Normally I do most of the planning of our trips, but this time, I decided to enlist the help of an online travel agency, Nordic Visitor, to help arrange the Norway part of the trip. I guess I was just feeling a bit lazy organizing this one which is why we utilized the service, but we couldn't have been happier with the results. They were very helpful, the vouchers were well organized, and I loved their communication frequency with us...not too much but were there to answer questions via email, phone, as well as instant messaging. It was a great experience using them and I would certainly use them again.
Itinerary
MONDAY 101716 -101816
Flight Info:
United
Depart: SMF MON 101716 at 1405
Arrive: FRA TUE 101816 at 0955 (frankfurt)
Lufthansa
Depart FRA TUE 101816 at 1255
Arrive: OSL (Gardermoen) TUE 101816 at 1450
Airport Express Train (runs every 10 min) to National Theatre stop.
TUESDAY 101816 - OSLO
Hotel Continental Oslo (NO)
Stortingsgata 24/26, Oslo
Tel: 47 - 22 82 40 00
GPS +59 50.96, +10 44’ 2.11
1 Double Deluxe Room, Private Bath
Breakfast included - Really good food selection for breakfast and fresh juice
http://www.hotelcontinental.no
WEDNESDAY 101916 - OSLO
We took a very convenient and speedy train from the Airport to the National Theater stop. It was so easy to buy your ticket.....simply go to the turnstile, slide your credit card at the turnstile, select your destination, and the door opens. No ticket. No fuss. Really easy. From the National Theater stop, we walked about 100 yards to our hotel, the Hotel Continental Oslo.....perfect amount of schlepping our stuff around Oslo on only an hours worth of sleep in two days.
We spent our 1 1/2 days in Oslo walking around and checking out the city on foot. Our hotel was directly across the street from the National Theatre in the middle of town, and conveniently next to the National Theatre stop on the T-bane and Airport Express trains. Upon arriving, it was already getting dark and we were hungry, so we set out immediately to find food. I had already decided to choose a food genre that I knew wouldn't potentially give me tummy issues, so I found a highly ranked Indian restaurant on TripAdvisor called IndiSpice that was only a couple blocks away. It was really good, but as all the guidebooks and travel sites warn you, Norway food and drink is VERY expensive. Our typical meal of samosas, curry chicken, tandoori meat, and one beer cost approximately $100 American. Yikes! Our hotel was super convenient and comfortable and we managed to get the sleep we needed to catch up from a long two days of travel. For reference, I looked up the cost of a room at the Hotel Continental on TripAdvisor (as most of our hotels and transport were arranged by Nordic Visitor travel agency) and it cost about $250/night, but I am certain our room was more as it was a small suite size and had a humongous bathroom equipped with a shower and tub (room #860). But since the travel agency booked our trip through Norway in full, and I am certain they get some industry deals, I cannot say for sure how much we paid for our room. Enjoyed a very delicious breakfast buffet with yogurt/cereal bar, fresh juices, cold cuts, eggs (both buffet and made to order available), sausage, potatoes, baked beans, breads, and cheeses. The fresh coffee was strong and good.
Although very walkable, the T-bane and the Airport express are very handy to get around. This country is keen on everyone taking personal responsibility for their actions and not testing the system to see what they can get away with. Perfect example is inside the train stations. Most train stations that I have entered have some sort of wall blocking any entrances or exits, forcing passengers to pass through turnstiles to use their purchased tickets or passes. In Oslo, not the case. There are turnstiles, but only to "validate" your ticket. It is up to you to ensure it is validated. On either side of the turnstiles, it is wide open. Conceivably, it would be really easy to sneak in for a free ride. Even so, most people here wouldn't even think to cheat the system as it is ingrained in them to do the right thing even if no one is watching. Amazing.
