DIY excursions Fjords

[Dallen123]

Hi there,

 

We are new to cruising and are trying out our first 7 night cruise in August to the Fjords. We have booked an excursion with P&O for Flaam Railway as there are 3 other ships in port on the day we are there and we have heard that it can get quite busy.

 

We are stopping off at; Stavanger, Olden, Bergen and Flaam. How successful have any of you been at doing excursions yourself? We are happy to pay but don't want to end up paying the prices for p&o and find we could have just explored other options at far cheaper prices.

 

Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!

[pealittle]

Hello we have done the fjords twice and loved it the views are amazing and we have done most of the ports diy. Bergen was nice to have a walk around and very easy to do, the fish market is good to wander round and we had some lovely prawns, there are some nice cafes for coffee. Stavanger was a quiet port as we were there on a sunday and most places were closed however we can recommend the oil museem, much better than it sounds trust me!

Olden the first time we did a P&O excursion to see a glacier and a river cruise which was good the second time we just had a wander round. I didnt think there was too much to do there sonmaybe an excursion would be a good idea. Hope this helps.

[Dallen123]

Thanks for your reply,

 

We were looking into booking a the Briksdale Glacier excursion but just wondered how others have got on with doing things themselves. We have been told that the Furnicular Railway is fairly easy to DIY?

[Thejuggler]

Towns and cities are easy to DIY. Fjord ports not always so.

 

There are numerous independent operators in Olden as you leave the ship doing trips to the glacier, helicopter trip, rib rides on the fjord, tourist train running to the lake.

 

Flaam railway is OK, but better when done as part of the Norway in a Nutshell Tour. A full day where you see much more and go on a further rail trip from Voss. It may look expensive, but does include an excelent buffet lunch.

[jasperado]

Just back from the fjords....beautiful scenery...get up early in the morn if you can because the sun rising over the mountains and the reflections in the water are amazing.

In Olden, we took the local "black minibuses" which are by the tourist info office on the dock, to the glacier. The tourist info sells the tickets. 350 NOK (£35) return journey each to the glacier. P & O trip £54 or £60 if booked on the ship.

No booking required, so if weather is inclement and you decide a day on the ship is the better idea, no money lost.

There is a local bus that only runs in the height of the season (you qualify!) Look at the tripadvisor site there is info there, and I think the cost is only a few NOK...but do not expect help from the tourist info place on the position of the bus stop.....they want to sell you trips, not help you to do them out of takings!!

Stavanger we did on our own. Download a map from the Stavanger tourist info if you just want a walk around the town.

A bit of homework before you go can save you money, give you other options and build the excitement and anticipation for a super trip.:)

Edited May 27, 2014 by jasperado

[boozer21]

We too have just returned from fiords.

Day one was Stavanger.....Sunday,very quiet.Trip to canning factory surprisingly good. Cost about £4

Day two was Flam. We had booked railway which we enjoyed but would have been very easy to do independently.

Day three was Olden. Went to glacier with local company. Cost approx £30...well worth doing. Walk takes 40 minutes up to glacier. We are fit 60+ and found walk fine.

Day four was Bergen. Lovely city and we were lucky to have sunny albeit cold day. Took funicular ....£10. Amazing views. Walked down into city....approx 40 minutes.

Enjoy your cruise.

[Sea Green]

Bergen - we took the P&O shuttle to the center as its a bit of a walk. We went to the tourist info near the Fish Wharf and got our funicular tickets there so we skipped the horrendous qeue to buy them at the departure point. Nice views up there and went for a nice stroll through the woods before riding back down and walking to see Bryggen.

 

Olden - we got the black minibus trip from off the ship at the dock. Remember to allow time and money for a troll car up to the actual glacier at the other end, and I recommend you get off the ship first thing to get the pick of the departure times. If I went back in high season I would get the public bus and walk up. I estimate it would take a good two hours to do the very steep walk so you would need to be sure of your bus times If you dont fancy the glacier there were also tourist busses doing scenic rides up the valley. Not much to see in Olden apart from some tourist shops, its basically a very scenic hamlet. Fjord is very narrow so try to get right to the front of the ship for sailaway when the captain has to do a 360 turn :-)

 

Stavanger - docked very close so able to walk on and off the boat easily. Lots of scenic parks etc. We were 'parked' right next to Old Town so when we were bored of walking we came back onboard and sat an looked out at the scenery.

[Dallen123]

Thanks for all of your advice guys! Really helpful! We have been trying our best to research as we just didn't want to pay out for the excursions and find we could have easily done it ourselves at half the cost. I don't mind that we have paid for Flam Railway as there are other ships docked n that day and don't want to miss out. Some good advice about each of the ports! Thanks guys.

 

 

If anyone else has anything to add, we would welcome further comments about how you have got on with DIY excursions.

 

Not long now! We are restricted to school hols as my other half is a teacher, but not too much longer now!

[bluemug]

Bergen - we took the P&O shuttle to the center as its a bit of a walk. We went to the tourist info near the Fish Wharf and got our funicular tickets there so we skipped the horrendous qeue to buy them at the departure point. Nice views up there and went for a nice stroll through the woods before riding back down and walking to see Bryggen.

 

Olden - we got the black minibus trip from off the ship at the dock. Remember to allow time and money for a troll car up to the actual glacier at the other end, and I recommend you get off the ship first thing to get the pick of the departure times. If I went back in high season I would get the public bus and walk up. I estimate it would take a good two hours to do the very steep walk so you would need to be sure of your bus times If you dont fancy the glacier there were also tourist busses doing scenic rides up the valley. Not much to see in Olden apart from some tourist shops, its basically a very scenic hamlet. Fjord is very narrow so try to get right to the front of the ship for sailaway when the captain has to do a 360 turn :-)

 

Stavanger - docked very close so able to walk on and off the boat easily. Lots of scenic parks etc. We were 'parked' right next to Old Town so when we were bored of walking we came back onboard and sat an looked out at the scenery.

If the captain (and his boat) do a 360 degree turn, then he will end up facing the same way as he started

[Host Sharon]

If the captain (and his boat) do a 360 degree turn, then he will end up facing the same way as he started

 

lol :)

 

Actually on Nautica last year our captain (and his boat) did do a 360 opposite the Seven Sisters falls in Geiranger just so everyone got a good view before we carried on out of the fjord.

[Ecuador]

Stavanger

 

May not sound very interesting but visit the petroleum museum.The old town is worth a walk around and you can visit the canning museum here.The ticket for the museum(MUSTPASS 100NOK) will also allow you entrance to the maritime museum and other museums.If visiting the Cathedral, go later in the afternoon as there is no charge.You could also take the local bus to the swords in the stone.

 

Bergen

Do the funicular. Easy DIY.Visit Bryggen.

 

Flam

The flam railway is the main attraction here and is easy DIY

There is also the land/noddy train which will take you around flam and up the valley to the church.You can also hire bikes from the tourist info or visit the local brewery.

[groovechick]

For a cheap coffee in Bergen, go to the small shopping centre just off the main pedestrianized area in the centre (between the fish market and funicular) and go the restaurant on the top floor of the department store.

If you have ordinary filter coffee from the jug on the counter you get a free refill. I think the cost was about £3.50.