Scandinavia Thread

[Dylan383 6]

We are wanting to visit Sweden, Norway, and Denmark in a year via a cruise. I think the ship goes to Finland as well. Any recommendations. Also if I went for a week to that part of Northern Europe how much could I see in a week? Oslo and Copenhagen..maybe Stockholm? Or is that too much? Where would you recommend going for a first timer?

[Chewbacca 7788]

Yes, do it.

[52-80 19275]

For 1 week you should do 2 destinations, at most 3. In this region I suggest 1 urban city and 1 outdoor region/tour.

Copenhagen is the most vibrant and cosmopolitan city. Oslo is about the forest and fjord surrounding the city but not tue city itself.

Theres a popular tour called Norway in a Nutshell that combines trains buses and ferries that does a very good rapid sampling of the lower half of the country. Probably the best base for an itinerary that you can expand and fill as many days as you have. 

No comment on anything relating to cruises  

 

[Dylan383 6]

For 1 week you should do 2 destinations, at most 3. In this region I suggest 1 urban city and 1 outdoor region/tour.
Copenhagen is the most vibrant and cosmopolitan city. Oslo is about the forest and fjord surrounding the city but not tue city itself.

Theres a popular tour called Norway in a Nutshell that combines trains buses and ferries that does a very good rapid sampling of the lower half of the country. Probably the best base for an itinerary that you can expand and fill as many days as you have. 
No comment on anything relating to cruises  
 

Makes sense. Sounds like Copenhagen makes sense and maybe the Norway in a nutshell. Or I just go for Copenhagen and Stockholm. Thanks.

[Dylan383 6]

For 1 week you should do 2 destinations, at most 3. In this region I suggest 1 urban city and 1 outdoor region/tour.
Copenhagen is the most vibrant and cosmopolitan city. Oslo is about the forest and fjord surrounding the city but not tue city itself.

Theres a popular tour called Norway in a Nutshell that combines trains buses and ferries that does a very good rapid sampling of the lower half of the country. Probably the best base for an itinerary that you can expand and fill as many days as you have. 
No comment on anything relating to cruises  
 

Is winter still worth it to visit Copenhagen or Stockholm? How cold does it get there?

[52-80 19275]

2 hours ago, Dylan383 said:

Is winter still worth it to visit Copenhagen or Stockholm? How cold does it get there?

Copenhagen yes because it's on the continent and winters are a bit milder. Nothing you can't survive with a mid layer (fleece or thin down) and an outercoat, plus gloves. Or a single puffer jacket and long sleeve shirt.

For outdoorsy scenic stuff, I suggest summers are better because you get greenery and way more daylight. Of course many people like the romantic idea of the Scandinavian winters too....

[mycox 582]

Copenhagen and Stockholm for sure. Spend a couple nights in Estonia if you make it to Helsinki 

[Dylan383 6]

5 hours ago, mycox said:

Copenhagen and Stockholm for sure. Spend a couple nights in Estonia if you make it to Helsinki 

I didn’t think about Finland.  Will research.  Lots to do in Estonia?

[mycox 582]

Spend a couple nights in Tallin. It's a pretty cool city, and a quick ferry ride from Helsinki.

[52-80 19275]

50 minutes ago, Dylan383 said:

I didn’t think about Finland.  Will research.  Lots to do in Estonia?

tallinn is small, disneylandesque town you can cover quickly

https://www.texas.ee/

http://www.depechemode.ee/

theres a lot of ferries criss crossing the baltic and north sea connecting the cities and ports

[royiv 9403]

We’ve done Norway, Denmark and Sweden in the last 12 months. Norway and Sweden were in the spring/summer months and Denmark was in the winter. We love, love, love Scandinavia. Copenhagen in the winter was amazing. I would have zero apprehensions about visiting in the winter months again. If we were going to plan another trip, which we will, we’ve discussed doing Copenhagen and Stockholm again. We very much enjoyed Norway, but it’s not high enough on our list to warrant a second trip.

[PenelopeWitherspoon 19179]

Been to Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Helsinki. Helsinki in winter is a no.

Copenhagen, I have done multiple times in winter, and it is totally fine.  

Not sure on Stockholm, but I thought it was a beautiful city.  Will make it back at some point.

[Brisketexan 105483]

Visited Copenhagen in the winter.  Was quite nice -- if you go in December before Xmas, the Christmas markets all over northern Europe are super cool.  Haven't done Denmark other than Copenhagen, but we really dig that city.  It's worth it to just hang there for a few days.  Chill, rent a bike, eat some smorrebrod, chill some more.  There are some world-class restaurants you can actually get into (we love Host).

