Off the beaten path in Bergen, Alesund, Geiranger, Flaam and Stavanger
February 11, 2020 3:54 PM Subscribe
What should we not miss in Norway, when we make day-long stays in Bergen, Alesund, Geiranger, Flaam and Stavanger?
Mrs. Rabarberofficer is taking us on a cruise to Norway. I would love to surprise her by taking her to some hidden gems along the way...
Mrs. Rabarberofficer is a foodie, but with several food allergies. If possible, I would love for her to experience Norwegian cooking that caters to her needs.
If you know of any vegan restaurants worth their salt in these cities, please advise me.
If you know of any places of cultural interest, that would edificate and entertain two adults, let us know.
Any historically interesting place that should not be missed?
Thank you Metafilter, for making our journey eastward exciting!
Mrs. Rabarberofficer is a foodie, but with several food allergies. If possible, I would love for her to experience Norwegian cooking that caters to her needs.
If you know of any vegan restaurants worth their salt in these cities, please advise me.
If you know of any places of cultural interest, that would edificate and entertain two adults, let us know.
Any historically interesting place that should not be missed?
Thank you Metafilter, for making our journey eastward exciting!
I did the train from Bergen to Oslo and it's an extremely beautiful trip. You go from ocean level, way up into the mountains and back down.
posted by dripdripdrop at 6:14 PM on February 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by dripdripdrop at 6:14 PM on February 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Visit the Aurland Lookout. Or any of the vantage points and structures on the Norwegian Scenic Routes. They're all amazing.
posted by srednivashtar at 1:16 AM on February 12, 2020
posted by srednivashtar at 1:16 AM on February 12, 2020
Best answer: There's not a huge amount to do in Flam, other than the train ride. But unlike reformedjerk said, you can buy tickets for the Flamsbana ahead of time, online. Or at least you could in 2016, when we had a day on our (land-based) Norway trip which was a mainline train from Bergen to Myrdal, train ride down to Flam, hang around in Flam and eat lunch and buy some overpriced crap, ferry through the fjords back to Bergen.
In Bergen go to the Leprosy Museum, if that sounds appealing.
posted by madcaptenor at 6:26 AM on February 12, 2020
In Bergen go to the Leprosy Museum, if that sounds appealing.
posted by madcaptenor at 6:26 AM on February 12, 2020
Best answer: Also in Bergen: Grieg's house. It's a bit outside of town; they run shuttle buses. The tour is quite interesting. If you time it right you might be able to see a nice lunchtime concert.
posted by madcaptenor at 6:29 AM on February 12, 2020
posted by madcaptenor at 6:29 AM on February 12, 2020
Best answer: My wife and I signed up for the guided tour of Stavanger, and it turned out we were the only people to do so that day. We had a lovely visit, and as a bonus, it turned out that the tour guide had visited the area in Massachusetts where we live. (Her daughter had studied music at the university where we teach.)
Not off the beaten path, but the oil museum in Stavanger is worth a visit. My favorite part of visiting Bergen was taking the Fløybanen funicular up Fløyen and then hiking around for a while and walking back down to the city.
We had an excellent (and pricey) dinner at Bolgen og Moi in the oil museum building in Stavanger, and they might well be willing to adapt their tasting menu to your wife's needs. In Bergen we mostly cooked in, since we had been on the road for a week and eating out every night.
posted by brianogilvie at 8:47 AM on February 13, 2020
Not off the beaten path, but the oil museum in Stavanger is worth a visit. My favorite part of visiting Bergen was taking the Fløybanen funicular up Fløyen and then hiking around for a while and walking back down to the city.
We had an excellent (and pricey) dinner at Bolgen og Moi in the oil museum building in Stavanger, and they might well be willing to adapt their tasting menu to your wife's needs. In Bergen we mostly cooked in, since we had been on the road for a week and eating out every night.
posted by brianogilvie at 8:47 AM on February 13, 2020
Best answer: If you can afford it, there are some helicopter tours of glaciers you can do from Geiranger.
posted by biffa at 12:59 PM on February 16, 2020
posted by biffa at 12:59 PM on February 16, 2020
Response by poster: Hi mefites!
Thank you for the many replies and suggestions. Now we have exponentially expanded our research for our trip to Norway!
We are excited to explore the nooks and fjords in Norway. Thank you!
posted by Rabarberofficer at 9:51 AM on March 2, 2020
Thank you for the many replies and suggestions. Now we have exponentially expanded our research for our trip to Norway!
We are excited to explore the nooks and fjords in Norway. Thank you!
posted by Rabarberofficer at 9:51 AM on March 2, 2020
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There's a famous train ride there (I think it's the Flåmsbana) that's very scenic and sort of a must do. If you look at the ticket prices posted officially on the website vs what the cruise company is charging you, you might be tempted to get the tickets yourself. Unless things have changed, DON'T DO THIS. There is no way to buy the tickets ahead of time (either online or at other train stations in Norway) except on the day of and at that station. They have a limited number of seats and sell out very quickly. There's not a whole lot to do there if you're not taking the train, so if you miss the tickets it might be a slow day.
We ended up getting up at 6 or 6:30 and racing a whole bunch of other people to snag the last few tickets. In hindsight the hundred or so in markup is well worth it for a stress-free day at one of the most scenic places. Have a good trip--the Fjords are beautiful!
posted by reformedjerk at 5:23 PM on February 11, 2020