Norwegian kroner (NOK) and are current at the time of publication of the guide. Exchange rate € 1 = NOK 9.3.

Transport

Wizzair flies to Bergen - there are flights from Vilnius, Kaunas and Warsaw, you can catch a round-trip ticket for € 50-60. You can also look for tickets from a Norwegian airline Norwegian or Scandinavian SAS airlines.

Bergen Airport is 12 kilometers from the city, an express bus will take you to the center in 30 minutes and NOK 100. It departs from 6.50 am until 3 am every 10-20 minutes (every hour at night), tickets can be bought from the driver, at a special machine at the airport or online.

If you are traveling around Norway, you can get to Bergen by bus, for example, from Stavanger (breathtaking views from the window are included in the ticket). Like everything in Norway, the ticket can be bought online, the largest bus companies are Kystbussen And Tide Buss.

Another travel option, probably the most romantic, is on ferries and. After all, there is a certain glamor to arriving at one of the world's most beautiful ports by water. Communications between Norway and other countries can be checked in advance, domestic flights are operated by Norwegian Fjordline, you can also search for flights on the following sites:

norled.no
rodne.no
hurtigruten.no

Finally, you can come to Bergen by train - the Oslo-Bergen road, one of the highest, again includes magnificent views in the price. Check the schedule and tickets on the website.

Before choosing a way to get to Bergen, be sure to read Peter Weil’s essay “To Bergen to Music.” Perhaps this will influence your choice.

Local transport in Bergen is buses. By the way, the Bergen tourist card Bergen Card for 24 or 48 hours includes free travel on public transport and, with free entry to many museums and discounts on a fjord cruise, this is exactly the case when such a purchase is worth it.

Housing

Yes, in Norway everything is really very expensive - a night in a hotel averages € 80-100, in hostels - € 40-50. We advise YMCA Hostel (Nedre Korskirkeallmenningen 4) - right in the heart of Bergen, close to the Fish Market. A rooftop terrace with city views and NOK 205 per night in a shared room is a good deal by Norwegian standards.

Another option - Marken Gjestehus (Kong Oscars gate 45) with the same central location and NOK 275 per bed or Intermission Hostel (Kalfarveien 8)- NOK 190 per night, plus they promise waffles on Mondays and Thursdays.

As always, you can search for a room to live through AirBnb and live a little further from the center, but with a view of the mirror water of the bay, in which the lights are reflected.

Finally, one of the most popular ways to spend the night on a budget in Norway is tent camping. There are several campsites near Bergen where, in addition to tent space, you can find showers, toilets and other amenities, and the city center is easily accessible by bus. Prices - NOK 130-500 per night, many options available.

Bergen is a large port city, which in the Middle Ages managed to be the capital of Norway. The city lies on a bay, and is indented by several small fjords. It is surrounded by seven mountains (actually nine, but the number seven seems prettier to many, so there is constant debate about which of the nine to include in these seven), the highest - Gullfjellstoppen(987 m). Translated from Old Norse, Bergen means “valley between the mountains.”

On the first day, of course, go explore the city. The heart of any seaside city is the port, so feel free to start from here (by the way, there is also a large tourist information center here, Strandkaien 3). In the port, small white boats rock on the waves and gigantic liners slowly pass.

Looks directly at the port Fish market (Torget), a meeting place for fishermen and traders - since 1200. Now the market is open from May to October from 7 am to 9 pm. This is a very touristy place, but you can still grab some seafood fast food.

Next you will see orange-red wooden houses with triangular roofs - these are Bryggen(Bryggen), the old shopping district, carefully preserved and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Now there are narrow passages, wooden staircases, antique shops and shops selling socks and sweaters with traditional patterns, as well as Bryggen Museum (Dreggsalmening 3), where you can look at ancient archaeological finds.

Continue your walk and you will come to the fortress and park on the cape. Fortress (Bergenhus Fortress)- one of the oldest and best preserved castles in Norway, and, of course, it has a museum for lovers of Scandinavian wartime antiquity.

Opposite, on the other side of the port (Nordnes peninsula) - Aquarium (Nordnesbakken 4), where for NOK 200-250 (depending on the season) you can look not only at northern fish, but also at crocodiles, fur seals and tropical snakes. Open daily from nine to six. The aquarium is surrounded by a nice park, where you can stroll after the show, stand on the very edge of the city, looking at the boats and rocks, and for the brave, even take a swim.

In the same part of the city - USF-Verftet (Georgenes Verft 12), art space in old shipyards. Film festivals, exhibitions, theatrical performances, music concerts and other urban creativity that fit so well into industrial buildings take place here. Check the schedule of events on the website.

