Every year we wish to have dream trips around the world and Norway trip was mine last year. I took some efforts to plan this ‘five days trip’ since it was not a solo trip but involved my family as well. You can read about it here on this link. We visited Bergen, Flåm, Aurland and Oslo in these 5 day. I have already written about Bergen to Flåm journey and experiences in amazing Aurland. There is so much more to talk about this trip. Hence this blog post is about our first one and half days in Bergen.

After landing in Bergen, we headed towards our Air BnB apartment by taking a bus from Airport. After consulting with the information giving person for bus services at the airport, we instantly booked this journey as it would be cheaper than taxi and less complicated than train journey. Tickets were booked at a machine installed outside the airport. It was not a cheap affair as the location was quite far from the airport. As we had reached Bergen mid afternoon, we explored Bryggen in the evening.

Bryggen

To reach Bryggen we took a local bus from AirBnB apartment’s nearest bus stop. Bryggen houses have been declared as UNESCO world heritage sight. Floyen mountain is behind these colorful houses. It doesn’t cost a dime to explore the houses from outside. Most of them have turned into shops or cafe. I Infact the entire main street of Bryggen is lined with shops. If you sneak in the lanes, chances are you would find some more shops and restaurants. One can easily spend few hours on this location. We spent our entire evening in shopping and taking pictures.

Floibanen Next day after breakfast we headed straight to the Floibanen ticket counter. Floibanen is a funicular that runs from Bergen Central till Floyen i.e. 320m above sea level. One can purchase tickets on the spot or buy online/ install an app to escape the queues outside the ticket counter. Even though one cab simply climb the mountain but if you have seniors accompanying you the this should be the best option.

Once you are at the top of the mountain, first thing you would do is enjoy the views. There is a cafe on the top, few shops, hiking trails, goats that charm you and lot of tourists.

Fish and flower market

It’s impossible to ignore Fish market which is near the junction of two roads – one thing to Floibanen and other with Bryggen houses. Fishes and crabs of all kinds are displayed and sold at the market. Besides fish, fruits are also sold at the market.

Festplassen

An open square with trees on both sides ।innumerable birds, fountain and View of Floyen mountain. Try to find public xylophone and play a tune.

We then walked towards the Musikkpaviljongen. Such a beautiful place decked with most beautiful flowers. I imagine it to be beautiful spot for photography. Then keep walking towards Ole Bull fountain. Fountain has skipping stones which was thoroughly enjoyed by the kids. We further walked till next square where free dance sessions were held during our summer visit. Some really talented artists having a gala time showcasing their talent.

Out of so many cities that I have visited in Europe, very few are the ones where I have had simple itinerary. We saw very selected places and yet were fine with leaving the city as these places were satisfactory enough. May be I was excited about the Flåm trip and the cruise that we took from Bergen. Still, I loved Floyen and got such wonderful aerial views that I am convinced I have seen a lot more of Bergen than these four places.