Not sure if this is a usual thing to happen but it really put a damper on my 1.5 days in Bergen. I prepaid for the Norway in a Nutshell tour (my mistake since this isn't high season) and when I showed up to pick up the ticket was told sorry, the boat is on strike and we're going to have to bus you. I balked at that point since the boat ride WAS the thing I was taking the tour for, but it seemed my ticket was non-refundable and I was stuck. BTW, the guy did point out that there was a more expensive fjord cruise from Bergen they were suggesting but once he realized I had prepaid, that was not a possibility.

So, instead of a 1.5 hour fjord cruise, I was left with an additional half hour bus ride through a mountain tunnel! Needless to say myself and others were not pleased. What made it worse was that the bus stopped at two places on the way to Flam, and the driver rushed people through both of them, only to find out that the the change meant my 1.5 hours in Flam (way more than enough,thanks) was increased to almost 3 hours, which was just painful. The poor weather on the day I took the tour didn't help any of this either.

So - if you're booking NIAN, make sure they have resolved their issues with the fjord boat captain to/from Flam first. The trip is definitely NOT worth the price if the boat ride is not provided.

The strike affected officers (masters and mates) on local ferries and domestic costal shipping. But the strike ended on May 28; well before the OP posted the original post. So no need for a warning now!

BTW: this was not a wildcat strike, but a legal, well advertised strike which is legal as a part of industrial negotiations. I'm surprised that the OP didn't get the opportunity to have the money refunded. Surely: bus substitution is acceptable for local travellers (which after all is the main business for the year-round service to Sognefjorden!), and also is according to the official terms of carriage. But when the boat trip as such is the main purpose of a package, ordinary customer protection rights in this country probably would indeed allow for a refund. Not necessarily from the quay agent directly, but from the original provider of the package. But as the OP accepted the substitute (i.e. accepted the bus-substitution), however reluctantly, no refund is due.

You said well-advertised ... does that mean they knew in advance? It seems that my trip was just very poorly timed for purposes of this tour. As I only bought that ticket a week or so before I left the US, I'm wondering now if they were aware in advance and just didn't share the information.

Sorry things didn't go as you had hoped. It does seem to be the case that strikes in Norway, as in France, for example, are often announced in advance. I've found that the International Herald Tribune often lists upcoming problem dates in its travel briefs. Also, sometimes English-language version of newspapers (e.g., Copenhagen Post) will list upcoming labor disputes that could affect transportation.

Yes, strikes are very organized and legislated in this country. The only exceptions are "calling-in-sick" by flight controllers, and recently also by ex-SK (but not ex-BU) SKBU-pilots.

The strike in question was announced preliminarily on April 24 when the negotiations between employer and employees broke down. Enforced negotiation by a national official (Riksmeklingsmannen) was announced for May 11 and 12. Only after this is unsuccessful, any strike might start. On May the 5 a list was published stating which vessels and which routes were to be affected in the first batch. It was announced at the same time that the strike would not start any earlier than May 13. The "NIAN-ships" were not in the first batch. Negotiations broke down on overtime early AM on May 13, and the strike started at 6 am.

The scope of the strike was increased from midnight on May 20. This included the express boat Bergen-Selje r/t and the ferry M/F Gudvangen between Gudvangen and Fl�m. The latter probably was the culprit in your case. This expansion of the industrial action was announced on May 16.

The strike ended on May 25 after new negotiation led to an acceptable compromise. Thus the strike affected the NIAN between May 21 and May 25. This was known from May 16. Most Norwegians know that strikes usually come at this time of the year. Any serious tour operator should know this as well. Personally: I would not have planned on thaking a NIAN after May 16 without having alternative plans. The scope and duration of strikes is very well known domestically: this is obviously very important news for us.

The upside is that strikes affecting essential services are usually short: prolonged strikes affecting life and health might be cut short by the government. This particular strike lasted for twelve days which was longer than expected. The F/A strike at SKBU in April lasted only three days for instance.

I hope that the above information helps you to find out whether your tour provider kept any information away from you. Any ticket bought between April 24 and May 13 would be a gamble, but not really dangerous. Many strikes are announced that do not materalize. I would be wary after May 13 whn the strike was on, and after May 16 when the service in question was actually named as being on strike after a given date, I would not have booked it.

(Information on dates and ships affected taken from the public webpage of the striking union, Norges Sj�offisersforbund (Norwegian only).)

.

First, thanks to gvdIAD for referring me to this thread. ^

We will be in Oslo for two days at the beginning of September, and as recommended by fellow FTers here we will definitely be taking the famous scenic train to Bergen to board the working/cargo/cruise ship Mitnads�l from September 6th to 12th. Does anyone know if any strike dates have been posted for this period of time?

Hi, GoingAway! Any hotel(s), must sees to recommend in Bergen?

belle

Can't offer much on the hotel, I stayed at the Scandic Bergen City which was a great deal at 10K HH points, its very basic but the "price" was right. I wasn't in town for very long; my bergen highlight was the ride up to Mt Floyden. I walked down from there. If I had more time, I would suggest doing a roundtrip on the tram, and taking some of the other routes they have on top of the Mountain. I also enjoyed just walking around the city. Oslo's high points were the resistance museum that I found fascinating and a visit out the Holmekamp (sp?) ski jump area - the train ride takes you out to the 'burbs and then going up to the ski area (its a bit of a walk upwards)

You asked about buying your train ticket between oslo & bergen on another thread. Check out the nsb.no website, there might be a sale fare for your travel period. I got a first class ticket that was below the standard coach fare (about $68USD, iirc) that way.

I liked Bergen over Oslo. I did more "touristy" things in my day and half in Oslo, though.

No strikes announced for September, and highly unlikely that there will be any. Legal strikes usually hit May/June due to the fact that most national union contracts expire in late spring. Wildcat strikes and political strikes might happen any time, but the former is rare (airline crew and flight controllers calling in "sick" excepted) the latter are also rare and last no more than a day.

Early September should be a nice time for travelling on Hurtigruten. Your ship is called Midnatsol BTW. There is a disagreement between the Hurtigruten companies and the government on taxation of the Hurtigruten crew (they are taxed as landside employees, at a higher rate then merchant mariners in overseas service) but in my opinion it is unlikely that this should lead to a political strike in September.

Hope you'll enjoy your trip!