Travel tips for Norway

Midway up the spectacular fjord-laced Atlantic coast of Norway, Trondheim is a city dating back to 997AD.

Way back then, a Viking king established a trading port at the mouth of the river Nid. Another king died at the community just 33 years later and became Norway's patron saint, St Olav. Trondheim thus became a centre of Northern European pilgrimages.

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Trondheim remained Norway's religious and royal capital until the Protestant Reformation of 1537, which saw most of its Roman Catholic churches, chapels and monasteries destroyed.

The city is Norway's historic capital and is home to about 140,000 people.

Now just over 1000 years old, this quaintly scenic city has a friendly, humorous population and is well worth visiting despite the high prices. Travel in Norway isn't cheap.

Trondheim, which is Norway's third largest city, has an international airport with travel links to most major European cities.

It's possible to travel in Norway for less than US$30 a day for food and accommodation, but it won't be much of a vacation as you'll probably be sleeping in a cold tent rather than a discount hotel.

A more realistic budget would be well over US$60 a day, excluding transport, venue entry fees and other luxuries such as alcohol. Norway is an expensive country and you shouldn't expect cheap holiday travel.

Trains travel every day from Oslo to Copenhagen, Helsingborg and Stockholm. Trains also travel from Trondheim and Narvik to Stockholm. The train system is high quality but not extensive.

An extensive, modern and efficient bus service is also available for budget backpackers who can handle extreme conditions to save a penny. Ferries can be caught to and from Denmark, the UK, Iceland, Sweden and the Faroe Islands.

Due to the enormity of Norway and its extreme conditions, it can be worthwhile using domestic air services to travel in Norway.

Like most things in Norway, car rental is expensive.

Central Norway is the country's most popular holiday travel destination for tourists because of its high mountains, massive glacier and spectacular fjords... long, narrow inlets from the sea that were originally rivers that changed into glaciers during the Great Ice Age, creating the U-shaped bottoms of the fjords.

The landscape of Norway is simply breathtaking and is arguably the most spectacular in the world.

Mountains, glaciers and fjords are the backdrop to fantastic year-round skiing and exhilarating hiking treks.

Bergen is the major city servicing travel to the western fjords and the train trip between Oslo and Bergen is breathtakingly beautiful. A highlight of the line is the Flam Railway, a 20 kilometre stretch from the mountain village of Myrdal down an incredibly steep gradient to the port town of Flam. The Flam railway curls through 20 hand-carved tunnels covering six kilometres, and about 600,000 passengers enjoy the one hour journey each year to witness magnificent scenery. The electric train stops for about five minutes so tourists can see the spectacular Kjosfossen waterfall at the entry to the Bakli tunnel.

The train travels through the Flam Valley and the superb Aurlandsfjord, a branch of the Sognefjord which is considered the world's longest and deepest fjord at 204 kilometres long and more than 1,300 metres deep.

Bergen was founded in 1070 by King Olav Kyrre. The city is surrounded by seven mountains and its history dates back to Viking times. The old residential areas of Bergen are dotted with restaurants and bars but prices are very high. One way to cut costs in this town is to buy a Bergen Card offering significant discounts on attractions and a free round trip on the Mt Floyen funicular railway - one of the various must-do features of the city for tourists.

Take note that more than 2 metres of rain falls on Bergen each year. There is so much rain the locals catch it, put it in cans and sell it to tourists.

In 2006 there were 11 ships, all of 16,000 tonnes or less, which departed Bergen every day for the Arctic Circle and ports beyond. Most offer 12 day round trips and the cruisers also serve as a ferry, freight and car service for Norwegians living along the coast.

The voyages are usually chilly or cold on deck and don't generally appeal to young tourists seeking wild parties on tropical seas. However, the snow-capped peaks of Norway's fjords provide magnificent and constantly changing travel scenery.

During the early months of the year, passengers are likely to see the superb aurora borealis, better known as the northern lights, in the night sky.

A strong lure for tourists is Norway's thousands of kilometres of quality cross-country ski trails which are dotted with travel resorts in areas such as Geilo, Gudbrandsdalen, Lillehammer and Holmenkollen.

Cash and travelers cheques can be exchanged at post offices and banks but ATMs are widespread and it may be cheaper to rely on a credit card during your travel through Norway.

Service charges are included in restaurant and taxi bills. Although giving a tip is not de rigueur, taxi drivers and waiters in particular are appreciative if a 5% or 10% tip is included in your payment.

Prices for goods and services are at a set fee and bargaining is unusual.

The official religion is Christianity and most people in Norway are Lutheran.

Citizens of most western countries don't need a visa for travel up to 90 days through Norway.

Norway has no health risks except frostbite and vaccinations aren't necessary. The electricity current is 220 volts and Norway uses the metric measurements system.

Norway retains the Norwegian krone as its currency and is not a member of the European Union.

Norway shares its borders with Sweden, Finland and Russia.

The country covers 385,155 square kilometres and has a population just over 4.5 million, of whom about 510,000 live in Norway's capital city of Oslo.

Oslo sits at the head of an inlet and is a compact city with plenty of museums, parks, monuments and sights within walking distance.

A highlight of Oslo is the Akershus Fortress, a medieval fortress and castle built around 1300 AD which nowadays houses a museum dedicated to Norway's resistance against Nazi occupation.

Akershus Fortress provides a panoramic, backward view over the city and harbour, and also hosts numerous concerts during Norway's summer months.

