RS Scandinavia Tour Bergen and Oslo suggestions

We also flew home from Oslo after the tour - so we took the train from Bergen back to Oslo - pretty scenery. Our tour was in June - so we saw people cross country skiing as the train passed thru the mountains - really enjoyed it. If you take the train - you could coordinate adding the Flam Railway - which is supposed to be very scenic. Love the Scandinavia tour - have fun!

We took the Norway in a Nutshell tour from Oslo to Flam and then rode on a fast ferry to Bergen. Leaving Bergen, we flew over to Oslo and made a connection to the U.S. from there.

Unless you specifically want to go back to Oslo, KLM flies to Amsterdam and Air France flies to CDG. Maybe you could make quick connections at either of those Gateway airports.

I just read through your tour itinerary. The tour covers most of the highlights in both cities. With respect to Bergen you might want to add one more night. That would give you time to see the Edvard Grieg house - and maybe stay for a noon concert - and the Fantoft Stave Church. Both can be reached via the tram and bus or tram and long walk and can be done in one day. They are located in the same general area. We only spent 2 full days in Oslo and basically did what the tour is doing. I'm sure there is more to Oslo than 2 day's worth of activities.

For our trip to Norway in May I have saved a few walks or other destinations a bit of the beaten path that sound good.

https://www.frommers.com/destinations/oslo/walking-tours/walking-tour-2

https://www.lifeinnorway.net/akerselva-river-walk-in-oslo/

https://ekebergparken.com/en

https://marmuseum.no/en/reconstruction-of-a-viking-boat (I understand the real viking ship in Oslo the museum is closed for renovations)

https://www.historiskmuseum.no/english/exhibitions/vikingr/index.html

We did this tour pre pandemic. We stayed an extra day in Bergen, the took the Norway in a Nutshell back to Oslo. My husband booked each leg rather than using a tour company. The ferry on the fjord was very different than on the tour—it was cold and drizzly on the tour and sunny and gorgeous going back. Also we enjoyed lunch in Flam. We were in the latter half of August and it gets dark relatively early. The last couple hours were pretty dark. We only stayed overnight in Oslo then flew to Italy. Loved the Scandinavia tour.

Thank you Denise of WA, David of AL, Trotter Trotter Trotter, Laurie Ann of IL, Patty of CA for responding to my question about how much time to allow in Bergen after the tour. Your responses help me plus had added benefit of getting me excited. We will stay one additional day in Bergen in order to go to Edvard Grieg home, noon concert and Fantoft Stave Church. David, I want to return to Oslo in order to do the Flam Norway in a nutshell train tour Bergen-Oslo. Opening Laurie Ann links for Oslo walking tours gave me a thrill so I will add an additional night in Oslo before returning to US. Patty, I was distressed to read it was already getting dark the end of August when you were there. We are first half of September. Thank each of you for the helpful information. I feel as though I can now get my train tickets.

I don't know exactly when you are going in September, but on the 15th sunset is 19:39.

From Oslo there are direct flights to New York with SAS.

Having taken several RS tours and just doing the Scandinavian Tour last August, I definitely recommend staying in Bergen an extra day after the tour. We took the train from Bergen to Oslo. That was a very scenic, beautiful trip. If you do it, get seats on the right side, looking forward. Also, give yourself another full day in Oslo. There will most likely be things you didn't get to see while there on the tour. We fell in love with Oslo. So much so that I actually looked up the requirements to immigrate there.

Regarding daylight hours, I think of it this way. On the fall equinox, Sept. 23, there will be 12 hours of day and 12 of night anywhere in Norway, and indeed, any other place in the world (hence the name "equinox", equal night). But back on June 21, the summer solstice, the day was very long in Oslo, nearly 19 hours. So that means Oslo needs to shed about 7 hours of daytime in 3 months between June and September, which is (more or less) a bit over 2 hours per month, or about half an hour per week. So by September this has been going on all summer and those long days are pretty much gone, just like at home (but progressing at a faster clip) as you're close to the equinox. Of course rather than do my math game there are various tables online that will tell you the exact number of daylight hours, and sunrise and sunset times, on any specific day for most cities in the world!

In response to my comment about it getting dark. It was daylight until about 8 pm but we didn’t get into Oslo for another hour or two. That part of the trip was dark. The most scenic part (in my opinion) was sunny and glorious. If in Bergen and I had the time, I’d do it again.

Sally,
I took this marvelous tour last May. We stayed one day longer in Bergen because our flights home were cancelled but because we had to get another Covid test before we could board a plane back to the US, we didn’t have time to do more sightseeing. Would have loved seeing Grieg’s home and the stave church you mention. I was blown away by the several Stave Churches we saw in Norway!! Truly amazing to me and other worldly.
I definitely wish we had gone on to Oslo after Bergen because there is so much I wanted to do, go on a tour of the Opera House and attend a performance there. It was daylight until after 9 pm when we were there in May and early June. We walked on the roof all the way to the top of the opera house, such a great view of the water and a way to burn some calories after dinner.
You will enjoy this tour!