If you ever find yourself in this part of our beautiful world, then I highly recommend dropping by…read moreto visit this beautiful church. It is located in Vik, Norway. Pretty scenery everywhere one looks!! There is an entrance fee to enter the church. I believe the proceeds go towards the upkeep of this historical place. We were fortunate to visit before the bus load of tourists arrived. This church is a wonderful example of Norwegian architecture from bygone days. It is a stave church. Most of these churches were constructed between the 11th and 13th centuries. This specific church was built in 1130 approximately. It has been restored by The Society For The Preservation Of Norwegian Ancient Monuments. Much of the building is still original, though, including many of the stave walls. Such a beautiful wooden church!! The Norwegian wood carvings both inside and outside are impressive. A "Must See" when in this part of Norway!!

I guess yelpers don't visit this place since the only reviews are from 10+ years ago…read more We arrived early on a blustery August morning. It opens at 10 (we took the early ferry to Vik from Balestrade). We wandered the grounds and cemetery taking photos until they opened. The price for two was over $30 which seemed quite steep even for Norway. The church itself is fascinating and architecturaly interesting but our visit inside lasted only 15 minutes. It's small. There were two young "guides" inside but the whole time they were busy talking to each other. They made no attempt to welcome us or ask if we had questions. They were worthless. Worth viewing since this is a rare structure but a lot to be desired from the unfriendly staff.

There's some weird things that have happened to me during my adventure here in Europe but nothing…read moreas bizarre as what happened yesterday. During a random hike, at some random place I picked to hike, called Kongevegen (King's road), I was chased down by a rabid herd of goats. I was near the end of my hike towards an old 18th century bridge built next to an old Viking era stone bridge when I heared bells clanging, hundreds it sounded like, and it got louder and louder barreling down the hill towards my location. This trail meanders through forests and open grasslands full of sheep and other farm animals. There are gates that you simply pass through and close behind you but you pass by private property it seems like. Back home somebody would have a shotgun ready to gun you down from stepping into their private property, but not here, I passed by farmers going on about their daily routines and waving to say "Hallo!" Very friendly bunch these Norwegians...but back to the goats...Yes there I was finally making it to the fabled stone bridge and a pack of rabid horned goats ready to mow me down. I quickly ran towards the nearest wooden gate at the end of the bridge and quickly locked it from behind me. The goats dared follow me closer but to no avail...whatever drove these crazy animals to chase me is beyond comprehension - maybe because of what I was wearing? All red.

Absolutely beautiful and worth the visit!!! I booked a 3 person round trip tour to this viewpoint…read more The drive up and down was beautiful and also scary. I recommend booking as early as possible to avoid road congestion during tourist season. The roads are small and really made to hold one car (one lane). I also recommend you book through the Flam visitor site online.

Twisted and narrow roads that felt at times like single lane made for a butterflies in your…read morestomach ride with breathtaking views on the way up to this view point. The platform is 650 meters above Aurlandsfjord and provides spectacular panoramic views. The clouds were quite thick and I really didn't think we would have much of a view once we got to our destination. Our Tour Guide knew better and mentioned he hadn't seen the clouds so thick. Although we couldn't see the water, due to the clouds, it was a unique view that doesn't happen often. Not far from Flam, this was the last stop on our full day tour and what a Grand Finale. Based on other pictures, there are different views depending on the season so maybe visit every season?. Pictures don't do it justice-a must and not to be missed!

Rimstigen is by far the best hike in the best fjord in Norway, and it's a hidden gem! The trailhead…read moreis in Bakka, down a small road from Gutvangen. You can park on the side of the road and the trailhead is on the right side of the road just before the bridge. The trail starts as a steep climb...and then continues as a steep climb until the very top! But it is SO worth the pain. All the way up and all the way down are amazing views, and if you are really adventurous, you can keep going up onto the ridge. This trail was an old road the farmers used to take with their herds to take them to the summer grazing fields, so it connects several cities if you're willing to hike far enough. It would be a fun multi-day hike if you are up for it! Naeroyfjord is easily one of the most beautiful things in Norway. Partly because no one else is going to be there while you're there, and partly because it is such a small fjord, you can easily access all parts of it and see across the fjord without a problem.

This was a bit of fun but I must puncture the hype. Yes it's stunning scenery but we were ripped…read moreoff at $360 for two off a cruise ship. I've no idea what the price is self organised. It's really not a not very long but it is a slow railway journey up a steep mountain to the Vatnahalsen hotel, a place from another age that's seen better days and were poor hosts; I suppose quaint is the kind word for this tired place. So we wound our way up on a 12 mile journey, climbing up all the time going through 20 various tunnels, viewing deep gorges, waterfalls, rapid rivers and snow capped mountains. We got a mere three stops with one staying put. At one point the train stops at the only double-tracked rail to allow the train going the other way to pass by. At another, it stops to allow us to disembark for 5 minutes to a platform to view an impressive waterfall thundering its way downwards. Small wonder 98% of Norway's electricity is generated by water. Just before the waterfall our, not very talkative yet ever - smiling, guide told the lore of a beautiful enticing woman luring people into the mountains so as we stood at the waterfall loud music started and a red dressed young lady briefly danced high up above us, near the fall. It's just a nice touch. Once we reach the mountain pass station we get off to walk 300 metres up a slope to the hotel for an alleged traditional Norwegian treat (self serve) of waffles, raspberry jam and runny sour cream with flasks of lukewarm lousy coffee and there's a water boiler if self serve tea is preferred. We are just cash cows here. We remained stuck here for about 2 hours - which was much, much too long - for a train to take us back to Flåm (pronounced Flom). I've reviewed the well worn hotel separately. It was cool and raining when we got there (13 July) so the hotel's fast WiFi kept most occupied. I suspect this is a lifeline for this quaint hotel. We spent far longer idling here in this dull place than we did actually on the total train journey but we were sort of glad to go once but cross at being fleeced. If not for the WiFi there's nothing much to do. As we had booked off a ship we had a reserved carriage on the train and a helpful guide to tell us a little bit of history and lead us sheep - like around. Sadly our guide told us very little about this railway for instance we got no information about the war years, as it opened in 1940, nor how much it cost to build and maybe there are no 'fun' or grim facts to share about its construction or 83 years of life. There was a screen to read and a voice but the train was noisy and other passengers chatted loudly to compensate for the train noise. It was way overpriced at £150 each for this trip. This made our 24 mile journey over £6 a mile. The coffee/food offering at the hotel is pretty lousy and needs a re think. Ya pays yer money and ya makes yer choice. Winter on this journey would be a whole other level.