We have a fairly unique situation. My husband and I do Home Exchanges around the world. This July we will be in a beautiful home in Copenhagen for three weeks with use of the exchangers car. We want to go up to Norway for about a week to see the fjords.
1. Is the best route via ferry to go from Hirshals to Kristiansand ? Or should we go to Oslo? Going to Bergen is too long of a ferry with no berths for sleeping !
2. What is the best route to get from Kristiansand to Bergen /fjord area ?
3. Knowing that we have wheels where do you recommend that we base ourselves out of ?
4. We would like to see Pilots rock but it looks like it will add too many days to our schedule and be difficult to get to. Do you agree ?
4. Any other recommendations ?
Thank you !! Judy
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3398 posts
Hi Judy!
We are home exchangers too and exchanged to Norway for a month last summer so I can give you some of the info you are looking for.
Yes, taking the car ferry over to Kristiansand is definitely the best way to get there.
If it was me, I'd simply drive the coastal road from Kristiansand up to Bergen. All of the coastal roads in Norway are extremely beautiful. It's a long day drive but not a waste of time at all.
The problem with "basing" yourself somewhere in Norway is that each small town has a fairly limited number of things to do. We were based in Alesund, further north, and were quite lucky with all there is to do there.
Bergen really only has enough to fill two days.
Stavanger is pretty much the same.
I would suggest spending two nights each in Kristiansand, Stavanger, and Bergen.
Oslo has about three full days worth of sights to see if you want to spend your time there. It's about a 7 hour drive from Bergen.
Posted by
OP
maitland, Fl., USA
64 posts
Thank you Anita. Your advice is greatly appreciated.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
About fifteen years ago I got to speak to a Swede (on the El into downtown Chicago from O'Hare Airport). She said that when her family went to Norway, they had to take all sorts of steps to save money. They gassed up before crossing the border and tried to make the trip on one tank of gas, since gas was so much more expensive in Norway. They brought a cooler full of food, since food was more expensive in Norway. They brought camping equipment, since other accommodations were so expensive. At this point I asked, is Norway really that much more expensive than Sweden (a country not known for its low prices)? She said absolutely yes. I then asked, is it really worth all the hassle? She said absolutely yes, Norway was far more beautiful than Sweden.
I'm posting all this so you yourself can follow her money-saving tips - and to encourage you to go!