Insight Guides Norway (Travel Guide eBook)

Insight Guides

• Publisher: Insight Guides
• Year: 2018
• eBook ISBN: 9781786714985
• Topic: Développement personnel
• Subtopic: Voyage

Insight Guides: all you need to inspire every step of your journey.
An in-depth book, now with free app and eBook.

This new edition of Insight Guide Norway is the perfect travel companion to this land of contrasts, from the world's most spectacular fjords and stunning coastal scenery to historic old towns and the best in modern architecture

Over 336 pages of insider knowledge from local experts
In-depth on history and culture, from Norway's untamed land and contemporary life, to the Norwegians' passion for the outdoor life.
Enjoy special features on Norwegian folklore, culinary traditions, architecture and natural wonders.
Includes innovative extras that are unique in the market - all Insight Guides to countries and regions come with a free eBook and app that's regularly updated with new hotel, bar, restaurant, shop and local event listings
Invaluable maps, travel tips and practical information ensure effortless planning
Inspirational colour photography throughout
Inventive design makes for an engaging reading experience

About Insight Guides: Insight Guides has over 40 years' experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce around 400 full-colour print guide books and maps as well as picture-packed eBooks and apps to meet different travellers' needs. Insight Guides' unique combination of beautiful travel photography and focus on history and culture together create a unique visual reference and planning tool to inspire your next adventure.

Travel Tips: A–Z

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Accommodation

Hotels, like everything else in Norway, come expensive, but, in common with the rest of Scandinavia, they reduce their rates during the summer holiday period, when business visitors are fewer. Weekends (usually Friday and Saturday but sometimes Sunday too) are also usually cheaper. The official visitors’ site, www.visitnorway.com, can be a good starting point for tracking down hotels.

Hotels

A very high percentage of Norwegian hotels belong to or are affiliated to local chains. Most offer passes and discount schemes. In return for a modest one-time fee (around NOK 100), you get discounted rates, mostly in the summer and at weekends. Fjord Pass (www.fjordtours.com/fjordpass) is not bound to one chain and offers discounts of up to 50 percent. A breakfast buffet is almost always included in the room rate.

Hotel chains in Norway include:

Best Western Hotels

www.bestwestern.no

Nordic Choice Hotels

www.nordicchoicehotels.no

Radisson Blu Hotels

www.radissonblu.com

Scandic Hotels

www.scandichotels.no

Thon Hotels

www.thonhotels.com

Two splendid associations of quality historic hotels with charm are:

De Historiske

www.dehistoriske.no

A group of over 50 historic hotels, manor houses or timbered lodges, plus almost 20 selected restaurants.

The Great Life Company

www.dvgl.no/en

Seven mostly historic inns and restaurants.

Booking in Oslo/Bergen

In Oslo, the Visitor Centre at Østbanehallen in Jernbanetorget 1, next to the Central Station (tel: [phone]; www.visitoslo.com), will book accommodation in the capital for those requesting it in person. This service covers private rooms, pensions and hotels.

The tourist office in Bergen offers a similar reservation service for hotels in Bergen and the surrounding area. It is located at Strandkaien 3 on Torget – the Fish Market (tel: [phone]; www.visitbergen.com). Here too, the service is only available for callers-in.

Chalets (Hytter)

There are abundant holiday hytter (cabins or chalets) available for rent. These usually house four to six people. If you want to spend just one night in a chalet and then move on, you can stay in one on a campsite without booking ahead.

Fishermen’s Cabins (rorbuer)

On the Lofoten Islands in northern Norway, and at many places elsewhere along the north coast, you can rent a rorbu, once a fisherman’s cabin. Nearly all have been modernised – and many, in fact, are attractive recent constructions, built in traditional style.

Destination Lofoten AS

Tel: [phone]

www.lofoten.info

Camping

Norway has more than 1,000 campsites, classified by 1–5 stars, depending on the standard and facilities available. The fixed charge per plot is usually NOK 100–200, with additional charges per person.

Many campsites have cabins that may be booked in advance. Most are small and basic with simply a bunk bed and a single electric ring but some are larger and well equipped.

For further information, log onto www.camping.no.

B&Bs

Look out for signs for Rom or Husrom outside houses. The Norway Bed & Breakfast Book by Anne Marit Bjorgen has a reasonable listing of choices. The website www.bbnorway.com may also help.

Youth and Family Hostels

Norway has more than 100 youth and family hostels. A night’s accommodation in a dorm costs NOK 200–350, and breakfast is usually included. Many hostels also have double or family rooms.

Hostelling International Norway

Tel: [phone]

www.hihostels.no

Admission Charges

You can expect to pay between NOK 60 and NOK 100 for admission to a museum or gallery, and NOK 110–120 for admission to some of the most popular attractions. Several museums and galleries in Oslo are free, and many museums have a day when they don’t charge admission; check individual venues for more information. Family tickets are usually good value for money, so opt for these if you are travelling with children. Some places have discounts for students and senior citizens. The Oslo Pass and Bergen Card offer free entrance to museums and attractions together with free public transport and parking (for more information, click here).

B

Budgeting for Your Trip

Norway is exp...

Table of contents

• Norway’s Top 10 Attractions
• Editor’s Choice
• Introduction: Northern Contrasts
• An Untamed Land
• Decisive Dates
• Beginnings
• Kings and Christianity
• The 400-Year Sleep
• Union with Sweden
• An Independent, Modern Country
• Who Are The Norwegians?
• Epic Explorers
• The Sami: People of Four Nations
• Insight: Folklore: Sagas and Folktales
• Wild Norway
• An Outdoor Life
• Sporting Passions
• Fishing: Sport and Sustenance
• Insight: Nature’s Larder
• The Traditional Arts
• Art and Culture
• Insight: Architecture
• Why Does Everything Cost So Much?
• Introduction: Places
• Oslo, Nordic City of Light
• Around Oslo and Its Fjord
• The Heart of Norway
• Western Central Norway
• Telemark and the South
• Rogaland
• Stavanger
• Hordaland
• Bergen
• The Most Beautiful Voyage
• From Sogn to Nordfjord
• Møre og Romsdal
• Trondheim
• Into the Arctic
• Insight: Land of the Midnight Sun
• The Far North
• Svalbard
• Travel Tips: Transport
• Travel Tips: A–Z
• Travel Tips: Language
• Travel Tips: Further Reading