The You Tube algorithm sent me your first video. Now I am addicted, You and your partner Alicja are just so enjoyable to watch. Real people traveling on a real budget. I love your channel!
Comparing your travelogues to broadcast TV programmes I would say that you win every time. The pace of your editing is relaxed, your pieces to camera are genuine and your unbounded optimism is infectious. Such a refreshing change from shouty presenters who get over-excited at every location. Also your choice of individual places of interest to visit, be they museums or whatever, are just the kind of places that I would like to visit - or at least to know about. Your great work enhances my Saturday mornings, thank you for that.
I still remember well the days when you could sail directly from Newcastle to Stavanger, Haugesund & Bergen. It's a tragedy we don't have that option any more.
@@damianwalls1262 It can get rough yes, but so can pretty much any sea voyage around the UK. The bay of Biscay is notorious for heavy swells & big waves but there are plenty of ferry crossings to Spain.
@@user-kf1he2pk3l You are spot on, I find the Irish sea the worst, plus weirdly we have across the well known Bay of Biscay probably 30 times and never once had it rough, extremely lucky...our worst ever was coming out of Hamburg..oh my that was a long night.
The tall ship "Christian Radich" belongs to Oslo and is just on a visit. Bergen's tall ship is "Statsraad Lehmkuhl" and is larger than the Radich 🙂 We have 3 of those white large beauties in Norway and the third one beongs to Kristiansand carries the name "Sørlandet"
18:15 "it's like kitkat but 10x better" I think you just melted the heart of every Norwegian saying that. I haven't tried both, so I cannot tell, but they do seem to go on about it.
@@smaakjeks It's mainly the American's who keeps going on about it. It was apparently a courtcase sometime about the name, concluded there were no reason to assume anything untowards about it, so both stays on. Most says American chocolate tastes like vomit, so that was probably a good decision.
Thank you for this lovely video of these two cities! 😊 They are refurbishing the tram tracks in the city centre of Bergen at the moment, and have closed the 2 stops closest to the city centre for the whole of July. The nearest stop to the centre is at the Bus station. They will reopen on Monday 31st of July. There are big areas in Bergen with old wooden houses (where people live) and cobbled streets and narrow alleyways, on both sides of the harbour. You sadly missed them by just a few metres. A big chunk of the city centre was totally burnt down in 1916. 380 buildings were lost, 2,700 people became homeless. And that area was built up again with modern houses before WW2. But outside this circle of more modern buildings, you'll find the old neighbourhoods. The people living in the wooden houses close to the cruise ship area in Stavanger are often bothered by cruise tourists entering their gardens and wanting go get inside of the houses. They believe the houses are a museum area and that no-one lives there 😳 And it doesn't help to put "Private" signs on the houses and fences.
Thanks for that update . I would love to follow Steve's journey but don't have time this trip to Norway . And it's sad that tourists don't respect boundaries . I think it is getting worse from the news I have seen of different locations not to mention defacing historic sites !
The Christian Radich is just visiting, but a bigger sailing ship, the Statsraad Lehmkuhl, has Bergen as its home port. But it is out sailing most of the time ...
Bergen gets my preference...its those goats and I have a soft spot for them. I do appreciate that you did the filming early with no crowds so the focus was on the town. Norway is such a beautiful well kept well organized country and hope to make it there someday but for now , I depend on you to deliver your videos. Thank you for sharing. Take care ☕
Well, living in Norway at the moment, I'm obliged to know that Trondheim is the third largest city 😄 And I visited Stavanger a couple years back and enjoyed it quite a lot. It's a quaint and fairly quiet city with really nice views. Now I just need to visit Bergen 😅Great video!
Where are you originally from? I’m from California. I just visited Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. My great grandmother was born there. I was able to find the church that she was baptized in. Sadly it had burned down two different times since her baptism and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me and of course I cried like a baby. I absolutely loved the city and after watching this video and another one that he did I easily fell in love with the whole country. Maybe one day, like you, I’ll get to live there for a bit 😊
Thank you so much for the comparison video! I just happened upon your page and immediately subscribed. I’ve only got to watch one other video but can’t wait to watch more. I love how you edit your videos and how you talk to us and give us awesome information. Along with the way you joke a little bit, it’s very cute 😊 I was just in Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. I immediately fell in love with the city! My great grandmother was born there and so my heart was very full and my trip was pretty emotional for me ❤ I was able to find the church she was baptized in as a young girl. Of course being made of wood it had burned down two times and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me. Of course I bawled 😭 I can’t wait to go back! And maybe live there for a while Lord willing. I also was in Scotland several days before that. It is very beautiful as well.
Same! Last summer, during the airline strikes, on a return trip from the U.S. for my daughter’s wedding, we had to take the train to Trondheim until we could get a flight to Alta to get home further north, and that’s when I learned Trondheim was the third largest city. I, too, can’t wait to visit Bergen. Some of our friends recently moved near there and love it (one was originally from there). Norway is just incredibly different from the southern/midwestern U.S. area I’m from. :p
I remember I had the same adventure as you had when I visited Stavanger the first time. I was going in to serve in the military at KNM Harald Haarfagre recruitment center just outside of town. I came early and roamed around a few hours. It’s a beautiful and wholesome city. Nothing fancy.
Steve, you always make me think about traveling to places that I never would have considered. You are a travel ambassador for sure. Thanks for another fantastic video!
I'm sad you didn't visit 'old bergen' they moved them all up there to preserve it all, absolutely beautiful small houses, museums, chemist, bergen will always be special to me 🇬🇧🇧🇻
I`m from Bergen. You missed a lot of great places in Bergen. You didn`t go to Haakonshallen which is the castle on Bryggen. That`s 1000 years old and used to house the old Viking Kings. And there`s also Old Bergen with tree houses from the 1700`s. You can book guided tours there,. Bergen is a bigger city than Stavanger and sometimes you have to take the bus to get to a museum like Old Bergen which is a five minute buss ride out of the city. You did not visit Ulriken either which is the highest mountain in Bergen. You get up there by a gondola lift, and the view is spectacular
Bergen for me. Love the railway and views. Beautiful walks at 6.00 in the morning no rubbish or graffiti just the sound of seagulls. And not to many people. What a lovely place ❤❤
I just found this video tonight. More than 40 years ago my family lived in Stavanger, but not in the area you showed. My father worked on the oil rigs and I went to an American school set up for the foreign children of the oil workers. Sadly, the only things I recognized about Stavanger were the cobbled streets and the statue of a silver ship on a pedestal in the harbour. Thank you for the look back though!
It was lovely to see the old Bergen again. That second hand shop you went to are very popular in Scandinavia. You can hire a shelve or a spot for a week or month and sell all your old stuff. Also cinnamon buns are all over Scandi countries. I make them. I hate cruising! I think those boats should be sat somewhere else! Great video but you should come to Finland. We have towns just like these. Porvoo, Hanko and old Rauma.
Those huge cruise ships should not be allowed to dock in harbours, like we see iin Stavanger in your video. They detract from the beauty of the locations they visit. Just look at the problems they have in Venice.
Bergen is such a user friendly city. The Tram where you were by, goes to the airport and the universities. The transfer is efficient and quick. I noticed on the tram that each stop had its own little melody played in a light, instrumental. I was in Bergen at the end of a Viking cruise, It was one and done for me. Your free rambling style is my idea of travel. The cruise was nice but has its limitations, It was a means to an end. There is something to be said being on the wild North Sea in January storms.
As always, absolutely FABULOUS...one of the best. Also just a note, that superyacht you saw, the Shinkai is owned by a Russian Oligarch, ex KGB. Vladimir Strzhalkovsky,. (yacht finder) I am putting Norway at the top of my travel list. I love everything about it. So clean, so beautiful. Well done as always Steve.
Bergen is my favorite city in Norway. It's absolutely beautiful to me and the fact that it's so close to the fjords and hiking! I took the funicular up and then continued to hike up the mountain and went a few miles into the hills. It was me and the locals. I was the only non-Norwegian. It was so spectacular! It's been a few years since I've been to Norway, but I've loved my time in western Norway!
I know a lady who lived in Bergen 6? years I think. She says it's always raining in Bergen.This is the first one of your videos I've watched. I really enjoyed it.
Our closest neighbours, Stavanger the equivalent of Aberdeen in terms of the oil industry. These are two cities I desperately want to see, particularly as school friends have moved there. Brilliant video
Bergen is stunning however it has a reputation for rain!!!Bergen is the start of the post boat that hugs the coastline as far as Kirkenes on the Russian border.. stopping at amazing places such a Tromso Tromdheim and the Lofoten islands.. it is sold as a cruise outside of Norway but its a lifeline ferry for locals...
