Norway is the most beautiful country I’ve ever visited. Whether it be the fjords, the Northern Lights, the midnight sun or the hikes that present you with the unimaginable vistas, this country has it all and is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Yes it is expensive but you know what it is totally worth it 
. SO this September when we got the opportunity to visit this country, it was no brainer that “We Had to GO!!!”. It took us more than 3 months to plan this trip as we did not want to miss on anything and wanted to make best use of our time. Norway is one destination where googling “things to do” or “best places to see” really does not help. Now I know not all of us are travel nerds like me who take 3 months to plan but I hope my this blog post “8 Day Itinerary for Norway” answers most of your questions and inspire you to plan your trip to Norway soon
Why Norway ?
Well I am sure you will not need much convincing as to why to visit Norway. It is one of the safest countries in the world. People are super friendly. I know for most of the people it is an expensive destination but once you are there you will realise that it is totally worth it . For hikers , Norway is a dream land with views so spectacular that you will never forget. If you decide to go in winters , you can enjoy northern lights. There is ample opportunity to spot wildlife which makes driving so interesting that you would not want to blink your eyes. It’s home to more natural wonders than you can count and it has stunning cities, charming coastal towns , breathtaking fjords , fascinating history and really happy people.
How to Reach :
By Air: All major cities in Norway have airports catering for both international and domestic flights. Depending on which route you intent to take to explore Norway you may want to land in Oslo or Bergen or Trondeheim. In my experience while travelling from Boston the tickets were cheaper for Bergen.
By Train : An extensive rail network links Norway to the other Scandinavian countries and the rest of Europe , so if you plan to travel to Norway from any of the places in Europe or Scandinavia , train can be an option too. However the cost of train is dependent on your time of booking so depending on how early you book it might be cheaper or otherwise more expensive than air.
By Ferry : There are many ferries between Denmark and Norway. I’ll suggest this option only if you have a lot of time as ferries generally take much longer than any other mode of transport.
Tips for first time travelers :
Now I know everyone is different but these tips will definitely help you to plan your trip wisely. There were some shockers for us even after planning our trip in so detail but then that is what I love about travel , always come with learning experience.
- Do not underestimate the distances and travelling time while planning your trip . Topography of Norway along the coast, fjords and mountains is complex, and public transport is often limited to one ferry a day at some places. So do your homework on how to and when to reach your destination.
- It is not possible to “see” Norway in a few days. 8 days were certainly not enough for us considering we were not even able to enjoy any of the iconic hikes of Norway. If you are planning to visit Norway focus on one region or few cities and plan your itinerary accordingly. Driving from Tromso to Stavanger in a week , might seem doable but is certainly not enjoyable.
- Norway’s restaurants are expensive. For cheap food options, supermarkets like Kiwi and Rema offer good products at far more reasonable prices . These supermarkets are easily available and you can buy snacks and produce at affordable prices.
- Alcohol and tobacco are definitely the most expensive pleasures in Norway. A glass of beer can cost up to 10- 12 $. If you want to save some money buy alcohol from duty free shop at the airport. Please note that drinking in public places is illegal in Norway, so observe how the locals do it before you pull out your beer bottle.
- Norwegian Coffee is the best coffee in the entire world. For once I will suggest to skip on Alcohol and embrace coffee . Trust me Norwegian coffee gives the same kick as any alcohol
- Tap water is as good as bottled water. Do not waste your money in buying bottled water.
- The best way to enjoy Norway is by driving and renting a car is indeed expensive. You can try using public transport but this is one thing where I think you should not compromise.
Note : Norwegians are very particular about the speed limits. Roads or tunnels they have cameras everywhere to monitor your speed.
- Norway has a lot of toll roads , keep that in your budget.
- I was pleasantly surprised to see that almost all the places in Norway accept credit cards. So if you do not plan to carry cash, that is just fine. There is no minimum purchase limit anywhere in Norway to use the credit card.
- I cannot stress this enough but switching to T-mobile cellular company has been the best decision of my life. Unlimited text and data in Norway , I can’t tell you what a relief it was.
Itinerary:
Here is the list of all the places we visited and hotels we stayed in during our time in Norway. I will cover the detailed log of best scenic drives , glacier hiking experiences and driving through National parks in my upcoming blogposts but here is the snapshot of all that we covered. If you cannot pronounce half of these places do not fret over, just remember to bookmark them :). All I can say about Norway is that it is definetly not about reaching the destination but the journey that takes you through. My Itinerary below certainly does not cover thousands of places where we stopped to enjoy nature and take photos. We were stopping to take photos in every 5 mins and I am not kidding.