Norway: one of the most beautiful places we've ever visited.  Oslo is just a big city, but western Norway (think Alesund and points north) is incredible.  Just jaw-dropping.  Geiranger Fjord, Briksdal glacier, and a shitload of other sights and opportunities.

Sweden: we did Stockholm and Gothenburg (daughter was living in Gothenburg).  Sweden was cool.  There's stuff to see in Stockholm, Gothenburg is a nice little city.  But honestly, Sweden didn't blow me away.

Finland: thought Finland was super-cool.  We were there at the break of spring, so still chilly, a bit of snow left on the ground.  Helsinki is cool enough (do a sauna and the cold plunge into the Baltic at the Alles sea pool -- water was 38 degrees when I did it).  But what we really want to do is go back during the summer, and do several days in a cabin on a lake, preferably with some Finns.  You sauna.  You swim in the cold lake.  Maybe you fish. You build a fire, drink, and bullshit.  And enjoy long days, sunshine, and cool nights.  We just want to go back and vibe, and we found the Finns to be really cool and friendly (the standoffish thing is not an issue).

Estonia: Tallin can be done in a day or two, but it IS worth a visit.  And we went out into the countryside, actually near the Russian border.  There is some spectacular scenery and parks all around Estonia.  You could easily do 4-5 days there and see multiple different things.  My daughter went before Xmas, and said their Christmas market was the best she ever went to.

As for cruises....we don't do cruises, so can't help you there.  But what we've found (including by the experience of cramming a bit too much into our recent Scotland itinerary) is that giving yourself a couple of days in some places to just vibe, and do some local things, is really, really enjoyable.  A 2 hour bus excursion isn't the same.

[Dylan383 6]

Visited Copenhagen in the winter.  Was quite nice -- if you go in December before Xmas, the Christmas markets all over northern Europe are super cool.  Haven't done Denmark other than Copenhagen, but we really dig that city.  It's worth it to just hang there for a few days.  Chill, rent a bike, eat some smorrebrod, chill some more.  There are some world-class restaurants you can actually get into (we love Host).
Norway: one of the most beautiful places we've ever visited.  Oslo is just a big city, but western Norway (think Alesund and points north) is incredible.  Just jaw-dropping.  Geiranger Fjord, Briksdal glacier, and a shitload of other sights and opportunities.
Sweden: we did Stockholm and Gothenburg (daughter was living in Gothenburg).  Sweden was cool.  There's stuff to see in Stockholm, Gothenburg is a nice little city.  But honestly, Sweden didn't blow me away.
Finland: thought Finland was super-cool.  We were there at the break of spring, so still chilly, a bit of snow left on the ground.  Helsinki is cool enough (do a sauna and the cold plunge into the Baltic at the Alles sea pool -- water was 38 degrees when I did it).  But what we really want to do is go back during the summer, and do several days in a cabin on a lake, preferably with some Finns.  You sauna.  You swim in the cold lake.  Maybe you fish. You build a fire, drink, and bullshit.  And enjoy long days, sunshine, and cool nights.  We just want to go back and vibe, and we found the Finns to be really cool and friendly (the standoffish thing is not an issue).
Estonia: Tallin can be done in a day or two, but it IS worth a visit.  And we went out into the countryside, actually near the Russian border.  There is some spectacular scenery and parks all around Estonia.  You could easily do 4-5 days there and see multiple different things.  My daughter went before Xmas, and said their Christmas market was the best she ever went to.
As for cruises....we don't do cruises, so can't help you there.  But what we've found (including by the experience of cramming a bit too much into our recent Scotland itinerary) is that giving yourself a couple of days in some places to just vibe, and do some local things, is really, really enjoyable.  A 2 hour bus excursion isn't the same.

Wow. You’ve inspired me to try to visit Copenhagen and Stockholm before Xmas. I think both cities could fill a week and the holidays may be a great time to see lots of indoor sights

[Brisketexan 105483]

4 minutes ago, Dylan383 said:

Wow. You’ve inspired me to try to visit Copenhagen and Stockholm before Xmas. I think both cities could fill a week and the holidays may be a great time to see lots of indoor sights

I imagine just a pre-Xmas visit to both of those cities would be damned nice.  Neither gets brutally cold in the winter, just appropriately wintery.  We've had a light snow in Copenhagen, and it actually made the walk home from dinner fucking amazing.  But don't forego some of the outdoor stuff to see -- like I said, it doesn't get brutally cold.  AND, there are often multiple different Xmas markets in each city (in Copenhagen, there's a small one along Nyhavn and Kongens Nytorv.  Apparently, the one at Tivoli Gardens is great too, but we haven't been to that one (we've been to Tivoli -- it's an old-school amusement park, and actually pretty fun).  A warm meal or more than one at Torvehallern food hall is a great respite (there's an outpost of Grod, a porridge restaurant -- yeah, trust me -- that is one of my wife's and daughter's favorite places on earth).

