Path of a Princess – Disney Adventure in Norway

Norway

We have always been intrigued by Northern Europe, but we were afraid we might be bored. Of course, you don’t think of boring and Disney together. We first wondered why Disney chose Norway as a new featured destination. Nothing is an accident with Disney. This trip was planned to follow in the footsteps of the “Frozen” filmmakers, visiting the places, meeting the people and experiencing the beauty that inspired the highly successful comedic-adventure film.

Honestly, we had a few concerns. We are sort of independent soles, so being part of an organized tour and depending on others wasn’t initially appealing to us. Yet, it was clear that Disney could show us more of Norway in a week than we could ever possibly see on our own, even if given twice that amount of time.  Another concern we had was that we would be traveling without our children. We were afraid we might feel out of place. We found out that there were lots of adults who take these tours without kids. Some Disney tours are not even recommended for very young children. The Norway adventure was definitely for children over 5, and we would say it’s preferable when the kids are 7 or older. Disney gives good guidance regarding which tours are good for which age groups on its website.

Our epic exploration of Norway began with our flight from Los Angeles to Bergen, changing planes in New Jersey. It was a fairly easy journey. We were met at the airport by cheerful Disney representatives who took our luggage from the conveyor belt and whisked us away to the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel. As we were transported to our residence for the next few days, we felt the charm of Scandinavia. Everything is clean, especially the air. When we arrived at the hotel, our tour guides, Torgeir Skjerdal and Kira Butler, met us at the hospitality desk. They welcomed us warmly, handed us the keys to our room, and advised us that our afternoon was on our own to explore the nearby attractions. They had a list of suggested places to visit already prepared. They also reminded us of our welcome dinner planned for that evening.

When we arrived in our room, our luggage was miraculously already waiting for us. Fatigue had not hit us as we slept for a few hours on the plane. We were ready to see Bergen, so we showered and put on some light clothes for a walk around the nearby shoreline. It was warm, probably in the low 70’s, so the weather was perfect.

We checked out the various cafes before deciding on one that, thankfully, had an English explanation of all the Norwegian dishes. We relaxed over drinks and comfort food as we viewed the boats in the harbor, and the continuous flow of people strolling on the colorful store-lined sidewalk in front of us. We were definitely in a different world than the one we left behind.

After our excellent lunch, we walked across the street to stroll through the fish market at the end of the harbor. Fishermen were setup in little canopied stalls to sell their daily catch. Other stalls sold homemade sausages, handing out samples of whale sausage. I’m just not that daring when it comes to food, but most people we talked to said it was tasty.

We had enough time to spend the afternoon visiting art galleries that lined the quaint streets, and for a short visit to the Fløibanen funicular railway on Vertlidsallmenningen. They like long street names in Bergen! We didn’t have time to visit Akvariet, the local aquarium, but we later heard from our tour mates that it was something worth seeing with kids. Before returning to our hotel, we walked the winding alleyways of the World Heritage Site of Bryggen right next door. The clock was ticking so we didn’t go inside the Bryggens Museum. It’s something we will want to do the next time we’re in Bergen.

We changed into nicer clothes for our Welcome Dinner in an historic part of the hotel overlooking the Bryggen waterfront. We could have gone in our jeans, as most people were dressed very casually. Our tour guides took to the microphones and had us all, young and old, introduce ourselves to our fellow adventurers, many of whom would become close friends. Then they outlined our week for us, getting us excited about all the new things we were going to see. One of our guides, Torgeir, was from an area we would be visiting later in the week. He’s a young college student focusing on tourism. Our other guide, Kira, had worked at Disney World in Florida. She was actually a princess at the theme park! Impressive! They shared some of Bergen’s history with us, including the fact that it was the real-life inspiration for Arendelle, the town in the movie “Frozen”.

We finally felt ourselves getting drowsy after dinner and we retired to our comfortable hotel room where we slept the night away. We had a wakeup call to make sure we didn’t miss our included buffet breakfast. We put our luggage outside our room and “Tinkerbell” took care of it, as she would do throughout our trip. Then we boarded our modern comfortable tour bus (with Wi-Fi in some areas) for our first day of touring.

We got to know some of our tour mates from all over the United States and Canada while on the bus heading for our first big adventure; rafting down a river in Voss. In the beautiful wilderness not far from the main highway, we experienced one of the highlights of our trip. After our safety talk and training, we went in a convoy of rafts on a truly invigorating ride. They rate the rapids as mostly Class I and II, but they were certainly enough to be exciting, while never making us feel like we were in any danger. After our wet and wild ride, we changed for lunch by the river, catered with plenty of variety to suit everyone’s preferences. We were presented with a special Disney pin commemorating our visit. This would happen again and again throughout our trip, each time collecting a pin made exclusively for our excursion. When we boarded our bus again, we headed to see the first of many of our famous waterfall sites, this one being Tvinde Waterfall, just 10 minutes from Voss. Then we visited Nordic villages including Stalheim and Gudvangen. We learned to trust our driver completely as he navigated the many hairpin turns. We were plenty tired when we arrived at the Fretheim Hotel in Flan. Our guides quickly gathered us together and gave us our room keys. Our luggage arrived in the room five minutes after we did. We could get used to this treatment! Our barbeque dinner at the hotel was excellent. We stayed until quite late talking to others about our day’s adventures.

