Summer '24 - Scandinavia
- Sophie
- Dec 1, 2024
- 6 min read
Hallo, Hej, eller Hei! I am so excited to recap my teen tour trip to Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland this summer! This was one of my most unexpectedly unique trips, so let's get right into it.
We all met for the first time at JFK Airport to fly to Bergen, Norway (BGO) with a layover in Reykjavik, Iceland.
Day 1: Once arriving in Bergen after a long day of travel and settling into the hotel, we walked around the city a little bit to explore. Bergen turned out to be just like the photos; it was gorgeous! Next, we went to a little lookout spot over the city to admire it even more, and we did so until dinner, which concluded the first day.
Day 2: The next morning, our first activity was the Bergenhus Fortress Museum. This collection included exhibitions about the history of Norway and its independence. One of my favorite fun facts I learned here was that "Fred" means peace in Norweigan - so fun! Then we got free time for lunch and exploring which ended in us going to Mount Fløyen. To get here, visitors can walk up or take the funicular to the top, which I did of course. On the way up we even saw mountain goats! It was an incredible view of the city of Bergen so I highly recommend it. Finally, we took a nature walk to a nice, serene pond and then went to dinner.
Day 3: This was one of the craziest days! It started off by transferring to the glacier walk at the Folgefonna Glacier. I was for sure nervous about this, but it was totally worth it because it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience with photos that are now super special to me! After, we went to lunch and then continued on our way to Voss, Norway. We chilled and ate dinner at the accommodation after a long, tiring, yet unforgettable day.
Day 4: Just like the previous day, this was a super active day! At Voss Active, we did a high ropes course. Which as awesome as it was, turned out to be very nerve-wracking. On the other hand, we got to zipline over a beautiful lake with mountain views, which was my favorite part. Then, after lunch, we went on a white water rafting trip! It was a wild ride, literally, but exhilarating as well. Finally, after dinner, we had the jacuzzis and saunas all to ourselves. What an amazing way to end the day, thank you Voss Active!
Day 5: Oslo time! I've always been interested in Norway and its capital so I was thrilled to visit it finally! It was a commute to get there, so the only activity that day was free time to explore the city after arriving, including the Oslo Paradox Museum and Opera House.
Day 6: For our first full day in Oslo, we started with an Island Hopping Nature walk. We got to visit Bleikøya, Lindøya, Vestre Hovedøya, and Hovedøya. They were all so unique to one another but my favorite was Lindøya because of the views! After, we got an amazing surprise that we got to visit the Munch Museum! My friends and I were so excited to be able to see the different iterations of The Scream and the beautiful views of Olso from the top floor.
Day 7: Who would say no to a speed boat tour of the Oslo Fjord? Not us! I had the best time on the water with everyone admiring Oslo's scenery! Then after lunch, it was time to get on our overnight ferry to Copenhagen! I LOVED it! For someone who's never been on a cruise, I was so excited to see what it was like, and it was so cool! The sunset also happened to be incredible that night I was so lucky.
Day 8: Denmark! First of all, I immediately knew this city was amazing because the walk from the cruise terminal to the hotel was beautiful! The first thing we did after checking in was the iconic canal tour, which was totally worth it, by the way. The view of all the colorful buildings from the water was perfect, even though it started to rain... Anyway, the rest of the night was pretty calm, spent looking through all of my new favorite photos.
Day 9: This was a packed day, beginning with the very unique Christiania. It is not part of the EU, which is crazy, and there is so much graffiti and unique art as well. Next, we climbed the Vor Frelsers Kirke tower! It was exhausting, but an incredible view of the city and such a cool monument to see from the inside. After relaxing for a little bit and eating lunch at Torvehallen, we shopped and walked along Strøget. This trip showed me so much of Scandinavia's charm and I think their bright, expressive streets have such an impact. After a quick dinner was the Tivoli Gardens! This night was so memorable because I got to walk around with my friends, admiring where we were and what we got to do. From getting ice cream, to the swings, and taking photos, I had the best time.
Day 10: We're going to Sweden! Copenhagen to Stockholm was a train, AKA another awesome transfer day experience. This one in particular ended with us going to Gröna Lund, an iconic Swedish amusement park! I loved the fun house and the teacups specifically.
Day 11: For our first official day in Sweden we spent the morning at Gamla Stan, Stockholm's (beautiful) old town. It was such a fun and chill place to walk around in for some time. After that though, we had the Subway art tour, which was definitely memorable and so cool to visit. From rainbows to mathematical equations and Greek gods, Stockholm's train stations are filled with unique murals. Finally, my favorite part of the day, seeing the sunset over the city at Ivar Los Park. This had the perfect view of Stockholm's buildings and we went on an even more perfect sunset night.
Day 12: What do you think of when you think of Sweden? Is it IKEA? Well if it is, Day 12 of my trip was for you. Naturally, there was an IKEA walking distance from our hotel so we had to go and see the inside. It was so massive, but the best part was the 70¢ ice cream (which yes, all of us had at 10 am). We also went and saw the Vasa Museum which contains a 17th-century preserved warship, which was actually quite interesting. For our final adventure in Sweden, my friends and I had to visit the ABBA museum where they had real costumes, guitars, awards, and more from the band. Mamma Mia!
Day 13: That sums it up from my time in Sweden, now to the final country, Finland! We took a flight from Stockholm to Helsinki which was super easy, one quick hour. Once in Finland, it was unfortunately raining but we still went to see the Sibelius monument and a cute little café nearby. When the rain stopped, it was time for our walking tour of the city which included the Amos Rex Museum, the Government building, the Helsinki Public Library, the Central Railway Station, Senate Square, and Market Square. My favorites were the library and Senate Square. The Helsinki Public Library was built in 2018 so it is very modern and has everything you can think of from of course books, but then also 3D printers, professional recording studios, sewing machines, a kitchen, and so much more. It was incredible to see and so inspiring. At Senate Square is the famous Helsinki Cathedral which although under construction, was still stunning!
Day 14: Our final day in beautiful Scandinavia was definitely a sad one. However, after breakfast, we got to go to a traditional Finnish sauna and swimming pools. It felt so good I was obsessed! After that experience, we got to walk around the esplanade and wind down, which my friends and I ended up doing by going on the Sky Wheel. We went in a normal car, but this Ferris Wheel also had dedicated sauna cars, so cool! Then we had to go to our Fancy Final Dinner, which I wasn't looking forward to because I didn't want to leave this incredible time. Looking back, I made unforgettable memories on this trip, so thank you for being interested in reading about them.
Photo Recap:
