Hello, I am new to the forum site but looking forward to chatting with you all. We love to travel and love adventure! We are planning a trip to Norway in the Sept/Oct 2019 timeframe. Our main goal is to see the Aurora Borealis but also looking forward to a dog sledding adventure. We have found a good package and now we are interested in the culture, clothing needs, food, and in general things to consider. We fly into Oslo then from Oslo to Tromso. Our tour package has us staying at the Malangen Resort in Tromso. What were your personal highlights from your trip to Norway? Thanks!
Posted by
11133 posts
Personal highlights of Norway....
Tromso- and it’s Arctic Chapel, Brewery restaurant, Polar/Arctic Museum.
Bodo- WWII Museum, National Aviation Museum
Trondheim- Nidaros Cathedral, burial site of St. Olaf
Alesund- Art Nouveau architecture
Fjords
Bergen- Bryggen, Hanseatic Museum
Oslo- Vigeland Sculpture Park, Viking Ship Museum, Opera House,.
Loved Oslo!
Posted by
Berlin
2187 posts
I recommend to check a climate table. This might help in the question of clothig needs. If you want to stay directly at the coast you can subtract a significant chill factor from temperatures mentioned.
Enjoyable in states Nordland, Troms and Finnmark were to me:
- Nature and scenic landscape
- Fellheisen outlook
- Good and warming coffee at Kaffebonna
- Lofoten, Senja and Vesteralen
- Whale and bird watching (not best at your date of travel)
- Cruising coastal line with Hurtigruten ships port-to-port (both directions from Tromso are really beautiful)
- Driving up E6 to North Cape with sidetrips to Havoysund, Oksfjord and Hammerfest
- The northern official scenic routes
- Alta stone carvings
- North Cape
- Some hidden places with nice outlooks, e.g. Havøygavlen Windpark at Havøysund
Card or cash: Even if Norway is a country with high acceptance for credit and debit cards I recommend to have some NOK in cash with you. In Tromso the local buses accepted 2018 cash only if you did not buy a ticket earlier from a machine which is only present in the city area. Example. Bus 26 to get back from Fjellheisen cable car station.
Posted by
Sweden
6344 posts
If your goals are Auroras and dog sledding, I wouldn't recommend Tromsø, but some place more inland, like Abisko. And especially doing it later in the year, as you might need to travel far to find enough snow for some dog sledding in September. Or even better, do it in January or February. September and October will not be cold in Tromsø (between 0 and 10°C during the day, with subzero temperatures during the night) but there will probably be a bit of rain. Average monthly precipitation is 110 mm in September and 135 mm in October.
Posted by
8 posts
So, we are on an Arctic Circle Cruise in JUNE 2019. I've used Rick's Northern Europe Cruise ports books in past (VERY helpful) and just got the latest. THREE of our "ports" (RCI) are not in the book. One is Tromso and another is Alesun (We booked a private tour for Honningsvag)
I'm not a fan of ship-run tours (Rick's mantra - Never book ship-run tour). But wondering if I should see sights on our own or if we get "out of the area" what tour we should look for. This will be an expensive trip so looking for the most doable. Any help appreciated.