Most of the cheap travel accommodation and discount hotels in Oslo are around the city centre and the main street of Karl Johans Gate. This central thoroughfare is lined with restaurants, cafes and shops, and provides a picturesque walk through gardens and parks with attractions such as the Stortinget (the Norwegian parliament), Oslo University, the National Theatre and the Royal Palace.

The 17th Century Oslo Domkirke near the central railway station is arguably the most beautiful cathedral in the city for tourists to explore. It's also well worth putting aside some travel time to look at the Munch Museum at Toyen Gata 53, which is home to more than 23,000 paintings, drawings and prints.

Worth visiting is the new national opera house and ballet which opened in 2008 at Bjoervika on the Oslo waterfront. The building, which cost hundreds of millions of dollars, will stage more than 300 concerts and performances each year. View over the surrounding island-strewn fjord from atop this white marble and granite building are stunning.

Oslo has more than 50 museums covering the maritime, art, culture, ski and even soccer history of Norway. Standouts include the Fram, Kontiki, Viking and Norwegian Maritime museums.

Beware that Oslo can be bitterly cold during winter with the sun barely managing to rise above tree level.

Norway was first settled more than 10,000 years ago but is most notable for the viking era beginning at the end of the 8th Century.

Norwegian vikings settled various communities throughout Europe till they were beaten back in the middle of the 11th Century.

Bubonic plague decimated much of Norway's population in the 14th Century following a hundred years of strong economic growth, and the country was then absorbed into a union with Denmark that lasted more than 400 years.

Sweden took control and invaded Norway in the early 19th Century. Peaceful secession was finally attained in 1905 and a royal dynasty was voted into power.

The 20th Century was marked by Nazi occupation, despite Norway remaining neutral during both world wars.

Norway nowadays is one of the most comfortable countries in the world, thanks mostly to oil and natural gas finds in the North Sea during the 1970s which greatly benefited the comparatively small population.

Norway has been ranked by the United Nations each year from 2001 to 2005 as having the highest standard of living in the world, based on factors such as wealth distribution, life expectancy, education and gender equality. Unemployment in Norway in 2005 was below 4% and among the world's lowest.

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Norway has the lowest population density in Europe, most people living near the coast to enjoy the warm winds off the Gulf Stream.

Much of the rocky interior mountains are covered with snow or ice throughout the year and snow blankets the landscape during winter.

About a third of Norway is native forest.

Known as the Land of the Midnight Sun, Norway has very long summer days and a casual, laid back ambience.

The south of Norway has a fairly temperate climate with pastures, forests and even beaches warm enough to swim.

Travel north of the Arctic Circle and the temperature drops sharply. The population is more sparse.

The northern landscape is dramatically stark, at times barren and in some areas carpeted with forest.

The far north is an icy wonderland home for seals, walruses and polar bears.

The northern archipelago of Svalbard is as far north as you can fly on a commercial flight and is less than 1000 kilometres from the North Pole. The largest island is Spitsbergen and its main settlement is Longyearbyen, home to about 2,000 people. The 61,0000 square kilometres of archipelago islands have stunning vistas such as icy glaciers, polar bears, whales, walruses, seals, reindeer, Arctic foxes, snowy mountains and the spectacular Northern Lights during the polar night from November 11 to January 30. During summer, the Midnight Sun rises on April 20 and sets on August 23. During winter, tourists can enjoy dog-sledding, snowmobiles, ice-caving and cross-country skiing. Summer activities include watching glaciers crashing into the sea, kayaking and trekking. Another interesting outpost is the Soviet-era settlement of Barentsburg, a coalmining town of about 400 people. The Svalbard archipelago was first charted by Dutch explorer William Barents in 1596 and since then the islands have been used as a base for whalers and walrus hunters. Tourism was banned until the 1990s but tens of thousands of people a year now visit the islands, about 500 kilometres north of the Norwegian mainland.

Norway travel is most enjoyable during the spring and summer months from May to September.

The daylight hours are long throughout the country and the midnight sun is experienced in summer north of the Arctic Circle. Even the far south of Norway has a very dim light throughout the night from late May to late July.

Winter travel in Norway is very cold and bleak, average temperatures below freezing, although skiiers and skaters can find plenty of challenges.

Norwegian culture is notable for its adherence to traditional activities such as folk dancing, storytelling, singing and the wearing of folk costumes during community events.

Authentic Norwegian cuisine remains popular - at least among the locals. Alcohol is scarce in various rural communities.

More than 500 square kilometres of Norway is north of the Arctic Circle but the west coast is ice-free most of the years thanks to the warming currents of the Gulf Stream. These currents maintain a fairly temperate climate near the coast during the summer months.

The largest minority group in Norway are the Lapps from Lapland above the Arctic Circle, a race without a nation who lived a nomadic lifestyle for thousands of years in the frigid north of Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia.

Lapps are typically short with high cheekbones, low foreheads, wide flat noses and olive skin. Many of the 30,000 Lapps in Norway live a fairly traditional nomadic lifestyle herding reindeer in the far north.

Soccer is the most popular sport in Norway and just about every Norwegian knows how to ski.

Cigarette smokers who travel to Norway should note that the government imposed a nationwide ban on smoking in public places as of mid-2004, meaning there are no longer designated smoking areas in bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Smokers must now go outside (where it's often very cold) to light up. Cigarettes in Norway are also heavily taxed and very expensive.

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