Norway is opening up

[Amarillo]

(I tried to add this news to the “Norway is shutting down” thread but it is locked)

Norway is reopening kindergartens from 20 April and schools from 27 April.

When will travellers be allowed to return?

 

[Brian’s Dad]

We've sadly had to delay our trip to Norway in early June. My other half is self employed so if she has any opportunity to work she needs to take it up and keep her business going.

We've successfully delayed our Stena Ferries for a credit note, Fjordline will be dependent on Norwegian and UK government guidance if we get any money back.

 

[orbital]

Can you get a ferry to Norway these days? I thought they stopped about five years ago? Is it ridiculously expensive?

 

[Brian’s Dad]

Can you get a ferry to Norway these days? I thought they stopped about five years ago? Is it ridiculously expensive?

Sadly not. Ferry to Holland then up through Denmark

 

[Lightning]

Can you get a ferry to Norway these days? I thought they stopped about five years ago? Is it ridiculously expensive?

Norway is ridiculously expensive once you get there. Pack food like you are going on a trip to the moon.

 

[Lightning]

Norway is ridiculously expensive once you get there. Pack food like you are going on a trip to the moon.

Just as a further indication of how expensive it is there, I just couldn’t bring myself to spend £15 on a small block of cheese or anything else, like fresh anything.
In my infinite wisdom I decided to live on jam sandwiches, because I had lots of jam, and coffee, for the whole duration of my time there. This resulted in a potassium deficiency which caused something called hypokalemia, which it turns out is life threatening and put me in hospital overnight after a couple of months.

 

[bvddobb]

Sorry to hear this, @Lightning ! Hope you have recovered! Must say, though, that it doesn't seem what was infinite here was the wisdom, really...
Fresh produce can be expensive, yes, but there is a lot of tinned and deep frozen food available there that is priced quite reasonably and has all the nourishment qualities of fresh produce!

 

[Lightning]

Sorry to hear this, @Lightning ! Hope you have recovered! Must say, though, that it doesn't seem what was infinite here was the wisdom, really...
Fresh produce can be expensive, yes, but there is a lot of tinned and deep frozen food available there that is priced quite reasonably and has all the nourishment qualities of fresh produce!

Yes I’m fine now thanks. I never get frozen stuff as I’m not sure how to deal with it in a camper. I need to look into this and improve my cooking skills. I even found the tinned stuff expensive, it never stopped being truly shocking leaving a supermarket. Everything else about Norway is lovely though!

 

[briwy]

Pork chops are dirt cheap strangley and it's illegal to import potatoes

 

[Lightning]

Pork chops are dirt cheap strangley and it's illegal to import potatoes

I don’t eat meat, so this does not improve the situation

 

[Amarillo]

Yes I’m fine now thanks. I never get frozen stuff as I’m not sure how to deal with it in a camper. I need to look into this and improve my cooking skills. I even found the tinned stuff expensive, it never stopped being truly shocking leaving a supermarket. Everything else about Norway is lovely though!

We lived on hotdogs and pasta, and from Trondheim took a day trip to Sweden to stock up - and with four of us, it's all four times the cost. Yes, Norway is shockingly expensive.

 

[Jonathan Duke]

Yes I’m fine now thanks. I never get frozen stuff as I’m not sure how to deal with it in a camper. I need to look into this and improve my cooking skills. I even found the tinned stuff expensive, it never stopped being truly shocking leaving a supermarket. Everything else about Norway is lovely though!

We did a (push)cycle trip in Norway, Trondheim to Bergen, so hadn’t any means of carrying the provisions for the trip and therefore reliant on buying food on the move.

My first thoughts when looking at the supermarket shelves/prices were, this is what it must feel like to go to a UK supermarket, if you’re from Eastern Europe.

All in all tho, when I did my post-tour tote-up, it worked out a quite inexpensive holiday.

On a different occasion, I rode my motorcycle from Belfast to the Lofofen Islands. It cost over £900 on fuel, ferries and tolls to get there and back. Whereas, a motorcycle trip from San Francisco to New York (similar distance) cost £250 in fuel and tolls.

So, my option now is, don’t look at the price of individual items but review the trip costs as an overall. If you do this, I think you’ll agree Norway offers good value for money in a Campervan. The scenery is world class, and you don’t have to fly there. Camping/Accommodation costs will also be minimal. So, splash out on that cheese and maybe even a single can of beer to share amongst you

 

[Jay gas]

We lived on hotdogs and pasta, and from Trondheim took a day trip to Sweden to stock up - and with four of us, it's all four times the cost. Yes, Norway is shockingly expensive.

The 5 times I’ve been to Norway is for fishing trips with mates. We ate like kings every night and returned the fish we didn’t eat

 

[Brian’s Dad]

Can you get a ferry to Norway these days? I thought they stopped about five years ago? Is it ridiculously expensive?