Shit, getting jealous now.

[Dylan383 6]

I imagine just a pre-Xmas visit to both of those cities would be damned nice.  Neither gets brutally cold in the winter, just appropriately wintery.  We've had a light snow in Copenhagen, and it actually made the walk home from dinner fucking amazing.  But don't forego some of the outdoor stuff to see -- like I said, it doesn't get brutally cold.  AND, there are often multiple different Xmas markets in each city (in Copenhagen, there's a small one along Nyhavn and Kongens Nytorv.  Apparently, the one at Tivoli Gardens is great too, but we haven't been to that one (we've been to Tivoli -- it's an old-school amusement park, and actually pretty fun).  A warm meal or more than one at Torvehallern food hall is a great respite (there's an outpost of Grod, a porridge restaurant -- yeah, trust me -- that is one of my wife's and daughter's favorite places on earth).
Shit, getting jealous now.

Keep the eating and other racs coming. How did you find food gems? Online, friends, random, travel guides?

[royiv 9403]

31 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

I imagine just a pre-Xmas visit to both of those cities would be damned nice.  Neither gets brutally cold in the winter, just appropriately wintery.  We've had a light snow in Copenhagen, and it actually made the walk home from dinner fucking amazing.  But don't forego some of the outdoor stuff to see -- like I said, it doesn't get brutally cold.  AND, there are often multiple different Xmas markets in each city (in Copenhagen, there's a small one along Nyhavn and Kongens Nytorv.  Apparently, the one at Tivoli Gardens is great too, but we haven't been to that one (we've been to Tivoli -- it's an old-school amusement park, and actually pretty fun).  A warm meal or more than one at Torvehallern food hall is a great respite (there's an outpost of Grod, a porridge restaurant -- yeah, trust me -- that is one of my wife's and daughter's favorite places on earth).

Shit, getting jealous now.

We went to Tivoli Gardens at night in between Thanksgiving and Christmas this past year. Not to be missed. So cool to see it all decorated for Christmas. It was one of the highlights of the trip.

[Brisketexan 105483]

29 minutes ago, Dylan383 said:

Keep the eating and other racs coming. How did you find food gems? Online, friends, random, travel guides?

Some of all of those.  Torvehallern was mentioned in guides, we visited it the first time we went, it was a favorite.  Host came recommended on this board, it's one of our favorite high-end (but NOT high price) meals in the world.  It was cold and snowy, we ate down in a warm basement, had the best mushroom soup I've ever had.  I recommended it to my daughter, who went later with the mother of one of the families we're close with from exchanges (long story) -- mom paid for their hotel room, so we had her take them out to a nice dinner on us.  For like $100 total, it was one of the best meals either of them has ever had.  And my daughter went to Amass a year or two ago (a friend of hers had a gift there, so she paid, as it was QUITE pricey) -- a NOMA alumni place.  Daughter thought Host was better.
Smorrebrod most anywhere is a treat as well.  Torvehallern has a great place inside, as does Tivoli, actually.  But we also went to a couple of just regular cafes, and were always happy.
OH, you'll be there around Christmas season.  Find a place that serves Flæskesteg - it's a Danish roast pork dish that is kind of their holiday thing.  Can't remember where we went, but will post a photo (there's a great parsley cream sauce that goes with it -- just out of frame).  And some other photos from that trip.

Edited September 3 by Brisketexan

[Dylan383 6]

We went to Tivoli Gardens at night in between Thanksgiving and Christmas this past year. Not to be missed. So cool to see it all decorated for Christmas. It was one of the highlights of the trip.

I definitely want to do that. So it’s best between thanksgiving and Xmas versus early November?

