My hometown : Bergen

This blog entry is supposed to be my only Bergen Blog Entry with all the information  you could need when visiting Bergen. Its still under constructions and I would love if anyone could message me about things to add.

 

Bergen is a city in Norway .' The name Bergen comes from the old Name Bjørgvin, which means "the meadow beneath the mountains". This is the reason why Bergen is also referred to as the "The city among the seven mountains".

Bergen is by many called the most beautiful city in Norway,  and when you see the spectacular view from Mount Ulriken its not hard to see why. Bergen is the second largest city in Norway has a reputation for bad weather and not without reason. The average yearly precipitation is 2250mm, with over 250 wet days. The weather tends to be better in the summer months.

Bergen was the largest city in Scandinavia until the 18th century. It was surpassed by Oslo in the 19th Century. The latest 2006 census reports that 242.158 people living within the Bergen city limits.

Getting there:

AIR:

Bergen is serviced by both International and Domestic flights from its Airport Flesland Lufthavn. Bergen Airport Flesland is a small and efficient airport located 19km west of the city centre and its reachable by bus. You can take the Airport Express (Norwegian Flybussen) or local busses. Pay the fare (80kr) to the driver when you enter the bus. You can also use local busses which takes a bit longer, but they cost 23kr. From the Airport take the busses marked “100 Sentrum” and if youre heading to the airport take “530” from the terminal at “Vestre Strømkai, just next to the main bus station. Its located next to a building with a sign “Bergen Maritime”

Flying is the fastest and sometimes cheapest way to get around in Norway. If you wants to get to Trondheim or Stavanger you have to travel to Oslo and then change trains again.

Train:

The Trainride between Bergen and Oslo is one of the most scenic commercial train rides in the world and should not be missed. On a clear day It would leave you breathless as you are passing through the largest mountain plateau in Northern Europe. A good solution can be to catch the very early morning train to Bergen and get off at Myrdal and take the “Flåm Scenic Railway” down to Flåm and the the ferry into Bergen or just take the ferry to Gudvangen.

Do not take the nighttrains as you miss the scenic views

Boat:

Bergen is the Transport hub for local ferries and you can take fast-ferries to several domestic destinations along the Norwegian coast such as Stavanger in the south and Sogndal in the north.  The Coastal Express has its endstop in Bergen and leaves everyday.

International ferries:

From Bergen you can get to Denmark (Hanstholm and Hirtshals), England (Newcastle) , Scotland (Scabster), Faroe Islands (Torshavn)  and Iceland.

Check out: www.dfds.co.uk , and www.smyril-line.com

Bus:

There are no really cheap buses going from Oslo to Bergen anymore as the company went bankrupt. There are however buses to Stavanger , Trondheim , Odda and many other destinations. These leaves from the “Nonneseter” Terminal behind the Main bus station and its clearly marked by signs.

Note that flying or by boat is almost always cheaper than taking the bus to Trondheim and Stavanger.

Tourist information:

The Tourist information is located at “Vågsalmenningen which is reached by the fish market. Here you can find hotels , hostels and other excursions. You can also find great city maps which highlights many of the things.

Attractions:

The Fish market is located between the main square and the Harbour and is selling small pieces of Whale meat and other foodstuff. Be sure to try the whalemeat as its really damn good. The fish isn’t as fresh as you could expect so I recommend only trying the whalemeat and eating your fish an other place.

The Aquarium (Norwegian : Akvariet) is located on the Nordnes-peninsula. When standing at the end of the town square looking towards the Fishmarket walk in the street where you can see the blue neon sign “Kløverhuset”. Walk straight ahead until youll find the aquarium. The Aquarium features the world biggest collections of fish in the north sea and in the summers there are seals performing outside.

Mount Fløyen and Mount Ulriken. This is a mountains which gives a good overview over Downtown Bergen and should not be missed to take one of the mandatory tourist photos of Bergen. It can be reached in several different ways, the funicular leaving from the lower station close to bryggen being the most convenient and the Stolzekleiven-hike being the most scenic. If you wants to take the Stolzkleiven hike look at the end of this article.

Fantoft Stave Church. This church is located 6km outside the city centre is is reached by buses 20-24 from the Main bus station. Tell the driver that you wants to see Fantoft Stavkirke, the fare is 23kr each way. Fantoft Stave church is not the biggest and not the best stave church, but if you aren’t planning on going to any other it is defiantly a must see while you are visiting Norway. The church is a replica from 1997 after the original church was burned down in 1992 by Varg Vikernes , a vocal in a death metal band which killed the rest of his band in anger. He is now in a maximum security prison,

The other easily accessible stave church is in the Folk Museum in Oslo. If youre planning to see the church in oslo skip this one.

Troldhaugen (The hill of Trolls) was the home of Edvard Grieg, some say one of the best composers of his works of Standard Orchestral repertoire. You can also catch concerts here, but you have to buy your ticket at the tourist information.

Check out: www.troldhaugen.no

 

There are way more attractions, but I haven’t had time to add them yet. If you are going to Bergen shortly send me a message and ill put in the extra effort.

