Luxury fly-drive Norway touring holiday with 8 nights in Norway's Lofoten Islands in the Arctic Circle and overnight cruise on Hurtigruten
This luxury fly-drive touring holiday by car and boat of the Lofoten Islands offers an in-depth encounter with Norway’s Arctic Circle and the incredible natural beauty of the Lofoten Islands, home to some of the most varied landscapes in the world. Start by flying into Bodø via Oslo. Bodø is a relatively small city set amidst some of Norway’s most beautiful scenery. One of its main attractions is the beautiful harbour, whose pier offers stunning views across the Norwegian Sea. After two nights here take a short flight of about 45 minutes across to Svolvaer where you collect your hire car and drive to Nusfjord, your base for the next three nights. Nusfjord is one of the best-preserved fishing villages on the islands and is located very close to some of the best beaches in the world. Spend your time here visiting the white sands and the picturesque villages surrounding them. Your next base is Svolvaer, one of the largest towns in the Lofoten Islands. Experience the cod fisheries found throughout the town and view the top sights of the Lofoten War Musuem and the North Norwegian Art Centre. The Lofoten Islands are home to some incredible hiking opportunities will you may want to make the most of, and Svolvaer is close to the dramatic Trollfjord which you can visit by boat. Fishing trips can be arranged as well as a boat trip and cycle hire on the island of Skrova. After six days exploring all that the Lofoten Islands have to offer, leave your hire car in Svolvaer and board the Hurtigruten service to Trondheim. Spend two nights on-board, skirting the incredible western coastline of Norway and crossing the Arctic Circle. You dock in Trondheim at about 06.30 in the morning and there is a direct flight to London Gatwick about midday. Or, extend your holiday by asking us to arrange for you to stay in Trondheim for a night or two.
Highlights
Bodø • Nusfjord • Svolvaer • Lofoten Wall • Hurtigruten cruise • Trondheim
Day by day
This holiday starts with a flight from London to Bodø via a connection in Oslo. Check in to your hotel in Bodø for two nights.
The city of Bodø is an excellent base from which to explore some of Norway’s best scenery and natural attractions. One of its most well-known features is the Saltstraumen maelstrom, a small strait home to the world’s strongest tidal current. Here you can witness whirlpools bigger than 10 metres with the water moving as fast as 40 km/h. Slightly further out of the city is Kjerringøy, a small, rural community featuring beautiful alpine landscapes ranging from mountains to white sandy beaches. The Kjerringøy trading post is a museum offering a unique insight into the lives of the powerful local merchants and information about the fish trade of the 19th century. For those looking for more adventurous activities, Bodø offers kayaking, RIB tours and even snorkelling in the surrounding fjords, and fishing is a popular local activity. There are also numerous hiking routes including Keiservarden, which leads up to Keiservarden hill overlooking Bodø, and Mount Ronvikfjellet, one of the top viewing spots for the Midnight Sun in the country. Within Bodø itself the beautiful harbour offers views from its pier dating back to 1904 and the Norwegian Aviation Museum offers an insight into the civil and military aviation history of Norway.
Today take a morning flight to Svolvaer (about 45 minutes) and then collect your hire-car. It is then a drive of just under two hours to your first base of Nusfjord. This journey will take you southwards and introduce you to the incredible scenery to which you will be privy for the next few days. Cross long bridges and skirt around narrow fjords, all intersected with imposing mountains and beautiful stretches of clear water. At certain times the clouds will cover the tops of the mountains, giving the whole area a beautifully solemn atmosphere. The final stretch will see you driving alongside some of the Lofoten Islands’ incredible beaches; the juxtaposition of the clear waters and soft sand with snow-capped mountains on the opposite shore is truly spectacular. Arrive at the fishing town of Nusfjord and check in to your hotel for the next three nights.
Today you retrace your steps up to Svolvaer, the capital of the Lofoten Islands. Check in to your hotel here for the next two nights.