Schedule
Destination
Hotel We Stayed In
Things We Did
Day 1
Fly from Boston to Oslo. Night Stay in Oslo.
Friend's House
Sightseeing in Oslo
Day 2
Oslo to Odda. Night Stay in Odda
Hardanger Hotel
Hardangervidda National Park -Eidfjord –Voringfossen- Skervsfossen
Day 3
Odda to Skolden. Night stay in Luster
Tørvis Hotell
Latefossen – Flam Train – Nærøyfjord -Aurlandsfjord-The Stegastein viewpoint
Day 4
Skolden to Geiranger via Breheimen National Park
Hotell Gerianger
LustraFjorden – Brehemian National Park – Nedre Oscarshaug-Vegaskjelet – Videfossen – Old Strynefjell Mountain Rd
Day 5
Geiranger to Volda via Alesund and Trollstigen
Friend's House
Geiranger Fjord – TrollStigen Scenic Byway – Alesund
Day 6
Day trip around Volda to Jostedalsbreen
Friend's House
Hike Briksdalbreen glacier – Sightseeing in Volda
Day 7
Volda to Bergen
Clarion Hotel Admiral
Hike Haugabreen Glacier – Skei Jolster
Day 8
Sightseeing in Bergen
Clarion Hotel Admiral
Entire day of sightseeing in Bryggen and areas around.
Day 9
Fly from Bergen to Boston.
Back to Home Sweet Home
Lifetime of Memories
Whether you enjoy hiking, biking, kayaking, fishing or simply taking in the amazing views, there is something there for everyone in Norway to enjoy . If you need any more travel inspiration see my last blog post on Norway here. You will indeed agree with me that it is a fabulous destination that you can enjoy when you’re travelling solo, with a partner or with family. It is a once-in-a-lifetime destination and the reason of its appeal is remarkably simple: this is one of the most beautiful countries on earth. Have you ever been to Norway. Did you visit any of the places I listed above. I would love to hear about your explorations. If you want any more information feel free to message me or leave me a comment. Thank you for stopping by .
PhotoCredits : PHOTOSTAINS
Thanks for the tips, wonderful article, will be very helpful for my upcoming Fjords vacation.
I hope you enjoy
Astonishing. I am definitely going to Geiranger Fjord.
I have heard a lot about Norway in Nutshell. Any ideas on the pricing and authenticity of the trip?http://www.norwaynutshell.com/en/explore-the-fjords/geirangerfjord-norway-in-a-nutshell/#about
It is indeed a must see. If you are going to Norway for very short time , then yes of-course Norway in Nutshell is really helpful. If you could tell me when r u going and for how long, I would love to give you suggestions.
Great post. Totally enjoyed reading it. This place is on my bucket list now and beautiful pictures btw
http://peacheswithpearls.com/2016/01/28/10-things-know-planning-trip-costa-rica/
Thanks Ankita and I am totally digging in your series on Costa Rica.. can’t wait for more of your awesome posts..
Norway has always been a place I have wanted to go. Your photos look incredible. Will be bookmarking this for future trips!
Thank you so much. Do let me know if you ever plan to go
Some really nice tips in this article about visiting Norway. I am not a coffee drinker but kind of wish I was, to compare Norwegian coffee to Kona, etc. I like to spend as little as possible so I would probably eat almost every meal from the supermarkets.
We were in Oslo for a couple of days in late spring of 2014. Oh how I wish I had another six days in Norway. Your itinerary looks great and your photos make me cry!
Thank you so much. How did you like Oslo? I myself wish to have few more days in Norway
Wow, beautiful photos! I’ve not been to Norway, the cost has always been a little bit of a barrier, as there are just so many amazing places to visit in the world! But this sounds like a great itinerary to really see the country in a short time, but I think 8 days is never enough anywhere!
Thank you so much for stopping by . Personally I felt you need to live in Norway to see it in its entirety. There is just too much to see
I agree that Norway is a must see destination! The whole country is swarming with beauty, and although it is expensive – totally worth it. We had friends in the country so luckily we were able to stay for free. That helped a ton!
I know having friends at such a place works out to be so good. The hidden gems that locals know , nobody else does
hi kanika, we are a family of four with two adult children and are planning a trip to norway in mid september. need your guidance. we have eight days and we want to see a little of everything from norway in a nutshell to northern lights(tromso or lofoten) to north cape. i know it is difficult but life is short and so many places to go within a budget too. our start and end point will be same. not keen on seeing city scape. all the way from mumbai we would in fact like to see helsinki as well if possible. thanks in advance
I have sent you an email. Please check and let me know.
