2024 International Scandinavia by Rail, Road and Sea

Welcome to Stockholm, Sweden’s capital of about two million people. This beautiful city is built on a group of islands linked by bridges and surrounded on all sides by water. First up, you’ll take the high-speed Alanda Express train from the airport to your hotel in the city centre.

Join your tour leader and fellow travellers in the evening for a celebratory welcome dinner.

Overnight: Radisson Blu Waterfront hotel (D)

This morning we enjoy a guided tour of Stockholm by bus and on foot with a private guide. The extraordinary architectural styles of the impressive City Hall, home of the Nobel Prize receptions, and the mediaeval and baroque-era old town areas are highlights. Later, we board a historic steam ship for a leisurely cruise around the islands to the Royal Palace of Drottningholm and visit the art collections and the gorgeous gardens of this charming imperial island.

Overnight: Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel (B, L)

Enjoy a free morning to relax, and then gather to board a vintage restaurant tram for a private lunchtime excursion around the city on the tramlines. The tram tour terminates adjacent to the world-renowned Vasa Museum, where you’re free to spend the afternoon enjoying the extraordinary display, before our coach transfers back to the hotel. Your evening is at leisure.

Overnight: Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel (B, L)

This morning we begin our journey into the Swedish countryside, taking our coach for a short ride north to the old royal city of Uppsala taking a detour on the way to ride a quaint little steam train in the forest. The grand cathedral at Uppsala is the burial place of Sweden’s early Kings and Queens and the nearby Fort provides a great vantage point for the surrounding countryside. We continue by coach to the busy port city of Sundsvall, completely rebuilt in stone after a fire destroyed the city in the 1890’s. Here our cross-country train takes us on a scenic journey to Östersund, nestled on the shores of beautiful Lake Storsjön, Sweden’s fifth largest lake. Dinner tonight is hosted in a local restaurant.

Overnight: Hotel Clarion Grand Östersund (B, D)

This morning, we meet the unique Inlandsbanan train, a retro diesel railcar, at Östersund’s picturesque station. The journey takes us north, travelling through some of Sweden’s most remote and wild landscapes, as we head towards Lapland. The train makes several stops at quaint villages and hamlets along the way to take refreshments and visit local museums and shops.

The train arrives in Arvidsjaur in the late-afternoon. After checking in to our hotel, enjoy some free time to relax. An early supper is offered in the hotel’s lakeside restaurant and an evening at leisure.

Overnight: Hotel Laponia, Arvidsjaur (B, D)

Today, enjoy some free time until mid-afternoon when our train departs. Relax at the hotel or explore the town of Arvidsjaur and its many charms. Nestled by Lake Boliden, the town boasts a neatly laid out Sami village, a pristine old timber church, and several museums. The Inlandsbanan will collect you at the station for the second stage of the journey through landscapes of crystal-clear lakes and towering forests, crossing the Arctic Circle into the ‘Land of the Midnight Sun’ and on to the town of Gällivare for a late evening arrival.

Overnight: Grand Hotel Lapland, Gällivare (B)

Today, we’ll explore the stunning Laponia countryside by coach, heading to the Naturum Laponia Visitors Centre. Beautifully located on the headland by Lake Láŋas and designed by architects and local artisans, this World Heritage Site is the gateway to four national parks, two nature reserves and nine Sami villages.  The site was chosen by the Sámi to ensure visitors could be warmly welcomed without it affecting the local reindeer herding.

This evening you have the option to take a tour to Dundret Mountain, where you can have supper in the cafe while enjoying magnificent views of the surrounding landscape in the glowing midnight twilight.

Overnight: Grand Hotel Lapland, Gällivare (B, L)

After breakfast at the hotel, we’ll stroll across the street to catch the morning express train to Norway. The train glides past vast iron ore mines in northern Sweden and then drops down to the Norwegian port city of Narvik via the extraordinary Ofoten Railway, which is literally carved into the side of a spectacular fjord. After checking in, we visit the Ofoten Museum in Narvik, located in the old NSB railway administration building that dates back to 1902. The building displays exhibitions from the battle of Norway, as well as the history and culture of this wild region.

Back at the hotel, enjoy a beverage at the sky bar overlooking the harbour and a buffet dinner in the hotel’s atrium restaurant.

Overnight: Scandic Hotel, Narvik (B, D)

After breakfast, we’ll take a scenic coach journey to the charming town of Sortland to board a Hurtigruten cruise, Norway’s famous cruise ship specialists. During the six-hour journey, sailing down to Svolvaer in the comfort of the fully appointed liner, you’ll be gobsmacked by the stunning scenery, including the astounding Troll Fjord. You’ll see why this is considered the most beautiful of all of Hurtigruten’s cruises. After disembarking, we’ll walk straight to our hotel, handily situated right between the waterfront and the town square. Dinner will be served at the hotel.

Overnight: Hotel Thon Lofoten, (or similar), Svolvaer (B, D)

Our local guide is on hand once again to greet us after breakfast and host an eye-opening half-day tour down to the Viking Museum at Lofotr. The story of the Viking era is bought vividly to life in the atmospheric museum, and we’ll enjoy a light lunch with a twist in the Viking longhouse before continuing through the craggy mountains and past the wild and bountiful coast to Moskenes. A car ferry takes us across to the busy port city of Bodø.

Join your tour leader and the group for a feast at a local alehouse on the old wharf.