@@sky37blue😂😂😂 Bergen can start with rain, windb and end in sunny sunset , like lots of the coast areas. Trondheim too. Weather is all we talk about in Norway 😅😂😂😂🙋♀️🏞🌞☔🏖🏕🌛🌞🌦🌨🌩❄🌅👍
I had a weird experience last year. I've been to both cities a few times as I love visiting Norway and with the twice daily flights to both cities from Aberdeen, they're both easy to visit. On a trip I took last September, my flight to Bergen was cancelled but as luck would have it, I was due to pick up a hire car in Bergen and drive to Stavanger that day anyway so I was rebooked onto the afternoon Stavanger flight and other than having to spend far longer in ABZ than anyone really should ever have to, I arrived early evening. Having not been for a while, seeing Stavanger first the first time in over three years was an elating experience and the evening walk around the city with the low sun lighting up the Bybru was incredible. After spending the rest of the week in the mountains, I drove back to Bergen and spent the evening there. It was my first time in the city centre for years and it was perfection, topped off with watching the sun set over the city from Fløyen. All in all, one of the best days I've had. The next day, I drove back to Stavanger as my return flight was now from there instead of Bergen and once I arrived in Stavanger, I didn't feel the same buzz as I'd felt the week before. I still really enjoyed wandering the city in the evening but out of the two, Bergen had impressed me the most on that trip, despite the initial elation that Stavanger provided. It goes to show that how you experience a place has so many variables that I'd imagine that if I did a similar trip, I could easily be swayed back to Stavanger as both cities are really special. Plus the international passport controlled gate at Stavanger reading "International (Aberdeen)" amuses me every time.
hi Steve . i was 6 month on Christian Radich the sailing ship you walked by in the harbor in bergen as a pupil in 1983 . that same ship was also used in a British tv series many years ago called the onedine line 1971 to 1980.
Both cities were interesting and beautiful, but I agree Stavanger had the edge! My favourite moments were the view from the funicular and the cute goats in Bergen and the harbour with all the interesting boats and House 90 in Stavanger (I love old houses!)
You’ve done it again, I love Bergen and it rains so much they have a Rain Festival (Rainworks) in late May. It has changed a bit in the 19 and 25 years since we visited, the Fish Hall wasn’t built, there was just the outdoor market. The cars on the Fløibanen have changed a couple of times since 1997, very flash now. The ship moored just across our hotel in 1997 was the tall ship Statsraad Lehmkul, it and the Christian Radich shared a staring roll in the T.V. series The Onedin Line though not under their proper names. In 1997 the Newcastle - Bergen ferry stopped at Stavanger to drop off and pick up passengers so we didn’t see the town. If you had more time in Bergen the Bergen Old Town was just like the wonderful wooden buildings and cobbled streets in Stavanger. The canning and oil connection reminded me of a Norwegian language series we watched called Lykkeland about the burgeoning oil industry and a canning company which switched to the oil business, a fascinating watch. Did I miss the 3rd largest city in Norway? I guessed Tromsø, but it’s Trondheim. Pointless Fact, 6.5 km south west of Bergen there is a district called Fyllingsdalen, Yorkshire also has an RAF Fylingdales where the early warning station is.
Love this. This back memories of my working just north of Bergen (Mongstad terminal). You were lucky to spend time during the nice weather. Go back in January/February and you will need more than just a light jacket.
The Christian Radich is literally a floating high school and there are several of them in Norway. A friend of mine went to the Radich and here in Stavanger we have Gand which is much different and a massive ship. Also massive thanks for the video. I find it impressive that you are able to maintain honest enthusiastic spontaneity for all our enteretainment in what is obviously a carefully planned gig with all the stress included. It's yuge asmr when somebody presents your home town in this way. I must also say that I understand that Michelin restaurants are just too expensive for many. But it is a crime that the only two star restaurant in Stavanger has two stars because it easily among the very best on the globe. And while it is seriously expensive, it is much less so than the top three starred restaurants on the continent, like Noma. It's not a place you drop in to but it is something you save up for. And if you stay at somehwere other than the luxurious hotel it happens to be located at, it will in fact cost you less than the best in restaurant in London. For a Londoner, that is, with a return flight! Same deal for Aberdeen I would guess and possibly for Manchester although the flights are not frequent.
I visited Bergen in 1990. Thanks for the memories! One memory that stands out is my hotel elevator - you had to manually close the grate and then you could watch the floors go by, which I thought was ultra-cool. I wonder if it’s still there.
16:01 Addressing your question about trams: Yes! We have Bybanen, a lightrail that runs from the city center all the way to the airport. I take it every single day to go to and from work! Your timing was impeccable, the month you were there the last 2 stops of the rail (The one you passed and the one by the trainstation) were closed for what I assume were repairs or major maintenance (They gave very little info of what they were actually doing, as far as I remember) so you just missed seeing it in action!
Thank you for opening up the world to us! ❤ Another great Saturday morning watch. 😊. I loved both towns for different reasons, and am taken by how clean and beautiful they both are. You share such great adventures!
I bed hopped across Norway staying with friends I met online and the 2 places that stood out were Oslo and Stavanger, both are cities where people live as opposed to cities where people work or just visit like Bergen. The weather can be pretty unique in Norway. The people are unfailingly friendly unless your language is Germanic apparently, which tends to get a more icy reaction, I guess its going to take another generation for the memories to fade a little more. They do not forgive easily.
I live in Bergen. There`s a lot of people who live in Bergen. The city are taking steps to limit the cruise ships from entering the city, because of the heave toll the tourist make on the city. As far as Norwegians not liking Germans. Well that was true back in the old days. Germany invaded Norway, and they killed a lot of innocent civilians. All of my grandparents lived through WWII, and it was a terrible time for all of us. But nobody holds that against the German people today. My grandfather did NOT like it when former German soldiers came back to Norway as tourist after the war, but that was a thing back in the 1960`s and does not apply now.
Germanic is a language family, you probably meant German. Norwegian is a Germanic language :) I don't see why people here reacted badly to someone being German. Maybe if you spoke to the older folk who grew up in post-war Norway, but the current middle-aged and younger don't associate Germany or Germans with the war at all.
Very nice indeed . Of course Bergen wins by a small margin but those museums in Stavanger were definitely very niche and remarkable. The weather playing hide and seek is to be expected. Thank you for a great experience Steve .
It would be hard to decide which city was the best. But, WOW!!! I loved this video today. The ride to the top of the mountain and walking around with the goats! All the cobble streets. So clean and modern in many ways, but love the old houses. Loved the harbors and the boats. Another great job Steve. Had never really given Norway much thought. You have changed my mind. Thank you!
Loved the video I just moved away from Stavanger after living there for 40 years and realized I never visited those museums :) now at least I got a peek.
Nice video. Trondheim is formally the 3rd biggest city by population. The areas around the town are mostly forest and some farmland. The areas outside Stavanger's city limits are densely populated. One could count Stavanger and Sandnes as one city. So in _reality_ Stavanger is Norway's 3rd biggest city, and Trondheim 4th. I live in Trondheim and has not been in Stavanger since I was a little boy when we visited my grandparents, then pensioners. My grandmother had worked at Bjelland Canning, putting sardines in cans, and on the spears for the smoking oven. It was seasonal work with periods without work or pay. Today the sardines are frozen in ice-blocks, sent to the Baltic countries to be processed and canned by cheaper labour, and then the cans transported back, all transport by lorries, I think. As a little boy my dad and his comrades collected sardine can labels, like today's boys collect football cards. The now very nice little white houses in Strandgata were, I think, once the poor working class housing, now probably not affordable without a solid upper middle class income.
Really liked bergen, seemed to have good tourist areas and so clean. Great trip up the funicular, never seen a queue before for such a trip. The city must get really busy. The start of the video was like a Sci fi movie with the deserted streets! Stavanger looks really pretty with its little houses and harbour. Your sleep patterns must be very erratic though!
I was on one of those cruise ships last year (Royal Caribbean) and visited Bergen and Stavanger. Bergen is lovely but quite touristy, Stavanger is more like "real" Norway I think. But its worth going to Bergen just for the view from Mount Floibanen, incredible. Thanks for another great video Steve 👍
Christian Radich is a three-masted steel full-rigger from 1937. Christian Radich is Norway's largest full-rigger in operation, and since its launch has served as a training and charter ship with its home port in Oslo.