Svolvaer is home to picturesque red Rorbuer set beneath a dramatic mountain range and is an excellent base from which to explore the wonders of the northern Lofoten Islands. Within Svolvaer itself, attractions include the War Memorial Museum, which showcases a wide range of artefacts from World War II, and the North Norwegian Art Centre, an artist-run institution presenting contemporary visual art. Svolvaer’s proximity to the Trollfjord makes it the main starting point for tours to this magnificent natural spectacle, which is narrow enough to be able to drink from the passing waterfalls on smaller vessels. Cod fisheries are an essential part of the town’s economy and you will find cod hung up on racks to dry throughout Svolvaer. One of Norway’s most popular climbing routes, Svolvaergeita, is situated above the city and offers wonderful panoramic views from its twin horns at the summit. Roughly half an hour down the coast you will find the town of Henningsvaer, a seaport which has been dubbed “the Venice of Lofoten”. It consists of a series of islets populated by brightly coloured wooden houses and is a popular climbing location. You will also find the Kaviar Factory and the Galleri Lofotens Hus, which features Norway’s largest collection of paintings from Northern Norway. Another popular activity from Svolvaer is to take a short cruise or fishing tour around some of the lesser-populated areas, and there are many options available in the town.
You have most of today in Svolvaer before dropping off your hire car and boarding the evening Hurtigruten service to Trondheim. Start by passing the Lofoten Wall, a collection of mountain peaks which appear from a distance to form a straight line.
This morning you cross the Arctic Circle before sailing along the Helgeland coast and the Seven Sisters mountain range, with peaks up to 1,100 metres high. Stop briefly at Sandnessjøen and Brønnøysund, a pretty town with a charming high street and marina.
It was an excellent holiday - due to excellent planning on your side. Super efficient, very professional.Mrs F, Holiday to Norway, Oct 2023
Holiday price guide From £2,880 per person
Holiday Code SCFD04
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury fly-drive Norway touring holiday with 8 nights in Norway's Lofoten Islands in the Arctic Circle and overnight cruise on Hurtigruten
This holiday starts with a flight from London to Bodø via a connection in Oslo. Check in to your hotel in Bodø for two nights.
The city of Bodø is an excellent base from which to explore some of Norway’s best scenery and natural attractions. One of its most well-known features is the Saltstraumen maelstrom, a small strait home to the world’s strongest tidal current. Here you can witness whirlpools bigger than 10 metres with the water moving as fast as 40 km/h. Slightly further out of the city is Kjerringøy, a small, rural community featuring beautiful alpine landscapes ranging from mountains to white sandy beaches. The Kjerringøy trading post is a museum offering a unique insight into the lives of the powerful local merchants and information about the fish trade of the 19th century. For those looking for more adventurous activities, Bodø offers kayaking, RIB tours and even snorkelling in the surrounding fjords, and fishing is a popular local activity. There are also numerous hiking routes including Keiservarden, which leads up to Keiservarden hill overlooking Bodø, and Mount Ronvikfjellet, one of the top viewing spots for the Midnight Sun in the country. Within Bodø itself the beautiful harbour offers views from its pier dating back to 1904 and the Norwegian Aviation Museum offers an insight into the civil and military aviation history of Norway.
Today take a morning flight to Svolvaer (about 45 minutes) and then collect your hire-car. It is then a drive of just under two hours to your first base of Nusfjord. This journey will take you southwards and introduce you to the incredible scenery to which you will be privy for the next few days. Cross long bridges and skirt around narrow fjords, all intersected with imposing mountains and beautiful stretches of clear water. At certain times the clouds will cover the tops of the mountains, giving the whole area a beautifully solemn atmosphere. The final stretch will see you driving alongside some of the Lofoten Islands’ incredible beaches; the juxtaposition of the clear waters and soft sand with snow-capped mountains on the opposite shore is truly spectacular. Arrive at the fishing town of Nusfjord and check in to your hotel for the next three nights.
Today you retrace your steps up to Svolvaer, the capital of the Lofoten Islands. Check in to your hotel here for the next two nights.
