Norway vacations 2024 & 2025

Norway’s historic cities, primal landscapes, and culinary prowess provide a host of experiences from boat trips and mountain biking to food tours and gallery visits. Norway’s history and heritage offer plenty of interest and you could take a guided walking tour of Oslo, discover Ålesund’s Art Nouveau architecture on an e-bike tour, or explore the country’s fine food scene by visiting markets, fish stalls, and cheesemongers on a food tour of Bergen.

Norway’s great outdoors is every bit as impressive as the photos suggest and you could join a guided hike to discover waterfalls, mountains and glaciers, kayak down a fjord between sheer cliffs, or drive the Atlantic Ocean Road, a snaking journey linking a series of tiny islets.

Visit in winter and you’ll find a snowy wonderland where you could spot the billowing northern lights, go dog-sledding, or even stay in an ice hotel.

Sleek Scandinavian style combines with scenic locations at Norway’s hotels, and you could choose to stay in a stylish urban oasis, rustic, family-run guesthouse, or a luxury lodge on a glittering fjord.

For example, you could opt for the timeless elegance and storied history of Oslo’s Grand Hotel, minimalist Nordic styling at a waterfront hotel in Tromsø, or period charm at a former bank in central Bergen.

In more rural areas, you’ll find a secluded log cabin hotel with views over the inky waters and snow-capped peaks of a northern fjord, or a hand-crafted, hillside retreat with hiking, cycling, snowshoeing, and kayaking on the doorstep.

To get a better idea of what’s on offer, browse our collection of places to stay in Norway.

Most visitors to Norway start their trip in Oslo then make their way to the coast to see Bergen and the Norwegian fjords, after which they might head north to Tromsø and the Arctic. In cosmopolitan Oslo you can visit the neoclassical Royal Palace and futuristic opera house, museums dedicated to the works of Munch and Ibsen, as well as the Nobel Peace Center.

The ragged west coast is home to a procession of steep-sided Norwegian fjords accessed from the welcoming town of Bergen which is considered the gateway to the fjords, or the fishing town of Ålesund to the north.

To see the Norwegian Arctic, you’ll need to head to Tromsø where you can sail under the midnight sun in summer and go dog-sledding in winter.

It takes around seven and a half hours to fly from the East Coast of the US to Norway, and around 13 hours from the West Coast.

The time zone in Norway is UTC+1 hour. Daylight Savings Time is observed from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October.

The best way to get around in Norway is by road, boat, and air. Depending on where you want to go and what you’d like to see, you could drive around Norway in a rental car, take a cruise along the spectacular Norwegian fjords, or fly between destinations that are further apart. If you’d prefer not to drive yourself, we can also arrange for a private vehicle and driver-guide to take you between destinations.

US citizens don’t need a visa to visit Norway. Norway is in the Schengen area however, so any time spent here contributes towards your 90-day visa-free limit for travel in the area.

Although it’s unlikely that you’ll need additional immunizations for Norway, check with your doctor for up-to-date advice. You should also ensure you’re up to date with routine vaccinations at home. You can check the recommended vaccinations by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

Check that your passport will be valid for at least three months after you leave Norway, or the wider Schengen area, and has at least two blank pages.