The next day we walked around Oslo, following our handy Rick Steve's guidebook for Scandinavia. We followed his self-guided walking tour of the city and stopped for a moment at the Oslo Cathedral (Lutheran Church), the flower market, and City Hall for a peek. The church was comfortable in size and not too ornate as many European churches tend to be...much more to my liking. The stained glass windows are pretty and everything inside is very simple and unpretentious. As for City Hall, it is a rather ugly building with a huge mural painted on the walls inside depicting key events in Norway's history. Outside in the front are many wood carvings of Norse mythology with explanations in Norwegian and English. Interesting place for sure.
THURSDAY 102016 - OSLO TO TRONDHEIM
Oslo Central Station to board Dovrebanen train (arrive 10-15 min early)
Depart: 0802
Arrive: 1431
Hotel: Clarion Hotel & Congress Trondheim
Brattorkaia 1, Trondheim
Double Room, Private Bath
Breakfast Included
If taking a cruise in or out of Trondheim, the Clarion Hotel and Congress, ideally located, is your best bet for a comfortable stay near the piers. Our tour company selected this hotel for us, but quite honestly if i had booked it myself, it would have been my first choice. It was within 500 yards of our boat embarkation and only a short walk over the bridge to the central downtown area. We had room 701 which had an amazing view of the harbor and a gorgeous sunset, so I highly recommend that room if you can request it. The room was plenty big with a double bed, chaise lounging chair, closet storage, and a decent sized bathroom with a large counter top, shower and toilet.
Very good amenities for travelers: LOTS of outlets to plug in chargers, good bath products and places to hang clothes, bags and bath products. It has a mini fridge, opportunity to utilize laundry onsite, and a decent order-in menu. I also liked the upgraded, modern feel to the hotel with modern style curtains, bed linens, towels, and decor. Great place to rest your head for an evening before boarding your ship the next day.
The breakfast was included in our room rate. It was a standard European buffet of eggs, sausage, bacon, potatoes, baked beans, toast, fine cheese selection, deli style meats, and a yogurt/cereal bar. There was also a made to order omelet station and pancake station as well. The food quality was good - excellent and everything was fresh. The coffee/tea bar was fine, but nothing to write home about. But everything you needed to make your perfect cup was there and stocked to the top.
One small opportunity for improvement for the hotel would be to rethink your alcohol prices in the bar. Hubs and I went upstairs to enjoy the splendid rooftop terrace and sunset while sipping on some adult beverages in the bar. I was severely disappointed in the cost of our drinks. While I understand the cost of alcohol is much higher in Scandinavia than in the rest of Europe, I was particularly disappointed to hear that my mid to low range glass of house red wine (a Sangiovese) cost what was the equivalent to $35 American. Wow. That seems a bit over the top. His cocktail was exceptionally expensive as well...We spent about $100 American for two drinks. I guess that will keep us from overindulging while visiting Norway.
FRIDAY 102116 - TRONDHEIM - KRISTIANSUND - MOLDE - ALESUND
Norwegian Coastal Voyage: MS Nordlys
Depart 1000 (arrive 1 hour prior)
Private cabin with Private facilities
This cruise was arranged by Nordic Visitors. We caught the tail end of another longer cruise's journey back to port as we sailed down the coast of Norway on the cruise line Hurtigruten. The ship was fine....nothing too elaborate. We loved sitting in the front enjoying the view of the different coastal towns and fjords in the comfy chairs. We haven't "cruised" all that much in our travels over the years, but from what we hear, this ship would rank on the simple side without too many amenities. Nevertheless, the ship was clean and the staff was helpful and pleasant for our one night/day sail.
SATURDAY 102216 - TORVIK - MALOY - FLORO - BERGEN
Disembark: 1430
Hotel: Hotel No. 13, Bergen
Torgalmenningen 13 5012 Bergen
Double Room, Private Bath
Breakfast Included
https://www.nordicchoicehotels.com/nordic-resort/hotel-no13/
We really enjoyed this modern and very convenient hotel in Bergen. It is located right on the shopping strip of Torgall-Menningen....only a short walk from the train station, the piers where the boats doc, and the thriving downtown area of Bergen. Downstairs is a Burger bar during the day and evening as well as the hotel lobby and guests receive a discount to dine in the hotel restaurant. The good sized rooms have plenty of space to stretch your legs, flop your bag, and move around the room without tripping over items or each other. Great view of the outdoor mall below for some fabulous people watching. The bathroom is a good size too with ultra modern sliding glass doors to section off the shower and toilet areas. There were hooks on the walls, an upright open cabinet/wardrobe with hangers, and a couple chairs for bag storage. There were also several (I counted 5) empty plugs for charging electronics. The bed was a little harder than hubs liked, but I liked it fine.
