3 days in Norway

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Norway for us was …

 

  • 3:20 flight one way, 3:20 return flight with company Norwegian
  • 13h00 of road
  • 820 km covered
  • 1 night at Oslo Airport
  • 1 night in the moonlight
  • 1 night at the hotel “Magic Hotel”

But Norway it’s mostly unforgettable moments, breathtaking scenery and a city full of surprises.

Before going to Norway

Norway was a destination we often talked about. A destination that attracted us a lot but we had never taken the step. Until this extended weekend of May 8th.
Unlike usual, we took a little early to catch our flight tickets Nice - Oslo, Herdroud’s birthday at the beginning of the year was the perfect excuse.
But a week before we left we had still not prepared the trip, which is more like us … We like to travel without planning anything and to discover on the spot.

And so it was a week before we left, that we decided to look into the matter. So we decided to go to Bergen.
Why Bergen, simply because it is the second city of Norway, close to the Fjords. Hence its nickname “gate of the Fjords” of Norway. But also because we were quite close to Trolltunga, which we absolutely didn’t want to miss during our stay in Norway.

That being said, we still left with only a great idea of ​​where we were going. And we will take off without reservation hotel, and taking with us our good sleeping bags. We nevertheless rented a car from Hertz before arriving on the spot to be sure to be able to move freely.

 

Flights: Nice / Oslo and Oslo / Bergen

21:05: take off from Nice Côte d’Azur airport for 2h30 flight to Oslo.
Once you arrive in Oslo in Norway serious things begin. It’s almost midnight but we only take off at 8:20 am. So we have to find something to wait for. And then this is not the first time that we discovered this airport! No, no he has already welcomed us twice on our trip to Iceland!
The airport is quite nice and big enough for you to spend the night without being on top of each other. Even though the number of people who spent the night in the airport was much more important than during our first stop a few weeks ago.

Eating not having filled 8:00 of transit, it must be admitted that I cowardly abandoned Laetitia to sleep … So she stayed awake all night with only companions her Ipod and her helmet on her ears.

At 8:20, it is with impatience that one takes off from Oslo direction Bergen. As a rule, I find long flights. This one is only 50 minutes and it passed very, very quickly. We passed, and above all myself, the flight glued to the porthole. Yes, Laetitia took the opportunity to finally sleep a little ! Seen from the sky, Norway is beautiful ! (I like this word “beautiful”)

 

Bergen, second city of Norway

As soon as we arrived in Bergen, the first thing to do was obviously to get the car. A Peugeot 208 freshly booked a few days before we left. But surprise, we get the keys to a Hyundai !! In the end, the car was well above our expectations, new and spacious enough for what we expected!

Second imperative thing, shopping. Right next to the airport, we found a small supermarket, REMA 1000. You should know that prices in Norway are higher than in France sometimes going from single to double.

It was planned to spend a few hours in Bergen before leaving to bring it closer to Trolltunga. So that’s what we did.
We started by visiting the Bryggen wharf. This pretty neighborhood of Bergen that we had heard so often but whose tragic history we do not know. Bryggen is an area of ​​wooden houses that are contiguous to each other, ideal conditions for the spread of a fire. The beautiful neighborhood of Norway built in the Middle Ages, burned many times. The last fire dates from 1955 and each time the district was rebuilt in the same spirit.

As we say in the article “BRYGGEN” the Bryggen wharf is a big blow of heart for us. We stayed for a while and took care to pass through each corridor and alleyways. This is truly a must in Bergen.

We then took a short tour around the Bergen (Fløibanen) funicular. What better way to take the height to see the entrance of the Fjords of Norway.

The time being counted, after this fast little turn, we resumed the road for Trolltunga.

 

Trolltunga and its hike

To reach Trolltunga, you will have to walk for a few hours. But, not even scared! We were almost gone just for that!
We had vaguely informed before leaving. It was a difficult but widely feasible hike. Big error!
Arrived on the spot, the information was very different! The hike is classified as difficult to see very complicated. Almost 1000 meters of ascent, it should have tilt us and we should have inquired much more than we had done.

For information, we referred to the books we had to know among others the backpacker … And looking a little further, this would have saved us hours of road almost useless!

Once we arrived at the Troltunga parking lot, near which we thought we could spend the night, we had a nasty surprise (and Laetitia was not happy at all!).
Not only the hike is advertised as difficult, special equipment is recommended but so far nothing too disturbing!

What we did not expect is that depending on the time of year you can not go up there!

The winter you simply can not get there, the hike is far too dangerous, in spring and autumn you can not get there without a guide. And of course, we had not planned the guide! And it was way too late for us to make a request …
There was still snow on the summits and did not want to take unnecessary risks, we preferred not to climb rather than end up at the foot of a cliff …

We had no plan B, so we improvised and quickly looked for the points to see in the surroundings leaving to make a small detour.

