Bergen Port

[retiredman]

DW and I will be taking the Oslo to Bergen train in a few weeks to board the Sky. Anyone have an idea of the distance from Central Station to the the Port? We will just have carry on luggage. Is it walkable? Or is there other options besides a cab?

[Frenchberet]

It’s a 20-25 minute walk.  Certainly doable but we took a taxi.  

[RetroRod]

According to Google maps it’s 1.3 km from the train station to the port, mostly flat terrain. We walked from the port dragging two bags to the Radisson Blu hotel to catch the bus to the airport. Not bad, but you will be farther away. If you have rain I’d get a cab. 

Edited July 7, 2019 by VJMAZZ

[Peregrina651]

 

 

 

[Capt_BJ]

one word: cobblestones!

 

Like most of Europe (IME) the sidewalks are not smooth, but cobblestones .....

 

We've done this twice ..... with rolling bags.   First time we walked it .... COBBLESTONES

and depending on time of the day you are trying to roll bags down the MAIN tourist area

 

next time I convinced dw that life is TOO short and we took a taxi ...... she later agreed 110%

 

a taxi wasn't much and usually waiting outside the train station

 

taxi took credit card altho I paid with NOK

 

*******

editorial ... it is a long train ride. While stretching your legs sounds like a good idea, just getting to the end and finding FOOD and libation was first in my mind.

Edited July 7, 2019 by Capt_BJ

[Frenchberet]

It is a long, scenic train ride (7 hours).  We did the trip in reverse, disembarked in Bergen and took the train to Oslo.  We paid a few dollars extra for "Komfort class" tickets - assigned seats and free coffee and tea for the duration of the trip.  There was also a snack bar that offered sandwiches, cookies, and soft drinks.  

[mhb1757]

It’s actually quite a pleasant walk (assuming you aren’t loaded down with gear). We just had backpacks and walked from the station to our hotel which was right by the pier and really enjoyed the walk. However if we had had luggage it would not have been fun as others have said. Bergen is very walkable. 

[retiredman]

Thank you everyone for your help. Just knowing it is not that far, we can play it by ear. If the weather is nice we may feel like walking. My guess is we take a cab. We will be anxious to board the ship.

 

[Geosez]

Be sure to verify where the Sky will be docked.  When we boarded the Sea in Bergen two years ago she was docked at the industrial area,  Jekteviken on Peregrina’s  map.  A nice walk to the tourist area from there but from the station, you deserve a taxi!  🤓

[retiredman]

16 hours ago, Capt_BJ said:

We've done this twice ..... with rolling bags.   First time we walked it .... COBBLESTONES

 

We grew up in Philly and now live about 15 minutes from Old City. Well aware of cobblestones! I have seen a wooden block street. One still exists in Philadelphia, wooden blocks the size of cobblestones, laid to keep down the noise of horses hooves and carriage wheels in well to do neighborhoods in colonial times.

[knoxclone]

We took a cab - worth the $15 not to drag bags our through Bryggen's crowded cobblestones shopping area.  

[Peregrina651]

2 hours ago, retiredman said:

 

We grew up in Philly and now live about 15 minutes from Old City. Well aware of cobblestones! I have seen a wooden block street. One still exists in Philadelphia, wooden blocks the size of cobblestones, laid to keep down the noise of horses hooves and carriage wheels in well to do neighborhoods in colonial times.

 

Not doubting your word, but since I used to do tourist info in PHL (around the Bicen), you sent me scurrying to Google to learn more. No wonder I never heard of this. It seems that the wooden paving has come and gone over the years :

Philadelphia’s S. Camac Street street was lined with granite blocks. They were ripped up and replaced with wooden blocks in 1917, and have vanquished the vagaries of weather, time, and paving trends ever since. That is, until they were covered in asphalt in 2015.  Why were they asphalted over? As part of the city’s Historic Street Paving Thematic District Inventory, S. Camac was restored in 1998. But the blocks started to rot, bottom up, and became a safety hazard, said Steve Lorenz, Streets Department’s chief highway engineer. (from WHYY website)

 

So it looks like the street was asphalt for a long time (particularly during the Bicen) until it was restored in 1998 and then paved over again in 2015 because the blocks were rotting. The article also said that they were going to restore the wooden blocks in 2018. Did that ever happen? I get the impression that it didn't happen because Atlas Obscura marks it as permanently closed and because I didn't see any articles more recent than 2017.

 

Another article also pointed out that the original wood block idea was a disaster because the wood soaked up liquids including horse urine and the stench was awful.

[Peregrina651]

14 hours ago, Geosez said:

Be sure to verify where the Sky will be docked.  When we boarded the Sea in Bergen two years ago she was docked at the industrial area,  Jekteviken on Peregrina’s  map.  A nice walk to the tourist area from there but from the station, you deserve a taxi!  🤓

 

https://bergenhavn.no/en/cruise-en/call-schedules-cruise/

 

Here is the link to the port schedule. Just remember, that even this can change at the last minute.

