I absolutely loved Norway and I thoroughly recommend a visit, so here are my thoughts on how to spend 5 days in Norway.
Norway has a reputation for being expensive to visit and it is similar in prices to Iceland. However, you can keep an eye out for budget flights and stay in hostels and AirBnBs. Make sure you don’t eat out every day and it really doesn’t have to cost the earth!
How to Spend 5 days in Norway
Visit Oslo
I’m not sure I was expecting much from Oslo. For some reason I had an idea that it would be ‘just a city’. But I was wrong, I really did like it!
Visit Aker Brygge
Oslo has a really nice waterfront promenade, which has some great bars and restaurants. I had dinner at Lektern, which is a floating bar on the fjord.
Norway isn’t cheap, and having food and drinks in a spot like this isn’t a budget option. Having a glass of wine was a proper purchase decision! It was over £10 and a very small glass… but sort of worth it.
If you’re after something a little bit cheaper there are plenty of great food trucks in that area. One of the nice things about Aker Brygge is the amount of comfortable benches around. They have the same view of the water as the expensive restaurants.
Oslo Opera House
Oslo Opera House is close to Aker Brygge. It’s free to walk up the (relatively steep) slope onto the roof to admire the view. This is supposed to be a good spot to watch the sunset, but as I was there in summer the sun set rather late!
If you’re interested in art, I recommend going into the Opera House to find the tv screens. They show a video about the artworks incorporated into the building.
Viking Ship Museum
The Viking Ship Museum in Oslo is definitely a must-do. Take the bus a short trip outside of the city to a fairly small museum housing three huge Viking ships. There are hundreds of other Viking artefacts there too.
The ships are pretty amazing and you can climb up stairs to get a birdseye view of them. As I said, it’s small, so the museum won’t take long to look around, but it is definitely worth the trip.
Vigeland Sculpture Park
When I was looking for things to do in Oslo, Vigeland Sculpture Park came up on a lot of ‘top ten things’ lists. It was nice, but honestly I was a bit underwhelmed by the sculptures, which all seemed to be on the same theme (basically naked people).
It’s a really lovely park though, so if you fancy chilling out with a picnic and seeing some art at the same time then it’s perfect.
Get the Train to Flam (including the Flam Railway)
Norway is fairly large, so if you’re going to spend 5 days in Norway you’re going to need to travel a little.
Train travel in Norway is very easy, and there is some pretty awesome scenery to see along the way! I travelled from Oslo to Myrdal, which takes about four hours, then took a second train out to Flam, which is a great place to get a fjord ferry.
The Flam Railway is pitched as one of the top ten most scenic railway journeys in the world and takes about 1 hour.
The wooden train is oldey worldy in a really nice way and it makes a 5 minute stop so that you can admire a waterfall on the way. The station masters will take your larger bags in a separate carriage so you don’t need to worry about them, and return them to you on arrival in Flam.
I had read that the train would be packed in the summer and a scramble to get the best seats (most of the view is on the left-hand side of the train), but at the end of July the train wasn’t full and it really wasn’t a big deal.
I didn’t end up sitting on the left side of the train, but it was possible to stand up and look out of the window in the carriage door when I wanted to.
You can book trains in Norway at vy.no and it’s very simple and easy to do. I had originally booked a train all the way from Oslo to Bergen (before I realised that there was an option to get a ferry) and using the online chat to cancel the tickets was great.
Catch the Fjord Ferry from Flam to Bergen
You can take a ferry from Flam to Bergen, which takes about five-six hours. That’s give or take the same time it would take to get the train back to Myrdal and then on to Bergen.
The ferry is great if you were planning on taking a fjord cruise whilst in Norway, as you can essentially kill two birds with one stone by taking a fjord trip whilst travelling from A to B. This will help you to make the most of your 5 days in Norway.
The fjords are nice and calm and the scenery is amazing. You can stand on the upper deck if it’s a nice day to appreciate the scenery and get some fresh air, or curl up in a relatively comfortable seat inside.
If you arrive in the city by boat you’ll see the colourful wooden buildings of Bryggen as you come in to dock, which is a really nice touch.
You can book the ferry through Tourist Information.
Visit Bergen
Bergen is a really beautiful small city on the fjords in Norway, surrounded by mountains. There is a lovely relaxed feel to the place and it’s excellent if you’re interested in outdoor activities.
I suppose I should mention that it rains in Bergen around 240 days per year, but I was super lucky and had three days of sunshine!
Mooch around Bryggen
Bryggen is a restored old port in the centre of Bergen. The buildings house mostly gift shops and you can explore the small alleyways between the buildings.
It didn’t take me very long to look around Bryggen, so I went and sat at one of the bars across the water and ordered a beer. The beer is expensive, but it’s a pretty good spot so it’s worth it if you’re not to strapped for cash.
Go Hiking in Bergen
Bergen is surrounded by no less than seven mountains, so you’re not limited on hiking options. Popular trails include Floyen and Ulriken.
Floyen is an easy hike which starts right from the centre of town, with the option to take the funicular.
Ulriken is one of the highest peaks in Bergen, so it’s more challenging. To get to the start you’ll need to get the shuttle bus which departs from beside Tourist Information.
Another popular route is to spend a whole day hiking from Ulriken across to Floyen.
I didn’t do any of those hikes because the AirBnB I was staying in happened to be at the base of Lovstakken. Lovstakken is the highest of the western city mountains.
The trail to the top of Lovstakken is a medium difficulty hike, with some relatively steep inclines along the way. There are views of the town much of the way up, and the view off the other side from the top is pretty special too.
This 2-3 hour trail is manageable for those not used to hiking (though it may feel a little bit tough at times) and enjoyable for those who are.
Kayak the Fjords
Sadly my Fjord Kayaking trip had to be cancelled, but I’m including it here anyway. This was the thing I was most excited about doing in Norway. I’m still gutted it didn’t work out.
I would really love it if you would book a kayaking trip and let me know how it was! I’ll have to go back…hopefully for more than 5 days in Norway!
Don’t fancy planning a trip?
For those of you hate planning (normally me!) you can always book on to a group tour. I love G Adventures and they have some amazing options for visiting Norway for you to check out.
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