Scandinavian driving trip (4): Stavanger and around (Norway)

Itinerary (1) 
Netherlands to Sweden (2)
Bergen and around in Norway (3)

Pulpit rock

After Bergen, we moved towards Stavanger and spent our last few days in Norway exploring the countryside around. The highlight of this part of our travels was the stay in the absolutely wonderful island of Mosteroy, as well as the hike up Pulpit Rock and the grand views overlooking Lysefjord. After all that, leaving Norway was tough, and the drive back was the most boring two days of our trip.


Day 10: Drive from Bergen to Stavanger (Mosteroy island) (4.5h), with stop at Haugesund

Today we left Bergen and started driving towards Stavanger, our next stop. Most of the drive was along the fjords, and coastal islands of Norway, jumping from one island to another either through bridges or on ferries. The islands were mostly green and uninhabited. And the drive when on land was through stunning valleys and green hills.

The ferry crossings were extremely scenic too. And the boarding and departure so seamless. You drive to the seafront, drive on when the ferry docks, park on the ferry and get off for a bit, go up the deck to check out the views around, get back to your car as soon as you hear the announcement and drive off as soon as the ferry reaches the destination. And then repeat again. It was so seamless, it felt like the ferries were part of the road route itself (which is how it was intended).

And from the ferry, the views of the islands and the sea around were magnificent. The air was crisp, the wind so refreshing and the surroundings ethereal. And the sunny day made the journey even more pleasant. It was interesting to see how the ferry part of the travel was also fun. 

Haugesund waterfront

On the route to Stavanger, we had only one stop, in the town of Haugesund. It was a lovely sweet little town along the sea. We parked our car and walked to the waterfront. It all seemed very serene and calm. Then we walked on a bridge to the other side of the water, towards the sea. And we saw huge crowds getting off from the cruises. Suddenly the town became more busy than expected as it was on the Norway cruise route! So we hurried back to the waterfront, to eat before the crowds booked out everything 😅.

Haugesund waterfront

There were a row of restaurants all along the waterfront. We ate Indian food there, at India Gate, and chatted with the owner, who was again from Punjab. We walked around town and the buildings around looked so pretty and charming. Then we walked to the city centre, towards the market, and were quite impressed - there was a lot of nice stuff there. Probably because the cruises stopped here, they had a huge clientele to sell to. The market was also so lively, with street artists playing music and so many people hanging around - a typical summer day in the Nordics. But it got quite hot by early afternoon, so we left for Stavanger soon.

Overall, the roads of Norway were impressive. Most of the roads were single lane and very few double laned roads. So using the autopilot on the Tesla was tough. I noticed that the Norwegians generally drove faster than the speed limit on the highways. That was unexpected.Also the roads around the fjords and mountains were full of tunnels, and quite long ones. Being in 5-10 km long tunnels was so common here. Apparently Norway has the third-longest road tunnel network in the world. Whenever crossing over from one island to another or driving under the mountains, more often than not, we encountered one. It was interesting that sometimes you would just enter a mountain and come out to a very different place on the other side. Or be on an island, and then suddenly on another one without having seen water!

We kept marvelling at the length of these tunnels and how difficult they would have been to construct. A lot of the tunnels had an unfinished look to them, with rocks jutting out from the sides. And that day we drove through a tunnel which had a roundabout, inside the tunnel! That was something we hadn't seen yet. Everything about the tunnels was impressive. They even had very bright lights inside, towards the end of the tunnel, to help drivers’ eyes adjust gradually to daylight after the long darkness inside. It's as if they had thought of everything and mastered the science of making tunnels. 

Our Airbnb

In Stavanger, we were staying in an airbnb holiday home on a nearby island called Mosteroy. Towards the end of our journey, we took a ferry to get quickly to Mosteroy, as otherwise the drive would have been much longer. We reached early this time, before sunset, so we could admire our home for the next few days. And boy, was it some abode! Mosteroy was a small green island, surrounded by sea on all sides. And on the island, were farms, farmhouses, boathouses and some luxury holiday homes. We were staying at one such place, a wooden house with 3 floors, a garden, a hot tub and outside sitting areas on every level. With spectacular views of the sea and islands surrounding Mosteroy.