Overnight: Scandic Havet, Bodø (B, L, D)

Enjoy a morning visiting the sites of Bodø or take an optional tour of the Air Force Museum on the outskirts of town. Bodø is the northern terminus of the main Norwegian railway network, a journey that traverses a variety of climate zones and landscapes. We’ll board the Nordland Express train at midday for the 720-kilometre scenic journey to Trondheim. The train has a well-catered cafe car and your Komfort class seats offer added services. This journey delivers almost continuous panoramic views of beautiful, untouched wilderness as we cross back over the Arctic Circle along the way. The train pulls in just past 10.00pm. A short coach transfer will deliver us to our hotel, where we’ll stay for the next two nights.

Overnight: Britannia Hotel, Trondheim (B)

The morning is devoted to exploring atmospheric Trondheim, one of the oldest cities in Norway. We take a bus tour of the city dropping us off at the cathedral to enjoy a tour of the 800-year-old precinct. This is followed by a short walking tour of the old town, arriving for lunch in the ancient, cobbled streets of the Bakklandet neighbourhood. The afternoon and evening are free, so you can explore the many museums, shops, and scenic spots around the city.

Overnight: Britannia Hotel, Trondheim (B, L)

We depart in the morning by train on the wonderful Nordland Railway. It snakes around lakes and rivers and climbs the ranges to traverse the wild treeless alpine plateau. We change trains and have a lunch break at the junction town of Dombås in preparation for the descent down the breathtaking Rauma Railway and on to Ǻndalsnes. For the last leg, we relax on a scenic coach journey past the lakes, waterways, and mountains of this glorious coastal region and on to the wonderful art nouveau city of Ǻlesund. Settle into the hotel and take a late afternoon walking tour of this unique town, finishing off the day with dinner at a local favourite.

Overnight: Scandic Parken Hotel, Ålesund (B, D)

This morning we step aboard our luxury coach for the journey overland to Bergen. It’s an epic excursion but as one traveller put it, “the trip cuts through many fjords along the way, with picture postcard scenery all day. In hindsight, I can safely say it was the most scenic bus trip of my life!”

There are a couple of interesting car ferry crossings, and we stop often for breaks, refreshments, and to enjoy the many awe-inspiring lookouts and views. We arrive in Bergen in the evening and settle into our hotel right in the heart of the historic wharf district, where we’ll stay for the next three nights.

Dinner this evening will be hosted at a popular local restaurant close to the hotel.

Overnight: Thon Hotel Rosenkrantz, Bergen (B, D)

After breakfast, we wander across the wharf to board one of Bergen’s most historic steamships, D/S Stord 1. Built by Laxvaag in 1913 for the Norwegian coastal run, the ship was originally 376 tons. She was retired in 1969 and completely rebuilt after a destructive fire in 1987. She now lives out her days in and around Bergen on charters, cruises, and featuring in steamboat festivals.

Sailing up the harbour and along the estuary, we disembark at the wharf at Garnes and stroll across to board the Gamle Vossbahan, a vintage steam train complete with a teak dining car that runs along the original isolated Bergen railway back toward the city. It’s a lovely round trip back in time and returning to your hotel by the mid-afternoon, leaving plenty of time to explore the atmospheric surrounds of the World Heritage-listed “Wooden City”.

Overnight: Thon Hotel Rosenkrantz, Bergen (B)

After breakfast, we take a walk across town to the railway station to board a train for Voss. Here we’ll meet our coach for a trip down the sweeping escarpment of Geiranger Fjord, to connect with the ferry that will navigate the dramatic waterways to Flam. Lunch is hosted at Flam’s very own brewery, where you’ll have a chance to enjoy not only fine local fare but also a tasting paddle from the taps. We then board the famous Flam Railway for the extraordinary journey up onto the high plateau on one of the steepest lines in the world, twisting and turning sharply and often as the railway line does its best to accommodate the extreme terrain. At the mountain station of Myrdal, 865 metres above sea level, the Flam Railway meets up with the Oslo-Bergen Line for a connecting train that will take us on the stunning rail trip back to Bergen.

Overnight: Thon Hotel Rosenkrantz, Bergen (B, L)

For today’s rail journey, the last one of the tour, we make our way to the station to join the scenic railway from Bergen to Oslo. This 500 km route rises to the highest point of any railway in Norway, where the tundra landscape of lakes and glaciated plateaus is dusted with snow. We then drop down into rich agricultural land, past prosperous towns and cities, and snaking rivers all the way to the capital in mid-afternoon.

Our coach will meet us in Oslo and take us to our historic hotel, where we’ll stay for the next two nights. Your evening is free to take advantage of the excellent location right in the heart of town.

Overnight: Grand Hotel Oslo (B)

Oslo has a vibrant cultural life, and we begin our city tour with a local guide at the stunning new Opera House. We then continue to Akershus Castle and Fortress, home to several fascinating museums, including the Museum of the Resistance. The highlight of your morning is a guided stroll through one of the most amazing sculpture parks in the world. The work of Gustav Vigeland over decades features an epic story of human existence carved on a grand scale in native Granite. Enjoy lunch on your own around the trendy Radhusgata and then return to the hotel, just a short walk away, when you’re ready.

This evening join your fellow travellers for a sumptuous farewell dinner.

Overnight: Grand Hotel Oslo (B, D)

Our tour concludes after breakfast at the hotel. The airport bus or fast airport train both leave from close to the hotel or if you just can’t resist another train journey, the main station is just down the road.