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Northern Europe/Scandinavia Recs
Posted on 12/6/24 at 8:18 am
Posted on 12/6/24 at 8:18 am
Wife and I are attending a wedding in Paris on Labor Day weekend. Our schedule doesn't allow for travel after the wedding, but we'd like to get there early and spend 12-14 nights in Europe, ending with the wedding in Paris.
Neither of us have ever been to Denmark or anywhere in Scandinavia so that's something we're really interested in. We are thinking 4-5 nights in Paris and split the other 8-9 nights between 2 cities like Copenhagen/Stockholm/Oslo/Helsinki.
Any recommendations for or against any of these places? Our thought is that we will probably be back to France/Italy/London at some point but this would knock out some cities that we might never get to otherwise.
Neither of us have ever been to Denmark or anywhere in Scandinavia so that's something we're really interested in. We are thinking 4-5 nights in Paris and split the other 8-9 nights between 2 cities like Copenhagen/Stockholm/Oslo/Helsinki.
Any recommendations for or against any of these places? Our thought is that we will probably be back to France/Italy/London at some point but this would knock out some cities that we might never get to otherwise.
8
Posted on 12/6/24 at 9:21 am to RTN
Rent a car and drive to the Normandy Region and immerse. Stay in Bayeaux.
Or…
Go to Bergen Norway. Loved it! Stockholm of those listed.
Haven’t been but go to Estonia.
Or…
Go to Bergen Norway. Loved it! Stockholm of those listed.
Haven’t been but go to Estonia.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 9:25 am to Nole Man
quote:
Go to Bergen Norway. Loved it! Stockholm of those listed.
Haven’t been but go to Estonia.
Definitely open to places not listed, I'm obviously listing the big ones, but I'm not well versed on the region at all.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 11:10 am to RTN
I've been to all those cities several times, except Oslo which Ive only been to once. I would say Copenhagen is my favorite and I've been getting the itch to go back again. It's a small, compact city with a fairy tale like character where you could easily spend 3 or 4 days just walking around.....or even better, rent a bicycle which is what we do. You can also day trip out to a couple of castles, a great modern art museum called Louisiana Museum but has nothing to do with the state and over the Öresund Bridge on the train to Malmo, Sweden which is a great town too.
Helsinki is aslo a nice town and you can take a 2-3 hour fairy ride to Tallinn, Estonia which has a spectacular medieval Old Town.
Stockholm I've never loved and I've been there 4 times including once with a friend who grew up there and we stayed at his sisters house out on an island outside the city center. But other people seem to love it so maybe I'm missing something.
Oslo I liked and the train ride from Oslo to Bergen is spectacular but its been several years since I was there.
All those towns except Tallinn will be very, very, very expensive.
Helsinki is aslo a nice town and you can take a 2-3 hour fairy ride to Tallinn, Estonia which has a spectacular medieval Old Town.
Stockholm I've never loved and I've been there 4 times including once with a friend who grew up there and we stayed at his sisters house out on an island outside the city center. But other people seem to love it so maybe I'm missing something.
Oslo I liked and the train ride from Oslo to Bergen is spectacular but its been several years since I was there.
All those towns except Tallinn will be very, very, very expensive.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 11:58 am to Zappas Stache
Was just looking at Tallin, looks really cool. Coworker was having a hard time describing it but he was saying that the local cuisine in Copenhagen is really different than what we're used to in the US.
Budget shouldn't be an issue since we're kind of using this as a delayed honeymoon, but kind of curious what you mean when you say that. Like comparable to an NYC trip staying in Manhattan?
Budget shouldn't be an issue since we're kind of using this as a delayed honeymoon, but kind of curious what you mean when you say that. Like comparable to an NYC trip staying in Manhattan?
Posted on 12/6/24 at 12:10 pm to RTN
FYI… Loved our trip to Poland. Kraków and Warsaw were spectacular. Gdansk in the North. Visit Auschwitz.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 1:59 pm to RTN
quote:
but kind of curious what you mean when you say that. Like comparable to an NYC trip staying in Manhattan?
I was last in Copenhagen about 10 years ago when the dollar was weak and it was definitely more expensive than Manhattan by maybe 30%.....that's just a guess. But the dollar is strong right now so that will help. I would say the cost would be similar to Manhattan these days.
The local cuisine is different but not shockingly so. The pastries there are fantastic and you can find whatever ethic cuisine you want like in any other big city.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 7:01 pm to RTN
Oslo and Helsinki are kind of dull by European standards. The best part of Scandanavia is the western fjordlands in Norway. I would fly into Stockholm or Copenhagen and explore for 3-4 days. Then fly to Alesund, Norway, rent a car and spend 4-5 days driving down to Bergen or Stavanger. The route will take some careful planning - the topography doesn't allow for straight roads there. But the scenery is some of the best in the world.
Posted on 12/6/24 at 10:41 pm to RTN
Flights to Bremen via AMS were very very cheap compared to Copenhagen so we did N. Germany for a few days and took the train to Copenhagen. Might be worth looking into if Copenhagen is up for consideration(it absolutely should be). Roskilde is a quick train ride from Copenhagen. The Viking Ship Museum is awesome.
Bremen is a beautiful city, definitely worth a night or two.
Hamburg is your typical large Euro city but has some interesting neighborhoods. It was hit pretty hard during WWII and has lost a lot of its historical architecture. HafenCity is great to ride bikes/scooters around, it’s an old warehouse area connected by waterways.
Super niche, but we really enjoyed Flensburg and Glucksburg on the Danish/German border. Somewhat of a beach resort area, great seafood and golf, biking, etc. Fun fact: the Angeln Peninsula is where the tribe of the Angles migrated to Britain from and gave their name to England and the English language.
Bremen is a beautiful city, definitely worth a night or two.
Hamburg is your typical large Euro city but has some interesting neighborhoods. It was hit pretty hard during WWII and has lost a lot of its historical architecture. HafenCity is great to ride bikes/scooters around, it’s an old warehouse area connected by waterways.
Super niche, but we really enjoyed Flensburg and Glucksburg on the Danish/German border. Somewhat of a beach resort area, great seafood and golf, biking, etc. Fun fact: the Angeln Peninsula is where the tribe of the Angles migrated to Britain from and gave their name to England and the English language.
Posted on 12/7/24 at 5:14 pm to RTN
quote:Pick any two.
8-9 nights between 2 cities like Copenhagen/Stockholm/Oslo/Helsinki.
I’d probably go a couple of days in Helsinki & a week in Sweden/Stockholm.
That’s just me.
Have a great trip.
Posted on 12/10/24 at 8:59 am to AUFANATL
quote:
Oslo and Helsinki are kind of dull by European standards. The best part of Scandanavia is the western fjordlands in Norway. I would fly into Stockholm or Copenhagen and explore for 3-4 days. Then fly to Alesund, Norway, rent a car and spend 4-5 days driving down to Bergen or Stavanger. The route will take some careful planning - the topography doesn't allow for straight roads there. But the scenery is some of the best in the world.
Thanks for the input... I'm based in Dallas so I'm not sure if I should be letting this influence me at all, but Helsinki is the only city we're looking at that has a direct flight from DFW, so I feel myself gravitating toward starting there.
But connecting might not be too big of a deal, I'm just used to flying direct everywhere. Kind of spoiled by DFW and Love
Posted on 12/10/24 at 10:12 pm to RTN
Here’s what I’d do…
2 days in Helsinki. It’s all you need. Book a tour or two and stay downtown. It’s super small and a bit dull.
Book a ferry to Tallinn. I f&$cking love that town. Most underrated city in Europe IMHO. The ferry will cost you $30. Give it two days too. Book a place near or in the old town.
From there you get a toss up. A ferry to Copenhagen or a bus to Riga. Riga is great too. A bus will take 3-4 hours and cost you $10. I’ve done it a few times and still consider Riga very charming.
2 days in Helsinki. It’s all you need. Book a tour or two and stay downtown. It’s super small and a bit dull.
Book a ferry to Tallinn. I f&$cking love that town. Most underrated city in Europe IMHO. The ferry will cost you $30. Give it two days too. Book a place near or in the old town.
From there you get a toss up. A ferry to Copenhagen or a bus to Riga. Riga is great too. A bus will take 3-4 hours and cost you $10. I’ve done it a few times and still consider Riga very charming.
Posted on 12/11/24 at 8:41 am to wiltznucs
Have I been living under a rock or are Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius hidden gems? I've never heard anyone mention these places but now that you guys have mentioned it, they look much more appealing than western European cities. What are the downsides to these places? Cold weather?
Posted on 12/11/24 at 9:43 am to RTN
They have been geographically isolated as they aren’t connected by the Euro rail system. They can only be accessed by air, ferry or car/bus. Lasting vestiges of being part of the former Soviet Union.
