Norway Summer 2024

AeonMach

AeonMach

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My last (contract) job came to an end after a good 3 years on exactly the same day as my primary school teacher wife's last day of term before the summer holidays! Road trip!!
We immediately thought of the Med and summer... but then - being Scottish - decided that camping in the van in 30-40 degrees probably wasn't fun.
So we decided to go north to Norway!
(Well I say go north, but what I really mean is first go south, get across the Channel, then head west, THEN go north.)

Setting off tomorrow via a London visit (eldest son) and camping somewhere in the middle of southern England (the county are a mystery to me there; not enough coast to keep me oriented), back up to @CRS Performance in Cannock on Tue to get my springs upgraded, then to the in-laws in Wilthshire before the Chunnel across to the continent a week on Monday.
Then 4 weeks or so of travel.

Not much of a plan except won't bite off too much on the first day after midday-ish Chunnel crossing and so a probable stopover in Belgium to feed my wife moules-frites, a stop-off with a German sailing pal near Kiel, and then probably heading north through Denmark and taking the ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand (we will probably come back via the Oresund bridge) and then working north up the coast to the fjords...
I'd love to visit Lofoten but given the time I think we will enjoy the trip and hiking and camping and not cram too many miles in - so we probably won't go any further north than Alesund or Trondheim.
(One of my wife's colleagues is also on a roadtrip in a Land Rover and they're heading for the Nordkapp - now that's a LOT of miles!)

Many thanks to @Ricardo T for his post and all the useful advice in there from both him and others.
I *think* I have all the logistics covered especially some specifics for the route and Norway road tolling:
* German emissions zone sticker - easily and cheaply ordered online from German govt. and arrived quickly
* toll service provider (mainly for Norway but also covering Oresund and/or Storebaelt bridge) - I did it via OresundPay and registered/ordered both numberplate recognition AND a 'bizz' (infrared tag?) - which was all free. Again all pretty seamless and arrived within 2 weeks of ordering.

The van is packed and we are ready to go...

Feel free to give me all sorts of recommendations!!
(I do know all the obvious must-dos, eg. Preikestollen/Pulpit Rock etc etc)

PS Ikea do nice, cheap packing cubes which are great for clothes and stuffing in to nooks and crannies...
 
AeonMach said:
My last (contract) job came to an end after a good 3 years on exactly the same day as my primary school teacher wife's last day of term before the summer holidays! Road trip!!
We immediately thought of the Med and summer... but then - being Scottish - decided that camping in the van in 30-40 degrees probably wasn't fun.
So we decided to go north to Norway!
(Well I say go north, but what I really mean is first go south, get across the Channel, then head west, THEN go north.)

Setting off tomorrow via a London visit (eldest son) and camping somewhere in the middle of southern England (the county are a mystery to me there; not enough coast to keep me oriented), back up to @CRS Performance in Cannock on Tue to get my springs upgraded, then to the in-laws in Wilthshire before the Chunnel across to the continent a week on Monday.
Then 4 weeks or so of travel.

Not much of a plan except won't bite off too much on the first day after midday-ish Chunnel crossing and so a probable stopover in Belgium to feed my wife moules-frites, a stop-off with a German sailing pal near Kiel, and then probably heading north through Denmark and taking the ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand (we will probably come back via the Oresund bridge) and then working north up the coast to the fjords...
I'd love to visit Lofoten but given the time I think we will enjoy the trip and hiking and camping and not cram too many miles in - so we probably won't go any further north than Alesund or Trondheim.
(One of my wife's colleagues is also on a roadtrip in a Land Rover and they're heading for the Nordkapp - now that's a LOT of miles!)

Many thanks to @Ricardo T for his post and all the useful advice in there from both him and others.
I *think* I have all the logistics covered especially some specifics for the route and Norway road tolling:
* German emissions zone sticker - easily and cheaply ordered online from German govt. and arrived quickly
* toll service provider (mainly for Norway but also covering Oresund and/or Storebaelt bridge) - I did it via OresundPay and registered/ordered both numberplate recognition AND a 'bizz' (infrared tag?) - which was all free. Again all pretty seamless and arrived within 2 weeks of ordering.

The van is packed and we are ready to go...