Its actually the third biggest full-rigger after Sørlandet, and Statsraad Lehmkuhl, wich is the biggest. Statsraad Lehmkuhl has its home in Bergen but was out of port when this was filmed. All of them are beautiful ships 😁
When I was young I went on a cruise to Norway, I saw this boy who was absolutely beautiful!!!! I've never seen such an angel in my whole life, blue eyes, blonde hair, lovely skin, BEAUTIFUL face!!!! OOOH, he was so cute, he got off at Stavanger the little cutie!
I did Norway in a Nutshell and then I stayed at the Downtown Citybox in Bergen and had the fish sandwich at that shop you liked. I took a scenic bus (with 2 ferry crossings) to Stavanger, and I didn't mind the B&B with a bathroom down the hall. Thanks for the tips! I missed my ferry to Denmark because the train to Kristiansand was delayed, but I got a cheap ticket on a slower Colorline. Bergen was my fave.
I'm forever in hope that the crossing starts up again from North East England to Norway, like it used to be. I remember me and my brother trying to catch it once before it left, ringing the ticket office, but it'd gone. It stopped shortly after
15:55 there are trams in bergen 2 lines one from the city center to the airport and one from teh city center to fyllingsdalen. During june and july there was some construction so the final stop and onneseter was closed when you were here they are back now tho.
A great video Steve. Thank you, both cities are really lovely. I think you need to revisit both cities and do separate videos. My favourite would definitely be Stavanger. Thank you once again for taking us on a wonderful tour of Norway. Always look forward to your next adventure.
Steve, we were in Bergen at the start of July and in Stavanger the Week after you were. As you walked through Stavanger, I kept thinking, you have to find the colourful street, which you did. Then as you walked down to the harbour, the music. It must be a Wednesday thing, they had the stage set up the Wednesday after, a different performer, but the locals out in force and enjoying themselves. Stavanger was so much more than we expected, one of our highlights.
Another great video. I just returned from two weeks in Norway and I went up to the far north, well in to the Arctic, and its a stunning country from south to north, but I have to admit that I watch your videos because of you, as much as because of the destinations you visit. You're a natural presenter; you look good, sound good, and your videos never make me want to nod off as so many other travel videos do (plus we share a surname!), so thanks for this video and all the others. Keep it up!
Another cracking video Steve, Stavanger was my favourite also as its hard to beat old school😉Very expensive country but its so beautiful, I'm not a fan of those giant cruise ships that look like tower blocks! At least you felt at home with the weather 😂
My dad drove to Newcastle and we took the ferry over to Bergen in 1970 ,we travelled quite extensively over Norway staying in fabulous youth hostels. We had a fabulous time , I still have photos of me and my mum standing on snow in the Telemark wearing our bathing suits as it was boiling hot yet the snow was still lying. Returned 30 years later with my mum on a mini cruise from Newcastle, the sail over was fantastic, can still visualise the stars in the night skies. Love Norway and the people. Thanks for sharing your trip with us.
Oh my days! Bergen is awesome! The beautiful place where you had cinnamon bun is probably worth the trip alone! Stavanger looks lovely but I'd plump for Bergen. Although the antique shop would probably prove costly. #ILoveBricABrac
Thank you so much! All your tips and notes are fantastic material. I watched your first video to the Faroe Islands, booked a trip almost immediately, and was there when you uploaded the 3rd video :) It was a trip of a lifetime. Thank you!!
I absolutely loved Bergen fifty years ago. It still had an underdeveloped feel at the time. I stayed inland at Os. Beautiful location onthe fjord. Loved sailing from Stavanger, after a cruel North sea crossing. Norway is such a beautiful place. Thanks again for taking us along.
Trondheim is the third biggest city. Bergen is beautiful, a Shame the old fish market has gone the depth and clarity of the water at the end of the fjord was amazing, all the live fresh sea food, has it all gone now? Those old wonky houses along the water front, were once all the colours of the rainbow. Haha, all the under water tunnels joining all the islands. The panoramic views from the funicular in Bergen are unforgettable. If you don't go the Funicular you will never know how big a city Bergen is. After watching your great video of Stavanger, I wish I had made the time to visit this beautiful city. I believe Norway has some of the very best museums found any where in the world. Thank you Steve.
Steve, I’m loving the Scandi vibe from the last couple of months. I think wooden houses/buildings are amazing. I don’t know why we don’t have more here.
5:22 and 21:09 That unwalled wooden structure, to the right of you in its first appearance and over your left shoulder in the second, is an exact reproduction and on exactly the same spot as the first bank in Bergen back at the beginning of the Hanseatic period. In the centre is a wooden bench. Norwegian word for bench is benk. It's where we get the English word 'bank' from.
What a beautiful journey! I've only been to Bergen but looks like both cities are interesting. Those colourful wooden houses! And the rainy gray clouds make the landscapes even more dramatic. Plus these cruise ships, bigger than the harbours 😊 and ... the seagulls. And the goats❤
There are tourists that go to Stavanger. I was there about 10 weeks ago on a cruise and got to do an in home visit. It was one of the prettiest cities I got to see on my trip, but I don't think many tourists think about going to Stavanger for holiday/vacation. I had never heard of Stavanger before my trip, and I thought it was going to be some small town that didn't have much to see, but I was so wrong. When you were looking at the cruise ship after the oil museum, that was the exact same cruise ship I was on, but I wasn't in Stavanger on this day.
the Radich is not home-ported in Bergen so it’s there on a visit, you got lucky to see it…it’s frequently at tallship events with other similar sail training, including that visit Bergan does have trams, you likely were there when it was temporarily closed or between trips
I subscribed to your travel channel after discovering your wonderful Føroyar trilogy. I toured Norway on that same trip but didn't get to the two cities you showcased here. Suffice it to say, you have stirred my travel juices once again. Thank you for sharing your adventure.
Hello Steve, I'm a newbie to your channel, and I've been travelling by bus and train through Norway for a few months. You might mention two spectacular rail journeys, one taking the midnight train from Oslo to Bergen, which is probably one of the best in the world. Then of course there is the astonishing rail journey from Trondheim and up into the Arctic Circle to Bodø, absolutely NOT to be missed, as the train rises up and up.... Greetings from the lost Kingdom of Cornwall
That’s almost correct. The government has a spending limit of up to 4% of the fund every year. On average they only spend about 3% as the fund is getting extremely large. It’s affecting our economy and is why the Krone is suffering compared to the euro, dollar and pound these days. The fund is now so large that the surplus of the fund alone cover what we spend every year so even when the oil dry up it’s an source of income. About 1,5% of all public stocks in companies in the world is owned by it. Over 9000 companies in 69 countries. And growing. Fast. In reality because of the issues we allready have when using money from the fund we will never be able to spend however much we want of it. It would create inflation in and wreck our valuta system.
BERGEN: The tram tracks you saw are in use, but were closed due to work between this stop ("Byparken") and "Bystasjonen" two stops further on. Usually there is a train every 2-3 minutes from here. If you had moved further south and west in the city you would have seen the light-train. There is also a museum tram that runs on the old tracks further west in the city between the theater and Møllenpris in the west of the city centre. If you only visited a small part of Bergen, there was a lot you didn't get to see. If you had looked more at the train station, you would have seen that it is built alongside the bus station and a large shopping centre, so there were many shops and cafes that you didn't get to see other than those on the platform itself. :-)
Really liked the oil museum. The BBC broadcast a fantastic series, State Of Happiness which covered the discovery of oil in the North Sea, the development of the industry and finished with scenes in that safety dinghy you were in. Great stuff.
8:23 normand prosper is an anchor handler that usually always goes to port when the crew is disembarking. The helipad is elevated above the bridge so they actually have a lot of an easier time landing than on many other vessels. What you see peaking out a bit from that hole in its side, is the vessels Magnum ROV (Magnums are constructed by the same company that made the yellow wasp diving vessel you see in the stavanger petroleum museum)
If you liked the wooden houses at Storhaug(which is the place you where walking at first in Stavanger). You would absolutly love the neighbourhood of Eiganes. Storhaug was historically the poor part of town, but Eiganes are where all the factory owners villas where built. You should check out Ledaal, Breidablikk and Holmegenes which are all museum houses in the Eiganes neighbourhood. It's all about a 5-10 minutes walk westward from the harbour you where at!