Tallinn has the best preserved medieval village in Europe. It’s gorgeous. The old town area is super fun. The newer area is clean, safe and easy to navigate. The food scene there is exceptional. I can comfortably say that the best burger I’ve ever had was in Tallinn. Since Soviet occupation erased much of its native culinary traditions they’ve since been very willing to adopt others and put their own spin on it. Take a walking tour, hit the old KGB hotel and visit the palace/museum. Restaurant Harg; write that down.
Riga is sort of the same. The old town is gorgeous. It’s considered a world heritage site due to the amount of art nouveau architecture. Very easy to negotiate on foot or using public transportation. Again; strong food scene and in general very cheap by European standards. Book a day trip out to see the Rundale Palace and Hill of Crosses.
Vilnius is also cool. Of the three it would be a distant third for me compared to the other two. Great breweries in the area. If time constraints were an issue; I’d make it a day trip.
Downsides…. Accessing it is the challenge. It’s Northern Europe so it does get quite cold in winter. Finding English speakers is easy in Riga and Tallinn. Not so much in Vilnius. Outside of that; it’s all upsides. Things are generally very inexpensive by European standards. Food, hotels, etc. Public transportation works well; and you’ll find Bolt (their Uber) is also very cheap.
Tallinn has the best preserved medieval village in Europe. It’s gorgeous. The old town area is super fun. The newer area is clean, safe and easy to navigate. The food scene there is exceptional. I can comfortably say that the best burger I’ve ever had was in Tallinn. Since Soviet occupation erased much of its native culinary traditions they’ve since been very willing to adopt others and put their own spin on it. Take a walking tour, hit the old KGB hotel and visit the palace/museum. Restaurant Harg; write that down.
Riga is sort of the same. The old town is gorgeous. It’s considered a world heritage site due to the amount of art nouveau architecture. Very easy to negotiate on foot or using public transportation. Again; strong food scene and in general very cheap by European standards. Book a day trip out to see the Rundale Palace and Hill of Crosses.
Vilnius is also cool. Of the three it would be a distant third for me compared to the other two. Great breweries in the area. If time constraints were an issue; I’d make it a day trip.
Downsides…. Accessing it is the challenge. It’s Northern Europe so it does get quite cold in winter. Finding English speakers is easy in Riga and Tallinn. Not so much in Vilnius. Outside of that; it’s all upsides. Things are generally very inexpensive by European standards. Food, hotels, etc. Public transportation works well; and you’ll find Bolt (their Uber) is also very cheap.
This post was edited on 12/11/24 at 9:46 am
Posted on 12/11/24 at 11:04 am to RTN
quote:
are Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius hidden gems?
We did that trip a few years ago and loved it.
Posted on 1/11/25 at 7:44 am to wiltznucs
Zappa and Wiltz- flight is booked from DFW to Helsinki May 14th. We have 7 nights before we need to be in Paris so my initial thought based on yalls guidance was 2 nights in Helsinki, 2 in Tallinn, 3 in Copenhagen. We land at 3pm in Helsinki so 2 nights there is really only 1 full day. It sounds like that may be enough? Then take a morning ferry and get 2 full days in Tallinn.
Do you guys think that allocation makes sense?
ETA- Any suggestions on where to stay in any of those cities or restaurants that were really memorable?
Do you guys think that allocation makes sense?
ETA- Any suggestions on where to stay in any of those cities or restaurants that were really memorable?
This post was edited on 1/11/25 at 8:30 am
Posted on 1/11/25 at 10:31 am to RTN
Sounds fun…
2 days in Helsinki is probably plenty. It’s quite small.
I stayed at the Noli Katajanokka. It’s near the historic city market and waterfront. It’s a stones throw from one of the major ferry ports and the historic city square. Has an on-site restaurant and bar. Plus a gym and a sauna. The rooms are very modest; but, typically well equipped with a fridge and washer for laundry.
Alternatively; there’s some more luxury type hotels in the downtown area.
I’d suggest booking a city tour. Viator is a good start. There’s some walking tours which will get you to most of the sites in a day.
Go to Fazer and have a geisha latte. Grab some chocolates to bring home. Do dinner at Kappeli. A ferry trip to Suomenlinna Island is a fun little excursion. Boats go to and from the island every 20 minutes.
The ferry to Tallinn takes about 2 hours depending on weather conditions. Book your tickets in advance and make sure you arrive to the correct port. There’s two major operators and they depart from two different terminals.
For Tallinn…
I stayed at the Taanilinna Hotell. It’s located in the historic Old Town. It’s very old and quaint. Has a free breakfast. It’s a 5 minute walk to the historic square and also 5 minutes from the new town.
