NORWAY

[niktam]

Anyone here toured Norway in the Summer?

[witzend]

niktam - 2020-12-04 9:28 PM Anyone here toured Norway in the Summer?

 

This may interest You https://www.polarsteps.com/amountainhigh/757938-northern-exposure

[Steve928]

We were there mid-May to mid-June 2019. Any earlier and there'll likely still be snow on the most Northern roads and highest roads, any later and you're into local summer holidays and it gets much busier.

We would have been back this autumn (after the summer holidays) were it not for the pandemic. Next year perhaps..

[EJB]

As above end of May and June.

Waterfalls at full tilt and roads clear....but some places still closed as 'their season' is from 1st June.

It wasn't a problem though.

On one trip we did the overnight ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo...saved a couple of days travel and not too expensive!

There are a few routes if you look.

 

Good Luck ;-)

[spirou]

Several times both summer and winter (infinitely better) in various parts but most often in the south i.e. Oslo/Bergen/Stavanger loop.

[peterjl]

Hi, 2014 was the last time. We had planned to repeat this year but......... hope to go 2021.

 

We travelled north through Sweden and took our dog. We lingered so long we only made it to the Lofoten islands and was still away for two months.

 

Peter

[Cattwg]

We went to Norway (and Finland and Sweden) via Denmark in June/July 2006. It was a great trip. Watching the sun traverse the sky at 3:00 am is surreal. Norway is expensive, you’d need a bank loan to buy more than one round of drinks. Easy solution – don’t drink. As I was driving for some part of most days this was not a problem.

I’ve sent you a PM

Cattwg :-D

[colin]

Here's a blog I found when researching a trip.

http://philip-clark.weebly.com/norway.html

[mtravel]

I've been there twice in August:

 

1. clockwise from Oslo to Karasjok with visits to Bergen, Alesund, Trondheim and Tromso, North Cape (the latter not worth the cost in my opinion). We didn't miss many of our second trip sstages (see below).

2. counterclockwise with entrance from Neiden (just north-east of Inari (FIN)) to Kristiansand (ferry to Hirtshals (DK)).

Did all the wild eastern Finnmark and then went down to the beautiful isle of Senja (don't miss it !!!), the Vesteralen Archipelago (from Andenes possible whale watching cruise), the Lofoten one and on.

 

In practice, except for the Havoysund and the Atlanterhavsvegen that we had already traveled in the first trip, we followed an itinerary including all the Scenic routes.

See:

https://www.nasjonaleturistveger.no/en/routes

https://www.visitnorway.com/plan-your-trip/travel-tips-a-z/norwegian-scenic-routes/

 

Our standing

UNMISSABLE

Senja

Vesteralen

Lofoten

Torgathullet and Vega Archipelago (Unesco)

Trollstigen

Eagle Road

Geiranger Fjorden (two hours cruise from Geiranger small harbor)

Dalsnibba (small car park at the top)

Dovrefjell - Sunndalsfjell Park

TO INSERT

Prekeistolen

Trolltunga

Olso, Bergen, Tromsø, etc.

Neolithic site of Alta

Atlanterhavsvegen

OVERVALUED

Nordkapp (unless you walk to the true european northern point (roughly 9 hours return walk))

Snohetta View Point

Flåm train

Laksforsen waterfall

Skrollsvika and Rodsand

WE WOULD AVOID

Rødsand

Skrollsvika

Handargervidda (too big if you are not a great hicker)

[costaexpress]

niktam - 2020-12-04 9:28 PM

 

Anyone here toured Norway in the Summer?

Only comments I would add are, if you are staying South then it gets very busy July and August, if you are going North then the mosquito's and bugs can be a real pain from late June onwards. Like others I went end of May and June and the weather was beautiful and did not encounter any problems with mosquito's.

[mtravel]

costaexpress - 2020-12-07 2:16 PM

 

niktam - 2020-12-04 9:28 PM

 

Anyone here toured Norway in the Summer?

 

... if you are going North then the mosquito's and bugs can be a real pain from late June onwards....

With the thousands of lakes in the countries, the problem of mosquitoes, midges and the like can be found in Swedish Lappland and Finland, not everywhere and only until the beginning of August.

Late spring is almost certainly worse.

 

In August we have never found them in Norway, neither southern nor northern.

 

At least that's our experience.