How can you ever choose between two cities that are both unique in their own ways. Both topography and partly local culture are so different, even though both are Norwegian cities. In many ways, Bergen is wrongly called the city between seven mountains, while in reality it is the city that surrounds seven mountains. Most people who visit Bergen only see the central part which lies between the two most famous or more famous mountains (Ulriken and Løvstakken). Most of the city today lies east, west, south and north of the most characteristic part of the city. Each of the suburbs is unique in its own way. Although the undersigned was born and raised in Bergen, I have also spent several years in Stavanger, a city that is easy to fall in love with. Still, it must be said that Bergen is much bigger than Stavanger and has much more to offer than what a short-term visiting tourist manages to experience in a few days. I find the comparison you make somewhat tasteless and provocative.
When it comes to the size of these two cities, I think people also need to take into consideration that Stavanger have theire neighbor cities like Sandnes, Sola and Randaberg thats grown into each other like one city. That means the two cities are quite similar in size and population. When it comes to the weather, Bergen has the most rain, because of the surrounding mountains and Stavanger is a bit more windy. Bergen because its a bit bigger than Stavanger has a bit more tourists, but since Stavanger is the oil capitol of Norway it has the most international population in Norway with more than 100 different nationalities living there. And if people would like a trip to the famous Pulpit Rock, the cliff abut 600 meters above water in the Lysefjord, then Stavanger is the place to visit.
Fun fact about Old Stavanger. I don't know if it's been mentioned before. Most of the buildings/houses are from around the area. They weere brought along when people moved to Stavanger, and they brought their hoses/homes with them when moving. Building materials was expensive and also hard to come by in those days.
Looking closely at the background it appears that both Bergen and Stavanger are very clean and tidy and puts the UK to shame I didn't see any graffiti well done the people of Norway
Brilliant video Steve! My grandparents on my mothers side are both from Norway and Sweden (on my father’s side we are Scots and Irish - a real mix lol). Anyway, will need to travel back soon to visit my Nordic relatives. Love it especially at Christmas time - just wonderful; and yes it also rains just like Scotland. Sometimes more! 😅. However, I am Scottish and Scotland is forever my home. 🥰
About the cruise ships, people in Stavanger has had it with these gigantic floatsams laying 30 meters from their homes, and passengers looking into their living room windows and freely going into their gardens! In several other towns and cities people are also starting to get annoyed, but in Stavanger with its quaysiude close to residential areas it is the worst. Yes, wooden towns and cities are common in Norway, they have all burned afew times, on average a city fire every 10 years, and a devastating city fire every 100 years, but you can find houses that have survived 500 years, a lot was destroyed in the years 1940-1945, first the Germans in april- may 1940, and then the British in the the years 1941-1945..... However, towns like Egersund, Flekkefjord, Farsund, Lillesand, Grimstad, Tvedestrand, Arendal and Tvedestrand are small towns ranging in size from 10 000 to 50 000, and Kristiansand a small city of around 100 000 all have wooden central areas, and some are all wooden, no concrete or glass to bee seen
I was wondering what the residents of those beautiful houses thought about having that monstrous cruise ship docked in front of their homes! I don't think I'd be too happy about it either.
@@steve-marsh It surely does, and view of the sea as well, and now they come in all 12 months of the year, hopefully they will find oteher places to anchor
I have a friend who used to work in the oil industry, and she had to make occasional business trips to Stavanger. I remember her telling me what a dump she thought it was! But fast forward a few years, and I found myself making my own business trip to Stavanger. And guess what? Yep, I bl**dy loved it!! One of these days, I must remember to ask her why she thought it was so awful. I'm guessing she didn't see the parts of it that you and I have both experienced, Steve! I think I'm right in saying that a lot of those houses in the Old Town were shipped from other parts of Norway when their owners moved to Stavanger looking for work. They just took their homes with them! Or do I have false memory on that one? Another great video mate!
I've moved here from Scotland and it is a very nice city. Cleaner than anywhere in Scotland and fewer neds, Chavs, minks, crime, scum etc than you find in Scotland. Much less obesity too and far less anti social behaviour.
Bergen or Stavanger ? Bergen is by far the finest/prettiest town/city in Norway and Scandinavia. Yes, it always rain there.... Half of the annual amount of rain we in Paisley get. But the town is still pretty and it the surrounding area is stunning. In which you can do..... Take the daily catamaran (boat) to the Sogndal and Flåm in Sognefjorden, the second longest fjord in the world. The Flåmsbanen train. The coastal express to the North Cape and Kirkenes. The train to Oslo. The Aquarium. The hikes around the seven mountains (the mountains surrounding Bergen)..... Whilst Stavanger has more or less just the express boat to the Pulpit Rock and not much else. Again, a great video from you.
Fabulous memories of Stavanger. Our cruise ship in 1957 was considerably smaller than these gargantuan monstrosities that loom over every port they visit, and cram the place with their visitors. Our Brand Vl was the largest privately owned yacht when it was built by Krupps of Kiel in the 1920's and at one time was an 18th birthday present to Barbara Hutton, the Woolworths heiress from her father - some present, eh? The fittings and fixtures were very much like the veteran ferry you visited, ideal for Tintin adventures! It is now a floating hotel and restaurant ship moored in the port of Stockholm. Your visit to the Bergen fish market recalls the fish markets at some of the smaller towns we visited, where the fishermen unloaded their live catches into big tanks on the quayside, the housewives came down to the harbour, and selected the fish they wanted which would be taken out, despatched and gutted, to be put in the shopping bag and taken home for dinner - you couldn't get much fresher than that!
The You Tube algorithm sent me your first video. Now I am addicted, You and your partner Alicja are just so enjoyable to watch. Real people traveling on a real budget. I love your channel!
I love it too. And can recommend a other channel too. So nice to watch. Please try " Solo solo travel".I am Sure you will love it .
Comparing your travelogues to broadcast TV programmes I would say that you win every time. The pace of your editing is relaxed, your pieces to camera are genuine and your unbounded optimism is infectious. Such a refreshing change from shouty presenters who get over-excited at every location. Also your choice of individual places of interest to visit, be they museums or whatever, are just the kind of places that I would like to visit - or at least to know about. Your great work enhances my Saturday mornings, thank you for that.
Totally agree . Steve's channel is my favorite travel show for the same reasons .
I agree 100%
@davidgreenlees9053
So true, the commentry and camera work put the so called experts at the BBC etc. to shame. 1:38
Agree! Steve puts some so called TV presenters to shame.
Thank you ALL so much!!!!
I still remember well the days when you could sail directly from Newcastle to Stavanger, Haugesund & Bergen. It's a tragedy we don't have that option any more.
Yep damn low cost air travel!! Ferries are much more fun
Seas a bit rough surely Newcastle to Stavanger
@@damianwalls1262 It can get rough yes, but so can pretty much any sea voyage around the UK. The bay of Biscay is notorious for heavy swells & big waves but there are plenty of ferry crossings to Spain.
@@user-kf1he2pk3l You are spot on, I find the Irish sea the worst, plus weirdly we have across the well known Bay of Biscay probably 30 times and never once had it rough, extremely lucky...our worst ever was coming out of Hamburg..oh my that was a long night.
@@malcolmstockbridge2569 Irish sea can be rough indeed
The tall ship "Christian Radich" belongs to Oslo and is just on a visit. Bergen's tall ship is "Statsraad Lehmkuhl" and is larger than the Radich 🙂 We have 3 of those white large beauties in Norway and the third one beongs to Kristiansand carries the name "Sørlandet"
18:15 "it's like kitkat but 10x better"
I think you just melted the heart of every Norwegian saying that. I haven't tried both, so I cannot tell, but they do seem to go on about it.
Haha rightly so :)
Is there any place you haven’t been to yet Steve ❤
Oh my God! The KL bar! Love it! It's definitely better than KK. Hi from Sweden
"they do seem to go on about it."
We don't have a lot else going on over here, so
@@smaakjeks It's mainly the American's who keeps going on about it. It was apparently a courtcase sometime about the name, concluded there were no reason to assume anything untowards about it, so both stays on. Most says American chocolate tastes like vomit, so that was probably a good decision.
Thank you for this lovely video of these two cities! 😊
They are refurbishing the tram tracks in the city centre of Bergen at the moment, and have closed the 2 stops closest to the city centre for the whole of July. The nearest stop to the centre is at the Bus station. They will reopen on Monday 31st of July.
There are big areas in Bergen with old wooden houses (where people live) and cobbled streets and narrow alleyways, on both sides of the harbour. You sadly missed them by just a few metres. A big chunk of the city centre was totally burnt down in 1916. 380 buildings were lost, 2,700 people became homeless. And that area was built up again with modern houses before WW2. But outside this circle of more modern buildings, you'll find the old neighbourhoods.
