It is very difficult for others to answer a question like this without knowing the interests of your group. What sorts of things interest you or are high priority experiences for you?

From where in the UK are you flying to Bergen?

Bath is a day trip from London by direct train (1h 30m).

My family loves to travel. We love history and beautiful sites. When we travel we tend to top highlights. FYI we have traveled a lot but mainly cruises and then tour the top destination per port. This is truly our first time staying inside a foreign country more than a day.

Would it just be easier to hit “day” trips out of London or actually rent a car and travel.
We are open to anything really.

As far as Bergen we will fly there wherever our last stop is.

Thanks for helping.

What are you already planning to do in London? That might help us make additional suggestions.

If Edinburgh is your departure point for Norway, head north from London, and York’s a straight shot, enroute, north by train. Have 2 days in York, then Edinburgh for 2 days. Spend your 1 or 2 other days in England along the way (quick Hadrian’s Wall location visit/day tour and/or Newcastle are possibilities), or in Scotland (Sterling, Glasgow, and/or north of Edinburgh). You probably won’t see the Loch Ness monster, but the lake is very pretty, and there are more lakes and castles galore in Scotland.

I think I may have misread your original post: I thought you meant you had only 5 or nights altogether including those you'll spend in London. If those are in addition to London, I think York and Edinburgh would be a nice option. I'll leave my response as I first wrote it, just in case my original interpretation was correct.

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Do you really have four full days in London, or is it three full days plus the day you arrive--when one or more of you may be jetlagged and/or sleep-deprived. Have you done cruises that required you to fly across the Atlantic or Pacific, crossing many time-zones? If you have, and you've all handled those flights well, I withdraw this concern.

London is a huge city with a nearly infinite number of sights. You really don't need to shift hotels for lack of things to do in London. There are, as already mentioned, many good daytrips you could take if you want a change of scene.

Although there is very fast rail service to York and on to Edinburgh, both those cities are worth more than a short stop. And you cannot fly from York to Bergen; York has no airport. If you chose to stay in York for a couple of nights, you'd need to spend more of your precious vacation time getting to a viable airport. The closest airport to York is Leeds-Bradford, but it doesn't seem to have non-stop service to Bergen.

Is your cruise going to be heavily scenery-oriented? If so, I think your daughters might appreciate the urban attractions in London: street markets, a night at the theatre, every sort of ethnic food imaginable, fun walking tours (check out London Walks).

Surely you need to find out which airports in the UK actually have flights to Bergen before you can make your plans?

Hi Kimberley -

Cyn and Acraven give you good advice. There are no direct flights to Bergen from Leeds/Bradford airport. It would seem your best options are from Manchester (closest to York, but not that close) Edinburgh and London. The cheapest options are from London, or so it would seem. My research was a two minute search for ‘direct flights to Bergen from U.K.’, so more research is probably in order!

The good news is that if you are in Edinburgh the airport is at hand, if you decide to go back to London for your Bergen flight there’s a good railway service to Kings Cross, plus another hour on the Tube from there to Heathrow. (Downside to Edinburgh to Heathrow is it’s pretty much a full day trip). Similarly the Transpennine rail service will take you from York direct into Manchester Airport if you decide on that option. (Three hour approx rail journey).

Bath you can do as a day or overnight trip by train from London. Unless you have some reason why Oxford is a ‘must’, then I think you can drop it rather than try to ‘shoe horn’ it into your itinerary to give you more time in York and/or Edinburgh.

I think you’ll have a great trip whichever option you decide!

Ian

Yes we have traveled from USA across Atlantic to Dublin and Rome separate times. We arrive in London on 6/16 7am. We are a definite stay in London til 6/20 hotel is booked. We want to arrive in Bergen either 6/25 or 6/26 then we head to Stockholm 6/28 or 6/29 departing 7/1. I’m still very early on planning stages as right now I’m so overwhelmed with many many options.
Maybe trying to do too much and overthinking it all.

I again want to thank everyone for your help. I’m reading each reply and will work on a plan.

I’m a math atheist so double checking to see:
if its 4 nights you have in London?

June travel is always about dealing with crowds but this June is a once in lifetime occurance:
https://www.royal.uk/platinum-jubilee-central-weekend

My first thought given what you’ve shared about the family’s interests is to start booking tickets now ( if possible ) for a tour of Parliament and Westminster Abbey. If theatre is important review this website to see what plays and musicals will be on during your dates. https://www.whatsonstage.com/

If you would like informative tours investigate London Walks, www.walks.com. Really great offerings for varied interests.

If wishing to experience an Evensong one night check websites for St Paul’s, St Brides, St Martins In The Fields. In fact check the church thats close to where you’ll be saying to see if they have Evensong.

While in London check the Tower Bridge Lift Schedule, you might get lucky.

Check online to see if the National Rail Days Out 2 for 1 deals are still being offered. Would help with costs. What attractions participate changes each month.
https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/

Find your accommodations ( refundable ones) and book them NOW!

You do not need a car in London - it is expensive, parking may be a problem and public transport is excellent.

Places like Bath, Canterbury, Cambridge or Oxford can be done by train as day trips from London. York is a couple of hours by train from London. There's loads to do in York itself and this could easily fill two days.re planning to sat there, You won't want a car for the city as it is small and compact and everything is in walkable distance. You may only need a car if you plan to make a day trip into the countryside. There is a regular train service from York to Manchester Airport if you decide to fly to Bergan from Manchester.

There are loads of trains from York to Edinburgh and again you don't need a car to explore Edinburgh.

If using the train a lot for travelling, buying a rail card may save money. Thbis website tells you about the different cards available.

https://www.railcard.co.uk/

It is worth buying tickets in advance as they can work out a lot cheaper. The cheapest prices are usually released 12 weeks before the travel date. You also book a seat as well as the ticket.

You can use the train line which is a national ticket booking service, but charges a booking fee of £1.50.

I book directly with a train company eg LNER or Transpenninine Express who don't charge a booking fee.

https://www.tpexpress.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAjc2QBhDgARIsAMc3SqTMHaokRgR-Q_rrjE_ndy8Yzdg3EH-x6NrAEMqEe3PjmLe8tRwyfvoaAoLxEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.lner.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAjc2QBhDgARIsAMc3SqSvc8PpOOfGUS30WhbciBmzZlNi8Nu5WSfhMDD-BqZQZlUw2_9LwkQaAppSEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

If you're certain you don't want to spend all your UK time in London, then the suggestions of York and onto Scotland are sound advice. For rail travel, use nationalrail.co.uk which can give you all the information about available trains, schedules, and ways to save money. Be aware that some other sites are basically companies selling specific passes.

Well, we spent a full week in London a few years ago and did not see all that we wanted. Why not just stay there? Plenty to do and see. As you enjoy history, the British Museum is excellent. As an aside, I see you are going to Norway. I'd certainly recommend Preikestolen, but it is well south of Bergan. Yet, a picture I took of this hangs on my wall-a dramatic landform.

It would be easier to stay in London and visit the following: Westminster Abbey (rent the headset), Churchill War Rooms (buy tickets before leaving home), British Museum and when you’re ready for a break visit its café. The Tower of London and if you’re up to it the Victoria and Albert Museum. Also visit the food markets including Harrods.
Buy cheap tickets at the TKTS booth in the West End and see a musical or play. You could also spend a day riding the hop on hop off tour bus that will take you past almost everything you want to see.