It’s also good to just walk around the center of Bergen - it is built up with beautiful houses in the classicist and modernist styles, and together with modern shiny and glass architecture, you get that same Scandinavian style that the whole world admires so much now.

If the weather is good (which is not always the case in Bergen - so take the chance) - sit by the Lille Lungegårdsvann lake in the city center. The lake itself is in the shape of a hexagon, with a fountain in the center and relaxed townspeople lying on the lawns around - this is a great place to take a break. Museum buildings are located along one of the shores of the lake. CODE(Rasmus Meyers allé 3, 7 og 9) , where you can find Norwegian art, and famous works of the Art Nouveau era, and constantly changing exhibitions of contemporary art (including a separate tour of Munch) - you can disappear for half a day. However, we are already talking about him.

We recommend other museums Maritime Museum (Haakon Sheteligs plass 15) for those who like to look at longships, old maps and ship models.

By the way, while walking around the city, take a closer look at the walls of the houses - Bergen considers itself the capital of Norwegian street art. It has its own famous street artist (who, without much originality, is called the local Banksy) - Dolk .

For obvious reasons, shopping in Bergen is not particularly fun. But if funds allow, you can stroll through shopping centers. This is, for example, Galleriet (Torgallmenningen 8), where you can find mass-market clothing, a large bookstore, and even an art gallery with a changing exhibition; or Bergen Storsenter (Strømgaten 8)- the largest shopping center in the city.

You can admire the famous Scandinavian design in stores Røst (Bryggen 15) And Ting (Bryggen 11), and you can buy New Year’s souvenirs, regardless of the season, in the year-round Christmas shop Julehuset (Holmedalsgården 1) .

There's always a good appetite after an outdoor adventure, so here are a few more places in Bergen where you can grab a coffee, have a snack and relax.

Black gold in Norway is not only oil, but also coffee. In a country where darkness reigns for several months of the year, a good way to invigorate yourself is truly worth its weight in gold - which is why good coffee shops are not uncommon here.

to contacts

Local buses need to be looked for on provincial websites, such as opplandstrafikk.no in the province of Upplan.

Ferry sails from Lofoten (Moskenes) to Buda:
torghatten-nord.no/english/de…
There is also a ferry from Lödingen.

About Jotunheimen. The Trondheim-Oslo train stops at Otta station. From there there are 501 buses to Vogo, from there 560 to Gendesheim.
But it’s not the season - the boat doesn’t go across the lake, the campsites are closed, there are no shops.

> travel economy!

Expensive:)
buses are somewhat cheaper than trains. Buying tickets online is cheaper than on board.

It might make sense to use local airlines (Bodo - Trondheim for example)

Krjemilek

help

Add a user to Friends contacts.

Krjemilek

to contacts

I agree with Dmitry 100%

Connections between buses and boats require stupid planning over a map of Norway. Buses go point-to-point but only two times a day. Norway's through bus routes through Norway run in flight, but along the Atlantic coast. But to get to the main fjords you will need to lose two days each. You won't have time. If only at a gallop.

Inga-i-Denis

help

Add a user to Friends, if you want to follow his new materials, statuses and messages on the forums. If you just want to save the user’s data so as not to search for it again in the future, add it to your contacts.

Inga-i-Denis

to contacts

During the week-long trip Oslo - Flam - Bergen - Oslo, we spent a lot of time moving. Having once missed the morning bus at 6:50, we went next, but it was only at 11:50, and there was only one return bus - at 14:40. Thus, it took 35 minutes of pure time to visit the attraction, 4 hours on the road and waiting. And this was back in September, when, after all, the tourist season was not completely closed, but, let’s say, it was being covered up...
I am also in no way trying to dissuade you, but you need to draw up a route immediately with a real bus and train schedule...

Ataris

help

Ataris

to contacts

Thanks for answers!

In fact, while the topic was hanging for moderation, I struggled with schedules for several days and came to exactly the same conclusions. As it turned out, in the fall many routes do not work - buses, ferry crossings, bicycle routes... so connecting transfers by transport is a very significant hemorrhoid! Apparently, we will fly from North Cape to Tromsø and from there to Bodø. The detour to Lofoten takes almost two days, planes with the express bus do not connect in time, there is no certainty that ferry crossings to Bodø are working (although we will ask this already in the city and we will see there, perhaps we will sail there and back after all) .

As a result, we decided that for the first visit we would not set ourselves strict goals, we would collect information on the spot in information centers and from there we would “dance” with our plans. If we can see more - great, less - well, what can you do, we put ourselves in such conditions. Fortunately, in the south there are regular buses and railways - we’ll get to the fjord region and then we’ll have time for the return flight to Oslo no matter the route.

