My husband and I (mid 60s) will be leaving for Norway on September 9. We have booked flights and accommodations. September 11 we will be picking up a car in Voss and driving to Balestrand. We will stay in Balestrand for 2 nights. Following Balestrand, we will be in Laerdal for 2 nights. From Larerdal, we will return to Bergen for 2 nights. From Bergen will fly to Lofoton for 7 days. We will return to Bergen on Sept, 24 and fly home on Sept. 25. I'm struggling to plan our driving itinerary for our time in the fjords area. We are interested in scenic drives, waterfalls, short easy hikes, possible glaciers, fjords, and seeing some of the older Stave churches. We want to also make sure we are not trying to cover so much ground we don't enjoy the trip. I know we will have some ferry crossings and that will be part of the adventure, but any cautions about ferries that don't run frequently would be great. I'll list some of my questions below in hopes of getting some good advice.
On day 1 we will begin our drive from Voss to Ballestrand around 11:30. Are there any stops in route or detours worthwhile for this part of the trip.? If not we would probably spend the afternoon enjoying Balestrand and the views.
Day 2 we are considering driving part of Gaulorfjellet or driving to one of the glaciers. If we could do both that would be great. Another possibility might be the Hopperstad Stave church (I'm a little confused about the location for this church. It looks like there are 2 Viks on the map with one being near Gaulorfjellet). My initial plans included the fjord tour from Flam, but I wonder would a fjord tour by boat from Balaestrand be just as scenic and less crowded.
Day 3 we will leave Balaestrand for Laerdal. I'm unsure of the route that would be most scenic and include some of the things we want to see along the way. I've been reading about Sognefjelet and interested in things we may enjoy along that route if time permits. I'm unsure if we didn't see glaciers on the previous day could we see a glacier on this day.
Day 4 we will be staying in Laerdal. Our original plan was to drive to Flam along the Aurlandsfjellet or Laerdalstunnelen and take the boat and possible train tour from Flam. I could use some guidance on the need for this tour since we will have a car. I've read the scenery is best from a car. I also wonder would the Flamsbana Train add anything to our trip. We could use that time to explore other areas north of Laerdal.
DAY 5 We will drive back to Voss and return the car and take the train back to Bergen for 2 nights.
I know I will have questions about Bergen and the Lofoton Islands, but the fjords are the most difficult to plan.
,