OT - Norway

Discussion in 'Bulletin Board' started by NathanBFC94, Jun 13, 2022.

  1. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    A bit random and not football related in anyway but seen as we still have no new manager to discuss I thought I would ask for some off topic help instead.

    Has anyone on the forum been to Norway? If so what is it like etc. I understand most of that region is expensive when you get there but I myself have never been.

    I want to go as I am desperate to go whale watching to see the orca in the wild. Was thinking of maybe booking a trip later in the year around November/December time with the fiancé and maybe go to some Christmas markets while we are there if they have any that are worth seeing.

    Just wondered if anyone had been before and had any recommendations etc.
     
  2. Loko the Tyke

    Loko the Tyke Administrator Staff Member Admin

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    Don't we have two Norwegians on this board? @Tomi and one other?
     
  3. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    Oh I wasn't aware we had any Norwegians on the board. They would be ideal for tips :)
     
  4. TitusMagee

    TitusMagee Well-Known Member

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    Tomi is Finnish I believe :)
     
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  5. Jay

    Jay Well-Known Member

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    He's from Finland
     
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  6. Loko the Tyke

    Loko the Tyke Administrator Staff Member Admin

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    He's still a member isn't it? He's not finished?

     
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  7. shed131

    shed131 Well-Known Member

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    Tomi might not know anything about whales but dishwasher products then he's your man
    Taxi for the shed.lol
     
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  8. Dan

    DannyWilsonLovechild Well-Known Member

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    I've only been once and not spent time in the cities.

    Norway is considered to be the most expensive Scandi country (no idea how things may have changed or increased post pandemic) (from memory I think it was about 20% more than Danish prices when we did research).

    We went to Alta inside the Arctic Circle (about as far north as you can go on mainland Norway) with a change in Oslo (though we had no time there), well, that was the closest place to it as we were in the middle of nowhere. I've heard good things about Bergen.

    We used a company called Magnetic North who were brilliant and had a whole host of options all over the north and were just expanding into Canada, again, no idea if they made it through the pandemic ok or not. They were very good at breaking down the options into categories, so say northern lights. whale watching, skiing etc.

    What I can say is flying over the Norwegian Fjords in winter time was incredible and when we got to the place we were staying, it was incredible. It was very cold (though mild for their standards at the time) so doing research to get the right clothing is important too.

    My favourite christmas markets (and we've done quite a lot!) tend to be the Germanic countries. Lubeck and Vienna probably my favourite two, but I'm sure there'll be plenty of online articles about the best ones. If you looked at a twin centre (and mindful you're much closer to the Russian border!) but you open up the options of Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius in the Baltics whose Christmas markets run well into January (think it was to the end of the month given the Russian Orthodox calendar).

    Feel free to ask for any more input, always happy to help.
     
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  9. Sim

    Simon De Montforte Well-Known Member

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    Wasn't the Norwegian called K nut and isn't Westie.living in Norway.
     
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  10. Sparky

    Sparky Well-Known Member

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    I know someone who was there recently on a cruise...she said it was £10 for a small beer :eek:
     
  11. Tyk

    Tyketical Masterstroke Well-Known Member

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    I've been to Oslo a couple of times, once to watch England and once to visit my brother in law who used to live there. It's a lovely city, very short distance to some amazing scenery and the public transport on the fjords is reasonably priced to get around.

    It is very expensive, especially where alcohol is concerned - about 5 years ago it was around £11 for a beer, and frankly with upmarket restaurants don't even bother, they are just inaffordably expensive - but you can eat on a reasonable budget if you stay out of the most touristy areas and go to little local places (and the junk food chains are say, about double the price so they're not absolutely stupid).

    If you want Christmas markets I'd be tempted to get the cheapest budget flight to a random German city you can find. We did Bremen for new year a few years ago and it was magic - also been to Frankfurt, Cologne, Nuremberg, Stuttgart, Munich and I used to live in Berlin and they're all ace for a weekend away.
     
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  12. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    Thanks mate, from looking online the fjords just north of Tromso are the best places to spot the whales so would need to head there at some point but I don't know what else is around that area in terms of where to stay etc. I will check out the company you mentioned to see if they have any information.

    Not sure when you last went etc. but do you recall if it was pricey to get there in terms of flights and stuff or was it just expensive when you got there?
     