The only complaint I would have is the noise. While street noise rarely bothers myself or my husband, if you were a light sleeper that enjoyed sleeping with the windows open, the loud Saturday night crowd might bother you. But, it is more than ok if you shut your window. Like I said, hubs and i didn't have an issue, but it could pose to a be a problem for others.
I highly recommending trying this little boutique hotel...part of the Clarion Hotel chain. The staff was super friendly, helpful, and welcoming....helping make our trip to Bergen something to remember.
SUNDAY 102316 - BERGEN
Great eats in Bergen...check out my food reviews: Carrie's Trip Advisor Reviews
MONDAY 102416 - BERGEN - VOSS - GUDVANGEN - FLAM
Train from Bergen: 0843
Arrival in Voss: 0956
Bus from Voss: 1010
Arrival in Gudvangem: 1105
Boat from Gudvangem: 1200
Arrival in Flam: 1400
Hotel: Hotel Flamsbrygga. Flam
5742 Aurland
GPS +60 51’ 50.15”, +7 7’ 3.26”
Double/Twin including HB, Private Bath
Breakfast and Dinner Included
As a part of our tour through Norway, we took a boat through the fjords from Gudsvagen to Flam and stopped here for the evening. Our tour company booked us a lovely room on the second floor (#205) with a balcony that over looked the harbor. This cabin-esq type hotel was ideally located in between the boat dock and the train tracks, so it was easy to get to while lugging all our gear. Our hotel fare included dinner at the AEgir brew pub and breakfast the next morning at the Flaysbrygga cafe next door, so all was very convenient and close by.
The staff was super helpful. We were trying to change our train tickets to an earlier departure and they helped us with multiple phone calls to our tour company to offer their local language skills over the phone. They were also eager to help us book activities that we would enjoy. Service was prompt and with a smile. If you find yourself in Flam for a night, please consider this hotel. We really enjoyed our overnight stay!
Hubs and I enjoyed our evening at the AEgir Brew pub for our overnight stay in Flam. Upon entering, hubs immediately made friends with the jolly proprietor, who also runs the bar, and had a flight of their beers made on site. He also found a couple of bottled hard ciders for me, as gluten is my enemy, after finding out what my drink preferences were. I was impressed with the ciders he selected for me, both apple and not-too-sweet, as requested. The second one was my favorite, as it was finished with hops....so it almost tasted like a beer! Hubs was also impressed with the beers and chose one to drink with dinner. Since I can only go off the smell of the beers, I was impressed with the aroma profile of the amber ale and the porter. Both had a lot of depth and layers of different flavors. We enjoyed our beer tasting by the circular seating around the fireplace, equipped with fuzzy animal pelts to cushion your rear. Then we were seated upstairs for dinner.
Staying at the Flamsbrygga hotel, dinner was included in our hotel fare, but it wasn't clear what on the menu was included. However, our server let us know that the idea is that guests have the Viking platter, so that is what the hotel fare covers....the most expensive item on the menu. However, he assured us that we could order anything else off the menu and it would be covered, except the booze. We split the Salat a la Odin: a lovely combination of mixed greens, heavy on the radicchio, julienned cucumber, halved cherry tomatoes, quartered strawberry, sliced pear, a slight drizzle of balsamic reduction, and a light and creamy dill dressing. The salad also had thinly sliced, crisped salami and a healthy portion of prosciutto on top. Wow! What an amazing combination of flavors and textures happening in one dish....sweet, savory, crunchy, salty, bitter....they were all there! Very imaginative salad. Hubs ordered the pork shank that came with a healthy serving of mashed potatoes and sauerkraut.....which he immediately inhaled. He indicated that it was tasty, well prepared, and seasoned correctly. I think he even dug the sauerkraut, which is highly unusual for him. I ordered the venison burger (sans bun, of course) that came topped with blueberry cream....which is, quite frankly, why I ordered it. The venison was cooked beautifully and the slightly sweet berry cream really complimented the gamey meat, and really tamed it down. Another beautiful combination of unusual flavors. It was a lot of food and well put together.
