from Kristiansand: Lillisand a must see?

[poss]

There seems to be a number of interesting sites in Kristiansand, and the town itself looks to be pleasant. An excursion to Lillisand looks to be great as well, but that'd mean we'd miss other things, like Sogen, Hollen, Vest Agder museum, the town, etc.

 

I'm very much hoping that people familiar with this port will voice opinions on most interesting things to see/do. We love beautiful scenery; not into shopping.

 

Thank you.

[Jean A]

Last year on Thursday August 24 my husband and I were in port in Kristiansand. My husband and I did our own thing. If you love nature I strongly suggest going to see Ravnedalen Valley Nature. We were tender off the ship at 7:30am. It was raining lightly and we walked across town and then came to a roundabout. We at that time didn’t know what street to walk along and after about a block we asked someone and they told us to cut through the cemetery to get back to the street we needed to be on. The cemetery was very interesting and we spent some time there on our return. The walk was maybe a half hour walk from port. The park was beautiful and we must have sat for half hour on a bench watching the swan sand this other type of birds that were blue. We also walked on foot trail that was just past the lawn amphitheater. I would also suggest taking a picture of the trail map sign with your cell phone.We would have walked more on the trail if we had a trail map. Once we were at the top we had a beautiful view of the city. Also there was a lake and we walked around it. We stop along the small lake at a bench and ate our muffins. We did walk a little past the lake but there were a few trials to choose from and we did not want to get lost. This was a great place without the large groups from the cruise ship. We did see about 3 different classroom school groups’ visit the park and the trail. On the way back through town we stop and had lunch at Le Monde. We stop at a large church and went inside. We visited a few shops near the port. Facing the ship on the left was a bunch of boats and a small grass area with fountain and two beautiful sand sculptures.

Edited March 14, 2018 by Jean A
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[poss]

Thanks very much, Jean A. Curious to know whether there was a reason you chose Ravnedalen over Odderoya.

 

My memory is that a representative from the town usually comes on board to offer suggestions and maps, etc. (though Kristiansand may be too small to have such tourist amenities) I'd not want to start out on our own without careful instructions. Used to be braver about such forays, but as we've gotten older (and older!) I feel more comfortable with guides. I'm really grateful that Regent has included excursions-- main reason we chose that cruise line a dozen years ago. Have enjoyed ever since.

 

Thanks again-- very good of you to take the time to answer in detail.

[Jean A]

We were on a sixteen day cruise and most of our ten ports we booked ahead of time with others on cruise critic forum. We book cruises base on ports and cost. This was our first Royal Caribbean and transatlantic cruise.We are booked for their 2019 August transatlantic cruise again. Ports are great and a few different one. The price for inside cabin started around $1800 when cruise was listed in the end of December 2017. Odderoya is listed number 3, Ravnedalen Naturpark number 2 and Baneheia number one on trip adviser. My husband was the one that wanted to see Ravnedalen. It was pretty easy to find until we come to a roundabout that didn’t have streets names listed. Only about three streets to find the park. We did get to walk past some houses which are always interesting. We are in our early sixties and the trail up to the top was maybe about two flights of steps. I think Baneheia maybe is connected to Ravnedalen. Baneheia I think is about fifth teen minutes’ walk from port. We were the only ones there except three school groups passing us. Ravnedalen was beautiful.

[lynncarol]

We really enjoyed Odderoya with its overlooks, ruins and even old artillery. In September, the trails were lined with ripe blueberries and blackberries which we added to our picnic lunch. From there we decided to visit Ravnedalen. Maybe it was because of walking so much in Odderoya but it seemed that getting by foot to Ravnedlen took forever and was confusing to find! We stopped in that cemetery to regroup and cool-off but when we finally got to the park entrance and saw that a lot more walking would be required, we just turned around and headed back. My suggestion? Pick one but not both!