Mosteroy island

We settled in the apartment and enjoyed watching the sun go down from our living room. It was lovely. And after dinner, we went out for a short walk to the waterfront, walking past the boats moored along the boathouse. It was all so natural, so gorgeous, so amazing. Wow, even remembering this scene gives me joy again.  


Day 11: Stavanger and Mosteroy

View from our Airbnb

We spent half of the next day indoors and within Mosteroy as it was raining. In the morning, I went mountain biking around the island and was amazed by its scenic beauty. The island was green, and all around you could see the nearby islands, bridges leading to those islands and the roads connecting them all. And on Mosteroy, we could see villages and farms and farm horses on land, and boats and boathouses on the waterfront everywhere. There were many clusters of holiday homes and communities dotting the island too.

In the afternoon, we drove to Stavanger and explored it all evening. It was cute, though not as impressive as Bergen. Also it started raining soon, so our experience was affected. We first walked to the Fargegaten area, the city centre with colourful shops everywhere. It was right next to the waterfront which is the most active part of town. The market area was full of colourful shops and alive with people. We walked up to the Valberg tower which had a good view of the town below. This side of town was full of bright coloured buildings everywhere.

Fargegaten city centre

Stavanger waterfront

Gamle street

Then we walked to the other side of town, to the white Gamle Stavanger area (also known as Straen), an old historic charming street in white. It is a pedestrian street, with about 200 wooden houses, all painted white with orange roofs. They are all so tastefully decorated, with colourful flowers and other decorations. Walking there was so much fun. The street looked so postcard-perfect, with all the summer flowers in full bloom. It was like we were walking through a painting. And though a tourist experience, it was still enjoyable.

Then we attended a live concert on the waterfront, where a band of four women were performing. It was fun as they were singing some well know pop songs and against such a stunning background - with the waterfront, all the shops and daylight even at 8pm! There were a few museums around town too. But it felt less active than Bergen. Also, as it started raining soon, after the short town tour, we headed back quickly to our island.


Day 12: Hike up to the Preikostolen (Pulpit rock)

Today was a day reserved for hiking up to the Preikostolen (the Pulpit Rock), one of the 3 famous hikes of Norway (the other two being Trolltunga and Kjeragbolten). So we drove about 40 kms, to the start of the Pulpit rock hike on Strand island. The drive there was mostly through tunnels, one of which was a 12 kms one. Apparently, it is one of the world’s longest sub-sea tunnels, running under the fjord, between the islands.

Views on the hike

Strand island was gorgeous. And we got some very majestic views of the fjords from the island. The rain had stopped and the sun soon came out too, which made everything even more stunning. We parked our car inside the Preikestolen Basecamp. It was quite crowded there with many other activities options other than hiking. Like canoeing, swimming, and ziplining. We though had come for the hike, and did just that. We walked around 8 kms in about 5 hours. Overall, it was not too strenuous a hike. And gave us enough time to stop and enjoy the views on the way.

Pathways on the hike

Most of the route was rocky, but well maintained. At places where it was boggy, there were wooden pathways. And places where it was steep, steps had been made to make it easier to walk. There was a stretch in between where we climbed nearly 300m within just 600 meters of the hike. This steep part was quite scary. Also the pathways for some of these steepest parts of the hike have been built by sherpas from Nepal. And even though the hike was tough, we saw so many children going up, and many people were carrying their babies on the hike! So I guess it's not considered an unsafe or difficult hike at all. Overall the walk was fun, with some awe-inspiring panoramic views all around.

Bogs on the hike

Steep pathways

Lysefjord from the top

And of course the feeling of being on the Rock was exhilarating. Once on the top, you can see the Lysefjords all the way below. And for hundreds of kms on both sides. The grandness of the sight is beyond explanation. Being there feels like you on top of the world, but also one with nature. We were there at the peak for a while, just admiring the scenery around us. You can never spend too much time at a place like this.  

On top of Pulpit Rock

The hike down was of course faster, but as grand. Coming down the steep steps took a bit of time though. The weather got a bit iffy on the hike too, sometimes it started raining, though most of the time it was sunny. In fact we saw all weathers - sunny, rainy, windy, cold - at different times on the 5 hour hike. Surprisingly the trail was not too crowded though we had read a lot about how crazy it gets there. In fact I had heard it sometimes gets tough to even find parking but that didn't happen to us. The drive back was gorgeous too and now we drove through a tunnel with multiple exits within the tunnel! Another something I hadn't seen before.