The people living in the wooden houses close to the cruise ship area in Stavanger are often bothered by cruise tourists entering their gardens and wanting go get inside of the houses. They believe the houses are a museum area and that no-one lives there 😳 And it doesn't help to put "Private" signs on the houses and fences.
Thanks for that update . I would love to follow Steve's journey but don't have time this trip to Norway . And it's sad that tourists don't respect boundaries . I think it is getting worse from the news I have seen of different locations not to mention defacing historic sites !
Дякую за розповідь! 🇺🇦
it is so nice - and cheap - that you can take the tram to the airport
Yes, In Bergen you can 🙂
Thank you for this information. I love to travel & desire to respect & act like a local.
The Christian Radich is just visiting, but a bigger sailing ship, the Statsraad Lehmkuhl, has Bergen as its home port. But it is out sailing most of the time ...
I love both ships but the Statsraad Lehmkuhl has my 💕!!
Bergen gets my preference...its those goats and I have a soft spot for them. I do appreciate that you did the filming early with no crowds so the focus was on the town. Norway is such a beautiful well kept well organized country and hope to make it there someday but for now , I depend on you to deliver your videos. Thank you for sharing. Take care ☕
La du merke at geitene gikk med en boks hengende under halsen? Det er gps styringen på de slik at de holder seg innenfor et nermere geografisk område.
@@leif-kareeikeland5209 znaci drzu koze za turiskicke razloge da prihvacaju turiste, to je to.
Well, living in Norway at the moment, I'm obliged to know that Trondheim is the third largest city 😄 And I visited Stavanger a couple years back and enjoyed it quite a lot. It's a quaint and fairly quiet city with really nice views. Now I just need to visit Bergen 😅Great video!
Dra tilbake til drittlandet ditt!
Trondheim is the 3rd largest municipality. Stavanger is the third largest city and urban area.
Where are you originally from? I’m from California. I just visited Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. My great grandmother was born there. I was able to find the church that she was baptized in. Sadly it had burned down two different times since her baptism and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me and of course I cried like a baby. I absolutely loved the city and after watching this video and another one that he did I easily fell in love with the whole country. Maybe one day, like you, I’ll get to live there for a bit 😊
Thank you so much for the comparison video! I just happened upon your page and immediately subscribed. I’ve only got to watch one other video but can’t wait to watch more. I love how you edit your videos and how you talk to us and give us awesome information. Along with the way you joke a little bit, it’s very cute 😊 I was just in Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. I immediately fell in love with the city! My great grandmother was born there and so my heart was very full and my trip was pretty emotional for me ❤ I was able to find the church she was baptized in as a young girl. Of course being made of wood it had burned down two times and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me. Of course I bawled 😭 I can’t wait to go back! And maybe live there for a while Lord willing. I also was in Scotland several days before that. It is very beautiful as well.
Same! Last summer, during the airline strikes, on a return trip from the U.S. for my daughter’s wedding, we had to take the train to Trondheim until we could get a flight to Alta to get home further north, and that’s when I learned Trondheim was the third largest city. I, too, can’t wait to visit Bergen. Some of our friends recently moved near there and love it (one was originally from there). Norway is just incredibly different from the southern/midwestern U.S. area I’m from. :p
I remember I had the same adventure as you had when I visited Stavanger the first time. I was going in to serve in the military at KNM Harald Haarfagre recruitment center just outside of town. I came early and roamed around a few hours. It’s a beautiful and wholesome city. Nothing fancy.
Steve, you always make me think about traveling to places that I never would have considered. You are a travel ambassador for sure. Thanks for another fantastic video!
I'm sad you didn't visit 'old bergen' they moved them all up there to preserve it all, absolutely beautiful small houses, museums, chemist, bergen will always be special to me 🇬🇧🇧🇻
I`m from Bergen. You missed a lot of great places in Bergen. You didn`t go to Haakonshallen which is the castle on Bryggen. That`s 1000 years old and used to house the old Viking Kings. And there`s also Old Bergen with tree houses from the 1700`s. You can book guided tours there,. Bergen is a bigger city than Stavanger and sometimes you have to take the bus to get to a museum like Old Bergen which is a five minute buss ride out of the city. You did not visit Ulriken either which is the highest mountain in Bergen. You get up there by a gondola lift, and the view is spectacular
That's ok, it will leave plenty of places to check out on the next visit. Loved everywhere he went.
I live near Stavanger, and I find Bergen really charming :)
UA-cam sucks when I paused video to write down names, it doesn't show it
You're from a beautiful country, it has to be said ; - my itchy feet have just got a whole lot itchyer!! 😃
Bergen, beautiful city of Norway... Thank you...
Bergen for me. Love the railway and views. Beautiful walks at 6.00 in the morning no rubbish or graffiti just the sound of seagulls. And not to many people. What a lovely place ❤❤
I just found this video tonight. More than 40 years ago my family lived in Stavanger, but not in the area you showed. My father worked on the oil rigs and I went to an American school set up for the foreign children of the oil workers. Sadly, the only things I recognized about Stavanger were the cobbled streets and the statue of a silver ship on a pedestal in the harbour. Thank you for the look back though!
💚 Ahh. Thanks so much for Norway! What beautiful cities are Bergen and Stavanger.
Stavanger is beautiful thank you as ever for being such a personable and genial guide.
Hey thanks so much!
It was lovely to see the old Bergen again. That second hand shop you went to are very popular in Scandinavia. You can hire a shelve or a spot for a week or month and sell all your old stuff. Also cinnamon buns are all over Scandi countries. I make them. I hate cruising! I think those boats should be sat somewhere else! Great video but you should come to Finland. We have towns just like these. Porvoo, Hanko and old Rauma.
Fond memories of Turku as well.
Cinnamon buns (skillingsboller) are the food of the gods!
Those huge cruise ships should not be allowed to dock in harbours, like we see iin Stavanger in your video. They detract from the beauty of the locations they visit. Just look at the problems they have in Venice.
I loved Finland too. Ivalo, the Sami people and museum and reindeer ranch were fascinating!
OH, BE STILL MY ARTISTIC HEART! That alleyway in Bergen!
Cool that Stavanger still has a small town vibe with the narrow lanes and wooden houses
Okay Steve, you've convinced me. Stay longer in Stavanger. What an amazing place!
Some place eh! And cool trips out of town too I believe!
It looks to me like you've nailed it! 😄
Haha cheers Nick! 🤣
Bergen is such a user friendly city. The Tram where you were by, goes to the airport and the universities. The transfer is efficient and quick. I noticed on the tram that each stop had its own little melody played in a light, instrumental. I was in Bergen at the end of a Viking cruise, It was one and done for me. Your free rambling style is my idea of travel. The cruise was nice but has its limitations, It was a means to an end. There is something to be said being on the wild North Sea in January storms.
As always, absolutely FABULOUS...one of the best. Also just a note, that superyacht you saw, the Shinkai is owned by a Russian Oligarch, ex KGB. Vladimir Strzhalkovsky,. (yacht finder) I am putting Norway at the top of my travel list. I love everything about it. So clean, so beautiful. Well done as always Steve.
Bergen is my favorite city in Norway. It's absolutely beautiful to me and the fact that it's so close to the fjords and hiking! I took the funicular up and then continued to hike up the mountain and went a few miles into the hills. It was me and the locals. I was the only non-Norwegian. It was so spectacular! It's been a few years since I've been to Norway, but I've loved my time in western Norway!
Thankyou for yet another exciting trip. At 77 I'm not able to travel so Thankyou again.
I know a lady who lived in Bergen 6? years I think. She says it's always raining in Bergen.This is the first one of your videos I've watched. I really enjoyed it.
Top notch Steve. Your videos are very professional and enjoyable .
Your the Best Armchair Tour Guide 🇪🇺 ! Thanks
From Canada 🇨🇦 west coast 💦🍂🍁☔🥐👍
Our closest neighbours, Stavanger the equivalent of Aberdeen in terms of the oil industry. These are two cities I desperately want to see, particularly as school friends have moved there. Brilliant video
What a Beautiful place to live, it is now on my bucket list for sure!
Bergen is stunning however it has a reputation for rain!!!Bergen is the start of the post boat that hugs the coastline as far as Kirkenes on the Russian border.. stopping at amazing places such a Tromso Tromdheim and the Lofoten islands.. it is sold as a cruise outside of Norway but its a lifeline ferry for locals...
We're booked on this in December. Bergen to kirkenes and back. 15 days hurtigruten
@johnsmuth5062 good chance of seeing Northern lights.. make sure your cabin is a quiet one....