Feel free to give me all sorts of recommendations!!
(I do know all the obvious must-dos, eg. Preikestollen/Pulpit Rock etc etc)

PS Ikea do nice, cheap packing cubes which are great for clothes and stuffing in to nooks and crannies...
Click to expand...
Don’t overpack clothes etc. Have a core set of clothes, quick drying modern fabrics, avoid cotton & denim. I have a couple of pairs of shorts, some decent zip off trousers that are smart enough for a night out, a thin fleece & about half a dozen thin quick wash/dry t shirts. A good waterproof outer jacket, hiking boots & a pair of lightweight walking/hiking shoes for knocking about. The missus has a similar wardrobe & it all fits in one cupboard in the van, we can do a couple of months easily with that lot. The T shirts get washed in the shower on an evening, hung out to dry overnight & back on in the morning. Same goes for the shorts & socks.
PS have a great trip & post loads of info/photos
 
Salty Spuds said:
Don’t overpack clothes etc. Have a core set of clothes, quick drying modern fabrics, avoid cotton & denim. I have a couple of pairs of shorts, some decent zip off trousers that are smart enough for a night out, a thin fleece & about half a dozen thin quick wash/dry t shirts. A good waterproof outer jacket, hiking boots & a pair of lightweight walking/hiking shoes for knocking about. The missus has a similar wardrobe & it all fits in one cupboard in the van, we can do a couple of months easily with that lot. The T shirts get washed in the shower on an evening, hung out to dry overnight & back on in the morning. Same goes for the shorts & socks.
PS have a great trip & post loads of info/photos
Click to expand...
Good tip, ie washing clothes in the shower
 
Good luck on your trip mate, you’ll have a blast! Sounds like you are pretty much sorted.
We always like to take a paper map/ atlas too for a ‘bigger’ picture of the route/ country.
Maybe a bit of Krone to change into coins for showers etc.
The free motorway toilets in Germany are pretty awful but surprisingly the paid loos are quite good ( 60p) and all contactless, if you get my drift!
The only place we encountered midges was Pulpit Rock, so take some repellent.
Be sure to post plenty of pics.
Safe driving! :cool:
 
Salty Spuds said:
Don’t overpack clothes etc. Have a core set of clothes, quick drying modern fabrics, avoid cotton & denim. I have a couple of pairs of shorts, some decent zip off trousers that are smart enough for a night out, a thin fleece & about half a dozen thin quick wash/dry t shirts. A good waterproof outer jacket, hiking boots & a pair of lightweight walking/hiking shoes for knocking about. The missus has a similar wardrobe & it all fits in one cupboard in the van, we can do a couple of months easily with that lot. The T shirts get washed in the shower on an evening, hung out to dry overnight & back on in the morning. Same goes for the shorts & socks.
PS have a great trip & post loads of info/photos
Click to expand...
lol sorry I should have been more specific: I meant more recommmendations for Norway and the route specifically rather than general advice! I’m an experienced traveller/camper… but all excellent advice
Especially your washing stuff in the shower tip
 
Ricardo T said:
Good luck on your trip mate, you’ll have a blast! Sounds like you are pretty much sorted.
We always like to take a paper map/ atlas too for a ‘bigger’ picture of the route/ country.
Maybe a bit of Krone to change into coins for showers etc.
The free motorway toilets in Germany are pretty awful but surprisingly the paid loos are quite good ( 60p) and all contactless, if you get my drift!
The only place we encountered midges was Pulpit Rock, so take some repellent.
Be sure to post plenty of pics.
Safe driving! :cool:
Click to expand...
Aye I bought some H&B (German) travel maps (from Stanfords and the Map Centre). Got a really nice one covering ‘Northern Europe’ (Scandinavia, Finland, Baltics, top of Poland and Germany).

Midges? Aye I’m hoping neither they nor mosquitoes will be too bad…
I wonder if you were early enough that midges would haven’t been out in Norway anyway (guessing their season is a month later than Scotland given latitude/climate)…?
 
So first stop is deepest Englandshire in a lovely campsite - Town Farm - near Ivinghoe and the Ridgeway. Beautiful rolling chalk hills.
IMG_2448.jpeg

(I can’t tell you exactly what county it’s in; Ivinghoe is in Bucks, postcode town Leighton Buzzard is in Beds and nearest station - Tring, 5 mins away and v handy for train into London - is in Herts!! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

Very family camping oriented.
Loads of space (do NOT bother with EHU since you get least nice spaces near farm buildings!) in well drained fields.

Wasn’t even too raucous with the ENG-SUI match on last night!
Well done England
 
AeonMach said:
lol sorry I should have been more specific: I meant more recommmendations for Norway and the route specifically rather than general advice! I’m an experienced traveller/camper… but all excellent advice
Especially your washing stuff in the shower tip
Click to expand...
Ahh! In that case, stock up on booze before you hit Scandinavia, either in Belgium or Germany, and take plenty of money.
As before, have a great trip.
 
When we did it a couple of years ago we started at Drammen and went up the eastern side through the mountains as far as Tromso them back through the Lofotens and down the west coast dipping inland to see the main tourist attractions.
We only went as far south as Bergen then went back through Drammen and home.
If you’re going up the west coast then Bergen, Alesund and Trondheim are all well worth a visit and all very different.
For Trondheim we stayed at Flakk Camping. Small walk through the woods to the main road and bus service into Trondheim. Nice site.

