Scandinavia Recommendations?

We especially love exploring the cities....

It seems that Norwegians live in cities but would rather be in the mountains or next to the water. Oslo, Bergen and Helsinki certainly deserve some exploration time and have cultural museums work seeing. Rick Steve's guides do a good job of highlighting museums and sights. My Oslo favorites include the Holmenkollen ski museum and ski jump, Fram museum, Folk museum, Viking Ship, Vigeland Park. Not a museum, the Norway in a Nutshell tour is a must do.

Steves suggests: https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/scandinavia-itinerary
Depending on the length of your trip, and taking geographical proximity into account, here are my recommended priorities:
4 days: Copenhagen, Stockholm (connected by a 5.5-hour express train)
6 days, add: Oslo
8 days, add: Norway in a Nutshell fjord trip, Bergen
10 days, add: Overnight cruise from Stockholm to Helsinki
14 days, add: Ærø, Odense, Roskilde, Frederiksborg (all in Denmark)
17 days, add: Aarhus (Denmark), Kalmar (Sweden)
21 days, add: Tallinn (Estonia) and more time in capitals
24 days, add: More Norwegian countryside or Stockholm's archipelago

PS We found a good (economic) SAS flight from SFO to CPH connecting to Helsinki. We're taking advantage of the CPH hub to explore Copenhagen on our way to Finland.

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/norway/oslo
▲▲▲ City Hall Oslo's artsy 20th-century government building, lined with huge, vibrant, municipal-themed murals, best visited with included tour.
▲▲▲ National Gallery Norway's cultural and natural essence, captured on canvas.
▲▲▲ Frogner Park Sprawling park with works by Norway's greatest sculptor, Gustav Vigeland, and the studio where he created them (now a museum).
▲▲▲ Norwegian Folk Museum Norway condensed into 150 historic buildings in a large open-air park.
▲▲ Norwegian Resistance Museum Gripping look at Norway's tumultuous WWII experience.
▲▲ Viking Ship Museum An impressive trio of ninth-century Viking ships, with exhibits on the people who built them.
▲▲ Fram Museum Captivating exhibit on the Arctic exploration ship.
▲▲ Kon-Tiki Museum Adventures of primitive Kon-Tiki and Ra II ships built by Thor Heyerdahl.
▲▲ Holmenkollen Ski Jump and Ski Museum Dizzying vista and a schuss through skiing history.
▲ Nobel Peace Center Exhibit celebrating the ideals of the Nobel Peace Prize and the lives of those who have won it.
▲ Opera House Stunning performance center that's helping revitalize the harborfront.
▲ Akershus Fortress Complex and Tours Historic military base and fortified old center, with guided tours, a ho-hum castle interior, and a couple of museums (including the excellent Norwegian Resistance Museum, listed above).
▲ Norwegian Holocaust Center High-tech walk through rise of anti-Semitism, the Holocaust in Norway, and racism today.
▲ Norwegian Maritime Museum Dusty cruise through Norway's rich seafaring heritage.
▲ Edvard Munch Museum Works of Norway's famous Expressionistic painter.
▲ Grünerløkka Oslo's bohemian district, with bustling cafés and pubs.

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/finland/helsinki
▲▲▲ Temppeliaukio Church Awe-inspiring, copper-topped 1969 "Church in the Rock."
▲▲ Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral Orthodoxy's most prodigious display outside of Eastern Europe.
▲▲ Lutheran Cathedral Green-domed, 19th-century Neoclassical masterpiece.
▲▲ Seurasaari Open-Air Folk Museum Island museum with 100 historic buildings from Finland's farthest corners.
▲▲ Suomenlinna Fortress Helsinki's harbor island, sprinkled with picnic spots, museums, and military history.
▲ Senate
Consummate Neoclassical square, with Lutheran Cathedral.
▲ Helsinki City Museum Tells the city's history well and in English.
▲ Ateneum, The National Gallery of Finland Largest collection of art in Finland, including local favorites plus works by Cézanne, Chagall, Gauguin, and Van Gogh.
▲ National Museum of Finland The scoop on Finland, featuring folk costumes, an armory, czars, and thrones; the prehistory exhibit is best

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/denmark/copenhagen
▲▲▲ Tivoli Gardens Copenhagen's classic amusement park, with rides, music, food, and other fun.
▲▲▲ National Museum History of Danish civilization with tourable 19th-century Victorian Apartment.
▲▲▲ Rosenborg Castle and Treasury Renaissance castle of larger-than-life "warrior king" Christian IV.
▲▲▲ Christiania Colorful counterculture squatters' colony.
▲▲ Christiansborg Palace Royal reception rooms with dazzling tapestries.
▲▲ Thorvaldsen's Museum Works of the Danish Neoclassical sculptor.
▲ City Hall Copenhagen's landmark, packed with Danish history and symbolism and topped with a tower.
▲ Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek Scandinavia's top art gallery, featuring Egyptians, Greeks, Etruscans, French, and Danes.
▲ Museum of Copenhagen The story of Copenhagen, displayed in an old house....

