Sweden and Norway not cruise

[Citygirlrurallife]

have decided we’ll try for Scandinavia next summer and aware that because it’s so expensive we need to start saving immediately and probably plan and book early and would love anyone’s thoughts on where to start?

we’d love to get there by train rather than fly so probably via Copenhagen and stay there for a few days. I’d mainly like to go to Sweden to see a dear friend of mine but should we also therefore check out Stockholm while we’re there or just see her and head straight to Norway?

And I’m a bit overwhelmed with where to start in Norway, we’ll have 13&16 yr olds with us and would love to book some kayaking in the Fjords - there are so many fjords and various travel guides say some get extremely busy in the summer which we’d prefer to avoid. Would it be easier to rent a car once we’re in Norway? Any recommendations for which part of the fjords to go to would be ace. We don’t want to cruise but wouldn’t be averse so small boat trips

thanks so much!

Flam for definite its beautiful. I just went kayaking there in september.

Definitely go to Stockholm! It’s absolutely beautiful!

I keep reading about giant cruise ships expunging their clients in Flam though…

Following - we did a fjord cruise last year (fred Olsen, not such a giant ship) but after I retire next year we're hoping to travel a lot and want to figure out how to visit Scandinavia, ideally using trains more than car but that might be unfeasible. I'd definitely be up for some kayaking!

I live in Norway (not Oslo) and used to live in Stockholm. More than happy to help.
If you are planning on visiting in summer, our school holidays are a little different mid June to August. Also around the fjords it can be very rainy in the summer, especially in the part I used to live.
Feel free to send me a message and I can help!

Oh you want somewhere to yourself?😬

It never bothered me in flam. We had the fjord to ourselves ( group of 10 kayaking) save the ferry boat occasionally. We got the train up the mountain which was full but got seats fine.

Bergen is a nice town to visit and can do fjord boat trips from the harbour there. We went to flam in April and did the boat to flam and then the train trip through the mountains. It was very quiet in April. I can’t imagine massive cruise ships there it must be quite overwhelming as the village of glam is tiny

Norway in a nutshell has good itinerys you can follow

You might want to look at Hurtigruten or Havila, which is not a cruise but a boat that locals use to travel around Norway. It stops at many stops , some only for 15 minutes to pick up post etc,some for a few hours. You can combine it with train trips eg Norway in a nutshell and Swedish railways.

The ships carry around 300 people . Most are now hybrid and they are an essential local service that also carries tourists. The food on Hurtigruten is excellent, local and high quality.

There are no shows or entertainments as such but there are lectures on local customs etc. Theywill organise expensive trips eg kayaking or you can book independently. https://www.hurtigruten.com/en-gb

lol yes please!

Oh that sounds quite cool - Thankyou

Can recommend Hurtigruten. Also, have a look at the Lofoten archipelago - get the Hurtigruten there and potter around the islands.

Don't know about Sweden, but if you travel to Norway (Oslo)

Train from Oslo to Bergen., but stop off at Voss if possible.

Have a couple of nights in Voss (outdoor/ sporty place - lots to do).

Take the train (return) from Voss to Flåm.

Travel on to Bergen for a couple of nights there.

Check out just how big "Scandinavia" is - it is many times the size of Great Britain and distances can be huge, particularly as in many places there are no motorways or direct roads. For example, it is far easier to sail up the west coast of Norway using the ferries than it is to drive. The trains are likewise affected - they need to go around mountains and fjords, which all makes average speeds slow.

A typical first-time intinerary might include the area bordered by Copenhagen/Malmo, Stockholm, Oslo, Gothenburg or maybe out to the west coast of Norway. It's a start, but you could easily spend a week or two in any of these cities, and if travelling by train, you've got a couple of days in each direction to and from Copenhagen.

Distances (measured in time rather than miles) in Scandinavia can be really big - so using night trains and ferries for some of the travel can help to utilise your time to the max.

Ok two recommendations now so will def check it out

Thankyou - we used to live in California so pretty used to big areas and having to travel a reasonable distance but I take your point about ferries v trains and cars!

I should prob be more specific in my post - I think I’m looking for recommendations about the different fjord areas as cities are reasonably easy to researcb

Check out the maninseat61 website for train travel

we did this route on Hurtigruten - brilliant holiday

now with the route

Wow... how long did that take @Parker231 ?

Bergen to Kirkenes takes around a week , the round trip back to Bergen around two weeks.

I know you say not cruise but here are my reasons for a cruise (in case you haven't thought of them)

The cost of food in Norway was eye-watering. With a cruise, your food is sorted

The fjords are fabulous and viewing them from a ship is an incredible experience

The coastline can be accessed by a ship faster and the transport tike you can stay occupied rather than sat in a car.

You can easily visit the North Cape by ship

I do understand. I'm.not a huge cruise fan generally. It was an amazing way to see Normway though. We also.did a Baltic cruise and it was a great way to visit many great cities in two weeks.

Took a week. It was lovely getting off in all the little towns and villages and wonder around. The ship was brilliant - nothing like a regular cruise but had fresh local food and such a comfortable bed!

Who did you book with @Parker231 ? Thanks

Thanks - I was expecting it to have taken much longer than that!