Majestic Fjords of Norway

Day 1 : Depart the USA

We board our flight for a relaxing journey across the Atlantic.

Day 2 : Arrive in Norway

Arrive in Oslo, Norway’s capital. We meet our English-speaking European guide and check-in for two nights at Clarion Hotel The Hub, centrally located in the heart of the city. Later, join your fellow traveling companions for a Holiday Vacations Welcome Dinner.

Day 3 : Oslo

Begin the day with breakfast at our hotel, then a local guide joins us for a tour of Oslo. Major sightseeing destinations include the Royal Palace, Vigeland Sculpture Park, Akershus Fortress, the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, and the Bygdoy museums. Tour the Viking Ship Museum where we learn about the Vikings’ maritime adventures and browse artifacts including Viking ships as old as the 9th century. The remainder of the day is ours to do as we please. Stroll the halls of the Kon-Tiki Museum, the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History, the Norwegian Maritime Museum, or shop the stores nearby our hotel.

Day 4 : Lillehammer

After breakfast we depart Oslo and travel to Lillehammer, located in a picturesque setting overlooking the northern end of Lake Mjosa. Home to the 1994 Winter Olympics, it remains a popular ski resort today. Tour Maihaugen, one of Norway’s greatest open-air museums, and learn what life was from the middle ages to today. Maihaugen resembles a small inland village and features nearly 200 buildings including turf-topped houses, a railway station, school, post office, fishing cabins, and barns. Also on display is a stave church from Garmo. We have the afternoon at our leisure. Guests may want to visit the Lillehammer Art Museum, the Norwegian Olympic Museum, or Fabrikken, a creative and cultural arts center. Dinner is at our hotel.

Day 5 : Geirangerfjord

Today we travel westward through spectacular scenery to Norway’s fjordlands. On our way we drive through Gudsbrandalen, the traditional region of Norway dotted with bucolic farms. We stop in Lom and visit the Lom Stave Church, one of Norway’s largest stave churches with a history that goes back to the 12th century. From Geiranger we take a ferry through the UNESCO-listed Geirangerfjord to Hellesylt and enjoy some of Norway’s most spectacular vistas. A short drive takes us to the village of Loen where we check-in to the Hotel Alexandra overlooking the Nordfjord.

Day 6 : Briksdal Glacier

Today we enter Jostedalsbreen National Park to experience the mighty Briksdal Glacier, arriving after an exciting ride on an open-air off-road vehicle called a Troll-Car. Briksdal Glacier is one of the most Norway’s most famous due to the spectacular waterfalls and mountain peaks that surround it. Later, take the Loen Skylift to the top of Mount Hoven for panoramic views of Loen, the Storfjorden, and the surrounding mountains.

Day 7 : Scenic Flamsbana Railway

Travel by motorcoach south to Leikangen, on the shores of the Sognefjord. Known as the King of the Fjords, the Sognefjord is Norway’s longest and deepest inlet. Take a scenic 2 ½-hour ferry to the village of Flam where we board the Flamsbana Railway, one of the world’s top train journeys according to National Geographic Traveler Magazine. Our relaxing train ride takes us through breathtaking scenery on our way to Bergen, including towering mountains, plummeting waterfalls, and lush valleys. Disembark in Bergen and check-in to our hotel for two nights.

Day 8 : Bergen

Bergen is Norway’s second largest city and is nicknamed the City of Seven Mountains. Following a scrumptious breakfast, a local guide boards our motorcoach and leads our tour of Bergen. Highlights include Bergenhus Fortress, Rosenkrantz Tower, and Bryggen, the city’s medieval wharf district and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tour Troldhaugen, home to the famous composer Edvard Grieg, and explore its museum and the luxurious villa which Grieg himself described as his “best opus so far.” Following a cable railway ride up Mount Floien we celebrate our Norwegian vacation with our traveling companions at a Farewell Dinner at Folkerestaurant with outstanding views of the city and the sea beyond.

Day 9 : Fly Home

We fly home with new friends and lifelong memories of our Norwegian vacation.