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  13. kestyke

    kestyke Well-Known Member

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    Went there on a geology field trip in the 90's, to look at the tunnels and bridges they were constructing to access towns in fjords. Awesome country, fjords galore. AurlandsfjordI think we saw. Bergen was nice. Took the postal ferry back from Bergen to Stavanger. There was an overnight ferry from Newcastle to Stavanger back in the day.
     
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  14. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    My mate has just been to Iceland and in one of the spots he went to it was £18 for a cocktail and that was during 'happy hour' I know Scandinavia is known to be very expensive when it comes to alcohol.
     
  15. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    Thanks, wasn't sure market wise but was hoping to use those as a sweetener for the missus to convince her to come along. Not sure she will be as up for the whale thing as I am so was trying to think of something she would enjoy aside from just that.
     
  16. Dan

    DannyWilsonLovechild Well-Known Member

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    Just looked at it was Jan 2016 when we went to Alta. It was very much an "experience" break, so we had 4 nights in the middle of nowhere in a valley. Mountains as the backdrop and you could do walks, cross country skiing and snowmobiling etc and then we went on to Sorrisniva which was an ice hotel for a further night, so we were well away from the towns.

    From memory, we flew with SAS and I think we paid around £400-£450 for flights, but Alta was out on a limb. All in for accommodation and experiences, I think we paid about £3,000, but the places we stayed had all meals included given you were in the middle of nowhere. Though you had to pay for drinks which were very expensive.

    Tromso is probably a good place to start as it is a larger area and it's high up in the north, so snow and northern lights come into play. Bergen is further south but is supposed to be really quite pretty, Tromso looked a bit built up to me but we weren't factoring in whale watching, so if thats your main driver, then the place with highest chance of seeing them at a given time of year is going to be your biggest influence.
     
  17. sadbrewer

    sadbrewer Well-Known Member

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    A mate of mine worked for a Norwegian company, periodically he had to spend a few weeks there for training. He was used to doing a gallon of beer a day at home but had to spend his training weeks teetotal due to the price. On the other side of the coin the company sent a Norwegian lad over here, we had to carry him out of the Railway at Wombwell on a regular basis, the beer was so cheap he drank to oblivion.
     
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  18. Merde Tete

    Merde Tete Well-Known Member

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    My missus was seconded to Oslo for work for two months a few years ago. I went out for a month.

    Considering we were both working in good jobs and didn't have any kids, I can't even begin to describe how poor I felt there! Literally every item in the supermarket needed the price checking, just to make sure there was no nasty surprise at the till. I honestly felt like a student again. Alcohol was off the scale expensive but luckily my wife was pregnant at the time, which at least helped us save a little bit of cash. After a couple of weeks we found a street market in the arabic / Somalian area where we were able to buy top quality fruit and veg for 2-3 times less than at the supermarket. I think if we hadn't found it we'd have probably got ill with scurvey. As for eating out - as @Tyketical Masterstroke says - unless you've got a lot of money to burn or you're just off for a weekend, then forget it. Even in 2010, I'd say that the average bill in a mid-level restaurant was £50 per person, without drinks. Oslo is an absolutely unremarkable city, with the only interesting things being the Munch museum and the national gallery, plus the very odd Vigelands Park, which contains lots of stone figures in what look like non-standard sex positions. I'm glad I've been just to tick it off, but I would never return, lottery win or not.

    However, the fjords are one of the most unbelievably magical places I've ever visited. We spent three days driving and sailing around them, passing through various landscapes and microclimates, seeing crystal clear glacial lakes at the top, incredible waterfalls and driving through unfeasibly long tunnels. It's something that everyone should do once in their lives. I've also heard that the train ride from Oslo to Bergen is one of the most spectacular in the world, although we preferred the flexibility of having a car.

    Overall, I'd recommend literally a day or two in Oslo, no more, and then get out and about. However, I would guess than in winter driving could be a bit of a trial, as although the road surfaces are excellent, there are very few dual carriageways, and a lot of narrow, winding roads.
     
    Last edited: Jun 13, 2022
  19. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    cheers, from a quick search online I have found flights direct to Tromso for under £100 each way which isn't bad, some were nearer the £50 mark too so seems the flights shouldn't cost too much, just be the prices when we are there that will hurt the wallet.
     
  20. NathanBFC94

    NathanBFC94 Well-Known Member

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    Thanks, my aim is a long weekend trip with the whale watching being the main aim so probably plan to spend the time up in the North near Tromso as having just looked Oslo is the other end of the country it seems. I do enjoy a beer or two but based on advice on this thread I reckon I will have to spend this weekend sober if we do go otherwise I will come back bankrupt.
     

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