Big4Flyer

We're planning a trip to Norway with our three young kids (ages 6, 4, 1) and are trying to decide where to base ourselves. We'll be there for 2.5 weeks, flying into Oslo, and would prefer to stay in the same place for the entirety.

While my wife and I are happy to jump from place to place every other day when we travel, we've found it to be more enjoyable when traveling with kids to stay in the same place for as long as possible.

We prefer locations where there are plenty of sights to see, and hikes to go on. We'd love to go somewhere where we can experience the fjords, both on and off the water. I've read that Bergen is a wonderful city, but it looks like many of the more popular fjords are farther south. Are there any small towns where we could base ourselves during our time there and still get a chance to sample what Norway has to offer?

yourdailyphil

It'd be difficult to see all the fjords while staying in the same place for the entire time. I would recommend Bergen and Stavanger or anywhere inbetween. Nearby Bergen, you have Sognefjord, Naeroyfjord, Aurlandsfjorden. A little further north you have Nordfjord.

South of Bergen on the way to Stavanger you have Hardangerfjord, Lysefjorden. And there are plenty of national tourist routes (http://www.nasjonaleturistveger.no/en/routes) that connect them.

You could do a homebase in Odda or somewhere along route 13 and have a bunch of hikes/waterfalls/fjord exploring within driving distance.

If I had 2.5 weeks in Norway, I'd stay in Stryn. Lakes and glaciers nearby (Bodalsbreen, Briksdalsbreen), Geirangerfjord (UNESCO site), cruises, hikes. Loen just opened Loen Skylift. Short drive from Alesund airport. Once you fly into Oslo it's very easy/fast to switch to the domestic terminal and hop around on Norwegian or SAS.

ung1

Also consider taking the Hurtigruten coastal ferry. In theory you stay in the same place (on the ship) for at least part of the journey, but get to experience a lot more than one land based location.

flatlander

I do not recommend staying in Bergen for 2.5 weeks, or even much more than 2.5 days, though it's interesting to visit for a day or two. The weather is bad nearly all the time. Trondheim is a better place to stay for longer. I second the suggestion of cruising on Hurtigruten .

RedChili

I'd really recommend doing a triangle. Stay e.g. six days each in three separate places. Bergen could be one of them. I would also pick Geilo, midway between Oslo and Bergen. It would give you the possibility of walking in the mountains. Lastly, I would choose somewhere in Møre and Romsdal. You've got such famous sites as Trollstigen and the Atlantic Ocean Road there, plus the beautiful town of Ålesund. In my opinion, the most beautiful fjords in Norway are north of Bergen, not south.

GUWonder

If I had questions about Norway, I'd ask ksu. There is a great wealth of knowledge with that FTer when it comes to visiting Norway.

For a 15-18 day trip, I'd be inclined to do 3-4 stays rather than just 1-2 stays unless it was to really get immersed in an area. Are you planning to use just public transit or are you thinking of having a car? With 3 young kids, the more places at which you do overnight stays the way more of a hassle it will be, more so if not taking a car.

While Norway has amazing public transit -- there are some rather sleepy islands off Alesund where there is even well-timed (albeit very infrequent) shuttle van service that would work -- but the more luggage you have the more issues there may be with that.

If I were part of a travel party of 2 adults and 3 young children in those age ranges you mentioned, I'd probably still be willing to stay at 3-4 different places. But I'd be very concerned about how to carry all the stuff.

Big4Flyer

We'll certainly want to rent a car. When considering buying train tickets/flights for 5 a car quickly becomes the more economical option.

We've now realized that we'll actually have a full month to spend there, from
mid-May through mid-June. With that amount of time, we'd be willing to consider staying in two different locations, although certainly not more than 3, just because of the hassle of moving around with kids and that we enjoy really getting to know a town when we visit.

We did a similar thing earlier this year and stayed for 6 weeks in New Zealand, split between two different homes on the north and south islands. It's just as much finding an enjoyable place to relax as visiting the tourist sites.

It sounds like we'll avoid staying in Bergen and instead try to find a smaller town north of there. We found a home we could rent in Skjolden on the Lustrafjorden.

I've also been hearing good things about the Lofoten islands. Would these be worth going out of the way to visit, or would our time be better spent in the fjords and mountains down South?

ung1

That's a beautiful time of year to go north of the Arctic circle - I'd try doing that on the second half of your trip so you get the midnight sun. Lofoten can get very expensive and busy at that time, but also check out Vesteralen - also very beautiful but less touristy. With a car, you can base yourself somewhere central and drive- a lot of beautiful places with a different charm than down south.

If you're starting in mid May, try to be in one of the big cities on 17th May which is the national day in Norway. Everyone dresses up in national costumes, there are parades in the streets, royal family at the castle balcony (in Oslo) etc - quite unique and special.

ksu

I see now that GUWonder has named me the resident expert on visiting Norway, for which I am honoured!

It must be said, that I am a native Norwegian. I travel quite extensively in Norway, especially the western part, mostly on business though.

With your timeframe, I find a combination of Sognefjorden and Lofoten an excellent idea. Lofoten is just as magnificent as Sognefjorden and quite different. Skjolden is a classical tourist destination. It is one of the few vilages in Sogn I haven't visited during the las couple of years (Hyllestad being the major other one), but if the rental home there looks fine, I think that will be very OK. Be aware that, as Skjolden is at the very end of Sognefjorden it is not the perfect base for touring the rest of Sogn, but it is very good for heading into the mountains, and even travelling to the inland valley of Ottadalen. (The mountain road is closed until about May 1).

As for travelling between Skjolden and Lofoten, the costal express would be the best. It is a 1500 km, 22 hour drive, that would have to be broken by overnights at least twice if you choose to drive, and flying would be inordinately expensive as any sensible connection would involve three flights. The costal express is three night trip. Cabins for five seems to be non-existent, so you'd probably need two. Be aware that after June 1 the northbound ship calls at Geiranger, increasing the sightseeing value, but also the price.

flatlander

"Coastal express" refers to Hurtigruten (which was the fast way to get along the coast of Norway when it was started, a century ago ). Look in the "route traffic" section to book any port to any port.

ksu

And try and book on the Norwegian site, not the US site. prices tend to be better there (partly but not solely due to the NOK being low to the USD), and there often are campaigns targeted to the local market.

I don't think next year has been loaded yet, though.

bjonil