Need help with Gravdal, Norway

[cat-tav]

We will have 9 hours in Gravdal, Norway in the Lofoten Islands next June. We are not entirely satisfied with any of the excursions offered through the cruise line and are considering renting a car and going where we want. Does anybody know whether this is feasible? Any information on car rentals there? I haven't been able to find much specific information about Gravdal except that there is pretty much one highway that goes the length of the island chain. There is evidently bus service, but I can't tell if there is a stop in Gravdal. I am also a little nervous about the possibility of missing the ship if I am reliant on public transportation. I'm hoping that someone on CC can help me out with information.

[TLCOhio]

We will have 9 hours in Gravdal, Norway in the Lofoten Islands next June. We are not entirely satisfied with any of the excursions offered through the cruise line and are considering renting a car and going where we want. Does anybody know whether this is feasible? Any information on car rentals there? I haven't been able to find much specific information about Gravdal except that there is pretty much one highway that goes the length of the island chain. There is evidently bus service, but I can't tell if there is a stop in Gravdal. I am also a little nervous about the possibility of missing the ship if I am reliant on public transportation. I'm hoping that someone on CC can help me out with information.

 

YES, your info is correct that there is one main highway down these island in and around Gravdal.

 

This past July, we did two different stops in the wonderful Lofoten Island. Lots of great things to see and do. In line with your question, if you can work things out with another couple, here's a great suggestion. We had earlier arranged/booked a rental car to head south for our group of two couples to travel south via the area’s one main highway, the E10. Hard to get lost that way with only one roadway. We booked our car through Eurocar and picked it up at a Toyota dealership. You would need to take a cab from the ship docking place to the get the car. Agree that relying on the limited public transit on this island would not be very time-efficient.

 

We were able to see the sights and natural surroundings that are regarded to be among the most stunning in Norway. Leknes is juat a couple of miles from Gravdal. These islands have its mountains, peaks, cliffs and white sandy beaches that attract the elite of Norway to be a key vacation spot during their summers. With 2,647 people, Leknes is the trading and shopping centre of this 70-miles long island archipelago. There are 35,000 people living on all of the islands and they are 886 miles northeast of Bergen. In November 2007, National Geographic Traveler rated the Lofoten islands of Northern Norway as the third most appealing islands in the world. In Leknes, the sun (midnight sun) is above the horizon from May 26 to July 17, and in winter the sun does not rise from December 9 to
 January 4. For our visit on July 7, the average high is 57 and a low of 50. The record high is 71 and record low of 46 on this July 7 date. We will have twenty-four hours of daylight. Latitude at Leknes is 68.1° N.

 

Our second stop, when heading south from the North Cape, was Svolvaer. Check out the below blog/live posting for lots more visuals and details on these great and scenic islands.

 

Questions and reactions? What's your sense of adventure? Happy to share more info and visuals.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 29,900 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

We went to the end of the road for the dramatic Lofoten Islands. It is a village called “A”. In their alphabet, this “A” has a small “o” above the letter. Simple name for a charming fishing town. We had box lunches from the ship and dined on a picnic table on the wooden dock. This was our view with the busy and noisy birds.:

 

 

 

And in the other direction while in the village called "A", here is another dramatic view for the nature overlooking this harbor.:

 

 

 

More rocks and dramatic scenery in the Lofoten Islands when we did our DIY drive south and then back on the Lofoten Islands. Nice?:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Near the main E10 roadway in the southern part of the Lofoten Island is this historic Flakstad Kirke church that was built in 1780. It has a Russian design/look as certain of its materials were donated by those from that country.:

 

[CintiPam]

Oh, Terry, your photos would entice me to travel almost anywhere, even the back of beyond.

 

BTW, we are spending tomorrow in Columbus visiting our son in the Brewery District and will be dining at Lindey's before we start our football game marathon!

[TLCOhio]

Oh, Terry, your photos would entice me to travel almost anywhere, even the back of beyond. BTW, we are spending tomorrow in Columbus visiting our son in the Brewery District and will be dining at Lindey's before we start our football game marathon!