In the evening, I went cycling around Mosteroy island again. It looked so enchanting in the evening. And this time I cycled along beautiful wooden houses, with a stunning sunset in the background. I also ran into wild deer around the island, a few of them just hanging around as if they did this everyday. It was a very nice end to the day. (Also, I think after this, I had seen all the Nordic wildlife there is to see, mountain goats, deer and fox (spotted earlier in Copenhagen)). And just like that, our Nordic driving trip was coming to an end. So I spent this evening just soaking in all the beauty and serenity it had to offer. As the next day, we would start our long trek back to Amsterdam.

Mosteroy island

Cycling on Mosteroy

Day 13: Drive from Stavanger to Kolding (Denmark) (7h plus 3h on ferry)

We left Stavanger early and drove along the southern Norwegian coast towards Kristiansand, to take a ferry to Denmark. These were going to be our last views of Norway, and I was feeling really sad leaving it. All along the way, the views were spectacular - majestic mountains, rolling green valleys, lakes at every turn, small villages and wooden cabins everywhere. It was just so uplifting to drive through it. And no photographs can capture the beauty of this stunning landscape.

Tesla charging stop at Vilesa

Even the Tesla supercharger we stopped at, at Vilesa, was scenic. We walked across the road, through some stunning grasslands, along some huge bungalows. And enjoyed even this waiting experience so much. And apparently the other side of the Tesla supercharger was a huge lake. It is sometimes so unbelievable how a place could be so stunningly beautiful! It was so tough to leave such a divine place, I just kept thinking the whole time how much I would miss it.

We were to stop at Kristiansand on the way as it is supposed to be a scenic town, but we got stuck in traffic before getting onto the ferry (after not having been stuck in traffic even once in the last 10 days!), so we didn't get a chance to explore the town. And reached the ferry early, ending up waiting 1.5 hours at the boarding gates 😆.

There was also a lot of confusion if a passport was required to board the ferry or not. I was not carrying mine as we were travelling within the Schengen area. But the ferry checkin email mentioned a passport check at boarding. So I called up the local police, the police at Kristiansand, the immigration centre at Kristiansand and of course the ferry company. But not a single person was able to confirm to me whether a passport was required or not. So I got it couriered from the Netherlands, and in the end it turned out it wasn't required 😆.

It was a long 3-hour ferry to Denmark, and we sat in the sun for a while, enjoying the breeze of the Skagerrak Strait. There wasn't a lot to see though, just the vast ocean. But the wind and sun made it relaxing. It also gave us some quiet minutes to say our goodbyes to Norway. Then we landed in Denmark. And once there, the drive felt so boring, Through green plains, with no mountains or lakes to keep you interested, it felt so lacklustre compared to the spectacular landscapes we had left behind. But the roads did get better and wider. And the speed limit increased which helped us drive faster.

Today was going to be a long driving day, so I had just booked a hotel at the last minute in a town on the way to Amsterdam. It was called Kolding. We reached our hotel, the Hotel Kolding very late. It was lovely and convenient. And the perfect night stop on the long drive. I didn't go out but some people in our group did. And said it was a cute little town with a lake and a nice park. And that’s the beauty of Europe - even small places on the way have a charm and beauty of their own.


Day 14: Drive back from Kolding to Amsterdam (9h)

I think this was the most boring day of the trip, either because it was through Germany or because we were coming back and our enthusiasm was down. We left early from Kolding and just drove through simple grasslands in Denmark, green fields in Germany and flatlands of Netherlands to reach Amsterdam quickly. Barely stopping on the way, other than at two Tesla superchargers. And just like that, the trip to Scandinavia was over.


It had been so much fun to experience the Nordics. Exploring the cities, the beaches, the mountains. And everything else in between. It was also so much fun to drive across these vast countries. We drove more than 4500 kms over the two weeks. And I loved Norway the most - the country is just stunning. It's grand and majestic, and a place I can visit again and again. And it took me a long while to get over the hangover from the trip, and forget the gorgeousness that’s Norway. 


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