For Tallinn, I’d strongly recommend booking a walking tour of the Old Town. Eat at Olde Hansa in the square. It’s made to feel like you are at a medieval restaurant. Wooden plates and earthenware bowls. No electricity. Light provided by candles. Schtick aside; the food is good and it’s a fun experience. Restaurant Harg is also a must. Get the dirty steak appetizer.
Tallinn has a thriving restaurant scene. Seriously; there’s good stuff all over. Kadriorg Palace is lovely. Acts as the national art museum now. The Hotel Viru is the oldest in the city. Built during Soviet occupation. It’s got a fun little tour where you can see where the KGB had utilized an entire floor and was spying on all the hotel guests. It’s said it’s held together by concrete and microphones. LOL…
I’ve not been to Copenhagen so I cannot speak to it; however, I think two full days in Tallinn will certainly give you a good taste of it. 3 might be better; but, if going to Copenhagen I’d probably opt to use that extra day there.
2 days in Helsinki is probably plenty. It’s quite small.
I stayed at the Noli Katajanokka. It’s near the historic city market and waterfront. It’s a stones throw from one of the major ferry ports and the historic city square. Has an on-site restaurant and bar. Plus a gym and a sauna. The rooms are very modest; but, typically well equipped with a fridge and washer for laundry.
Alternatively; there’s some more luxury type hotels in the downtown area.
I’d suggest booking a city tour. Viator is a good start. There’s some walking tours which will get you to most of the sites in a day.
Go to Fazer and have a geisha latte. Grab some chocolates to bring home. Do dinner at Kappeli. A ferry trip to Suomenlinna Island is a fun little excursion. Boats go to and from the island every 20 minutes.
The ferry to Tallinn takes about 2 hours depending on weather conditions. Book your tickets in advance and make sure you arrive to the correct port. There’s two major operators and they depart from two different terminals.
For Tallinn…
I stayed at the Taanilinna Hotell. It’s located in the historic Old Town. It’s very old and quaint. Has a free breakfast. It’s a 5 minute walk to the historic square and also 5 minutes from the new town.
For Tallinn, I’d strongly recommend booking a walking tour of the Old Town. Eat at Olde Hansa in the square. It’s made to feel like you are at a medieval restaurant. Wooden plates and earthenware bowls. No electricity. Light provided by candles. Schtick aside; the food is good and it’s a fun experience. Restaurant Harg is also a must. Get the dirty steak appetizer.
Tallinn has a thriving restaurant scene. Seriously; there’s good stuff all over. Kadriorg Palace is lovely. Acts as the national art museum now. The Hotel Viru is the oldest in the city. Built during Soviet occupation. It’s got a fun little tour where you can see where the KGB had utilized an entire floor and was spying on all the hotel guests. It’s said it’s held together by concrete and microphones. LOL…
I’ve not been to Copenhagen so I cannot speak to it; however, I think two full days in Tallinn will certainly give you a good taste of it. 3 might be better; but, if going to Copenhagen I’d probably opt to use that extra day there.
This post was edited on 1/11/25 at 10:43 am
Posted on 1/11/25 at 2:47 pm to AUFANATL
quote:
The best part of Scandanavia is the western fjordlands in Norway.
By far.
Posted on 1/11/25 at 2:55 pm to GOP_Tiger
quote:
The best part of Scandanavia is the western fjordlands in Norway
On a clear day which isn't a given. I know from experience.
But on a clear day it's spectacular. This was at 11 PM.
This is a famous vantage point on a not clear day.
This post was edited on 1/11/25 at 3:17 pm
Posted on 1/11/25 at 5:45 pm to RTN
We stay in Airbnbs so can't help with hotels
Helsinki:
I was in Helsinki 20 years ago and it was kind of a sleepy town. But we went back 6 or 7 years ago and it was much more vibrant and we really enjoyed it. I'm generally not a fan of food halls but Helsinki has a really great, cozy hall called Hietalahden kauppahalli that we loved. They have all sorts of food available and what we had was really good. There is often a flea market outside of the hall. If you are a beer nurd like me, try a traditional farmhouse Sahti beer. It's tart like a lambic or sour beer as it's fermented with natural bacteria instead of lab created yeast. Helsinki Bryggeri Brewhouse has sahti and is a cool place with a courtyard to chill. They had a band playing when we were there that was really fun. We are into modern architecture so did the Alvar Alto studio and home tour which was fantastic. Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma is a great contemporary building designed by american Steven Holl and has a nice collection.