 

The Latefossen Waterfall

The time playing against us we decided to start by going to see the waterfall Latefossen which was very close to Odda where we made a small stop.

The Latefossen waterfall is actually two waterfalls that meet in a river, with a fairly impressive flow of water.

But we stayed on the disappointment of Trolltunga and we found this site without real interest with this small shop that spoils the natural view of the site, finally as natural as possible along the road …

So we do not linger too long to get back on the road to Stegastein which we had already spotted before we left for Norway.

But especially, having planned to make Norway in a backpack, we had to find where to sleep …

 

Stegastein and its view of the Fjords of Norway

Disappointment of the digested day, we awoke with an overflowing energy and decided to discover a maximum of things in Norway.

Direction Stegastein, after a night in the calm and the moonlight. Finally as calm as possible because Laetitia has decided to speak in her sleep, which today still makes us laugh a lot.
In the end, nothing but the road to get there makes us dream. At each turn, we discover a little more the beauty of Norway. The Fjord stretches in front of us, all the way up Stegastein’s viewpoint.

Once arrived, watch out for dizziness! This platform of about thirty meters springs from the mountain about 650 meters above the Fjord. Glazed at the end for a clear view, the platform allows to accommodate quite a few people and it is with several groups that we had to share it. With a breathtaking view of the Fjord, a photo shoot has taken shape.

This very tourist route of Norway continues to climb, but we have already spotted our next destination so half turn. And we take the road again taking care not to miss anything of the landscape.

 

Roads in Norway

We had a good time on the roads. So it goes without saying that we should talk about it a little.

First, they are in very good condition, no need for specific car and a city car is ample. In any case in this region of Norway.
We were disappointed however, the roads are not necessarily wide with passages limits for 2 vehicles but it is not the most disturbing. What is most embarrassing is not being able to stop anywhere. Not for pauses but because the scenery is still superb and we would have liked to stop to enjoy this one. So unless we blocked the road or stopped in the middle of the turn, which is not very advisable, we could not take full advantage of it.

Then, as in France, there are radars fixed on the roads so watch out for speed limitations that vary quite often between 50, 60, 70 and 80 km / h.

In addition to radar, tolls are on the roads and are not always paying attention. The tolls of Norway have nothing to do with those of France. No barriers, no stops to make, the cars are equipped with a badge and you will be debited thereafter. Tolls will not cost you very much, a few euros in total over 3 days.

Last point the tunnels … We can not tell you how long we spent rolling in these tunnels. Reassure yourself the problem does not come from the plugs, we did not finally come across a lot of cars. But they are long … Too long … From some meters to several kilometers, the longest tunnel that we crossed was about 17 km. It has been reported to us that the longest in Norway was about 25 km. And you can believe me even if the figure does not look very big, it’s very long 17 km under a tunnel, then 25 …

 

The Tvindefossen Waterfall

The waterfall of Tvindefossen is located about 1h30 from Bergen.
Waterfalls are not what is lacking in Norway, you can see them all over the mountains. This one has however a particular charm, a sacred flow and a descent in staircase to finally split in two …
Other nice point, parking allows to stop there. A few meters to walk and you almost end up in the water.

According to some legends, to bathe in the water of this high waterfall of about 150m would restore strength.

We did not test the legend and it is impossible to bathe, I would have won a bit of biscotto but Laetitia did not want to let me stick a head, I still do not understand why!

 

Back in Bergen

On the first day, we made only a very small part of the city of Bergen.

After a while reflection at the foot of Tvindefossen, we decided to return to Bergen and especially to take a hotel room. So we booked our last night at the Magic Hotel.

We stumbled upon this hotel which seemed close to the city center and reasonably priced. And we tell you more about our hotel in an article “we tested“.

We spent the evening in the streets of Bergen and these lovely squares. We had fun with our camera and what we had on hand, so much so that we ended up being questioned by a Norwegian, himself a professional photographer, who asked us what we were doing And that gave us some ideas say original to photograph the city. And it is also for moments like that that one likes to travel.

We got up very early the next morning to film the squares of the city that we liked the day before and which was a bit too busy in the world. And the marmot my wife has only moderately liked to be woken at 4am!

It seems that the images are worth a thousand words and better than a long discourse, so we show you a little more just below and a little high in video!

 

3-day review in Norway

In conclusion of these 3 days, we advise you to know before leaving to avoid the few inconveniences that one could have, but it is also the game when you decide to leave in “freestyle” without really foreseeing . And despite our disappointments, we regret nothing.
We stayed one night in our car and it was epic!
We also tested a hotel in Bergen and it was relaxing!
We rode on Norwegian roads for hours to admire the landscapes.
And we looked for ever higher places to have a perfect view of the Fjords.

In short, if you ever have the opportunity to leave, go for it! The magic of nature is always worth it and this small port city that is Bergen is adorable at the highest point!

So, when are you going?

 

Bonus

Norway saw by the sky, Bergen to Oslo.

 

Some good links

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