Yes, I've heard about the rain in Bergen from a Norwegian before, so it must be worse even by Norwegian standards
@@sky37blue😂😂😂 Bergen can start with rain, windb and end in sunny sunset , like lots of the coast areas. Trondheim too. Weather is all we talk about in Norway 😅😂😂😂🙋♀️🏞🌞☔🏖🏕🌛🌞🌦🌨🌩❄🌅👍
@@irenestrmnss4496 as do us Brits, as it is changing so much within a single day sometimes 🤭
Great tour of Norway 🇳🇴 😊
I had a weird experience last year. I've been to both cities a few times as I love visiting Norway and with the twice daily flights to both cities from Aberdeen, they're both easy to visit. On a trip I took last September, my flight to Bergen was cancelled but as luck would have it, I was due to pick up a hire car in Bergen and drive to Stavanger that day anyway so I was rebooked onto the afternoon Stavanger flight and other than having to spend far longer in ABZ than anyone really should ever have to, I arrived early evening. Having not been for a while, seeing Stavanger first the first time in over three years was an elating experience and the evening walk around the city with the low sun lighting up the Bybru was incredible.
After spending the rest of the week in the mountains, I drove back to Bergen and spent the evening there. It was my first time in the city centre for years and it was perfection, topped off with watching the sun set over the city from Fløyen. All in all, one of the best days I've had. The next day, I drove back to Stavanger as my return flight was now from there instead of Bergen and once I arrived in Stavanger, I didn't feel the same buzz as I'd felt the week before. I still really enjoyed wandering the city in the evening but out of the two, Bergen had impressed me the most on that trip, despite the initial elation that Stavanger provided.
It goes to show that how you experience a place has so many variables that I'd imagine that if I did a similar trip, I could easily be swayed back to Stavanger as both cities are really special. Plus the international passport controlled gate at Stavanger reading "International (Aberdeen)" amuses me every time.
hi Steve . i was 6 month on Christian Radich the sailing ship you walked by in the harbor in bergen as a pupil in 1983 . that same ship was also used in a British tv series many years ago called the onedine line 1971 to 1980.
Both cities were interesting and beautiful, but I agree Stavanger had the edge! My favourite moments were the view from the funicular and the cute goats in Bergen and the harbour with all the interesting boats and House 90 in Stavanger (I love old houses!)
There are just as many old wooden houses in Bergen, he just missed them, or didn't show them :) They are on both sides of the harbour
Stavanger is the largest wooden house city in northern Europe actually :) Around 8000 older wooden houses. @@peacefulminimalist2028
Had the priviledge to visit Bergen with my sister in 1982. Many thanks for the lovely memories.
You’ve done it again, I love Bergen and it rains so much they have a Rain Festival (Rainworks) in late May.
It has changed a bit in the 19 and 25 years since we visited, the Fish Hall wasn’t built, there was just the outdoor market.
The cars on the Fløibanen have changed a couple of times since 1997, very flash now.
The ship moored just across our hotel in 1997 was the tall ship Statsraad Lehmkul, it and the Christian Radich shared a staring roll in the T.V. series The Onedin Line though not under their proper names.
In 1997 the Newcastle - Bergen ferry stopped at Stavanger to drop off and pick up passengers so we didn’t see the town. If you had more time in Bergen the Bergen Old Town was just like the wonderful wooden buildings and cobbled streets in Stavanger.
The canning and oil connection reminded me of a Norwegian language series we watched called Lykkeland about the burgeoning oil industry and a canning company which switched to the oil business, a fascinating watch.
Did I miss the 3rd largest city in Norway? I guessed Tromsø, but it’s Trondheim.
Pointless Fact, 6.5 km south west of Bergen there is a district called Fyllingsdalen, Yorkshire also has an RAF Fylingdales where the early warning station is.
Love this. This back memories of my working just north of Bergen (Mongstad terminal). You were lucky to spend time during the nice weather. Go back in January/February and you will need more than just a light jacket.
The Christian Radich is literally a floating high school and there are several of them in Norway. A friend of mine went to the Radich and here in Stavanger we have Gand which is much different and a massive ship. Also massive thanks for the video. I find it impressive that you are able to maintain honest enthusiastic spontaneity for all our enteretainment in what is obviously a carefully planned gig with all the stress included. It's yuge asmr when somebody presents your home town in this way.
I must also say that I understand that Michelin restaurants are just too expensive for many. But it is a crime that the only two star restaurant in Stavanger has two stars because it easily among the very best on the globe. And while it is seriously expensive, it is much less so than the top three starred restaurants on the continent, like Noma. It's not a place you drop in to but it is something you save up for. And if you stay at somehwere other than the luxurious hotel it happens to be located at, it will in fact cost you less than the best in restaurant in London. For a Londoner, that is, with a return flight! Same deal for Aberdeen I would guess and possibly for Manchester although the flights are not frequent.
Incredible views 😮
I visited Bergen in 1990. Thanks for the memories!
One memory that stands out is my hotel elevator - you had to manually close the grate and then you could watch the floors go by, which I thought was ultra-cool. I wonder if it’s still there.
16:01 Addressing your question about trams: Yes! We have Bybanen, a lightrail that runs from the city center all the way to the airport. I take it every single day to go to and from work! Your timing was impeccable, the month you were there the last 2 stops of the rail (The one you passed and the one by the trainstation) were closed for what I assume were repairs or major maintenance (They gave very little info of what they were actually doing, as far as I remember) so you just missed seeing it in action!
Thank you for opening up the world to us! ❤ Another great Saturday morning watch. 😊. I loved both towns for different reasons, and am taken by how clean and beautiful they both are. You share such great adventures!
Really enjoyable to watch, informative, far better than BBC ITV etc.
I bed hopped across Norway staying with friends I met online and the 2 places that stood out were Oslo and Stavanger, both are cities where people live as opposed to cities where people work or just visit like Bergen.
The weather can be pretty unique in Norway.
The people are unfailingly friendly unless your language is Germanic apparently, which tends to get a more icy reaction, I guess its going to take another generation for the memories to fade a little more. They do not forgive easily.
I live in Bergen. There`s a lot of people who live in Bergen. The city are taking steps to limit the cruise ships from entering the city, because of the heave toll the tourist make on the city. As far as Norwegians not liking Germans. Well that was true back in the old days. Germany invaded Norway, and they killed a lot of innocent civilians. All of my grandparents lived through WWII, and it was a terrible time for all of us. But nobody holds that against the German people today. My grandfather did NOT like it when former German soldiers came back to Norway as tourist after the war, but that was a thing back in the 1960`s and does not apply now.
Germanic is a language family, you probably meant German. Norwegian is a Germanic language :)
I don't see why people here reacted badly to someone being German. Maybe if you spoke to the older folk who grew up in post-war Norway, but the current middle-aged and younger don't associate Germany or Germans with the war at all.
Very nice indeed . Of course Bergen wins by a small margin but those museums in Stavanger were definitely very niche and remarkable. The weather playing hide and seek is to be expected. Thank you for a great experience Steve .
It would be hard to decide which city was the best. But, WOW!!! I loved this video today. The ride to the top of the mountain and walking around with the goats! All the cobble streets. So clean and modern in many ways, but love the old houses. Loved the harbors and the boats. Another great job Steve. Had never really given Norway much thought. You have changed my mind. Thank you!
Loved the video I just moved away from Stavanger after living there for 40 years and realized I never visited those museums :) now at least I got a peek.
Nice video. Trondheim is formally the 3rd biggest city by population. The areas around the town are mostly forest and some farmland. The areas outside Stavanger's city limits are densely populated. One could count Stavanger and Sandnes as one city. So in _reality_ Stavanger is Norway's 3rd biggest city, and Trondheim 4th. I live in Trondheim and has not been in Stavanger since I was a little boy when we visited my grandparents, then pensioners. My grandmother had worked at Bjelland Canning, putting sardines in cans, and on the spears for the smoking oven. It was seasonal work with periods without work or pay. Today the sardines are frozen in ice-blocks, sent to the Baltic countries to be processed and canned by cheaper labour, and then the cans transported back, all transport by lorries, I think. As a little boy my dad and his comrades collected sardine can labels, like today's boys collect football cards. The now very nice little white houses in Strandgata were, I think, once the poor working class housing, now probably not affordable without a solid upper middle class income.
It is actually counted as the 3rd largest in official statistics in Norway (SSB)
interesting comments, thanks for sharing
Your not getting drunk in Norway, too expensive 😊
Love your dry sense of humor and your obvious love of discovery!