[niktam]

Many thanks for all the replies. We are looking at travelling in May for nearly a month with a trip up to the North! Is it worth taking the scooter, just wondering if you can you park anywhere with the MH?

Appreciate it's all around dearer but it appears to be 1500 miles South to North and there appears to be a lack of ferry routes from the UK so it may be a Harwich trip and then North from there?

We did the Hurtigruten trip of 30 odd ports a couple of years ago and liked what we saw in Norway.

Winter tyres are not required in May so the snow on the highest roads cannot be that bad?

[Wortho]

We start out in Southern Sweden in May but head South for a couple of months before returning to the North when its start to get busy down South as its usually less busy up North but there are still places such as Lofoten that get very busy. Sometimes in May when we head off it can snow even in Southern Sweden and the temp overnight can hover around zero. It can also get pretty hot up North in July/August and a few years ago we had 30c at the Artic circle. Norway is expensive so best to stock up in Germany especially with booze and fuel. Most Norwegians who live near the Swedish border do their grocery shopping in Sweden and eating out is a rare treat as very expensive. If you travel along the coast in Norway you need to catch quite a few ferries to cross the Fjords and it can get expensive if the van is over 6M. We usually drive North through Sweden these days when heading to Northern Norway as we have done the South of Norway several times before. Both Sweden and Norway allow wild camping "allemansrätten" but we have found more and more places putting signs up in recent years as many previously hidden places are now out in the open with Apps like Park4night and locals are finding their favorite swimming spots can get overwhelmed with vanpackers. There are still lots of places to camp however and you can still find a nice spot on a lake or river where you see very few people. Check out the Norway/Sweden blog on motoroaming.com which was put together by a UK couple when they travelled Scandinavia, a great resource!

[Robinhood]

niktam - 2020-12-08 8:41 PM

 

Appreciate it's all around dearer but it appears to be 1500 miles South to North and there appears to be a lack of ferry routes from the UK so it may be a Harwich trip and then North from there?

We use Hull/Rotterdam or Harwich/Hook which end up in roughly the same place.

 

Doing one-way largely through Sweden lessens the toll of the journey, since the roads are rather better and quicker to get a good way North.

 

If you do go Harwich Hook, you may be interested in this trip report from 4 years ago:

 

https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Two-Go-Arctic-again-/41967/

 

...though, by choice, if I hadn't done it before I would probably head North through central Sweden, rather than the East coast as we found it slightly more enjoyable.

 

This one, from somewhat earlier, describes a Southbound trip through the centre of Sweden.

 

https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/The-Scandinavian-Road-Trip-Part-I/31622/31/

 

You may get some travel tips from them (re: the bridges vs ferry, for instance), and there are a few recommended places to stop.

[mtravel]

I state that the best month is June, the snow is now gone and the solstice is day 21.

You may still find some snow and frozen ponds if you head into eastern Finnmark.

Keep in mind that you are on the Barents Sea and a few kilometers from the Russian border.

Indeed, from Kirkenes to GrenseJakobselv you skirt the fence that separates the two nations.

 

In Sweden and Norway it is allowed to stop almost anywhere, obviously not in the cities that however typically have well organized stopovers.

Someone has already mentioned the Allemaretten rule valid in Sweden and Norway and which gives the right to stop at least 150 meters from private property.

Perhaps asking the owner's permission.

In my last trip (August 2018), at least on the Lofoten Islands, however, I noticed a certain impatience on the part of the population.

 

Bridges, tunnels and ferries:

In Sweden three sections.

Øresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden. Replaceable by ferry at the same cost.

One bridge in Sundsvall and one in Motala. About one euro but payment upon registration or online upon receipt of the invoice.

Some cities (for sure Goteborg and Stockolm) have introduced a kind of London LEZ.

It is possible to register the vehicle but I have not done so and I waited for the invoice to arrive at home (However fractions of euros).

 

Norway:

The situation is constantly changing, for example some cities (e.g. Bergen, Trondheim, Kristiansand) have introduced an entrance fee.

Some ferries are about to be replaced by bridges or tunnels.

For example the Hardangerbrua on the Sorfjoerden.

In Norway typically for a fee until the investment has been recovered.

For example, the tunnel leading to Nordkapp (the cape is on the island of Mageroya and not on the mainland) was paid until 2012, now it is free.

In my travels the total cost of toll roads, tunnels, bridges, access to cities has never exceeded 80 €.