Our evening was absolutely amazing here at the AEgir pub. It is worth the entire stay in Flam to just go and have a food and drink experience here. GO NOW!!!
TUESDAY 102516 - FLAM - MYDRAL - GELLO - GOL - OSLO
Train from Flam: 1650
Arrival in Myrdal: 1740
Train from Mydral: 1754
Arrival in Oslo: 2235
Hotel: Hotel Continental Oslo
Stortingsgata 24/26, Oslo
Double Deluxe Room, Private bath - different room this time but equally amazing.
http://www.hotelcontinental.no/
WEDNESDAY 102616 - OSLO - LAPLAND
Airport Express Train to Airport
Flights:
Scandinavian Airlines
Depart OSL - Gardermoen 102616 at 1100
Arrive ARN (Stockholm) 102616 at 1155
Scandinavian Airlines
Depart ARN 102616 at 1300
Arrive HEL 102616 at 1500
Finnair
Depart HEL 102616 at 1625
Arrive IVL (Ivalo) 102616 at 1800
Hotel: Kakslauttanen
Kelo Glass Igloo
Total: 1146 Euros
THURSDAY 102716 LAPLAND
Journey to Lapland and the Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort
So it all started with Pinterest....you can blame that. I remember the moment well...we were sitting in our hotel room in Osaka last year, and hubs passed me a picture that was posted in Facebook, originally a pin from Pinterest, showing me a row of glass domed igloos. He said, wouldn't that be cool? Immediately, I started looking around for this magical place that had glass domed igloos lit up so brightly, surrounded by snow. A few minutes later, I located this dreamy place on the internet: Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort in Lapland, Finland. Lapland.....huh.....where is that? A simple google map search helped me find the pin on the map....OMG! It is the top of the world! A place above the arctic circle at 10 degrees latitude. Wow. I quickly found their website and started researching whether or not this would be a place that hubs and I would like. Hubs can be particular when we travel. Now that we are no longer broke and barely making ends meet, he has established a list of criteria of the places we stay so that he is happy: We need to have our own bathroom and shower in our room (something that can be difficult in Europe) and wifi in our room is preferable. These requirements can be easily met most of the time, but when you are dealing with a resort in the middle of nowhere, you never know.
After researching the website, I think the new Kelo-Glass Igloos were going to fit the bill perfectly: Half the cabin is enclosed in glass and the other half is a full cabin with shower, toilet, sauna, and mini-kitchenette. These igloos seem equipped to sleep 6 people comfortably: 2 in the glass "igloo", two in the main bedroom, and two on bunk beds off to the side. I immediately started trying to book this igloo upon our return from Japan and was finally successful at booking one in February for the following October.
The trickiest part wasn't finding the resort and booking it (although that took a few emails back and forth to accomplish), but how to get there. Not being a local European, I don't know all the airports and travel spots as well, so lots of research was required to figure out how to get there. I knew we would go to Norway first, so the hardest part was to find a flight from Norway to Lapland...already a tricky place to get to because there are minimal flights in and out of Ivalo (the closest airport). So after some failed attempts at using some of my typical travel sites to book the entire flight at once (United, American Airlines, Travelocity, Expedia) I decided to book one flight at a time. First was the flight in and out of Ivalo from Helsinki (a major European port and a logical choice to fly to Ivalo from)....only two airlines fly in and out and only on certain days at certain times, so I chose the one which would give us miles, Finnair, a parter airline of American Airlines. Next was to find a flight to Helsinki. Weirdly enough, Oslo has no direct flights to Helsinki. But I was able to punch in the flights on United.com to get the miles for booking on the website and flying a partner airline. But what that meant was leaving Oslo, landing in Stockholm, leaving Stockholm, landing in Helsinki, leaving Helsinki and landing in Ivalo. The timing had to be perfect for that to work, because all the flights only allowed about 1 hour layover in between. I crossed my fingers, said a little prayer that it would work, and booked the multiple flights.
