Picturebook Norway – Fjordland Spectacular

Itinerary

• Day 1

  Local departure by coach or Door-to-Door service, then to Holland for an overnight stay.

• Day 2

  Continue into Denmark and on to Aarhus for an overnight stay.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 3 - Aarhus

  Spend the day in Aarhus. Situated on the east coast of the Jutland Peninsula, Aarhus is home to a pretty old town, numerous art galleries and the fascinating open air Den Gamle By (The Old Town Museum). Join our optional city tour to see some of the main sights, including the cathedral, which dates back to 1520, and the Marselisborg Palace, summer residence of the Royal family. Later this evening we board the overnight ferry from Hirtshals to Bergen.

  Meals - Breakfast

• Day 4 - Bergen

  We cruise along the Norwegian shoreline to arrive in Bergen around lunchtime. We disembark and spend the afternoon in Bergen, Norway’s principal seaport – a joy to explore. Join our optional sightseeing tour which will introduce you to the city. In the heart of the medieval quarter you will walk through the narrow streets where the merchants of the Hanseatic League used to live, learn about their lives and discover the history of this 900-year old city. We later head to Voss and our hotel for three nights.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 5 - Free Time or Norway in a Nutshell®

  This popular optional excursion takes you through some of the country’s most beautiful scenery. We join the Flåm Railway in Voss and travel via the mountain station of Myrdal down to the fjord at Flåm, seeing the most magnificent scenery with ever-changing panoramas of cascading waterfalls and lofty mountains. We then continue by boat on the Aurlandsfjord into the Nærøyfjord, one of the narrowest fjords in Europe, an amazingly beautiful spot. Our journey continues by coach as we enjoy wonderful views before returning to Voss.

  This excursion is extremely popular and must be booked in advance. The price is from £128 per passenger.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 6 - Free Time or Eidfjord, Vøringsfoss and Hardanger Nature Museum

  A day at leisure in Voss or why not join our optional excursion to Eidfjord, Vøringsfoss and the Hardanger Nature Museum? The small town of Eidfjord lies at the tip of the Hardangerfjord, the second longest fjord in Norway, and is surrounded by impressive rolling mountains. Here, we include a visit to the Hardanger Nature Museum where the many exhibits show you the best of Norwegian nature. Before we leave Eidfjord, we visit the spectacular Vøringsfoss waterfalls. The water from the Hardrager mountain plateau cascades almost 600ft into the Måbødalen valley below. Your camera is a must!

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 7 - Sognefjord and the Bøyabreen Glacier

  We travel north through spectacular countryside with fine viewpoints on the way to descend to the shores of the vast Sognefjord, the world’s longest fjord, known as the ‘fjord beneath the glaciers’. We cross the fjord by ferry from Vangsnes and follow the northern shores of the huge sea inlet past the hamlets of Leikanger and Hermansverk, then north to the land of the glaciers. We see the Bøyabreen Glacier, an outlet from the expansive Jostedalsbreen Glacier, and then visit the excellent Norwegian Glacier Museum at Fjærland, with its first class exhibition about glaciers and fjords. Continue to Loen for an overnight stay.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 8

  Continue north to Alesund, where we stay for two nights.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 9 - Geiranger & Geirangerfjord

  Our optional excursion takes us by coach to Hellesylt, then by ferry to Geiranger, where we have time at leisure, before the return ferry to Hellesylt; returning by coach to our hotel.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 10 - Valldal and Ringebu

  We head to Valldall and on to Ringebu, calling to see the famous stave church before continuing to Lillehammer for an overnight stay.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 11

  We head to Oslo, where we stay for two nights.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 12 - Oslo

  Spend a day in the grand Norwegian capital, with its wealth of cultural attractions including the Akerhus Fortress, the National Gallery, the Kontiki Museum and the Viking Ship Museum. To make the most of your day, join our optional guided sightseeing tour, which will give an introduction to this historic capital.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 13

  We leave Norway and head into Denmark, passing Kronborg Castle in Helsingor, which was immortalised as Elsinore in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Continue to the Copenhagen area, where we stay for two nights.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 14 - Copenhagen

  Spend time in the Danish capital on our included excursion. We offer an optional city tour of the fascinating landmarks and beautiful architectural masterpieces, including the bronze statue of the Little Mermaid, taken from the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale, and the Rosenborg Palace, which is home to the Danish crown jewels.

  Meals - Breakfast, Dinner

• Day 15

  To Belgium for an overnight stay.

  Meals - Breakfast

• Day 16

  Return Home

  Meals - Breakfast

Accommodation

You will stay for one night in Aarhus, such as the Scandic Aarhus City Hotel. You will then have a three night stay in a minimum 3-star hotel, such as the Fleischers Hotel in Voss, followed by an overnight stay in Loen. In Alesund, you will have a two-night stay in the Scandic Parken or similar, before an overnight Lillehammer; you then continue to Oslo for a two night stay in a minimum 3-star hotel, such as the Scandic Solli or Clarion The Hub Hotel. Finally, you stay for two nights at the Scandic Sydhavnen on the outskirts of Copenhagen, or similar.

You will also stay for one night on board the ferry from Hirtshals to Bergen.

Overnight stays in Belgium and Holland will be in city-style hotels.