Svolvaer is home to picturesque red Rorbuer set beneath a dramatic mountain range and is an excellent base from which to explore the wonders of the northern Lofoten Islands. Within Svolvaer itself, attractions include the War Memorial Museum, which showcases a wide range of artefacts from World War II, and the North Norwegian Art Centre, an artist-run institution presenting contemporary visual art. Svolvaer’s proximity to the Trollfjord makes it the main starting point for tours to this magnificent natural spectacle, which is narrow enough to be able to drink from the passing waterfalls on smaller vessels. Cod fisheries are an essential part of the town’s economy and you will find cod hung up on racks to dry throughout Svolvaer. One of Norway’s most popular climbing routes, Svolvaergeita, is situated above the city and offers wonderful panoramic views from its twin horns at the summit. Roughly half an hour down the coast you will find the town of Henningsvaer, a seaport which has been dubbed “the Venice of Lofoten”. It consists of a series of islets populated by brightly coloured wooden houses and is a popular climbing location. You will also find the Kaviar Factory and the Galleri Lofotens Hus, which features Norway’s largest collection of paintings from Northern Norway. Another popular activity from Svolvaer is to take a short cruise or fishing tour around some of the lesser-populated areas, and there are many options available in the town.
You have most of today in Svolvaer before dropping off your hire car and boarding the evening Hurtigruten service to Trondheim. Start by passing the Lofoten Wall, a collection of mountain peaks which appear from a distance to form a straight line.
This morning you cross the Arctic Circle before sailing along the Helgeland coast and the Seven Sisters mountain range, with peaks up to 1,100 metres high. Stop briefly at Sandnessjøen and Brønnøysund, a pretty town with a charming high street and marina.
It was an excellent holiday - due to excellent planning on your side. Super efficient, very professional.Mrs F, Holiday to Norway, Oct 2023
Holiday price guide From £2,880 per person
Holiday Code SCFD04
Our prices include
● Flight with Norwegian or SAS from London to Bodø via Oslo
● Flight with Norwegian from Trondheim to London or with SAS via Oslo
● Flight with Wideroe from Bodø to Svolvaer
● Hire of a group B car for six days
● 2 nights' bed and breakfast in a Standard double room at the Thon Hotel Nordlys, Bodø
● 3 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Standard Harbour Cabin at Nusfjord Arctic Resort, Nusfjord
● 2 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Rorbu S room at Svinøya Rorbuer, Svolvaer
● 2 nights’ bed and breakfast in a Polar outside cabin on the Svolvaer – Trondheim Hurtigruten
● Concierge service and Expressions Holidays regional helpful hints
Our prices do not include
● Early check-in or late check-out at any hotels (although we can arrange this on request at additional cost)
● Any other services not mentioned above, such as transfers and meals except breakfast at hotels
● Personal holiday insurance. This is essential and cover should be in place from when you book the holiday.
● Possible local tourist tax, usually the equivalent of £1 to £3 per person per night, and payable locally to the hotel
● Transfers in any cities
● One-way drop-off charges for the hire-car if applicable
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury fly-drive Norway touring holiday with 8 nights in Norway's Lofoten Islands in the Arctic Circle and overnight cruise on Hurtigruten
Thon Hotel Nordlys in Bodø is a modern 4-star hotel next the city’s marina offering comfortable, brightly-furnished rooms with a bar and restaurant.
Standard double
Svinøya Rorbuer are traditional fishermen’s cabins of the Lofoten Islands, renovated and charming, but with a sense of history.