At least the gigabytes of processed information will not be wasted - a fairly specific plan has already been outlined for the next trip... of course in the summer and with a car!
And regarding this adventure, I’ll try to write a couple of lines, so that others after us understand that it’s not so easy to take Norway unceremoniously!

bob-s

help

bob-s

to contacts

Go broke and you'll die of hunger, they're damn expensive there, we went with our pasta and stew, it's more or less normal. And so to buy there, bread is 100 rubles for ours, the price tags are similar, you just multiply it by five. ...But it’s BEAUTIFUL there!))) Go, maybe you’ll get lucky and survive on fish. True, it’s not there either, fishing in Norga is a myth, or fishing or traveling.)))

Krjemilek

help

Krjemilek

to contacts

For the first time, the ideal would be to start from Ålesund and slowly move south. See Geiranger and Raumbaan, then take a Norwigian plane to Bergen (there is a flight there with a ridiculous price) and hang out there for three days. Day city. The second is Sogne with Flam. The third is Hardanger.

The trick is that all transport to Bergen is connected and it’s more convenient to start from the fjords. There are inexpensive hotels in the city according to Norwegian standards. really on the outskirts.

Look in advance (there are websites) where the chain stores are located: RIMI, Kiwi and Rema. These are like our fives. The prices, if you are not eating for the last minute, are quite tolerable. for four of us in Bergen it cost 150 crowns per nose, this is in the “we don’t deny ourselves” mode. True, if you shop in these stores, there are no catering establishments.

From Bergen to Stavanger it is better to travel by flagrutten - it is more comfortable, faster and if you buy tickets in advance via the Internet it is cheaper.

Stavanger is also two days. As a base for a one-day trip to Lysifjord. The city itself is forgettable, except for the old part, which can be walked around in an hour.

Oslo is not needed in the program at all - it’s not a city at all. Clean, European sterile, but nothing to see. It’s better from Stavanger via Arlanda to St. Petersburg or Kastrup to Moscow.

The result is a “non-galloping” program, calm and you will be able to ride competently through the fjords. It’s better to look north in June.

InnaP

help

InnaP

to contacts

Ataris posted October 3 at 04:37
Hello gentlemen travelers!
Two crazy characters (me and my friend) couldn't find a more fun idea for a vacation than an impromptu trip to Norway. We set ourselves a grandiose goal - we are going to cross the entire country from the Russian-Norwegian border to Oslo in 10-12 days, and from there via Helsinki to return to our homeland. And everything wouldn’t be so bad, even the rainy October weather, if it were possible to travel by car. Unfortunately, it is not possible to take our own car or rent it on site, and we plan the entire route relying on our own feet, bike rental and public transport.
As a person who is extremely inexperienced in organizing such adventures, I turn to experts for experience. I really hope that someone has been on a similar trip to Norway before and can give advice on the route, transport and economics of the trip!
The approximate plan is as follows: start by bus Murmansk - Kirkenes, cross the border. The first destination is the North Cape, we would also like to capture Knivsheljodden, but this will force us to lose a whole day in the same place. Apart from this, there is nothing particularly attractive to us in Finnsmark, except perhaps the rock paintings in Alta. Therefore, go south-south-south as quickly as possible! Next stop - Lofoten. I don’t know if there will be an opportunity to see Maelstrom, but I would really like to. Then you will have to cross the Westfjord to end up in Bodø, from where you can take a train (long live the railways!) to Trondheim. On the way from Trondheim to Bergen, of course, you want to take in as many sights as possible... Jotunheimen, Sogne, Flåm, Hardanger is also within reach. We won’t bother even further south, to Stavanger and especially Kristiansand, we’ll leave it for next time. On the way from Bergen to Oslo, all you can do is contemplate the views from the train window. From Oslo airport an evening flight to Helsinki, from Helsinki the final dash home - an overnight bus to St. Petersburg.
I would be very grateful for any useful information, thanks in advance!

Hello! Also keep in mind that Norway has shorter daylight hours in October.

Aleanel

help

Aleanel

to contacts

Aleanel

help

Aleanel

to contacts

Krjemilek

help

Krjemilek

to contacts

So in Oslo the sun is not uncommon in the fall, all the rain from the Atlantic on the other side of the mountains drains onto the fjords.

And on the fjords themselves it is now damp and rainy - not the best time for the first acquaintance with the country, it may turn out that the desire to come to Norway again will be killed in the bud. and your friends will have a story - “And what did they find in this Norway.”

Ataris

help