Scr77
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Probably not helpful for your winter trip, but there is a great hike to the top which avoids the cable car. It perfect for summer trips.
From Fjords to Pharaohs
- Thread starter Wello
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Probably not helpful for your winter trip, but there is a great hike to the top which avoids the cable car. It perfect for summer trips.
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OATEK
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That dark red on buildings is such a feature right across Scandinavia, and is set off beautifully by the snow.
ellen10
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So glad you decided to go to the top.
The views are spectacular!
We flew from Tromso to Kirkenes with Widerøe. It was an hour flight which seems to be our standard flight time around Scandinavia. We checked in online and used the self check-in kiosk to print luggage tags for the bag drop at Tromso airport which had no delays. There was a considerable line for people who wanted to check-in at the Widerøe desk. Getting through security was also very quick.
We flew on a Dash 8 400 and I still get excited when flying on a plane that has propellers. Before take off we stopped for a few minutes as the pilot said he wanted to redistribute the petrol in the wings more evenly.
Not much to see on the way to Kirkenes other than just white landscape. On Widerøe you receive nothing complementary including water and have to purchase any food or drinks.
On arrival at Kirkenes there was supposed to be a bus that would drop us off at our hotel but it never arrived. There was also no taxis left at the airport so I had to use the mytello app to make a call to book a taxi. It worked well and the credit in the app only dropped by 20 cents. We shared the taxi with a nice couple from Germany who were staying at our hotel.
It was -14c on arrival in Kirkenes but was going to get even colder and got down to -24c during the next day. Surprisingly the -24c didn’t seem any worse and I was able to stay warm when outside. The only time I was cold when I removed my gloves to take photos.
As a side note, we had to purchase all new winter clothing for this trip as it had been a while since we last had a snow holiday. Nearly everything including merino underwear, merino jumper, ski jacket and pants as well as snow boots were brought during the annual Aldi snow sale. The price of the clothes at Aldi is very reasonable and I can confirm that I was warm even at -24c.
We flew on a Dash 8 400 and I still get excited when flying on a plane that has propellers. Before take off we stopped for a few minutes as the pilot said he wanted to redistribute the petrol in the wings more evenly.
Not much to see on the way to Kirkenes other than just white landscape. On Widerøe you receive nothing complementary including water and have to purchase any food or drinks.
On arrival at Kirkenes there was supposed to be a bus that would drop us off at our hotel but it never arrived. There was also no taxis left at the airport so I had to use the mytello app to make a call to book a taxi. It worked well and the credit in the app only dropped by 20 cents. We shared the taxi with a nice couple from Germany who were staying at our hotel.
It was -14c on arrival in Kirkenes but was going to get even colder and got down to -24c during the next day. Surprisingly the -24c didn’t seem any worse and I was able to stay warm when outside. The only time I was cold when I removed my gloves to take photos.
As a side note, we had to purchase all new winter clothing for this trip as it had been a while since we last had a snow holiday. Nearly everything including merino underwear, merino jumper, ski jacket and pants as well as snow boots were brought during the annual Aldi snow sale. The price of the clothes at Aldi is very reasonable and I can confirm that I was warm even at -24c.
After arriving in Kirkenes we did a snow mobile tour where we went on the frozen Barents Sea to catch some King Crabs. In reality the King Crabs are placed in the crab pots before your arrival and are just there for photo opportunities. This is my second time on a snow mobile after previously riding on one in Iceland. They are a lot of fun to ride and we did appreciate the heated seats.
After getting back from the ice, they cook some king crabs for you to eat as well as fish cakes and salmon. They allow you to eat as much of the king crab as you want. They tasted pretty good and had heaps of meat in their claws..
None of the tours in Norway are cheap but this was reasonable considering you also get a good meal with it.
After getting back from the ice, they cook some king crabs for you to eat as well as fish cakes and salmon. They allow you to eat as much of the king crab as you want. They tasted pretty good and had heaps of meat in their claws..
None of the tours in Norway are cheap but this was reasonable considering you also get a good meal with it.