The stars were aligned and all the travel plans worked out. The only hiccups we experienced was having to re-check our bags in Helsinki because we booked that leg of the flight separately, and our flight was delayed in Helsinki for approximately 1 hour. Not sure why the delay, but oh well...there were a ton of people waiting for the flight, so I was willing to bet many of them were going where we were going as well, as there is very little to do in Lapland. So I figured many of these people were guests of the resort as well. Thinking we were going to fly in a tiny puddle jumper, I was pleasantly surprised to find we were flying in a A321! There was a gal greeting us outside baggage claim with a sign with our resort on it and gave us instructions to the bus that would take us to the resort. The bus was full! We rode the 20 minutes to the resort which was divided into the East and West side. Apparently, the East side has been there for a while, and the newly developed West side is up and coming. The bus would stop at periodic points on the resort, a member of the staff would board and call out some names of folks to get off the bus, and then the bus would move to the next spot. It wasn't well-coordinated or communicated, but eventually we figured out that we were part of the last group to get off the bus, as the Kelo-glass igloos (newest addition to the resort). We finally made it to our igloo and dropped our stuff after a quick tour through the cabin and headed to the main building for dinner.
Keep in mind we were here during the "shoulder season" of the resort.....we got a price break, but a lot of the activities hadn't started yet because there wasn't enough snow just yet, or had closed from summertime and were too cold to do. Furthermore, this area of the resort (the "west side") is still being developed. It is my impression, a story I have made up in my head, that they are still recovering costs from the expansion, so they charge for everything....A LOT. For example, throughout the day, they have a kiosk to make yourself a cup of coffee or tea, but they charge for that. Every excursion they offer is VERY pricey....To go play and pet the huskies, it was 40 Euro per person...Yikes! Also, I overheard that they charged someone who called the front desk to inspect something inside their cabin. Keep in mind their website doesn't publish these costs....so I feel like there are a lot of people who leave here disappointed. We overheard several other guests as well as read up on TripAdvisor that has a lot of reviews with angry folks that did not get what they expected out of their trip here. I went into this with little in the way of expectations and fully knowing we were at the top of the world...so we wouldn't have a lot of choices of things to eat because ingredients are scarce and hard to come by. I guess I felt being at the top of the world gives them a pass on some of the exorbitant costs, but some folks felt differently.
The first night we had a fixed three course meal of chicken soup, white fish with creamy mushroom sauce, and raspberry "parfait" (ice cream). Immediately, I was concerned because of my dietary restrictions, but when I said I had a gluten allergy, she went straight to the chef to clarify menu items for me and brought me some piping hot gluten free rolls. What a relief that they understand this problem! Other than the bread, I was able to eat the entire meal no problem. We were also happy that our alcohol was much cheaper than in Norway, so that was nice. We had prepaid our dinner bill, so all we had to settle at the end was our alcohol, so that was nice.
Back in our room, we opted for the beds under the glass, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Northern lights. We unsuccessfully lit a fire, as they left us only a few sticks of kindling and climbed in under the glass. To our surprise, we found the beds can be mechanically raised and flattened, ideal for northern light-watching. Unfortunately, it clouded over and they were unable to be seen.....even after I checked hourly during the night.
In the morning, we fired up our sauna to give it a try. Hubs and I both think that this sauna was brand new and never had been used. It was a nice experience for me at 10 minutes, but hubs stayed in there for about 30-40 minutes. After our refreshing steam, we set out to the restaurant for breakfast....a typical Norwegian breakfast buffet of eggs, sausage, breads, yogurt, cereal, cold cuts, cheese, and salad....nothing unlike we had been experiencing for the past week in Norway. We also walked around the property--I was hoping to see reindeer and huskies. Successfully we arrived at the pen where they keep 5 reindeer, so that was cool. Unfortunately, when looking for huskies, we were getting cold and part of the ground was very wet and we started to break through, so we headed back to the reception/restaurant to sit and enjoy the wifi.....since we don't get wifi in the igloo. Plus neither of us were up for the excursions the resort was offering, especially at the high ticket prices, so a day of sitting and drinking hard cider and beer sounded much better.
