Norway Part 2 - Norheimsund & Bergen

We flew from Bodo and landed in Bergen and met with Marie Ann from Visit Bergen. We hopped on a coach for a little over an hour and travelled to the most stunning town of Norheimsund. This was my personal highlight of the trip. On route we stopped off at Steinsdalsfossen and walked under the most powerful waterfall, a beautiful place to stop and catch your breath.

We arrived at our hotel overlooking the water at Thon Hotel Sandven. This hotel can cater for families of up to six and has options from hotel rooms to 1 and 2 bedroom apartments. The setting is majestic and the most charming picturesque town to visit. The following morning we were up and dressed in full RIB gear for our second RIB boat tour with Hardangerfjord Adventure, which took us right into the Hardangerfjord and listened to our guide Thor share stories about farmers high up in the mountains avoiding tax collectors for years as they were in inaccessible and children being tied to ropes when out playing as not to fall over the sides!! All taken with a pinch of salt of course! On this RIB boat tour we saw the most amazing waterfalls as the ice was melting down the cliff edges , absolutely stunning. Our next stop was a pleasant walk up the hill overlooking this beautiful town to experience some local cider tasting and lunch at the family run Spildegarden farm, where they have acres of orchards with the biggest apples I have ever seen and served the freshest of produce with in the most spectacular of settings. The family are on their sixth generation and love sharing their family history with their guests. We did a hotel site visit then at the Hardangerfjord Hotel which have outdoor saunas perched on the edge of the fjord in the most spectacular of settings also.

Sadly it was time to leave this magical town and hop on the public bus back to Bergen. The transport system is outstanding ad very easy to navigate through out Norway and there are travel passes (The Bergan card) on offer that provide excellent value and discounts during your stay.

We checked into the central Thon Hotel Orion and had a delicious dinner in the hotel and Mats, our DMC Lost in Norway came along to meet us all and give us a walking tour of the city. Mats has incredible knowledge of Norway and shared a selection of itineraries that can be used to build the most incredible trip to Norway. We took The Fløibanen funicular ride up to Mount Floyen, one of the 7 mountains that surround Bergan. Panoramic views of the city and some trails are available here and you could easily spend a few hours taking in these surroundings. People come from all over the world to see this views. We got to sample some of the Bergen nightlife with live music in most pubs and a very similar atmosphere to an Irish put as Norwegians love their music and beers with a broad selection of beers that they will happily let you sample before you decide what you want.

We then met our next guide Cedrik from visit Bergan and took us on the Bergen Historic Sightseeing Cruise for a little over an hour. This allowed us to view Bergen from the water and learn some of the history of Bergen itself.

We then took a ramble around the markets along the marina where they sell everything from reindeer hotdogs to their tasty moose balls, and the famous indoor fish markets has many dining options to choose from also. Bergen is great for shopping and is a very cultured city with an array of museums to choose from. We got to visit Kode Art museum and visit the Munch collection. His famous painting The Scream is currently held in Oslo just in case you were waiting to see it like some of us were LOL but there is a lot to see here and well worth a visit. We then made our way to the cable car station which brings you right up to Mount Ulriken in less than 8 minutes where we enjoyed a tasty lunch and incredible views. There are countless hiking trails to be enjoyed which are all at a moderate level and you can also do some ziplining which looked like great fun. That evening we enjoyed a tapas style dinner at a newly opened restaurant called Jest before heading onto an event which was part of the Bergen International Festival. This took place at Grieghallen Concert Hall where we watched a Cuban dance company called Acosta Danza. This programme show cased some of the most inspiring choreographers from around the world. There were many events taking place around the city, so the atmosphere was electric on the streets with live music and different events dotted around the streets. That brought our incredible trip to Norway to an end as were headed to bed with an early start to catch the Bergen Light Rail from the city to the Airport. Again this is covered by the travel card I mentioned ( The Bergen Card) We were back on Wideroe airlines to Dublin and home in no time with the short flight of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Norway has so much to offer, and something for everybody from a city break , hiking, fjord adventures, RIB boat tours, ziplining, cruises, fishing, cycling, cultural experiences, beautiful food, historical experiences , The Northern lights , Summer Sun , the list goes on ….Everybody must visit Norway at some stage in their life and I can now help you create the most amazing itinerary with our fabulous partners to ensure you get to experience everything you can and make maximum use of your time while you are there … Personally I will be visiting Norway again very soon …it’s a truly wonderful country.