Destination: Norway
LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL ITINERARY INFORMATION
Itinerary: The Heart of Norway
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TWO-THREE WEEKS
Keeping up a brisk pace, you could accomplish this 1475km journey in 10 days, but two to three weeks would enable you to linger in each place a little longer. This would be especially worthwhile in Røros, Trondheim, Ålesund and any of the countless, spectacular fjords.
Central Norway is the sort of place which seduces all who visit. A short train or bus ride from Oslo, Lillehammer host of the 1994 Winter Olympics and it is one of central Norway’s most pleasing spots with a wealth of Olympic sites. From here you’d be seriously miscalculating if you didn’t factor in a detour to World Heritage-listed Røros, arguably Norway’s most enchanting village. Here you’ll find painted timber houses, sloping pedestrianised streets and an evocative old mine, not to mention an old world charm that can be hard to leave behind. A little further north, Trondheim is a delightful coastal capital with a long history and the Nidaros Cathedral which qualifies as Norway’s most sacred Christian site.
From Trondheim, make your way to pretty Ålesund or stop off in Åndalsnes, starting point for the beautiful roads south into the Western Fjords. The Trollstigen road, with steep gradients, waterfalls and hairpin bends, takes you past Romsdal, with 1.5km-high vertical cliffs – the highest in Norway. Other highlights on your way south include: the similarly precipitous and much-photographed Geirangerfjord with ample opportunities for exploring by boat; following the fantastic chasm of Norangsdalen to lovely Norangsfjorden, dominated by some of the most impressive mountains in Norway; and gorgeous Fjærland, a veritable Shangri-la of fjords, glaciers and peaks.
From Geiranger, there’s easy access to Lom, the starting point for the Sognefjellet Road, northern Europe’s highest, and passing through the extraordinarily beautiful Jotunheimen National Park. The road leads down to Sognefjord where you’ll find good connections on to Voss, Bergen and Oslo.
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