At dinner, we enjoyed another fine 3 course meal. Our server was the same as the previous evening and she totally remembered I was gluten free and double checked the menu when she went to go get our drinks! Awesome! Our mixed green salad with cottage cheese and dijon vinaigrette was really good. I am not a fan of cottage cheese regularly, but in the salad, it worked beautifully. Next was grilled beef filet with a lovely jus, roasted carrots and parsnips, and potatoes dauphinois. YUMMY! Dessert was vanilla ice cream with local strawberry jam drizzled on top. Nice meal. We headed back to the igloo for a night of watching movies on the iPad and looking for Northern Lights.
No such luck with the Northern lights...the sky was completely clouded over and it started to snow. When we got up, we were pleasantly surprised to find that it snowed about 1 1/2 inches overnight! Everything had a fresh snow blanket draped across it. What a beautiful place covered in snow. I know hubs disagrees, but I think being here in winter would be so amazing! We got ready and packed for our early check out of 10am and headed up to the restaurant/reception for breakfast and hanging out.
Same breakfast as the day before....no complaints, just nothing special to write about there. After breakfast we went in search of the resort cat we met the day before. There was a cuddly kitty resting on one of the couches that I made friends with briefly the day before, and while eating breakfast, we saw it outside trying to pounce something in the snow. However, as we were layering up to go outside to find the kitty, someone opened the front door to the reception and the cat promptly raced inside for a spot to nap and warm up. Oh well....we decided to go out on a walk to kill time for our 1600 departure. We grabbed one of the sleds and I made hubs push me around a bit. We traded and I tried to push him, but not a lot of luck. We decided the little bit of sledding was enough and parked it and decided to walk instead. This time we walked up the other side of the road as we did yesterday and found the horse stables and the husky pens! Immediately, all the huskies started howling in unison as we walked closer. We found a few huskies to sit in front of and let them sniff our hands as we marveled at their beautiful eyes and furry coats. They were certainly ready to go out and run....all of them were anxiously pacing back and forth in their pens. I was so excited to see them and get so close to them....and we didn't even need to pay for the experience....WINNER!
NOTES: We had a great time, but we devised a list of things to keep in mind if you decide to come here to avoid a disappointing time.
- They charge for everything. Plan on 30-150 Euro per person per excursion. You might want to email them in advance to see which excursions they are offering so that you can budget accordingly
- During the shoulder season, a lot of the buildings are closed and many activities are not available. For example, although it is showing signs of Winter, all the Santa related buildings were not opened up yet.
- There are no TV's in the Igloos. If you need TV or movies, prepare your laptops or iPad accordingly. Also, there is no wifi in the igloo. There is wifi in the reception/restaurant, and people are camped out there most of the day on their iPads and laptops.
- Communication with the resort before coming was difficult. English wasn't the issue, but I think their staff rotates a lot and especially the staff that tends to the email. Be patient with them when emailing back and forth to confirm your reservation. For example, I booked our igloo for October back in February and was told that payment in full was due a month before our reservation and I would be reminded. I told them to go ahead and charge me for the igloo back then because I knew I would forget, so I provided my credit card #. I never received a reminder email and a couple weeks in advance I received a warning email saying my reservation would get cancelled unless I paid the balance in full. I immediately replied with my credit card number and asked about transport to and from the airport (since it wasn't mentioned when I made the booking). They replied a few days later with the cost of the transfer and asked if I wanted to add dinner. I again said charge my cc# (by the way, this is all the same email string, so they already had my cc#, but ok), and a few days later they were asking for my cc# again. As I said, communication isn't fabulous, but ultimately it ended up working out.
