Overnatting

Overnatting, or a couple of words about staying overnight in Norway. During our trips to Norway, we always travelled by car, which gave us quite a lot of freedom when it comes to choosing a specific type of accomodation. Therefore, in this post, we would like to briefly discuss the pros and cons of each type. We also assume that you will also have access to a car during your travels. We will not discuss only one quite popular option - a motorhome - because we have never had the opportunity to use it before.

As you probably are aware by now, Norway is by no means cheap and it also translates into prices of accomodation. Nevertheless, staying in Norway can be arranged on literally any kind of budget, because one can even ... pay nothing for it! It's all thanks to the so-called Allemannsretten, meaning "everyman's right," or "freedom to roam." In practice, this law means that anyone can enjoy nature and pitch a tent wherever they want. One should only remember not to violate someone's privacy (so keep reasonable distance from any private property), and do not litter or destroy nature.

So, what are our options? We have ranked them in order from the cheapest / least comfortable (though not necessarily worse) to the more expensive and more "cool" ones.

Hardanger fjord in the morning.

Sleeping in the car. Cost per night - NOK 0 (apart from the costs related to driving and renting, of course). It is the least convenient option, but it proved to be necessary for us at times. On a few occasions, we did not manage to find another accommodation on time, and it was also not possible to pitch a tent. Mainly such situations were caused by unfavorable weather combined with too low temperature. Additionally, te terrain will not always allow you to put up a tent anywhere, for example in the areas around the steep cliffs of fjords. When going to the higher parts of the mountains, depending on the season, one may encounter a lot of snow. The highlands often turn to marshlands in late spring and summer, as the snow melts. Unless you are in possession of expensive and specialized equipment, you may not be able to pitch a tent in such situation. The advantage of sleeping in a car is, of course, no additional cost. A dry roof over your head and the ability to turn on the heating when the temperature drops are obvious advantages as well. The downsides, of course, are how relatively uncomfortable it is and the lack of privacy. For us, this type of accommodation has always been a kind of last resort. We would generally go for it only when no other option was available.

Mountains in Ryfylke.

Sleeping in a tent in the wild. Cost per night - NOK 0. In our opinion, to truly experience Norway, you have to put up a tent at least once in the wild and sleep there under the "open" sky. Make sure that your tent is waterproof, because the weather in Norway tends to vary a lot, and even if go to sleep in the evening with a cloudless sky, there is always a risk of rain at night. The temperature at night can also drop significantly, especially in the mountains, so warm sleeping bags, mats and a thick, warm clothes are necessary. Even in the middle of summer, you may have to deal with temperatures as low as a just few degrees celsius above zero! However, despite all of this, you are guaranteed to retain wonderful memories for the entirety of your life. Really, there are few options that can beat sleeping by the beach, surrounded by beautiful fjords, listening to the sound of waves. And this is all for free!

A campsite near Lysefjorden.

Sleeping in a tent at a campsite. Cost per night - NOK 150 - 250. The first of the paid options, a slight "upgrade" when it comes to sleeping in a tent. You may wonder why you should pay for camping if you can sleep in a tent anywhere in Norway. This is mainly due to the fact that you will have access to hot water and a shower at the campsite. Often, however, there is an additional charge to pay for, although it is not a lot (e.g. NOK 10 for 5 minutes). In addition, there is usually a kitchen and a canteen at the campsite, so having a hot meal indoors is an obvious advantage. Moreover, the possibility to charge your phone can turn out to be very important, when travelling every day.

Typical hyttas at a campsite in Norway.

Hytta - sleeping in a cabin at a campsite. Cost per night - NOK 300 - 600. On many Norwegian campsites you will find the option of renting the so-called hytta, which is a small cabin. There is a large discrepancy in price, as it depends on its size (a hytta can be two-, three-, four-person size, or even larger), as well as the available amenities. Sometimes, a hytta can only be composed of four walls and a roof with a bed, without water or electricity. Another time you may find one that has access to such amenities. It is a good option for people who want to sleep indoors, in a warm bed, but do not care about it being very comfortable. We recommend this option especially during very bad weather, when one does not want to spend too much on accomodation. One remark on our part is that for whatever reason, it is easier to find a hytta in the western, southern and central parts of Norway (e.g. fjords near Bergen). You can come across a campsite with hyttas every few kilometers when traveling along the main roads. When we traveled in the north, however, such options were definitely less frequent.

A cheap hostel in Hjelmeland.

Sleeping in a hotel. Cost per night - NOK 600 - 1000. Finally, the most expensive and convenient option - sleeping in a hotel. Here you may encounter exorbitant prices, so when booking a hotel, pay attention to whether you are getting your money's worth. It can often happen that you are sleeping a hostel, where the conditions are really on the same level or worse than a hytta. A room equipped with a bathroom is something that you will most likely have to pay extra for. By far the biggest advantage of sleeping in a hotel and at the same time the most common reason why we decided to choose this option was the possibility to get breakfast. Although this comes at an additional cost, such breakfasts are always a buffet, so you can eat a lot. If you then compare it to how much a decent meal in a restaurant would cost you, it turns out that this option is really worth it. In terms of breakfast quality, it also varies, although most often it was in hotels that belong to a chain (eg Scandic or Best Western).

We hope that the above post will help you on your trip to Norway. As you can see, the options are very diverse, also in terms of their price. In Norway, the availability of accommodation is so large that we rarely had to book anything in advance. We just came to the site and asked if there were free rooms or camping places. Another option is to check websites such as booking.com, where we could easily find a hotel room even on the same day.

Is there anything better than to wake up to such a view?