Really liked bergen, seemed to have good tourist areas and so clean. Great trip up the funicular, never seen a queue before for such a trip. The city must get really busy. The start of the video was like a Sci fi movie with the deserted streets! Stavanger looks really pretty with its little houses and harbour. Your sleep patterns must be very erratic though!
Thank you for the wonderful tour Steve
I was on one of those cruise ships last year (Royal Caribbean) and visited Bergen and Stavanger. Bergen is lovely but quite touristy, Stavanger is more like "real" Norway I think. But its worth going to Bergen just for the view from Mount Floibanen, incredible. Thanks for another great video Steve 👍
Well said! Agree completely!
Stavanger looks amazing! Although I did wonder when we were going to see any cannons in the "Cannon Factory" lol!
Very interesting film, thank you 😃
Christian Radich is a three-masted steel full-rigger from 1937. Christian Radich is Norway's largest full-rigger in operation, and since its launch has served as a training and charter ship with its home port in Oslo.
Its actually the third biggest full-rigger after Sørlandet, and Statsraad Lehmkuhl, wich is the biggest. Statsraad Lehmkuhl has its home in Bergen but was out of port when this was filmed. All of them are beautiful ships 😁
When I was young I went on a cruise to Norway, I saw this boy who was absolutely beautiful!!!! I've never seen such an angel in my whole life, blue eyes, blonde hair, lovely skin, BEAUTIFUL face!!!! OOOH, he was so cute, he got off at Stavanger the little cutie!
Definitely preferred Stavanger - but both have harbours I could spend all day at. Like the look of the CityBox Hotels too! 😊
I did Norway in a Nutshell and then I stayed at the Downtown Citybox in Bergen and had the fish sandwich at that shop you liked. I took a scenic bus (with 2 ferry crossings) to Stavanger, and I didn't mind the B&B with a bathroom down the hall. Thanks for the tips! I missed my ferry to Denmark because the train to Kristiansand was delayed, but I got a cheap ticket on a slower Colorline. Bergen was my fave.
I'm forever in hope that the crossing starts up again from North East England to Norway, like it used to be. I remember me and my brother trying to catch it once before it left, ringing the ticket office, but it'd gone. It stopped shortly after
15:55 there are trams in bergen 2 lines one from the city center to the airport and one from teh city center to fyllingsdalen. During june and july there was some construction so the final stop and onneseter was closed when you were here they are back now tho.
A great video Steve. Thank you, both cities are really lovely. I think you need to revisit both cities and do separate videos. My favourite would definitely be Stavanger. Thank you once again for taking us on a wonderful tour of Norway. Always look forward to your next adventure.
Steve, we were in Bergen at the start of July and in Stavanger the Week after you were. As you walked through Stavanger, I kept thinking, you have to find the colourful street, which you did. Then as you walked down to the harbour, the music. It must be a Wednesday thing, they had the stage set up the Wednesday after, a different performer, but the locals out in force and enjoying themselves. Stavanger was so much more than we expected, one of our highlights.
Glad you've had the pleasure, that city was not at ALL like what I was expecting for some reason - wonderful!
Another great video. I just returned from two weeks in Norway and I went up to the far north, well in to the Arctic, and its a stunning country from south to north, but I have to admit that I watch your videos because of you, as much as because of the destinations you visit. You're a natural presenter; you look good, sound good, and your videos never make me want to nod off as so many other travel videos do (plus we share a surname!), so thanks for this video and all the others. Keep it up!
8:15 Another beautiful twin masted schooner, she looks so elegant in her moorings
Another cracking video Steve, Stavanger was my favourite also as its hard to beat old school😉Very expensive country but its so beautiful, I'm not a fan of those giant cruise ships that look like tower blocks! At least you felt at home with the weather 😂
We who live in Stavanger hates them, they pollute a lot even when they are docked.
My dad drove to Newcastle and we took the ferry over to Bergen in 1970 ,we travelled quite extensively over Norway staying in fabulous youth hostels. We had a fabulous time , I still have photos of me and my mum standing on snow in the Telemark wearing our bathing suits as it was boiling hot yet the snow was still lying. Returned 30 years later with my mum on a mini cruise from Newcastle, the sail over was fantastic, can still visualise the stars in the night skies. Love Norway and the people. Thanks for sharing your trip with us.
Oh I'd love to know if their youth hostels are still there - I bet they are a pretty decent standard!
@@steve-marsh most of them were, as a family it was the most affordable way to see Norway with a boot full of food from our co-op
Oh my days! Bergen is awesome! The beautiful place where you had cinnamon bun is probably worth the trip alone!
Stavanger looks lovely but I'd plump for Bergen. Although the antique shop would probably prove costly. #ILoveBricABrac
And now I've seen the back end of the video. Now I want to eat sardines in Stavanger!
Thanks for the comparison of the cooked sardine to an Arbroath Smokie! This from Neil, born in Arbroath and now living on Vancouver Island.
Thank you so much! All your tips and notes are fantastic material. I watched your first video to the Faroe Islands, booked a trip almost immediately, and was there when you uploaded the 3rd video :) It was a trip of a lifetime. Thank you!!
No way! So glad you enjoyed such a magical place!!!!
@@steve-marsh I'd been studying the language and culture for a while and you provided that push to get out there! ☺️
How lucky you were that the boat horn sounded right as you were going to say "pissed"! :)
I absolutely loved Bergen fifty years ago. It still had an underdeveloped feel at the time. I stayed inland at Os. Beautiful location onthe fjord. Loved sailing from Stavanger, after a cruel North sea crossing. Norway is such a beautiful place. Thanks again for taking us along.
Trondheim is the third biggest city. Bergen is beautiful, a Shame the old fish market has gone the depth and clarity of the water at the end of the fjord was amazing, all the live fresh sea food, has it all gone now? Those old wonky houses along the water front, were once all the colours of the rainbow. Haha, all the under water tunnels joining all the islands. The panoramic views from the funicular in Bergen are unforgettable. If you don't go the Funicular you will never know how big a city Bergen is. After watching your great video of Stavanger, I wish I had made the time to visit this beautiful city. I believe Norway has some of the very best museums found any where in the world. Thank you Steve.
Steve, I’m loving the Scandi vibe from the last couple of months.
I think wooden houses/buildings are amazing. I don’t know why we don’t have more here.
5:22 and 21:09 That unwalled wooden structure, to the right of you in its first appearance and over your left shoulder in the second, is an exact reproduction and on exactly the same spot as the first bank in Bergen back at the beginning of the Hanseatic period.
In the centre is a wooden bench. Norwegian word for bench is benk. It's where we get the English word 'bank' from.
What a beautiful journey! I've only been to Bergen but looks like both cities are interesting. Those colourful wooden houses! And the rainy gray clouds make the landscapes even more dramatic. Plus these cruise ships, bigger than the harbours 😊 and ... the seagulls. And the goats❤
There are tourists that go to Stavanger. I was there about 10 weeks ago on a cruise and got to do an in home visit. It was one of the prettiest cities I got to see on my trip, but I don't think many tourists think about going to Stavanger for holiday/vacation. I had never heard of Stavanger before my trip, and I thought it was going to be some small town that didn't have much to see, but I was so wrong. When you were looking at the cruise ship after the oil museum, that was the exact same cruise ship I was on, but I wasn't in Stavanger on this day.
Yes the tram is to the airport and football stadium
And there are apartments in the stadium, too, very odd.
the Radich is not home-ported in Bergen so it’s there on a visit, you got lucky to see it…it’s frequently at tallship events with other similar sail training, including that visit
Bergan does have trams, you likely were there when it was temporarily closed or between trips
I subscribed to your travel channel after discovering your wonderful Føroyar trilogy. I toured Norway on that same trip but didn't get to the two cities you showcased here. Suffice it to say, you have stirred my travel juices once again. Thank you for sharing your adventure.
Welcome aboard, thank you!
Hello Steve,
I'm a newbie to your channel, and I've been travelling by bus and train through Norway for a few months.
You might mention two spectacular rail journeys, one taking the midnight train from Oslo to Bergen, which is probably one of the best in the world. Then of course there is the astonishing rail journey from Trondheim and up into the Arctic Circle to Bodø, absolutely NOT to be missed, as the train rises up and up....
Greetings from the lost Kingdom of Cornwall
Unlike our government the Norwegians saved ALL their oil revenues and put it into a Sovereign Wealth Fund for th benefit of the nation.
Well said!