- We booked our dinners and transfer to and from the airport in advance. There was no price advantage to doing so, but it was nice to already have it out of the way.
- Our igloo wasn't cleaned during the time we were there. Don't expect hotel type service here. Also, you can get help schlepping your stuff to and from your cabin/igloo, but it will cost you. There are sleds available to push your rolling bags during the snow season if you opt to move your own stuff.
- Keep all your receipts of the items you buy while here. When you purchase anything they charge it to your room and if you pay for it at time of purchase, they don't always remember to remove the charge from your room and you might be surprised at check out.
- Make sure to communicate dietary issues with your servers. It sounds like this resort is used to having to make accommodations for food allergies and intolerances. They were more than accommodating for me!
FRIDAY 102816 LAPLAND - HELSINKI
Flight AY559 T (finnair)
Depart IVL on 102816 at 1830
Arrive HEL on 102816 at 2050
Take Finnair Bus (6.30 Euros) to get to town (35 minutes)
Hotel Haven
Unioninkatu 17, Helsinki, 00130, Finland
PH: 358 9 681 930
website: www.hotelhaven.fi
email: info@hotelhaven.fi
Style Double Special Offer (364 Euros for 2 nights, bfast included)
No deposit required, total at arrival due
We arrived into Helsinki from Lapland rather late (around 9:30pm) and ran to grab the Finnair Bus from the airport to the Central Train Station. We were told by the driver that the Central station would be the closest to our hotel. Even so, we still needed to walk about 5 blocks to the hotel. The Hotel Haven was ideally situated about halfway between the Central Train station and the Silja Cruise line boat dock which we would use to leave for Stockholm. Also, the hotel is right off the popular shopping area, the Esplanade, which seemed really convenient for the things we wanted to do in Helsinki.
Now the trick was to find a place open for dinner. Even though it was Friday night when we arrived, by the time we headed out for food, it was after 11, so options for food were limited, especially with my dietary issues and not knowing the area. Following a tip from a bouncer at a local club, we found an Italian restaurant in the Esplanade still serving food. While it wasn't the best meal in the world, it was food and it filled us up.
The next morning, we headed to the Hotel breakfast buffet. Breakfast at Hotel Haven was held in a very old part of the building which looked to be a parlor for entertaining. It had a fabulous view of the harbor and ferris wheel across the water. The food was standard Scandinavian breakfast fare with some of the best coffee we have had since coming to the Nordic countries.
SATURDAY 102916 - HELSINKI
SUNDAY 103016 - HELSINKI - STOCKHOLM
Overnight boat from Helsinki to Stockholm
Tallink Silja - www.tallinksilja.com
MONDAY 103116 - STOCKHOLM
Hotel: Story Hotel Riddargatan
Just Large King
Paid in full on VISA 3380 SEK
We docked from our ride on the Silja cruise line from Helsinki to Stockholm early in the morning (just after 9am) and walked the long walk to the T-bane station (probably a mile or so) where we boarded and took it two stops to our hotel stop. From the T-bane station, we wandered around the neighborhood about 2 blocks or so until we reached our hotel, Story Hotel Riddargarten in the Ostermalm district. We probably arrived at our hotel around 10-11am, but our room was ready so we were excited to drop our stuff off, rinse out some of our clothes that needed washing, and then take off on a walk around the city. Story hotel is very eclectic with very modern decor mixed in a old building setting. The elevator has commentary, which can be a bit frightening and creepy, in my opinion. I loved the pretty porcelain vessel sink in and heated floors in the bathroom! And our fridge was stocked with complementary water for us to enjoy. Nice!
We walked along the harborfront, checking out the many shops, restaurants, and expensive looking hotels along the boulevard. We then decided to head towards the center of town and wander through an upscale shopping area called Sergels Torg. Hubs started to get hungry so we started eyeing menus. Everything appeared to be very French or very expensive or both. Discouraged, I pulled out our guidebook and found a food court area that was recommended...perfect! And it was only 3 blocks away. We headed to Kungshallen Food Court near the Hotorget T-bane. This spot was perfect! Lunches averaged around $9, were plentiful, tasty, and they had all sorts of genres of food: Indian, Greek, Mexican, Pizza, Chinese, etc....Choices for everyone! And the place was packed! We got Indian, mostly because I knew I wouldn't have any issues with my food intolerances with Indian food. It was a great meal: hot, quick, reasonable, and filled us up! While we were eating, we already made plans to come back the next day for lunch!