[Dylan383 6]

Some of all of those.  Torvehallern was mentioned in guides, we visited it the first time we went, it was a favorite.  Host came recommended on this board, it's one of our favorite high-end (but NOT high price) meals in the world.  It was cold and snowy, we ate down in a warm basement, had the best mushroom soup I've ever had.  I recommended it to my daughter, who went later with the mother of one of the families we're close with from exchanges (long story) -- mom paid for their hotel room, so we had her take them out to a nice dinner on us.  For like $100 total, it was one of the best meals either of them has ever had.  And my daughter went to Amass a year or two ago (a friend of hers had a gift there, so she paid, as it was QUITE pricey) -- a NOMA alumni place.  Daughter thought Host was better.
Smorrebrod most anywhere is a treat as well.  Torvehallern has a great place inside, as does Tivoli, actually.  But we also went to a couple of just regular cafes, and were always happy.
OH, you'll be there around Christmas season.  Find a place that serves Flæskesteg - it's a Danish roast pork dish that is kind of their holiday thing.  Can't remember where we went, but will post a photo (there's a great parsley cream sauce that goes with it -- just out of frame).  And some other photos from that trip.

Those pics look amazing. I definitely am enthused to go. I guess early November isn’t too holiday ish ?

[royiv 9403]

2 minutes ago, Dylan383 said:

I definitely want to do that. So it’s best between thanksgiving and Xmas versus early November?

They put up the Christmas decorations and open the Christmas markets later in November. It adds a bunch to the hygge vibe so I would suggest waiting until later in November. Speaking of hygge, we stayed at the Hotel Sanders and the hygge vibes were on point. 

[Dylan383 6]

Maybe mid November is best before the December rush and rise in hotel prices. Seeing the nutcracker at the royal danis opera house would be cool

[Dylan383 6]

They put up the Christmas decorations and open the Christmas markets later in November. It adds a bunch to the hygge vibe so I would suggest waiting until later in November. Speaking of hygge, we stayed at the Hotel Sanders and the hygge vibes were on point. 

I will check that place out. I saw Tivoli Garden opens its park for the holidays in mid November.

[Brisketexan 105483]

I will check that place out. I saw Tivoli Garden opens its park for the holidays in mid November.

See when Christmas markets open. You might be able to overlap our thanksgiving, so you wouldn’t eat up a lot of vacation days?

[Dylan383 6]

Does Stockholm have Christmas markets as well?

[Brisketexan 105483]

Does Stockholm have Christmas markets as well?

Yep. https://www.visitstockholm.com/see-do/attractions/christmas-markets-in-stockholm/

[Dylan383 6]

Yep. https://www.visitstockholm.com/see-do/attractions/christmas-markets-in-stockholm/

Thank you so much! Very helpful

[52-80 19275]

We like staying at Villa Copenhagen and its literally across from Tivoli, and the central station Copenhagen H

[Dylan383 6]

We like staying at Villa Copenhagen and its literally across from Tivoli, and the central station Copenhagen H

That hotel looks so nice!!! And across the street from the central station!!!!

[Brisketexan 105483]

51 minutes ago, Dylan383 said:

That hotel looks so nice!!! And across the street from the central station!!!!

A good location.  In Copenhagen, you'll want to hit Tivoli, you'll want to spend the time walking the Stroget shopping district (esp. during the Christmas Market season), you'll want to hit up Nyhavn, check out Rosenborg castle (lots of cool stuff in there), the Rundetaarn (round tower) is cool), and the changing of the guard (not a must-see, but cool if it's happening) at the palace (down by the waterfront).  We've stayed at the Admiral Hotel -- old school, a bit pricey, but damned nice.  We've stayed a couple of other places as well.  The train is handy -- there's a stop at Tivoli, one at Norreport, one at Kongens Nytorv, and one at Osterport.  You can cover most of the highlights via those four stops.

[52-80 19275]

1 hour ago, Dylan383 said:

That hotel looks so nice!!! And across the street from the central station!!!!

Its on the Fine Hotel list with Amex so theres a pretty discount and some perks if you pay through that

[Dylan383 6]

A good location.  In Copenhagen, you'll want to hit Tivoli, you'll want to spend the time walking the Stroget shopping district (esp. during the Christmas Market season), you'll want to hit up Nyhavn, check out Rosenborg castle (lots of cool stuff in there), the Rundetaarn (round tower) is cool), and the changing of the guard (not a must-see, but cool if it's happening) at the palace (down by the waterfront).  We've stayed at the Admiral Hotel -- old school, a bit pricey, but damned nice.  We've stayed a couple of other places as well.  The train is handy -- there's a stop at Tivoli, one at Norreport, one at Kongens Nytorv, and one at Osterport.  You can cover most of the highlights via those four stops.

Thanks for all the recs. Can’t wait to see all of this! Thanks