Rorbu cabin S
It was an excellent holiday - due to excellent planning on your side. Super efficient, very professional.Mrs F, Holiday to Norway, Oct 2023
Holiday price guide From £2,880 per person
Holiday Code SCFD04
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury fly-drive Norway touring holiday with 8 nights in Norway's Lofoten Islands in the Arctic Circle and overnight cruise on Hurtigruten
About Norway
Norway is a fascinating destination for a luxury, tailor-made holiday. The land and the culture of Norway lend themselves to a diverse and rich array of holiday experiences and a choice of mode of transport. At first glance, Norway offers magnificent, dramatic, severe and wild natural surroundings in its glaciers, Arctic snow and ice, majestic fjords, crashing waterfalls and mystical natural phenomena such as the Aurora Borealis and Fata Morgana. However, Norway also offers cultural ties, a shared history dating from the days of the Vikings, a cosiness in its orchards and pastures, brightly-painted wooden houses, folk tales and mythology, world-class art, literature and music in the works of Munch, Ibsen and Grieg, to name but three, and international philanthropy as exemplified by the Nobel prize. Many towns have superb museums, ancient wooden stave churches are well-preserved, the heritage of the Vikings is visible not just in major centres such as Oslo but all around, and seemingly small places are rich with music and drama festivals. Whilst the length of Norway with is 2518 km poses a challenge to the visitor, this also means that it makes sense to use a variety of transport modes to travel around; scenic trains, sleeper trains, boat rides, coastal cruises and car-hire can all be incorporated. The landscape lends itself well to hiking and cycling and there are many national parks that offer a variety of conditions depending on your ability. Norway’s cities are vibrant and manage to blend modernity with tradition. The iconic Oslo Opera House sits a short distance from the Akershus fortress, the Old Town Hall dating from 1641 is a stroll away from the Akrobaten pedestrian bridge, a near-futuristic construction of steel and glass.
Highlights of Norway
The numerous fjords: Eidfjord – branch of the Hardangerfjord, Geirangerfjord – precipitous, one of Norway’s signature images, Hardangerfjord – rolling hills and pretty villages, Jossingfjord – vertiginous fjord in the flatlands of the south, Lysefjord – plunging cliffs, cruises and look out points, Naeroyfjord – narrow and very pretty, Sognefjord – Norway’s longest and one of the most beautiful, Trollfjord – very steep fjord on Lofoten, Vestfjord – sheltered bays and pretty villages separating Lofoten from the mainland. The Hurtigruten ferry that covers over 2500 km from Bergen to Kirkenes with over 30 stops. The Midnight Sun and the Northern Lights. Stave churches, beautifully preserved in wood, dating from Viking times, for example at Borgund, Lom, Ringebu and Urnes. Viking ships and artefacts, burial mounds and trinkets in museums throughout the country. The red, wooden houses perched stilts over the sea on the Lofoten Islands. The modern architecture of Oslo. Picking wild blueberries, sampling aquavit made from potatoes and caraway, and tasting reindeer steak with cranberries. The charm of Oslofjorden with its pretty, arty village and towns, harbours with sailing boats, islands offshore and beaches. Hike over the Jotunheimen and relish the natural landscape of this stunning National Park.
Cultural highlights of Norway
The architecture of stave churches dating from the Viking era and Viking treasure in museums around the country. The literature of Henrik Ibsen and Knut Hamsun. Folk tales and mythology. The music of Edvard Grieg and the art of Edvard Munch. Contemporary jazz and folk music.
Gastronomy of Norway
Norway’s gastronomy is a clear reflection of its land and sea. From the land come reindeer, venison, lamb, cured meats and potatoes of all types: boiled, roasted and fried. From the freshwater lakes and streams come salmon served grilled and smoked, and freshwater fish. Sea fish is a vast array of cod, haddock, shrimps, mackerel, fish soup, fish balls, salt cod. From the orchards particularly around the Hardangerfjord come apples, cherries and plums as well as berries of all sorts including blueberries, cranberries, bilberries and, a great delicacy, cloudberries. Cheeses include Jarlsberg and brown cheese. Coffee is almost certainly the national drink, followed by beer, of which there are all sorts of craft beers brewed locally, and Aquavit is the national spirit made from potatoes and caraway.
Facts in brief
Capital OsloAirport Oslo Gardermoen
Size 323,878 sq km
Population 4.4 million
