On our final day, we awoke to the first cloudy morning we have seen in Bergen--more the norm for a city that boasts over 300 cloudy days each year! The top of Mt. Floyen was enshrouded as the funicular ascended to the cloudy summit. Upon checkout from the hotel, we parted with our remaining kroner except for bus fare to the airport.
We bade farewell to the Hotel Havnekontoret and crossed the front courtyard to catch the Flybussen in front of the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel. (Side note: Based on my single interaction with their front desk, the RBR Hotel also appears to be a well-run hotel if you find their pricing agreeable. Also, both hotels are only 100 yds. from a full service supermarket) This is the furthest stop from the airport and the empty bus gradually fills before departure every 15 minutes.The trip to the airport takes about 40-45 minutes and current Flybussen pricing is 100 NOK pp--which can also be paid with a credit card.
Both arriving and departing Oslo passengers are funneled through the large Duty-Free shopping area going to/from your gate, so you cannot avoid the opportunity to purchase the typical alcohol, tobacco, chocolate and beauty care product options. Duty free pricing was less than you would pay on the open Norwegian market, but generally more than one would likely pay in the US or online. Linda felt her cosmetic purchases were priced a bit high and a 750ml bottle of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc was 109 NOK ($18.) vs. $12.99 at Total Beverage. A one liter bottle of Smirnoff vodka was very reasonably priced at just 199 NOK ($33) vs. the 350+ NOK in the VinMonopolet. So, consider buying alcohol at Duty Free when you arrive in Norway--especially weekends, since the VinMonopolet closes from Saturday 3pm (!!!) until 10am Monday morning!
If you have purchased goods in Norway and want to seek reimbursement for the 18% VAT, then this would be the time & place to do this in the airport. After you leave the Duty Free area, you go a short distance to the "bookstore" to file for your refund. A bit strange as the photo indicates, this looks like your typical airport bookstore, not an agency that would refund VAT. However, the refund went smoothly and they refunded our VAT back to the credit card with which we had made our purchases.
For this flight segment, our Icelandair airship is "Krafla", so named for a caldera in northern Iceland with 29 recorded eruptions--the last of which continued from 1975-1984. Our Icelandair departure from Bergen included a 25 min flight south to Stavanger, which is located in the far SW corner of Norway. Stavanger is a hub of outdoor activities as well as being important to the offshore gas/oil industry.
After a short time on the ground, we chased the sun west across the North Atlantic towards Reykjavik. After a little more than an hour, the snow-capped mountains on the eastern tip of Iceland appeared off the right side of the aircraft. What a welcome sight this coastline must have been for the Vikings after several days sailing on their long boats!
At Reykjavik airport, everyone departing the EU must pass thru an exit point to show your passport and boarding pass before continuing to your departure gate. After a 90 minute layover in the Saga Lounge in Reykjavik, we continued west on our last leg back to the US. This time we are on board the airship "Hekla", Iceland's most famous volcano, which last erupted in 2000. Within an hour, the rugged coast of Greenland appeared off the right side of the airplane. Even in mid-July, the snow-covered landscape looks very forbidding. It is quite obvious why early explorers encountering Greenland must have said "umm, let's keep going...it's got to get better than this!"
As we part company at Dulles, the four of us are in complete agreement that we have all thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful visit to Norway. And sharing this experience with Manfred and Linda has been a privilege as they are a pleasure to travel with. It is fortunate that we enjoy traveling tous ensemble as we will be together again in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam) for three weeks in January, 2014.
Posted by TBW Travel Today!
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