A trip to Norway is always one that leaves me excited – sometimes, far too excited to get a proper night’s kip and on our recent return to this amazing country, I managed to get barely any sleep while excitedly planning what we would be getting up to over the next week!
Suffice it to say, I arrived to Alesund (where we would be starting) absolutely knackered but it was nothing a good cup of coffee and that crisp Norwegian air couldn’t fix!
For the former, we headed to the island of Godoy, where we had the traditional pancakes (Svele) and that much needed brew before heading off wandering through the lighthouse and the surrounding seaside.
Leaving Godoy, we eventually headed for Alesund and our home for the next few days.
Due to a mix up – we ended up changing hotels but this was a blessing in disguise as the first hotel roomed turned out to be less ‘room’ and more suite! It was like walking into a mini apartment.
It also had floor to ceiling windows which was perfect for catching that Norwegian sun which never seemed to set! I’ve been told this isn’t technically ‘the midnight sun’ but it seeing this sunset at midnight sure made it feel like it was. We never get this in London.
The next morning, we headed up to the Fjellstua – the perfect panoramic viewpoint over all of Alesund!
The town of Alesund has never looked prettier (or more ‘chocolate-box’-ey that it does from this spot!
You can also see the dramatic Fjords and mountains in the distance, which, I have to admit, made my tummy jump a little in excitement and anticipation!
To get to the viewpoint, we did cheat a little and get a ride up to the top but we walked down (which, in my opinion) has got to count for something, right? 😉
Back in town, we made a brief pitstop to chuck our stuff into the hotel we were originally meant to be staying in – The Clarion Collection Hotel Bryggen (currently number 1 on TripAdvisor) with a pretty lovely room overlooking the harbour and one that you could even fish from, right from your balcony (I kid you not, there were fishing rod downstairs in reception for you to hire for free).
Breakfast, afternoon waffles and dinner is also included in the hotel (which is the first time I’ve ever had the latter included) so it’s a brilliant way to stay somewhere lovely and still save a little cash while you’re in town!
Alesund is a proper fishing town – it’s ingrained in its people and its history so not only did the room feel quite apt but a visit to the Atlanterhavsparken seemed like a great way to spend the rest of the morning as our Rib Boat tour to see some puffins had been postponed till later that evening anyway.
There are all sorts of fish and local aquatic life at Atlanterhavsparken but the main gem here is feeding time where a diver goes in to feed the fish, all of which come from the Fjord just outside and are actually directly linked to the Fjords.
The fish go absolutely crazy here and the school kids (along with their parents) are absolutely mesmerised by it.
*The water you can see below is quite literally from the Fjords outside.
After a lazy wander around, we finally headed off in search of lunch in the town centre…
…before walking off that post-lunch haze with a wander down the harbour.
We happened upon a boat that was just being to celebrate the town’s fishing heritage and it’s pretty special as it was pretty much built the way they would have done those many years ago!
I know, nothing about boats, but that didn’t stop me from having a good nosey around…
Eventually, we went along our merry way, enjoying what was turning out to be very laidback way of meeting the locals in Alesund and enjoying a more slow-paced side to Norwegian life.
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