If you have friends in Helsinki I strongly recommend visiting there. Nothing like seeing a place with locals that can guide you to a few off-the-beaten-path places. And Helsinki is a really nice city. Plan to spend 2-3 nights there. It is also really convenient to cross on the ferry to Tallinn, Estonia. This can be just a daytrip (its a 90 minute trip) or spend a night. I did a daytrip and while I could have spent more time, was able to see enough to enjoy it.

Stockholm is also a wonderful city with lots for the kids to see and do. And I strongly recommend the overnight ferry between Stockholm and Helsinki. Very scenic views of the archipelago and it would be lots of fun for the kids. Stockholm is worth 2-3 nights at the least.

If you use those as you planning base, then fill in any remaining time available with options like fjords in Norway and Copenhagen. Copenhagen is a nice city with lots to see and do (even for the kids). There are also a few daytrips possible, like Roskild for the Viking Ship Museum and Helsingor for the Castle. It would be a good city to fly in or out of.

Thank you, Edgar and Douglas, for the great recs. I appreciate it!

With active kids, the outdoor museums should be a must do. In Helsinki, we enjoyed walking around:
▲▲ Seurasaari Open-Air Folk Museum Island museum with 100 historic buildings from Finland's farthest corners.
▲▲ Suomenlinna Fortress Helsinki's harbor island, sprinkled with picnic spots, museums, and military history.
Both are accessible by transit. The Folk Museum by bus, the Suomenlinna Fortress by boat.

PS The Finns seem partial to Southwest Tex-Mex. Our Finnish ski guide's favorite Helsinki restaurant was the Santa Fe Restaurant:
http://www.rafla.fi/santafe/en/front_page We ate Russian instead: http://www.restaurantbellevue.com/index_en.php

And in Oslo, Pepe's Pizza is the "affordable" eating out:
https://www.peppes.no/

14 Days at Scandinavia -- I recommend going to three countries : Sweden, Norway, Denmark. At Denmark you might have time for Copenhagen only.

I highly recommend spending an evening at Tivoli and heading to Legoland for kids and adults. There are also great waterparks and other places for kids of all ages in Scandinavia. You should prepare them and yourselves that you will see more skin than is culturally appropriate in N. America.

Check out one-way flights on SAS and Norwegian for within Scandinavia. They can work well, for example, the "Norway in a Nutshell" trip is fantastic, but also long. Flying is an easy way to get around Scandinavia.

Airports over there are smaller, more organized and self-service than most of what I've seen around the world. For example, you put your own bags on the belt and scan your own boarding passes at security.

Other good for all-ages suggestions are in Oslo:
- Holmenkollen
- Folk Museum
- Kon-Tiki
- Videlandsparken

Simply put: Scandinavia is an extremely expensive region to travel. At TGI Fridays, 2 cheeseburger and 2 Cokes are $60, for example. Even a Coke in a 7-11 will cost you $4+.
We just returned 9/10/2015 from a cruise out of Copenhagen hitting Germany, Tallin, St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Stockholm and back to Copenhagen. We spend 3 days in Copenhagen prior to the cruise and overnight on our return--before flying over to Oslo. We took the Norway in a Nutshell tour of the fjords ending in Bergen. We flew home from Bergen through Oslo.
We strongly suggest the cruise as the most affordable way to see all of the region. We took a two day independent tour of St. Petersburg, and it was really the highlight of our trip.
We flew the very discount airline Norwegian Air Shuttle, and would highly recommend them if you're close to one of their U.S. Gateway cities. Our fares were half that of the big legacy airlines.

Thanks to all of you for the wonderful, detailed recommendations. It's also good to know a couple of you have had good experiences with Norwegian Air. I was feeling a bit skittish about going with this airline, but the prices are attractive and they now fly from the Bay Area (Oakland)!

If you have friends in Helsinki, I, too, vote for more time in Finland, as you will get a different view of it with friends there. That is a great opportunity. I think Stockholm is very interesting and friendly for adults and preteens/teens as it has indoor and outdoor entertainment/museums/boats. Also, there are great day trips from there as well; i.e., archipelago, etc.. I won't list possibilities because everyone has their own preferences and you can review a thorough guide book (in addition to RS guidebook) for details. Then the overnight ferry to Helsinki, or ferry to Estonia before Helsinki. Personally, I would drop Norway from this trip. But, again, that is just me.

I don't understand why people say Scandinavia is expensive, as I didn't find it that way at all. Also, I found Stockholm to be one of the more budget friendly, major cities. However, I live in Boston...but I see you live in the Bay Area so I think you will find it pocketbook friendly as well.