Thank you for posting this! This definitely came in handy when planning our budget. We did not realize the toll roads and ferry rides would be so expensive. We took your advice and bought most of our food at Rema. Such an amazing country; beautiful beyond words! http://ramblinmurph.com/2016/08/29/norway-self-drive-itinerary-western-fjords/
Thanks again for your help in planning our itinerary!
I hope you had fantastic trip. I did look at your blog post and your pics look fantabulous. Norway is expensive indeed but its so beautiful that it makes it up for everything 😉 isn’t it.
Hi, your itinerary looks amazing!! Unfortunately we have very limited time but are planning to fly out of Copenhagen early on the 8th August and do the west fjords before a flight to Helsinki on the 11th
Would you recommend flying into Bergen and doing Norway in nutshell either odda eiderfjord area return Bergen then do Norway in nutshell to flam railway etc return to Bergen and fly out on the 11th or just do Bergen to Oslo Norway in nutshell??
Not sure if the part to Oslo is worth it etc
Which fjord area did you prefer if you had such a short amount of time!???
Thanks for your help
Hello,
I will definetly advise to go to Bergen and skip Oslo completely . Skip on FLAM part rather rent a car and explore the fjords nearby. Once done and if you want to see the landscape take the train to OSLO and then fly out. If you can skip OSLO completely even better , there are many things that you can see around Bergen and Odda. You can drive to the base from where flam starts and rather than going up in train , drive around the fjord and go to mountain top ( ill send you directions shortly) , there is beautiful view of the valley. let me know if you need more help in planning , will be happy to do for you.
Could we do this trip in reverse? My family of 4 will arrive in Oslo but leave from Bergen and we have 8 full days in Norway. We don’t know much about Norway but my husband’s longtime wish has been to see the fjords. Is there a way to start the trip in Oslo and end in Bergen with only public transportation? Not excited to rent a car because my husband is not good with directions even with GPS and I don’t want to do all the driving.
Hello,
You can totally do the trip starting from Oslo to Bergen all by public transport. There is train from Oslo to Bergen n if you want to enjoy senery , I will suggest to take that in day time. The landscape is beautiful. Also from Bergen you can take the train to Flam ( which will also come on your way to Bergen from Oslo) or a cruise that will take you through the Fjords. Its very very nice. Let me know if you need any more help.
Hi Kanika
Thank you for sharing your experience and photos – it looked like you had an absolutely amazing time!
We are planning our Iceland / Norway trip for mid October this year and after coming across your page, have decided to try to follow your itinerary for Norway as closely as possible. As you’ve said, it’s impossible to cover everything in 8 days, but your holiday definitely covered a LOT of must do’s.
Is there any chance you could shoot us an email with any tips at all, or any must see’s along the way for your itinerary. Our main concern was whether the driving was long / tiring, and whether it would be difficult to hire a car in Oslo and drop it off in Bergen (and possibly a 4wd in case the roads are slippery as we’re coming from Australia where the roads are really quite easy).
We’d appreciate any help. Thank you again for your post – it was very inspiring (we’re also now considering upgrading all our cameras!).
Cheers
Han
Hello,
Awesome that you are planning a trip to Norway. Sending you email right now
Hi Kanika. It was an absolute joy to read your adventure. Me and my girlfriend are planning to follow your foot steps and itinerary. I was wondering if you could throw me an email with your detailed itinerary giving the route details as well as how much time you spent on the main attractions (listed above column 4 “things we did”). Thanks a lot.
Cheers
Mubeen
Hi Kanika. Thanks for sucb a fabolous post. Could you kindly email me the details of your trip ?
Cheers
Moby
Hi Kanika. Thanks for the wonderful post. It has really inspired me to plan my trip. We are also planning to rent a car and drive around. Would you be able to email me the details of your trip as that will help me plan a lot better.
Thanks so much
Charmy
Hello,
Please let me know the details you want and the time frame when you going so that I can send you relevant details.
After a long overdue NEEDED vacation my friend and I have decided to visit Norway! In the beginning we didn’t have a destination in mind but we came across some photos and we fell in love with what we saw. We are flying into Oslo and departing from Bergen. We will be there from sept 25th-oct 2nd for 8 days. We will be using public transportation and want to get the most out of our days. What destinations do you recommend? I really want to go to Tromso and see the northern lights but I’m not sure if we’ll have enough time. What is the weather like around that time? We would really appreciate your recommendations and thoughts. Thanks
Hello,
I am sure you are going to have a trip of lifetime – yayyyyyyyyy. So September end it starts getting cold and it is a little windy there so i will definitely suggest you to take warm clothes , closed shoes and for some mountain tops even woolen cap and mittens. Norway has good transport system and you can definitely check in Oslo or Bergen the Fjord tours that people take. If you need any help with itinerary let me know .