We were prepared to take the financial hit re the expense (I also had plans to take as much alcohol as legally limited) and a lot of food. Oh well, I'll keep the plans for next year

 

[ArcticMatt]

I live there normally but I work offshore in the UK. I can't get back to Norway at the moment until flights get back to normal. They are opening up Kindergarten for certain ages next week. I'm not sure if the travel restrictions are lifted yet. You couldn't travel to cabins and other Kommunes before but you had more freedom than the current UK lockdown.

I wouldn't focus on how much things cost in Norway. The countryside makes up for it! I'm missing out on all the Aurora activity at the moment and my poor van is waiting for some TLC.

PP Smurf & The Beiarfjellet Nordlys by Matt Wilde, on Flickr

IMG_20190716_171301_540 by Matt Wilde, on Flickr

 

[Anthony1]

Norway is ridiculously expensive once you get there. Pack food like you are going on a trip to the moon.

We brought back a lot of the food we took with us, ie tinned potatoes, peas, carrots etc.

My wife, being the excellent cook she is, manged to create great meals from fresh poduce and some frozen meats. Beer and wine is exhorbitant though.

 

[Sp0_0k]

Food is pretty cheap if you travel smartly.
They have lots of sales 50-70% on food about to expire so when carrying a 50l freezer we were packing on some cheaper than in Europe food.
You can easily get a good Norwegian cheese for 5-7Eur kilo. Lots of freesh fish in fjords as well.
You get lots of mushrooms an berries
You get lots of free apples in open gardens that they leave mostly to rot.
For us Norway is cheapest and healthiest to travel from all the Europe.

On the travel note I have a 100% feeling they will not open borders till the end of this year. So spending about 6 months each year there, we expect to stay at home. Czech government says borders are to be locked for 1-2 years so we aren't allowed to leave other than essential business by plane.

 

[Anthony1]

Food is pretty cheap if you travel smartly.
They have lots of sales 50-70% on food about to expire so when carrying a 50l freezer we were packing on some cheaper than in Europe food.
You can easily get a good Norwegian cheese for 5-7Eur kilo. Lots of freesh fish in fjords as well.
You get lots of mushrooms an berries
You get lots of free apples in open gardens that they leave mostly to rot.
For us Norway is cheapest and healthiest to travel from all the Europe.

On the travel note I have a 100% feeling they will not open borders till the end of this year. So spending about 6 months each year there, we expect to stay at home. Czech government says borders are to be locked for 1-2 years so we aren't allowed to leave other than essential business by plane.

That seems a bit draconian. Locked borders for 1 - 2 years. So no overland tourists and no overland travel for locals. What about lorries importing and exporting goods?

Besides, if everything is sorted out within 6 months, vaccinations etc, surely they will open the borders.

 

[Sp0_0k]

Logistics traffic, of course, goes through, though with checks and huge lines and on the borders.
Don't think I can build a travel van in a lorry as well
I suspect serious food supply issues soon. Considering lots of countries don't have workers for the fields.
In any case, I would recommend a realistic plan of "no travel" this year.

 

[bvddobb]

What about lorries importing and exporting goods?

Those are allowed currently already, as is necessary (work, medicine) local border travel. But campervans on holiday are definitely not necessary...

Besides, if everything is sorted out within 6 months, vaccinations etc

Vaccination within 6 months! Love your optimism!

 

[Trollhunter]

The last I read in the papers here, was that they may not be allowing visitors in until the end of 2020. Only residents. I would start having a back-up plan just in case!

 

[bvddobb]

The last I read in the papers here, was that they may not be allowing visitors in until the end of 2020. Only residents. I would start having a back-up plan just in case!

@Trollhunter , have you got a link?

 

[Trollhunter]

@Trollhunter , have you got a link?

I think I read it in a continuous corona thread in the local paper last week. Can’t seem to find exactly where, but can keep the post updated if I see some news

 

[WelshGas]

Coronavirus in Norway: The Latest News on the COVID-19 Outbreak

UPDATED: 12 FEB 2022. Everyday life in Norway is now finally back to normal. Here’s everything you need to know about the coronavirus in Norway. It's hard to believe I've been keeping this page updated

www.lifeinnorway.net

 

[Lightning]

Just as a further indication of how expensive it is there, I just couldn’t bring myself to spend £15 on a small block of cheese or anything else, like fresh anything.
In my infinite wisdom I decided to live on jam sandwiches, because I had lots of jam, and coffee, for the whole duration of my time there. This resulted in a potassium deficiency which caused something called hypokalemia, which it turns out is life threatening and put me in hospital overnight after a couple of months.

It looks like it probably wasn’t the jam sandwiches after all...I was tested for Covid in hospital but never received the test results, and have been unable to find out since.

Covid-19 Research Updates: Chinese Study Reveals That Hypokalemia Present In Almost All Covid-19 Patients
Source: Covid-19 Research Mar 09, 2020 2 months ago
Covid-19 Research: A new research study by researchers from Wenzhou Medical University in Zhejiang province lead by Dr Don Chen revealed that almost all Covid-19 patients exhibited hypokalemia and that supplementation with potassium ions was one of the many factors that assisted in their recovery.