That’s almost correct. The government has a spending limit of up to 4% of the fund every year. On average they only spend about 3% as the fund is getting extremely large. It’s affecting our economy and is why the Krone is suffering compared to the euro, dollar and pound these days. The fund is now so large that the surplus of the fund alone cover what we spend every year so even when the oil dry up it’s an source of income. About 1,5% of all public stocks in companies in the world is owned by it. Over 9000 companies in 69 countries. And growing. Fast. In reality because of the issues we allready have when using money from the fund we will never be able to spend however much we want of it. It would create inflation in and wreck our valuta system.
Such a delightful experience to have the pleasure without the pain to frame and pocket. Stavanger is amazing.
BERGEN: The tram tracks you saw are in use, but were closed due to work between this stop ("Byparken") and "Bystasjonen" two stops further on. Usually there is a train every 2-3 minutes from here. If you had moved further south and west in the city you would have seen the light-train. There is also a museum tram that runs on the old tracks further west in the city between the theater and Møllenpris in the west of the city centre. If you only visited a small part of Bergen, there was a lot you didn't get to see. If you had looked more at the train station, you would have seen that it is built alongside the bus station and a large shopping centre, so there were many shops and cafes that you didn't get to see other than those on the platform itself. :-)
They both look great. And you've made me hungry again thanks to the fish burger! 😄
Really liked the oil museum. The BBC broadcast a fantastic series, State Of Happiness which covered the discovery of oil in the North Sea, the development of the industry and finished with scenes in that safety dinghy you were in. Great stuff.
8:23 normand prosper is an anchor handler that usually always goes to port when the crew is disembarking. The helipad is elevated above the bridge so they actually have a lot of an easier time landing than on many other vessels. What you see peaking out a bit from that hole in its side, is the vessels Magnum ROV (Magnums are constructed by the same company that made the yellow wasp diving vessel you see in the stavanger petroleum museum)
very interesting comments! I don't know what an anchor handler is so I guess the ROV is used to check the anchors of the oil rigs at sea?
Love the oil museum. I look forward to the day when the majority of the oil industry is in a museums. 😮 😅
Beautiful Swan 58, nice!
If you liked the wooden houses at Storhaug(which is the place you where walking at first in Stavanger). You would absolutly love the neighbourhood of Eiganes. Storhaug was historically the poor part of town, but Eiganes are where all the factory owners villas where built. You should check out Ledaal, Breidablikk and Holmegenes which are all museum houses in the Eiganes neighbourhood. It's all about a 5-10 minutes walk westward from the harbour you where at!
Both places look very decent for a visit. Just loved those lounging goats, too, heh. I admire your adventurous spirit to get out and see these places.
How can you ever choose between two cities that are both unique in their own ways. Both topography and partly local culture are so different, even though both are Norwegian cities. In many ways, Bergen is wrongly called the city between seven mountains, while in reality it is the city that surrounds seven mountains. Most people who visit Bergen only see the central part which lies between the two most famous or more famous mountains (Ulriken and Løvstakken). Most of the city today lies east, west, south and north of the most characteristic part of the city. Each of the suburbs is unique in its own way. Although the undersigned was born and raised in Bergen, I have also spent several years in Stavanger, a city that is easy to fall in love with. Still, it must be said that Bergen is much bigger than Stavanger and has much more to offer than what a short-term visiting tourist manages to experience in a few days. I find the comparison you make somewhat tasteless and provocative.
When it comes to the size of these two cities, I think people also need to take into consideration that Stavanger have theire neighbor cities like Sandnes, Sola and Randaberg thats grown into each other like one city. That means the two cities are quite similar in size and population. When it comes to the weather, Bergen has the most rain, because of the surrounding mountains and Stavanger is a bit more windy. Bergen because its a bit bigger than Stavanger has a bit more tourists, but since Stavanger is the oil capitol of Norway it has the most international population in Norway with more than 100 different nationalities living there. And if people would like a trip to the famous Pulpit Rock, the cliff abut 600 meters above water in the Lysefjord, then Stavanger is the place to visit.
Fun fact about Old Stavanger. I don't know if it's been mentioned before.
Most of the buildings/houses are from around the area.
They weere brought along when people moved to Stavanger, and they brought their hoses/homes with them when moving.
Building materials was expensive and also hard to come by in those days.
Looking closely at the background it appears that both Bergen and Stavanger are very clean and tidy and puts the UK to shame I didn't see any graffiti well done the people of Norway
There is a lot of grafitti in stavanger especially outside the city centre but the streets are clean
Consider your comment liked, but i dont want to be no13 to like 😄👍
Recently a second tramline went into service. They are Stadler built trams
Brilliant video Steve! My grandparents on my mothers side are both from Norway and Sweden (on my father’s side we are Scots and Irish - a real mix lol). Anyway, will need to travel back soon to visit my Nordic relatives. Love it especially at Christmas time - just wonderful; and yes it also rains just like Scotland. Sometimes more! 😅. However, I am Scottish and Scotland is forever my home. 🥰
I saw a fair bit of grafitti.
Another excellent contribution to my Saturday night entertainment from you and the seagulls.
About the cruise ships, people in Stavanger has had it with these gigantic floatsams laying 30 meters from their homes, and passengers looking into their living room windows and freely going into their gardens! In several other towns and cities people are also starting to get annoyed, but in Stavanger with its quaysiude close to residential areas it is the worst.
Yes, wooden towns and cities are common in Norway, they have all burned afew times, on average a city fire every 10 years, and a devastating city fire every 100 years, but you can find houses that have survived 500 years, a lot was destroyed in the years 1940-1945, first the Germans in april- may 1940, and then the British in the the years 1941-1945.....
However, towns like Egersund, Flekkefjord, Farsund, Lillesand, Grimstad, Tvedestrand, Arendal and Tvedestrand are small towns ranging in size from 10 000 to 50 000, and Kristiansand a small city of around 100 000 all have wooden central areas, and some are all wooden, no concrete or glass to bee seen
I was wondering what the residents of those beautiful houses thought about having that monstrous cruise ship docked in front of their homes! I don't think I'd be too happy about it either.
I'm not surprised. That ship is just obscene.
It quite literally takes away daylight!
@@steve-marsh It surely does, and view of the sea as well, and now they come in all 12 months of the year, hopefully they will find oteher places to anchor
I have a friend who used to work in the oil industry, and she had to make occasional business trips to Stavanger. I remember her telling me what a dump she thought it was! But fast forward a few years, and I found myself making my own business trip to Stavanger. And guess what? Yep, I bl**dy loved it!! One of these days, I must remember to ask her why she thought it was so awful. I'm guessing she didn't see the parts of it that you and I have both experienced, Steve!
I think I'm right in saying that a lot of those houses in the Old Town were shipped from other parts of Norway when their owners moved to Stavanger looking for work. They just took their homes with them! Or do I have false memory on that one?
Another great video mate!
I've moved here from Scotland and it is a very nice city. Cleaner than anywhere in Scotland and fewer neds, Chavs, minks, crime, scum etc than you find in Scotland.
Much less obesity too and far less anti social behaviour.
Ahhh I didn't know that! Cheers
Bergen or Stavanger ? Bergen is by far the finest/prettiest town/city in Norway and Scandinavia. Yes, it always rain there.... Half of the annual amount of rain we in Paisley get. But the town is still pretty and it the surrounding area is stunning. In which you can do..... Take the daily catamaran (boat) to the Sogndal and Flåm in Sognefjorden, the second longest fjord in the world. The Flåmsbanen train. The coastal express to the North Cape and Kirkenes. The train to Oslo. The Aquarium. The hikes around the seven mountains (the mountains surrounding Bergen)..... Whilst Stavanger has more or less just the express boat to the Pulpit Rock and not much else. Again, a great video from you.
Fabulous memories of Stavanger. Our cruise ship in 1957 was considerably smaller than these gargantuan monstrosities that loom over every port they visit, and cram the place with their visitors. Our Brand Vl was the largest privately owned yacht when it was built by Krupps of Kiel in the 1920's and at one time was an 18th birthday present to Barbara Hutton, the Woolworths heiress from her father - some present, eh? The fittings and fixtures were very much like the veteran ferry you visited, ideal for Tintin adventures! It is now a floating hotel and restaurant ship moored in the port of Stockholm.
Your visit to the Bergen fish market recalls the fish markets at some of the smaller towns we visited, where the fishermen unloaded their live catches into big tanks on the quayside, the housewives came down to the harbour, and selected the fish they wanted which would be taken out, despatched and gutted, to be put in the shopping bag and taken home for dinner - you couldn't get much fresher than that!
I need to go to Stockholm now!!!
😃 I've neber been but It's a beautiful city,
...city I believe. The ship's now named "Malardrottingen" and looks rather more luxuriously fitted out than when we sailed aboard her!