Tallinn:
Old town is spectacular but will be crowded with tourists. But there will be lots of outdoor seating at cafes so pick one and have a drink and people watch.
Outside the north gate of old town is an area called Kalamaja which is where Russian workers who came to work in factories lived back in the day. It is way less touristy and where locals hang out and where our airbnb was. There are several cafes and restaurants including Humalakoda Pub Restaurant Brewery, Ulo and Burger Box that are all good. There is a residential neighborhood full of wood facade houses that were built to house all the Russian workers and is cool to walk around and check out. Set the Kalamaja Maritime museum as your destination and you'll find these houses. Estonia has a beautiful coast line with white cliffs in one area and an abandoned Soviet submarine base called Hara that is really cool to walk around but I think you have to pre arrange a visit. When I went with an Estonian guy we snuck in through a hole in the fence, but thats another story.
Copenhagen:
It's been a while since I was in Copenhagen but its full of great, high end restaurants. We had lunch at Noma about 20 years ago when they were still a new restaurant and it was fantastic but probably not the $$$ we paid. I thought they had announced they were going to close for good but looks like they are still open. Kadeau is another good new nordic restaurant.
Pastries in Copenhagen are a must eat and any shop with a golden pretzel on its signage has met the highest standards and you can't go wrong buying from there.
Freetown Christiana is a hippie commune in the middle of copenhagen that you should check out. You used to be able to buy hash from the street vendors there but I think the police cracked down on that. There are several restaurants there and a brewery called Christiania Bryghus, The Lab. Woodstock is a great beer garden and If you are adventurous, Morgenstedet is a vegetarian buffet place in a little building with a bunch of picnic tables outside where you can eat with a bunch of hippies.Moonfisher is a good spot to have a coffee.
Cemetery of Holmen is a great old cemetery where Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Anderson are buried.
Helsinki:
I was in Helsinki 20 years ago and it was kind of a sleepy town. But we went back 6 or 7 years ago and it was much more vibrant and we really enjoyed it. I'm generally not a fan of food halls but Helsinki has a really great, cozy hall called Hietalahden kauppahalli that we loved. They have all sorts of food available and what we had was really good. There is often a flea market outside of the hall. If you are a beer nurd like me, try a traditional farmhouse Sahti beer. It's tart like a lambic or sour beer as it's fermented with natural bacteria instead of lab created yeast. Helsinki Bryggeri Brewhouse has sahti and is a cool place with a courtyard to chill. They had a band playing when we were there that was really fun. We are into modern architecture so did the Alvar Alto studio and home tour which was fantastic. Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma is a great contemporary building designed by american Steven Holl and has a nice collection.
Tallinn:
Old town is spectacular but will be crowded with tourists. But there will be lots of outdoor seating at cafes so pick one and have a drink and people watch.
Outside the north gate of old town is an area called Kalamaja which is where Russian workers who came to work in factories lived back in the day. It is way less touristy and where locals hang out and where our airbnb was. There are several cafes and restaurants including Humalakoda Pub Restaurant Brewery, Ulo and Burger Box that are all good. There is a residential neighborhood full of wood facade houses that were built to house all the Russian workers and is cool to walk around and check out. Set the Kalamaja Maritime museum as your destination and you'll find these houses. Estonia has a beautiful coast line with white cliffs in one area and an abandoned Soviet submarine base called Hara that is really cool to walk around but I think you have to pre arrange a visit. When I went with an Estonian guy we snuck in through a hole in the fence, but thats another story.
Copenhagen:
It's been a while since I was in Copenhagen but its full of great, high end restaurants. We had lunch at Noma about 20 years ago when they were still a new restaurant and it was fantastic but probably not the $$$ we paid. I thought they had announced they were going to close for good but looks like they are still open. Kadeau is another good new nordic restaurant.
Pastries in Copenhagen are a must eat and any shop with a golden pretzel on its signage has met the highest standards and you can't go wrong buying from there.
Freetown Christiana is a hippie commune in the middle of copenhagen that you should check out. You used to be able to buy hash from the street vendors there but I think the police cracked down on that. There are several restaurants there and a brewery called Christiania Bryghus, The Lab. Woodstock is a great beer garden and If you are adventurous, Morgenstedet is a vegetarian buffet place in a little building with a bunch of picnic tables outside where you can eat with a bunch of hippies.Moonfisher is a good spot to have a coffee.
Cemetery of Holmen is a great old cemetery where Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Anderson are buried.
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