Short on time, but jam-packed with excitement to explore Sweden and Norway?! Us too! Let me tell you about an epic road trip that will blow your mind!
First... renting a car in Sweden, actually quite an easy process and many of the airlines or travel sites that you book your flight with will give you a discount on car rentals, if you book through their site. We rented through Hertz at their Central Station location in Stockholm. They were helpful and friendly and extremely easy to get to using public transit (or walking if your staying in the city center) as they are located right across the road from the Central Station.
Second... get the heck out of downtown Stockholm as quick as you can! Like driving in Manhattan, or any other intensely busy downtown - Stockholm is not fun to drive through. Luckily this car rental place was right by the highway and got us outside of the chaos quickly, with only a few honks from locals wanting to zoom right by us!
Now on with the road trip excitement!!!
Our route was great, thanks to a fantastic co-worker who had been to Norway last summer and knew where the 'must-sees' were located. But if you are not lucky enough to have one of these fantastic world travels in your social circle to give the tips and highlights, let me be your guide....
Day 1
Pick-up rental car in Stockholm
Get as far away from the city traffic mess as humanly possible
Stop at an Ikea for lunch / Fika, and road trip goodies!
Night 1 - Gothenburg
Hostels (usually the cheapest way to stay in a city) are not common throughout Sweden and Norway, so we opted for an airbnb. If you have never stayed in one, I would highly recommend you try it out! This way you can rent a whole house or apartment for the duration of your stay, with your washroom(s) and kitchen! These places are often still centrally located, but in a slightly more residential area allowing you to avoid tourist trap restaurants, and live more like a local.
Day 2 – Exploring Gothenburg
This is a fairly easy city to explore by foot, but they also have their old-school looking tram system which can get you around as well. Here’s a great website with all the parks around the area you can visit à https://www.goteborg.com/en/parks-and-gardens/ .
Michaychay Tip: Pronounce ‘Gothenburg’ like a Swede…. It sounds more like ‘Yawh-tin-bird’. Have a local try to teach, which will provide both of you endless amounts of fun… especially if drinks are also involved!
Night 2 – Gothenburg Airbnb
This was our time to explore the much talked about nightlife in Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden! Prepare yourself for expensive drinks, and the locals generally ignoring your existence. Unlike North American bars which are often lively and full of people trying to make new ‘acquaintances’ Swedes tend to keep to their own social groups, and men offering to buy you a drink is just not the norm. We found Tinder a much better way to make new friends, then trying to talk to people in bars.
Day 3 – Drive to Oslo
This drive takes approximately 3 hours, and doesn’t boast any fantastic views, but there were more Ikea’s along the way to stop and get snacks at. Also, be warned food and alcohol prices are higher in Norway than Sweden – so we stocked up on groceries and drinks before the boarder, and were happy we did so! Oh and gas as well is cheaper on the Sweden side, so fill up that tank before crossing over!
Sweden – Norway Border: If you have ever driven across the Canadian – USA boarder you will be floored by the casualness / absence of this boarder. When approaching the ‘boarder’ we all located our passports and were ready to be stopped and questioned. Instead we were greeted by someone standing at the boarder, who waved us through with no questions and just a quick ‘Bonjour’ (no idea why he picked that greeting?!). And on the way back, when we were passing after 6pm, there was simply no one at the border and we just drove straight through back into Sweden. This was very confusing for us!!!
Night 3 – Hvaler Island
The most incredible place I have ever stayed! This airbnb gem was the most incredible find and I would highly recommend it to anyone who will be in this area!!! This newly built cottage has all the modern necessities you could ever want – brand new kitchen appliances, including a dishwasher and fancy coffee machine, and all the more country fixing’s like access to waterway way right in front of you a beautiful deck, a canoe to take out and explore the islands with – and yes even a chicken coup in the backyard of the main house affording you fresh eggs in the morning! I could have easily spent a whole week here!!!
Day 4 –Drive to Oslo
We tried to delay our departure from the incredible Hvaler are for as long as we could, but eventually we had to be on the road to pick up the 4th member of our epic road trip from the Oslo airport. However, we still able to fit in an early morning canoe around the islands – and though it was still very chilly in late April, the amazing views along the way warmed our hearts enough for us to forget about our fingers and toes turning blue!
We did some light exploring of Oslo, but nothing exciting stands out. We visited the much acclaimed Vigeland Park, but since the weather had only just started to be nice there were no flowers out yet and the garden did not make as much of an impact as we had heard from others who had come in the height of the summer. Other than that, having some pizza and beers at a trendy restaurant in downtown Oslo was a fun afternoon activity for us.
Night 4 – Night in Oslo
There are very few hostels in Oslo, we picked the cheapest one of all the seemingly very similar places. The Anker Apartment was very clean and quiet, but severely lacking in atmosphere! This apartment-style hostel boats 30 person rooms (which after a group debate, we decided not to stay in), and requires you to put a 100 SEK deposit to use any cutlery, pots, pans, plates or bowls in their large and eerily quiet communal kitchen. It’s fairly centrally located, but not the place to meet new friends.
Day 5 – Drive through the Fjords
We had some breakfast, and then headed straight to the airport (located not far from the main city) to pick up a fourth friend for our epic road trip through Norway. And this friends is where the scenery became mind-blowing, jaw-dropping, and life-changing!
Let’s start with, What is a fjord?!
Fjord (fēˈôrd,fyôrd)
noun: fjord; plural noun: fjords; noun: fiord; plural noun: fiords
Definition: a long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs, as in Norway and Iceland, typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley.
MY Definition: Incredibly beautiful mountain cliffs with water between them… causing you to feel tiny, insignificant, and incredibly in awe of nature and the world around us.
Night 5 & 6 – Ulvic
Day 6 – Drive to Bergen
This is a wonderful scenic drive, going through many dark tunnel ways and never quite knowing what beautiful scenery you are going to see on the other side. Sometimes you end up on top of the fjords and in a snow-covered mountain top, and other times the tunnel puts you halfway up the mountain and driving a tiny ‘two-way’ windy road along the mountainside!
There is a fantastic lookout point about between Ulvic and Bergen, called Stegastein Viewpoint near Flam – you MUST stop here!!! The drive up to it is terrifying, and parts may be closed due to bad weather – but super worth it!
Day 7 – Drive back to Sweden
This is a long day of driving, and we tackled it by leaving early in the morning and stopping for lots of coffee, amazing ABBA tunes, and some hilarious podcasts to pass the time… sorry folks you just gotta power through the drive home if you only had 7 days like us. If you can take more time and stop somewhere halfway overnight – totally worth it!
Michaychay Tip: DOWNLOAD some music and podcasts to your phone before leaving, the radio can be dicey at points throughout the drive, with very few to no radio stations to choose from in the fjords in Norway!
Night 7 – Farm House in Sweden
Another airbnb jackpot! This old style, but more than adequate farm house was a great place to relax and sleep before the next leg of our drive back into Stockholm to return the car the next morning!
Want more tips?! I'd love to help you plan your next epic trip through Sweden and Norway! Email me!
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