I am reposting this topic because I accidentally posted it in the Austrian Forum.
Any suggestions for adding approx 5-6 days post tour to see the Fiords in Norway. Have explored the Norway in a Nutshell as a good option but wondering if Bergen or Oslo would be the better place to start?
Norway in a Nutshell works equally well in both directions.
So it depends as to whether you are flying home from Bergen or Oslo. It wouldn't make the most productive use of time to go Oslo to Bergen if you are flying home from Oslo- as you would then have to backtrack on yourself.
Which direction would depend on which airports are most convenient for your situation.
Whether you start or end in Oslo or Bergen will make no difference in the Norway in a Nutshell journey. Both Bergen and Oslo warrant a few days. Depending on your plans, you may want to include an overnight along the way in Flåm, Gudvangen or Voss
Assuming you want the lowest air fare for the least inconvenient flights for your entire trip, what is your home airport?
Also, when are you taking this trip?
Hi, ksal31,
Wideroe Airlines has direct flights to Bergen from Aberdeen. Flight time is about 1 hour 20 minutes, and the airfare is reasonable. We flew with them last summer, and were very satisfied with the service.
There are several all day fjord trips from Bergen, which would be a much better starting point for exploration than Oslo.
Best wishes,
Mike (Auchterless)
It really doesn't matter which way you go with Norway in a Nutshell.
I would suggest taking at least two days to do it rather than try to rush it in one day. I stayed in Flam at the Fretheim Hotel. Their dinner buffet was amazing. It's only a few minutes walk to both the train depot and the ferry port.
You end the tour in Edinburgh. There are flights to both Oslo and Bergen from Edinburgh. To travel from Edinburgh to Aberdeen airport is an additional 3.5 hours with a combination of train and bus.
Which airport to fly into Norway and out of Norway will depend on where you are going afterward as well as the day of the week for your trip.
For 5-6 days in Norway you can do what evreyone always recommends - Norway in a Nutshell - or you could do what we have enjoyed on our two Norway trips. Since you only want to do 5-6 days, fly into Bergen, rent a car at the airport, and explore the area between the Sogne fjord and the Hardanger fjord. Worthwhile stops include Ullensvang, Eidfjord, Vorringfossen, Borgund stave church or Vik stave church, at least one of the old wooden Norwegian hotels, and Bergen. Oslo is away from the main fjords and IMHO not that exciting. You can do part of the Nutshell tour by taking the day cruise from Gudvengen to Flam and then the quick bus return. Norway has excellent roads and driving there is very easy. The fjords are crossed by frequent car ferries. Most rental cars come with a transponder for the ferry tolls. Our tolls were about $50 for two weeks of driving. If you want more info about doing this, just ask me.
Thank you for all the great suggestions. Appreciate all the great options.
Bergen is surprisingly well-connect to Scotland (well, it surprised me). This past July we were in Shetland (about as far north in Scotland as one can be) and it turned out that getting home (for us, to Seattle) was cheaper if we went via Bergen (on a separate flight). So at the end of our Shetland trip, we flew to Bergen for a couple days, then flew home from there. Worked out nicely for us, might be different for you. Point being, there's more than a little connectivity between Scotland and Norway, specifically through Bergen. Worth investigating.