After lunch, we headed back to the hotel for a minute to rest, and then decided to head out to Gamla Stan, the old part of Stockholm. Our Rick Steve's guidebook had a great turn-by-turn walk of the area, and we were expecting cold and rainy weather the rest of the time we were in Stockholm, so we wanted to take advantage of the nicer weather and see some sites. What a neat old area! Lots of antique shops, souvenir vendors, old buildings, at least three different churches, restaurants and bars, and lots of places to sit and people watch. I really enjoyed wandering through the streets to the book's commentary, and watching the school kids that were touring the area on a field trip horse around with their friends. I had already found a pub to go to for dinner while we were resting at the hotel, but because neither of us were really hungry after our late-ish lunch, we decided to just have a beer. The pub was really cool: nice easy vibe, attentive service, and lots of locals and tourists there. It was creeping up on dinnertime as we sat enjoying our beers/cider, so we decided to split a burger. It was one of the best burgers I had ever had! Juicy and flavorful, it was worth every bite! If you are in the area, stop by the Barrels and Burger Bar for a taste for yourself. The weather was trying to start raining while we were over there, but was fine for the most part.
The next day we enjoyed a nice breakfast at the hotel: typical Scandinavian breakfast buffet of yogurt/cereal and the fixings, cold cuts and sliced cheese, build your own salad, and eggs. Since we knew it would be cold and rainy on our second day, we decided to purchase tickets on the Hop-on-hop-off bus to get us around town. We planned all indoor activities and sported our rain gear and headed out. First, we rode the entire route on the bus to get an idea of where it stops as well as check out more of the city that we didn't see the day before. Then we took the bus all the way to Djurgarden and stopped to tour the Vasa Museum. This museum is dedicated to the recovered sunken ship that sank only after a maiden voyage of 20 minutes and was erected 333 years later out of the Stockholm harbor. Tons of restoration efforts have been going on over the last 40 years to preserve this old ship. It was a fascinating visit! In fact, they were able to preserve 98% of the original ship and had most of it on display in the museum. Very impressive. We walked around the museum for several hours, took the English speaking tour, and watched the film they showcase at the museum. I highly recommend this stop if you are in town.
True to our discussion the day before, we hopped on our tour bus over to Kungshallen for lunch again. This time, I tried a different booth for food. Hubs stuck with his choice he selected the previous day and ordered it again. We then decided to head over to the city hall building as it was recommended as a good spot. However, by the time we reached the building, the last tour for the day had already finished. So we hopped on our bus back to our hotel.
TUESDAY 110116 - STOCKHOLM
WEDNESDAY 110216 - STOCKHOLM - COPENHAGEN
Arlanda Express from Central Train Station - approx 20 min ride, 4/hour Cost ~260 kr
Flight: SAS Airlines from Arlanda Airport - ARN
Depart ARN: 110216 at 1515
Arrive CPN: 110216 at 1625
Hotel: Carlton Guldsmeden
Versterbrogade 66, DK-1620, Kobenhavn V
PH: 45 33 22 15 00
email: carlton@hotelguldmeden.com
website: www.guldsmedenhotels.com
Double Superior Room with Breakfast Buffet 4755 DKK reserved but not paid for
Definitely check out the restaurant reviews: Carrie's Trip Advisor Reviews
THURSDAY 110316 - COPENHAGEN
FRIDAY 110416 - COPENHAGEN
SATURDAY 110516 - COPENHAGEN - HOME
Flight Info:
Flight Scandinavian airlines
Depart: CPH SAT 110516 at 1025
Arrive: LHR SAT 110516 at 1125
Flight United
Depart: LHR 110516 at 1335
Arrive: SFO 110516 at 1715
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