 

THANKS, Pam, for the kind comments! Enjoy Columbus with your son. Lindey's is great. Was there both Jan. 9 and 10 for late lunches. Very New York or Paris Cafe type of place. Sorry the weather is kind of cold. We'll have to hook up sometime when you're in Columbus. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 29,900 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[DGF]

A few questions on car rental if I might:

 

1. To pick up the car rental in Leknes, is the airport or the city location the closest to the ship?

 

2. How difficult was it to get taxis to and from the car rental/ did you arrange in advance and can you remember the cost?

 

3. Do you remember the contact information for the car rental and their hours of operation?

 

Unfortunately the Ocean Princess will be leaving early on June 12- 3:00 PM and we have to be careful on our timing

Thanks

 

 

DEAN

[TLCOhio]

A few questions on car rental if I might:

1. To pick up the car rental in Leknes, is the airport or the city location the closest to the ship?

2. How difficult was it to get taxis to and from the car rental/ did you arrange in advance and can you remember the cost?

3. Do you remember the contact information for the car rental and their hours of operation?[

Unfortunately the Ocean Princess will be leaving early on June 12- 3:00 PM and we have to be careful on our timing

DEAN

 

We got our rental car through Eurocar. As a I re-call, the rental options were limited on this island and their price was most reasonable, plus the pick-up location wasn't too, too far from the docking point. It cost us $304.23 for a larger VW Golf sized car. Not cheap, but most things are not low in cost in Norway. We got a cab from the ship docking location and picked up the car around 8:30 am. There were several cabs waiting outside our ship when we got off. Didn't pre-arrange the cab. We ended up having a very new Toyota Prius with lots of interesting features, back-up cam, etc. New in Norway that car would have cost $62K with all of their taxes there. The pick-up was from LEKNES CITY EUROPCAR/TOYOTA NORDVIK AS, VERKSVEIEN 12. It was a car dealership in more of a commercial area.

 

For the four of us having that "freedom" and flexibility was great to see what we wanted, stop when desired, etc. Also below are a few added pictures on the historic fishing village that we visited and found to be very interesting, educational, etc. There are only 35,000 people living on all of these islands and things are pretty spread out here. Not high density or urban. Any other questions or needs?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 39,150 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

An historic seaport and cod fishing center is Nusfjord a few miles east of the main south-bound road in the Lofoten Islands. Here is one of its buildings, plus added pictures inside its cod processing building, its birds perched on a large rock, etc.:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some of the many wooden racks for fish drying on these islands that we checked out during our drive south.:

 

[boeckli]

We visited the beautiful Lofoten Islands last August and with another 2 couples booked a 4 hour taxi tour through Leknes Taxi (www.leknestaxi.no). Leknes is only a few kilometres from Gravdal.

We did their tour no. 2 (Leknes Havn – Nusfjord – Ramberg - Sund – Reine – Å – Leknes Havn) in a modern van and had a fantastic time. The driver was happy to stop at any places we wanted to take some photos, answered our questions and was very professional. A few impressions from our trip below:

 

 

 

 

Our van (in the cozy village of Å already mentioned by Terry)

 

[TLCOhio]

THANKS to boeckli for posting some wonderfully sharp and beautiful pictures from the scenic Lofoten Islands. Here are six more of my visuals from these island that I have not posted previously. It is such a scenic and interesting area!! We were fortunate to have two stops in this area. We can understand why it is so popular and high-rated. Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 39,260 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

Here are a mix of added Lofoten Islands pictures. First, the valley view as we drove south towards "A". Second, a closer look at how those harbor buildings are built on the rock in this fishing town of "A". Third, the green coverings on these dramatic mountains. Fourth, a building with grass (plus sheep) on the roof. Don't know if the sheep took the ladder up. Fifth, entering the scenic harbor at Svolvaer. Sixth, as we sail away from Leknes, here are two ships sailing in with the dramatic mountains in the background.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DGF]

We visited the beautiful Lofoten Islands last August and with another 2 couples booked a 4 hour taxi tour through Leknes Taxi (www.leknestaxi.no). Leknes is only a few kilometres from Gravdal.