RooFlyer
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Could you post a link to the tour, please?
Our second day in Kirkenes was very cold at -24c and we booked a tour (https://www.bookingkirkenes.no/produkt/borderland-tour-snowhotel-winter/ ) of the town, a visit to the Russian border and the Snow Hotel in a minibus.
Kirkenes is a small town of about 10,000 people and is not far from both the Russian and Finnish borders. There is a close bond between Kirkenes and Russia as they have a long history of helping each other over the years particularly during World War 2. The only open border to Russia in Europe is at Kirkenes and Kirkenes residents can cross for the day without any visas but can only travel up to 30 kilometres into Russia to visit some small towns.
The tour was good, they picked us up from our hotel and showed us some highlights in the town and took us to a lookout to get some good pictures of Kirkenes. The van was warm so it was a matter of quickly seeing what you wanted and warming back up inside the minivan before the next stop. We had brought some gloves that work with your iPhone, but I still felt it was much easier and quicker to remove one glove when taking pictures. The scenery is amazing but your cold fingers certainly limitied how many photos you can take.
We then went to the official border crossing with Russia and our guide told us that as we get closer both sides of the border will be monitoring us to ensure there are no illegal crossings. Our tour also took us to a closed border crossing where you can get within 15 meters of Russia. This can’t be accessed if you are doing a tour on a larger bus. There is a marker for the Norwegian border with a four meter no man’s land before the Russian border markers.
We went to the Snow Hotel where you can stay and sleep on an ice bed. It is still -2c inside your room but they give you a very warm sleeping bag to sleep within and only your nose is exposed. We talked to some people who slept there and although they were glad they did it, it was not something that they felt they would ever need to repeat. Each room in the hotel is decorated with different ice sculptures and although I have no desire to sleep there it is definitely worth visiting.
The current rooms were built in 2018 and they have decided to let them melt this summer and rebuild them. They have just started to build six temporary rooms which will be used while the new hotel is rebuilt.
At the snow hotel you can also go to the husky kennels and pat the dogs. They were very enthusiastic and when given a chance would try to steal your gloves.
The tour was for two and half hours and was very enjoyable, I would recommend it if you are in the area.
Kirkenes is a small town of about 10,000 people and is not far from both the Russian and Finnish borders. There is a close bond between Kirkenes and Russia as they have a long history of helping each other over the years particularly during World War 2. The only open border to Russia in Europe is at Kirkenes and Kirkenes residents can cross for the day without any visas but can only travel up to 30 kilometres into Russia to visit some small towns.
The tour was good, they picked us up from our hotel and showed us some highlights in the town and took us to a lookout to get some good pictures of Kirkenes. The van was warm so it was a matter of quickly seeing what you wanted and warming back up inside the minivan before the next stop. We had brought some gloves that work with your iPhone, but I still felt it was much easier and quicker to remove one glove when taking pictures. The scenery is amazing but your cold fingers certainly limitied how many photos you can take.
We then went to the official border crossing with Russia and our guide told us that as we get closer both sides of the border will be monitoring us to ensure there are no illegal crossings. Our tour also took us to a closed border crossing where you can get within 15 meters of Russia. This can’t be accessed if you are doing a tour on a larger bus. There is a marker for the Norwegian border with a four meter no man’s land before the Russian border markers.
We went to the Snow Hotel where you can stay and sleep on an ice bed. It is still -2c inside your room but they give you a very warm sleeping bag to sleep within and only your nose is exposed. We talked to some people who slept there and although they were glad they did it, it was not something that they felt they would ever need to repeat. Each room in the hotel is decorated with different ice sculptures and although I have no desire to sleep there it is definitely worth visiting.
The current rooms were built in 2018 and they have decided to let them melt this summer and rebuild them. They have just started to build six temporary rooms which will be used while the new hotel is rebuilt.
At the snow hotel you can also go to the husky kennels and pat the dogs. They were very enthusiastic and when given a chance would try to steal your gloves.
The tour was for two and half hours and was very enjoyable, I would recommend it if you are in the area.
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