The next day, we visited the smallest Stave church in the world in the little village of Undredal. The goats outnumber the 63 residents in Undredal by about 6 to 1! In fact, Undredal is famous for its goat cheese. A storyteller joined us for lunch and gave us all a lesson in cheese-making traditions. Later we saw fjords from multiple perspectives.  The best perspective was at Naerøyfjord where we boarded a Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) for an incredible exploration of all parts of the fjord, discovering villages along the way, and listening to tales from more local storytellers. Later that evening, our guides took us on a nighttime walking tour of local Flåm culture.

Our fourth morning included a lot of time on the bus. There’s simply no way to see much of Norway without driving. Thankfully, most of the sites along the way are interesting. We traversed the The Laerdal Tunnel, the second longest car tunnel in the world. We saw more towns before we finally drove onto a ferry that took us to Sogndal, the town where our Adventure Guide, Torgeir, attends college. We were taken to lunch at a charming little cabin café with an idyllic setting right next to a glacier. We arrived at a fantastic hotel with spectacular views that night in Geiranger. The adults had a delicious buffet dinner at The Union Hotel’s main dining room, while the children participated in a troll-making activity and karaoke in the hotel’s Museum Room, which houses old automobiles and looks like an underground car garage. When looking at the kids’ buffet, I grabbed a few French Fries that tasted awfully good. After dinner, the kids were treated to a private screening of a current Disney movie.

There were plenty of new treats in store for us on Day 5. After a special lunch at Loen Lake, we tried net fishing, rowing and hiking. Later, we arrived at Briksdalsbreen where we took a funicular style “trollcar” up the mountain and then hiked another mile before arriving at the picturesque Glacier Lake. We hopped into paddle boats for a close-up view of the ice breaking and crashing into the lake. Seeing magnificent waterfalls were simply part of our daily existence now. However, while on another ferry, we passed The Seven Sisters Waterfall with the storied Suitor Waterfall on the opposite side. More pictures. More fun!

On our last day before heading off to the big city of Oslo, we had a terrific time at Westerås Farm. Many in our group hiked up the hill from our hotel to the farm, but it was raining so we opted for the bus instead. The owners of the farm, along with their children, fed us a delicious homemade lunch and showed us how they worked their land. Then we got to spend time with their animals, feeding the goats and llamas. It was a great day with fantastic hosts.  This was the type of experience that wouldn’t have been possible without Adventures by Disney.  We had a little time to relax in town before our dinner in a private cabin on the premises. The kids in our group helped the chefs make a Norwegian pancake dessert that was sweet and quite tasty.

On our way to the train to Oslo, we stopped in a village for a little bit of shopping and a chance to try some savory pastries from a famous bakery in Lom. Our Adventure Guides purchased a large variety for all of us to share. It was a time for comradery on the bus! Wherever we chose to sit, we had friends to talk to. We played games and talked about Disney trivia. My age may have helped me win a few rounds of “Name That Tune.” Lunch was provided on the train, but my stomach was full already from all the snacks. Our hotel in Oslo was the opulent Grand Hotel Oslo. Oslo is an incredible metropolis we would like to have seen more of, but this tour was more about the fjords, and getting to know the people from the towns and villages of Norway. We only had about three hours on our own to explore the streets near our hotel before our farewell dinner. I would definitely add an extra day in Oslo at the conclusion of the trip if I had the opportunity to do it over again.

Some of the kids had an unexpected treat before dinner. A teen pop idol was staying at the hotel and mingled with some of us while thousands screamed their affection toward the 13-year-old boy from behind the police lines outside the hotel. Our final evening together included folk dancing and the sharing of pictures and videos. Our concerns about being with the same people for so long had turned out to be unwarranted. It had been a fantastic journey for all of us. Over a short period of just one week, we had become somewhat attached to our tour guides and our fellow adventurers. Although we were anxious to resume our old lives at home, our emotions were bittersweet as we hated to say goodbye to our new friends. We exchanged e-mail addresses, friended each other on Facebook and promised to visit each other in the future.

 

The Bottom Line

There was a common misperception held by many of the people we talked with before our tour. They assumed that the trip would be full of amusement parks and talking Disney characters. If people end up on these tours before finding out the truth, they will be terribly disappointed. The rides we encountered were ones that nature built, not imagineers. The Disney expertise enhances the trip in many ways, and it casts a spell of happiness on the tour participants. However, if you want Disney magic every minute of the day, choose to visit Disney World instead of a tour of a foreign land. Adventures by Disney is travel and exploration on a more sophisticated level.

We would most certainly travel with Adventures by Disney again, with or without kids. With children, it’s a terrific way to explore a new part of the world in an environment where every member of the family is treated with the same respect and care. Without children, it’s a way to have a carefree adventure where somebody else is handling everything. Sure, there are other tours like that, but most tend to attract mostly older retired folks. You wouldn’t choose Adventures by Disney unless you wanted to surround yourself with energy and youth. We like the sense of wonder that comes from being around kids, parents and grandparents.  It brings out the kid in us too.

 

Hints:

Research the various itineraries online at www.AdventuresByDisney.com.

Choose the tour that is best suited for the ages and interests of all the members of your family.

Book your vacation through an experienced Virtuoso travel advisor, www.cruiseandresort.com. Your advisor can flawlessly handle all the details before and after your adventure anywhere in the world.