We did their tour no. 2 (Leknes Havn – Nusfjord – Ramberg - Sund – Reine – Å – Leknes Havn) in a modern van and had a fantastic time. The driver was happy to stop at any places we wanted to take some photos, answered our questions and was very professional. A few impressions from our trip below:

 

 

 

 

 

Our van (in the cozy village of Å already mentioned by Terry)

 

 

Thanks you for the lead

Can you recall if the driver/ taxi company had any preferred entrance fees for Nursfjord (web site 50 NOK each), Viking Museum (120 NOK each) and Magic Ice and Bar (96 NOK each). With these add ons Princess Shore excursions become competitive/ attractive

[boeckli]

Thanks you for the lead

 

Can you recall if the driver/ taxi company had any preferred entrance fees for Nursfjord (web site 50 NOK each), Viking Museum (120 NOK each) and Magic Ice and Bar (96 NOK each). With these add ons Princess Shore excursions become competitive/ attractive

 

We did not enter any of the sites you mention, so I have no idea. Suggest you send an email to the taxi company to enquire.

[msg_girl]

Boeckli, if you don't mind answering did you arrange a pick up at the port or justtake a taxi to Leknes to pick up the tour. Thanks, G.

[DGF]

I just made contact with Leknes Taxi. Cost of taxi from ship to airport and return is 160 NOK each way.

When we added the car rental + entrance fees+ taxi, we found it was a tossup with doing on own vs Princess Shore Excursion; doing on own being slightly more expensive for two couples

Decided to have a more relaxing day with less hassle and booked Princess Excursion

DEAN

[boeckli]

Boeckli, if you don't mind answering did you arrange a pick up at the port or justtake a taxi to Leknes to pick up the tour. Thanks, G.

 

The driver met us at the landing site of the tender boats.

[msg_girl]

Boeckli.Thanks, I'll let you know what we decide! G.

[matherwood]

We visited the beautiful Lofoten Islands last August and with another 2 couples booked a 4 hour taxi tour through Leknes Taxi (www.leknestaxi.no). Leknes is only a few kilometres from Gravdal.

We did their tour no. 2 (Leknes Havn – Nusfjord – Ramberg - Sund – Reine – Å – Leknes Havn) in a modern van and had a fantastic time. The driver was happy to stop at any places we wanted to take some photos, answered our questions and was very professional.

Hi Boeckli

 

Thank you for the wonderful taster for our trip in June, which I came across while researching trips we can take while ashore. We prefer to "do our own thing" and I was interested in the 4 hour taxi tour. Please could you give me a approximate cost of that, either per person, or total, and I will see if there is any interest amongst our Roll Call; you say that the van accommodated 6 people. I found the the site Leknes taxi, but unfortunately couldn't manage to work out the costings in Norwegian, and whether the prices given were per hour, person or total.

Debbie

[boeckli]

Hi Boeckli

 

Thank you for the wonderful taster for our trip in June, which I came across while researching trips we can take while ashore. We prefer to "do our own thing" and I was interested in the 4 hour taxi tour. Please could you give me a approximate cost of that, either per person, or total, and I will see if there is any interest amongst our Roll Call; you say that the van accommodated 6 people. I found the the site Leknes taxi, but unfortunately couldn't manage to work out the costings in Norwegian, and whether the prices given were per hour, person or total.

Debbie

 

Hi Debbie,

The prices on the Leknes Taxi website are per hour, e.g.

1-4 persons = 700,-- Kroner per hour (hour is 'time' in Norwegian)

5-8 persons = 900,-- Kroner per hour

 

So just multiply by the number of hours and then divide by how many people and you get the cost per person (in Norwegian Kroner).

From memory it worked out around $100 per person for us.

We were only 3 couples but the van would have accommodated more (I think possibly 10).

 

If you have any more questions, I'd be happy to try and help.

[matherwood]

Hi Debbie,

The prices on the Leknes Taxi website are per hour, e.g.

1-4 persons = 700,-- Kroner per hour (hour is 'time' in Norwegian)

5-8 persons = 900,-- Kroner per hour

 

So just multiply by the number of hours and then divide by how many people and you get the cost per person (in Norwegian Kroner).

From memory it worked out around $100 per person for us.

We were only 3 couples but the van would have accommodated more (I think possibly 10).

 

If you have any more questions, I'd be happy to try and help.

Thank you so much, Boeckli

...we'll have a think and do our sums....guess it all depends how many use the van, and so reduce the cost per person. However, it does make the ship excursions seem more of an option cost-wise!

Debbie