So quite reasonable. I registered the motorhome on http://www.autopass.no/en (valid for cities, bridges and roads).

 

I am attaching a list of ferries with routes and costs 2018, it is in Italian but I guess easily google-translatable.

Ferry Norway 2018.pdf

[mtravel]

Websites can change over time or even disappear.

So I don't guarantee they are still valid.

For your convenience, still in Italian but easily translatable, please find here attached a list of sites that I had collected at the time.

 

I hope they can be of some use.

Norway - Useful sites (2018).pdf

[mtravel]

For those who intend to reach the far north of the country, I recommend visiting Finnmark.

Its eastern part offers incredible landscapes, in some cases I do not exaggerate in defining them as lunar.

Kirkenes is a small town of a certain size that can serve as a starting point.

The roads do not give big problems even to rather large vehicles.

Beware, however, about 10km of gravel road rather damaged by military tracked vehicles (border with Russia) between Eggemoen and Grense Jakobselv and about 35km single track between Vardø and Hamminberg.

 

Our 2018 itinerary included the following stages:

1. Neiden (FIN-N border) - Kirkenes - Eggemoen - Grense Jakobselv - Nybygget (Barents Sea) - Kirkenes

2. Kirkenes - Varangerbotn - Unjárga Nesseby - Vadsø - Vardø - Hamningberg - Vadsø (from Unjárga Nesseby Scenic Route Varanger).

3. Vadsø - Tana Bru - Gamvik - Slettnes Fyr (Lighthouse, Europe mainland northern point) - Mehamn - Kjøllefjord

4. Kjøllefjord - Lebesby - Silfar Canyon - Børselv - Lakselv - Trollholmsund - Alta (prehistoric rock carvings museum)

5. Alta - Kåfjord (Tirpitz museum) - Talvik (Exit from Finnmark)

 

Max

[spospe]

This shows the North Cape at midnight in May. It is true that it is a long way to drive and it is a bit bleak when you get there (our water pipes froze, 'overnight'), but it is an experience to remember.

 

The walk to Knivskjellodden (the furthest point north in Norway) is an 18 km round trip and quite easy to do from the car park a bit further back from the Cape on the E69.

 

If you haven't been to the Cape, you are in the same position as someone who has toured Scotland, but never made it to John O'Groats.

 

 

[mtravel]

North Cape...

We went there on our first trip, even though we were close we deliberately skipped it on our second.

 

North Cape is the goal of life for motorhomers but Europe is plenty of Heads and this is certainly not one of the most beautiful.

I understand, if you haven't been there you can't say you've been there.

But if you've been there you wonder why you did it.

For example, Cabo da Roca (P) left me with other emotions.

If you surf the internet a little on the North Cape you will find enthusiastic opinions and fierce criticism.

 

I'm halfway between the two.

The road that takes you there is very beautiful (try to get to Honningsvåg with a full tank because the fuel here is the most expensive in all of Norway).

Once you arrive at the North Cape, you will find the huge parking lot (very expensive, if it is not changed they charge 48 hours even if you will only stay 12).

Hotel, quality but very expensive souvenir shop, new-age underground church, a mini-museum with some dioramas, Northern Lights movie that you can also find in other places.

Balcony on the cliff, if I were to make a comparison with the Cliffs of Moher (IRL) for example, this disappears in comparison.

Ritual photo to you and the globe and off you go.

Is it worth it?

Up to you to decide.

 

A note on the weather. We arrived around five in the evening.

I remember that after fixing the motorhome I went to the shop to send some postcards to friends.

When I got out a horizontal rain was lashing my face, completely immersed in the clouds I struggled to find our motorhome.

A very strong wind blew all night.

But the next day the sun was shining.

[Steve928]

Yep, midnight sun at Nordkapp just has to be done.

We really enjoyed all the driving to there from Alta, across the bleak tundra just emerging from under the snow and then on up the Porsangerfjorden/Bering sea coast.

Simpy unforgettable.

[EJB]

We have never visited places to simply say 'We have been to.....'

Consequently we have never visited the concrete car park which is some distance from the most northerly point in Norway.

Each to his own >:-) (lol)

[Steve928]

Concrete? I wish..

Thanks for letting us know about your life choices though, it's contributed greatly to this thread.

[spirou]

And then there is this: https://planetski.eu/2020/12/11/norway-set-to-ban-people-from-the-uk/

 

You wanted out...