Flakk Camping – Trondheim – Camping for motorhomes, caravans and tents, 11 km west of Trondheim sentrum

www.flakk-camping.no www.flakk-camping.no
Alesund we stayed at Skerja motorhome aire (bobilparkering as they are known in Norway)
www.alesundbobil.no

Skjerva bobilparkering - Ålesund Bobilparkering

WidgetPublisert Skjerva bobilparkering (alt) SliderPublisert Bildegalleri brukt i Artikkel: Skjerva bobilparkeringVår nyeste bobilparkering i Ålesund som åpnet i mai 2021. Her er det 57 plasser reservert for bobiler og campingvogner (med egen oppstillingsplass for bilen).
www.alesundbobil.no

Bergen we stayed on the road called Haugeveien near a park a short walk from the centre. It’s where all the motorhomes park up, but I did read somewhere that it was going to be stopped by the local authority. It’s just a road, slight slope, stealth stopover type place.

In our opinion there isn’t much to see between Trondheim and Bodo (obviously the scenery is amazing, but nothing touristy of note) and Bodo is dull-just a stepping stone to the Lofotens, which are truly amazing btw. So if you aren’t going to make it to the Lofotens then I wouldn’t bother dedicating time to venturing north of Trondheim.
If you want me to list the places/things we visited around the west as far up as Trondheim then I’ll do you a list.
 
I agree with the above advice from Si. The only large town we ventured into was Trondheim where we stayed in an AirB...the town has a lovely vibe. The only place we saw someone remotely drunk during the day and three police vans swiflty arrived to cart him away.
The only thing north of Trondheim, apart from the amazing scenery and driving is the Artctic circle centre and region, on the E6. Worth a visit but a long way for you to drive from the south so you my be pushed for time. :cool:
 
So after a good few days (seeing son in London and some culture in the National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery, and staying at Town Farm campsite - see above - which is very handy for train into London from Tring station, 5 mins away with park-and-ride, then a walk on Ivinghoe Beacon hills and a visit to the fascinating Bletchley Park museum)…
IMG_2455.jpeg
IMG_2478.jpeg

… it’s back up to Cannock (stopover last night in a wee car park on Cannock Chase heath)…

… to Steve @CRS Performance who is sorting out my springs for some that will actually hold the weight of my van properly!
IMG_2491.jpeg

Fortuitously they’ve also spotted my front tyres were very badly (dangerously!) worn on the inside edges (an alignment issue…?). Not great given I only just had an MOT!!
IMG_2493.jpeg

And even more fortuitously Steve has some 245/40/R20s in stock!!
(Nankang do a rare 103 load rated version of this size which works really well for 20’’ wheels for T32 vans.)
 
AeonMach said:
So first stop is deepest Englandshire in a lovely campsite - Town Farm - near Ivinghoe and the Ridgeway. Beautiful rolling chalk hills.
View attachment 249567

(I can’t tell you exactly what county it’s in; Ivinghoe is in Bucks, postcode town Leighton Buzzard is in Beds and nearest station - Tring, 5 mins away and v handy for train into London - is in Herts!! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

Very family camping oriented.
Loads of space (do NOT bother with EHU since you get least nice spaces near farm buildings!) in well drained fields.

Wasn’t even too raucous with the ENG-SUI match on last night!
Well done England
Click to expand...
I will be doing a similar trip next year, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and down through Finland visiting family, and looking at your Van I take it it is not a Camper, so using the Bizz/Oresund Pass what is your van categorised as, as mine is a t32 Kombi kitted out for sleeping but not a Camper. TIA
 
Rayza said:
I will be doing a similar trip next year, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and down through Finland visiting family, and looking at your Van I take it it is not a Camper, so using the Bizz/Oresund Pass what is your van categorised as, as mine is a t32 Kombi kitted out for sleeping but not a Camper. TIA
Click to expand...
We are doing similar next year to visit friends in Finland. I’ll be doing the same route I did last time.
Rodby to Puttgarden then Helsingor to Helsingborg. You can buy a combined ticket for about £90. It’s less driving, roughly same journey time as Oresund bridge route but you get to put your feet up on the boat on the 2 short crossings.
And Helsingborg is well worth a visit. We stayed at the aire on the harbour and had a day/night there.
Depends if you really want to cross an iconic bridge or not. To me it’s just a bridge. I’ve seen loads.
 
Rayza said:
I will be doing a similar trip next year, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and down through Finland visiting family, and looking at your Van I take it it is not a Camper, so using the Bizz/Oresund Pass what is your van categorised as, as mine is a t32 Kombi kitted out for sleeping but not a Camper. TIA
Click to expand...
Youll be fine as an LCV under 3.5t i think the limit is. Mine was originally a Kombi before the conversion was done.
 
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