Planning : Two weeks North Norway trip 1
Here we are. My very first blog post. I’m planning to write a series of posts about this trip and this first one is only a high level plan and some background information. Mostly anecdotes to be honest. In the next one I’ll elaborate on the plan while I am in the process of making it. There I would like to get into budgets and itineraries. That should be the most useful one I’ll provide maps and suggestions. I’m not sure it’ll fit into one blog post we’ll see about that.
But first some background. I went to Norway last November and fall in love with it instantly. Probably I’ll make a separate blog post for that one but in a nutshell I surprised my girlfriend with it for her birthday. It was just a short four day trip where we flought to Oslo, spent there two days then we took the train to Flåm to have a quick view of the fjord. I proposed there standing in the middle of that beautiful scenery. Since then we couldn’t wait to go back. I loved the vibe of Oslo, it filled me with the sensation of calmness and feeling of home. Never really experienced it in any other city I traveled to. Flåm and the surroundings were one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen and probably will ever see. Had to go back there and do it properly this time...
Fast forward less then a year we’re preparing a two week trip to the North. We’re based in Prague so the plan is to fly to Oslo and spend there couple of days. After sucking up the unique mood of Oslo again we’re ready to fly to Tromsø, a small gem in northern Norway. We’ll hire a car there and start the roadtrip of a lifetime. First we’ll visit Senja island for two nights then head down to the Lofoten islands which according to many is one if not the most astonishing place in the country or should I say in the world. There we’re planning to stay for five to six days. When we’re finished with Lofoten it is time to drive back to Tromsø and take the flights back to Oslo and Prague.
Now to business. Norway is not cheap. It is a fact everyone knows but here comes the twist. It is not unaffordable anymore. Of course it is very much depending on the countly you based in but even if it is a lower payed country and you have a decent salary everyone can definitely save up for it. I can only talk about my example so I’ll do that. I worked and lived in Hungary and from there every single country I went to was more expensive and had to do a lot of saving. It was possible but definitely harder then where I am now. Norway is much more expensive then Czech Republic but the salaries here allow us to visit it. Anyway my point is that Norway is avalaible for more people then I initially thought. Their money, the Norwagian Crone (NOK) is weaker now then before and their prices vary on what you plan to do. Eating out and alcohol is the most consuming. If you can buy your own food or even take some with you, you’ll save a lot. Eating out three times every day eventually can cost the whole trip’s price.
On the other hand if you save with food and you’re going for the scenery it will be surprising how many places are free of charge. Norwagians don’t try to get money from tourists wherever they can. The hikes are free, the saunas are affordable. Even their ferries are usually free of charge if you don’t take a car. Of course if we look hard enough we’ll find unovoidable expenses like some tolls or even entering a particular fishermen’s town. Gas is also quite expensive. (It is possible to save on it if you’re willing to take an electric car.) In shops we can find products which are cheaper then average and products which are way more expensive. It is kind of logical: vegetables will be expensive but fish are cheaper.
I’ll have concrete examples of these in the upcoming posts with a budget plan and our spendings. But still this is exactly the kind of thing worth spending some money on.