 

Here is where Viking ships are docking over the next few months (all that fit on the screen for snipping). Dates are dd/mm/yy. Skolten and Bontelabo are contiguous, B being north and east of Skolten along the same 585 road.

 

[just_dont]

Taxi.
Exit the platform to the right, rather than going into the station. Taxis will be waiting.

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[Cyber Kat]

Am I correct in assuming that if you do the Viking extension in Oslo that they will transport you from the train station to the ship?  Also do any of you know if Viking includes the Komfort class tickets and if not, can you pay to upgrade?

[Lotusgirl22]

I agree that, weather permitting, train station to port was walkable with carryon bags.  While it can be done, I would not be keen to drag large suitcases that distance.

[Peregrina651]

1 hour ago, Cyber Kat said:

Am I correct in assuming that if you do the Viking extension in Oslo that they will transport you from the train station to the ship?  Also do any of you know if Viking includes the Komfort class tickets and if not, can you pay to upgrade?

 

Yes, if you are on a Viking package transfer to the ship is part of the package. So, they will get your from the hotel in Oslo to the train station in Oslo and then from the station in Bergen (look for the Viking lollipop) to the ship. If you do Viking Air, the package will include transfers from the airport to the hotel.

 

 

[Cyber Kat]

On 7/18/2019 at 10:06 AM, Peregrina651 said:

 

Yes, if you are on a Viking package transfer to the ship is part of the package. So, they will get your from the hotel in Oslo to the train station in Oslo and then from the station in Bergen (look for the Viking lollipop) to the ship. If you do Viking Air, the package will include transfers from the airport to the hotel.

 

 

 

Excellent!  This is what I was hoping for. We usually do pre and post on our own, but this one sounded like it would be wonderful to have Viking handle everything. I didn’t want to have to worry about luggage on the train and all that. 

 

I was thinking about flying into Stockholm because my great grandmother came from Sweden and I’ve never been there, but we weren’t crazy about the logistics of getting from there to Bergen. It would have involved another flight. 

 

Thanks!

[janetcbl]

3 hours ago, Cyber Kat said:

 

Excellent!  This is what I was hoping for. We usually do pre and post on our own, but this one sounded like it would be wonderful to have Viking handle everything. I didn’t want to have to worry about luggage on the train and all that. 

 

I was thinking about flying into Stockholm because my great grandmother came from Sweden and I’ve never been there, but we weren’t crazy about the logistics of getting from there to Bergen. It would have involved another flight. 

 

Thanks!

I There are a couple of trains Stockholm-Oslo a day...about a six hour trip...it is an interesting trip through the country. In Oslo you could then take the Oslo-Bergen train which is a magnificent trip...

It is a lot of time on trains, but the Scandinavian trains are excellent.

[Liz Masterson]

I'm curious to find out how the train trip goes and whether or not you are in comfort class! Please keep us posted.  I'm going the 4 day pre Oslo and Bergen in 2020. So once I get to the hotel in Oslo Viking will handle the baggage! Yeah! (I'm on my own for from the airport though... as we are arriving a day early and departing a day late.

[just_dont]

I'm curious to find out how the train trip goes and whether or not you are in comfort class! Please keep us posted.  I'm going the 4 day pre Oslo and Bergen in 2020. So once I get to the hotel in Oslo Viking will handle the baggage! Yeah! (I'm on my own for from the airport though... as we are arriving a day early and departing a day late.

Getting from the airport to central Oslo is an easy train ride. There are a couple trains that make the trip, and there's one leaving about every 10 minutes. Ticket machines in the airport terminal just before the trains are easy to use, and there should be someone there to answer any questions - in English. But you will have to manage getting your bags on/off the train on your own.
There is a paid porter service that you can hire to transport your luggage from the airport to your hotel, but the price for airport pickup was pretty steep. We did Oslo-Bergen on our own and used them to haul our big bags from Oslo to Bergen, but sounds like you'll have Viking's help for that.

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[mhb1757]

There are 2 trains from the airport to Central Station in Oslo. The airport express is over 2x as costly as the regular train. The regular train runs quite  often (every 10 minutes or so) and only takes an extra 10 or 15 minutes longer. 

[retiredman]

We just did not want to deal with our large luggage on the train. We took advantage of Viking's discount on shipping. We consolidated to one large (up to 50lb) bag. We embark on the 1st, I tracked it two days ago and it is sitting in Bergen already. I guess they need plenty of lead time to account for any potential problems.

[Cyber Kat]

We are doing the Viking extension, so I have them to handle everything - which is the main reason for doing the extension!

 

[retiredman]

16 minutes ago, Cyber Kat said:

We are doing the Viking extension, so I have them to handle everything - which is the main reason for doing the extension!

 

 

Even with shipping a bag, savings are substantial doing it yourself. But I do understand doing it for convenience.