What was your favorite thing to see in Bergen? We are taking the morning ferry from Balestrand and should arrive around noon-ish. We are staying in the Bryggen area. We will have the entire next day. The day after we leave to go back to Amsterdam on a 5pm flight, so have most of the morning there. We are traveling with my in-laws who are very active 70's and we are active 50s. Thanks for your suggestions!
Posted by
Medford, OR, USA
5837 posts
It's hard to go too far wrong following the RS Scandinavia guide book's Bergen sights suggestions. We enjoyed a self-guided walking tour of Bryggrn and the Hanseatic area. The Hanseatic Museum was enjoyable. We were there late winter so the fish market was not active. Norwegian waffles with lingonberry jam and heavy cream and a cup of coffee make for a good afternoon break from walking around in the rain.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
I don't know if you've already taken your trip (I just found this thread via a link in another thread).
My favorite thing in Bergen was walking in the area between the Ole Bulls Plass and the aquarium. The houses look like they were built for a movie set - unbelievably cute and charming, and a further bonus was that I had it all to myself.
I also enjoyed other things listed in Rick's book, like the funicular and the fish market.
For me, the "lowlight" was actually Rick's favorite - the guided tour of Bryggen. I just didn't find it that interesting, and as an added "bonus," the women leading the tour had the worst English I encountered in Norway. It would have been acceptable if it hadn't been built up so much by Rick. Yet another lesson in how excessively high expectations can lead to problems.
I don't want my negative last paragraph to be my last word, though. I LOVED Bergen and would gladly return - it's a really neat small city.
Posted by
OP
Portland, Oregon, USA
70 posts
Thank you both for your suggestions. We leave July 22nd and now I am finally trying to figure out packing and finalizing our itinerary for our dog sitters. We are very experienced travelers and always carry on....just working on helping my in laws figure it all out. This is their first time in Europe!
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
"Probably our favourite thing though - as you are there overnight - was in the evening to go up the funicular railway from the town centre - very nice views (we were there in Autumn and watched sunset, of course I'm not sure if that is practical in July!)."
I was there in early July, and took the funicular up late in the evening. I went up at 11 PM and went down at 11:45 PM; I know this because the midnight funicular down one was supposed to be the last of the night and I didn't want to take a chance on being stranded. As I was up there, it never got "dark" but it did get dusky; just dark enough for the town lights to start coming on. This was a very weird thing to see at almost midnight, instead of a few hours earlier as I'm used to (at that time of year in New York, it's dark by 9 PM).
I agree this was a great activity. The neighborhood around the funicular base is also very pretty to wander around
Posted by
1 posts
Michele:
I am recently retired and will be in Bergen myself from Nov 18 to 21. As I'm now traveling alone I to have been looking for advice from others at different web sites. Some times I come away more confused than when I started. I had to laugh at Harold's comment about Rick Steve's recommending a place and his experience placing it at the bottom of the list. As I was planning for my own trip I read the reviews and experiences of other travelers and I swear to you that someone will write: I wouldn't wish that bed bug infested place on my worst enemy and the next will say: Best nights sleep I've ever had! It leaves me wondering, are really talking about the same place! Anyway, I'll post my suggestions in a couple of weeks. Hopefully you and your family enjoyed Norway as much as I'm hoping to. I'd be interested in hearing your experience. Have a great day!
Malcolm