This past spring, we headed to Norway to finally see what all the fuss was about with the famous “Norway in a Nutshell” tour. We had just five days for the trip, and the compact, action-packed itineraries provided by Norway in a Nutshell fit the bill.
Norway is an expensive country, and while short trips are a good way to limit expenditures, the tour itself was still pretty expensive when booking through the official website. So with a little digging, I discovered a way to save some money by booking the same tour myself without paying the surcharge from the official site.
In this post I’ve outlined step-by-step how you, too, can DIY the Norway in a Nutshell tour. It takes a bit more effort, but for the savings, I think it’s more than worth it!
What I’ll cover:
What is the Norway in a Nutshell (NIN) tour?
Norway in a Nutshell (NIN) tours are pre-packaged tours around some of the most beautiful parts of Norway. The tours are self-guided and follow public transportation routes, so they’re not really a “tour” in the traditional sense.
NIN’s website is sleek and easy-to-use. The options are neatly packaged and the trip planner functionality makes it really simple to build your ideal itinerary. And of course, there’s the convenience of being able to book everything at once.
So if you’re looking for a one-stop-shop and aren’t too concerned about cost, you might as well book directly on the official tour site.
But if you’re a thrifty traveler like me (and the fact you’re reading this tells me you probably are…), then you can have the same experience at a reduced cost by booking yourself.
Read more about our trip: 5 Days Exploring Bergen and the Majestic Fjords of Western Norway
How much can you save booking the NIN tour yourself?
The classic NIN route normally starts and/or ends in Oslo. We only had five days, so we decided to save Oslo for another trip and focus on western Norway portion.
In the end, we went for the roundtrip Bergen route with an overnight in Flam — here’s what our route looked like:
We booked our own transportation to/from Bergen, accommodation in Flam, and excursion to the Stegastein viewpoint.
Here’s what we paid for two adults and one child under two by booking everything ourselves (not accounting for hotels):
| Segment | Cost |
|---|---|
| Bergen to Voss Train | 492 NOK |
| Voss to Gudvangen Bus | 184 NOK |
| Gudvangen to Flam Ferry | 1080 NOK |
| Minibus to Stegastein viewpoint | 820 NOK |
| Flam to Myrdal Train | 518 NOK |
| Myrdal to Bergen Train | 970 NOK |
| TOTAL | 4,064 NOK |
Booking through the official tour website would have cost us 5,195 NOK for the same itinerary. All in, we saved 1,131 NOK (roughly $120), a 22% discount off the official tour price. Not bad!
Bear in mind, we did the abbreviated version of the tour, so longer journeys with more stops would result in even greater savings.
Additional ways to save money
To secure the best prices, I’d suggest you travel in the shoulder season (what the NIN website calls “winter” is really spring, fall, and winter combined) and book as early as possible.
We traveled in early April and had the benefit of discounted off-season tickets, but you could expect comparable savings any time of year.
We also planned this trip only about a month in advance. The farther out you book, the cheaper the transportation costs will be.
Sounds great, so how do I DIY the NIN tour?
Step 1: Select your desired route
The most popular route is the classic Norway in a Nutshell tour that connects Oslo to Bergen, but there are several other options available as well.
Browse the tour section on the homepage of the official Norway in a Nutshell website to get a sense of what each route has to offer. Pick the one that appeals most to you and works with your schedule.
Step 2: Plan the itinerary on the official NIN website
Once you decide on the tour, go to the page for that particular route and enter your preferred travel dates, start/end locations, and number of travelers.
Proceed through the steps until you get to the screen that gives you an overview of the itinerary.
Print the page or keep the tab open — you’ll use this as your guide for booking the various components of the journey.
Step 3: Book each transportation leg
I recommend booking your transportation first just to be sure you’re able to secure a spot on the exact train, bus, and ferry needed to make the itinerary match what’s on the NIN website.
You’ll need to use a few websites to book these. For the route we took, we used the following websites:
- www.vy.no for the VY trains to/from Bergen
- www.norwaysbest.com for the bus connecting Voss and Gudvangen (you can also just get the bus tickets when you arrive; I’m told they always have seats available for arrival train passengers)
- www.norwaysbest.com for the ferry connecting Gudvangen and Flam
- www.vy.no for the historic Flam Railway between Flam and Myrdal
More than likely, the other routes will use a similar combination of websites for each leg.
Simply use the search function on each website to locate the same route.
Make sure to check that the departure and arrival times match what’s shown on the NIN itinerary. In some cases, there may be slower or alternate (non-scenic) train routes, so it’s important you select the right one.
Step 4: Book your hotel(s) and other add-ons
Once your transportation is all booked, you can round out the trip by booking your accommodations and any excursions you want to tack on.
You can use whatever hotel booking website you’re used to or shop around for the cheapest deal online.
For the excursions, you’ll likely find them on www.norwaysbest.com. That’s where we booked the Minibus to the Stegastein Viewpoint. If not, a simple google search should do the trick.
And that’s it! You’re now one step closer to your Norwegian adventure — happy travels!