Hiking!:

Bergen is a paradise for nature lovers as the city is surround by 7 mountains, each easily accessible from the city centre. There is a funicular up Mount Fløyen and Gondola to Mount Ulriken, but if you feel adventurous there are alternative routes for walking up the mountains:

To approach Mount Ulriken Walk into Tarlebøveien and follow the sign to Hardbakka when you come to the Intersection. Follow the signs that say "Kulturminneløypen" until they start to head down again. Make a right when you see the old settlement called “Hardabakken” Continue upwards and walk up the very steep trail. Be prepared to break a sweat as youre climbing more than 400meters. When you are at the top look for the Cairn. Follow the Cairns left if you want to end up at Mount Fløyen or Right if you want to End up at Mount Ulriken. Ulriken is is the one with better views. In summers you can take the Cable Car down again, but in winters you’ll have to walk down. Three hours from Tarlebøveien to Mount Ulriken, and another 45minutes if you want to walk down from Mount Ulriken.

To approach Mount Fløyen you can walk up from the Lower Station at the funicular and upto Fjellveien (eng: The mountain Road). From here  continue left for around 1km until you see the sign Stolzekleiven on your right hand side. Stoltzekleiven is a popular workout for locals and you can met several people on your way up. Stoltzekleiven is 801 steps (more or less, experts disagree) which will take you up to 399meters. The starting altitude around 100meter so the vertical gain is 300meters. Be prepared to bring a bottle of water. When you reach to wooden plateau you just walk straight (after your much deserved rest) then follow the trail until you get to a small lake. This pond of water contains the drinking water for Bergen and is perfectly drinkable. On your right hand side you will see signs to the nearby mountains. The best best and shortest route is the route towards Mount Fløyen.. You will pass lush terrain, scenic lakes and will end up at Mount Fløyen to experience a very nice view over Bergen.

 

Drinking in Bergen. These places are some of my personal favorites and may not be the general oppinion, but you wont go wrong with these places:

Pubs

Biskopen. Nice pub with old furniture , and a fireplace.  Shows big soccer matches.  Highly recomended. Adress: Intersection between Neumansgate and Sigurdsgate. 56kr for a beer

 Fotballpuben:  This is the official pub of the local fotballteam and is VERY crowded when they are playing. This is a pub for watching soccer games and to play free billiard. A “disco” at Friday and Saturday night. Highly recommended for starting the night with billiard and some pints.  39-49kr for a beer.

Sjøboden: A pub located at bryggen. Rumors say this pub has kept it going for many hundred years. The pub has a nautical theme and the queue can be very long at weekends. Most of the crowd are from outside of Bergen and bring a nice country feel. Highly recommended if you wants something different. Live Music from various local heroes.

Hectors Hybel. They serve cheap coffe and has a more intellectual crowd than most bars. I love coming down here for discussion politics among other things. The pub itself is pretty dark, but I like it.

Zachariasbryggen: Zachariasbryggen , often called Zachen by locals are a legendary pub at summers when smokers are sitting out in the backyard talking about everything. A perfect place to relax and watch the boats coming in and out of the harbor. Expensive beers.

Legal. This is one of my favorite pubs next to biskopen. Its fitted with retro interior from the 50’s and has a nice crowd. If youre up at the 2.nd floor you can look down at the people on the streets below. The staff er nice and can easily make you something that’s not on the menu. Highly recommended.

Kong Oscar is the pool pub nr1 in Bergen. Its pretty expensive , so if you wants to play pool fotballpuben might be better. You can however play free darts.

Dyvekes Vinkjeller (Wine cellar).This is not a pub, but rather a wine cellar.  If you find a girl you wants to impress , take her here. Its a classy place with plenty of private space to talk.

Pingvinen. An excellent Gastro-pub.  Always a favorite!  Its crowded, but where else can you get traditional Norwegian food in the middle of the night? They have a real kitchen and makes the food the way its meant to be made. Good eating place at daytime and very crowded at night.

BIEN. An old Pharmacy lying outside of the city centre. The serves as a gastropub at daytime and a good local pub at nighttime. Its my local pub and Im there frequently.

 

Music Venues:

Garage:  The once so legendary Garage has now gone mainstream and lost some of its soul. Back in the 90’s this was the place to be if you where a metalhead and plenty of nails and leather. Today it’s a normal rock-pub with good concerts in the basements. 80kr CC for the concerts.

Inside:  This is the place where all the metal-heads have gone after garage went mainstream. Even if metal aint your thing make sure to make a pitstop here to order the best Hamburger in town. The Hamburger is called “Fyllasyk” which translates into “Hungover”. At night it’s a bar which plays metal. They also have concerts at their venue called Hinsides.

Hulen:  Cheap beers and good music.  This is the best rock-disco in town and its run by students. Highly recommended.

Nightclubs:

Tiger Tiger : The best nightclub in town. 100kr CC. No baggy jeans/sweaters. Expensive drinks. No CC on Thursdays. 23yo admission in Saturdays , 20on Thursdays

Metro : The most hip nightclub in Bergen. 100kr CC. No baggy jeans/sweaters. Really expensive, very crowded. It’s a little to posh and hip for me.

Klaar Bar: In the same areas as Zachen, but on the 2.nd floor. This is a “nightclub” where you can find cheap beers on Thursdays with a mixed crowd. Saturdays is also a good day for going here.

Ovenpå: Cheap nightclub for 18year olds. 60kr CC and 25kr for a beer. Good meat market for picking up a young girl if youre into that. Cheesy music , but its almost always crowded due to being an place for 18year olds and having cheap beer.

Downstairs. This is a nightclub located under fotballpuben. Its not a real nightclub, but its not really a pub either. They show the football games and is frequented by football fans. They even have LCD screens in the bathrooms so you wont miss a second of the match. ar At night it transforms into a nightclub and they does it quite well. Don’t be ashamed to make a pitstop here. No CC.