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Chameleon and Komodo work with Innovation Norway and the Royal Norwegian Embassy in the UK to promote Norwegian tourism, business and culture.

As part of this work, I recently accompanied a group of UK travel journalists on a trip to Fjord Norway, an area on the western coast of the country.

Only an hour and a half from London, the fjord region is an area of breathtaking and majestic scenery. Our visit began in Avaldsnes where we saw the river crossing from which Norway (the way to the North) derives its name, and where the first King of Norway united the country to win the hand of a fair maiden. Clearly, chocolates and flowers just don’t do it for some people.

 Subsequent days were spent in amazement at stunning views, homely hospitality, Viking villages and hotels with their own historic tales to tell. For example, one where the composer Edvard Grieg had a cabin to focus on his work and where Queen Sonja of Norway goes for winter sports breaks, another where Kaiser Wilhelm is said to have conducted a long running affair.

On a visit to one of the villages along the fjords, I noticed that all the houses in the area were flying their Norwegian flags at half mast. I asked our guide if there had been a national disaster or if a dignitary in Oslo had died. Our guide explained that a man from the area had died recently and, as his funeral was taking place that day, the community had half-masted its flags out of respect and support for his family. I was touched by this gesture of community solidarity, particularly as we rarely see the Union Jack or St George’s Cross in the UK.  

Our visit to Norway ended with two days in Bergen, Norway’s second largest city, Newcastle’s twin town and a former Hanseatic League port. The city skilfully blends the wooden houses and narrow cobbled streets of the old town with modern attractions. For example, a quick ride in a cable car takes you up a mountain and opens up panoramic vistas across the city.

Five days was not enough to do justice to such an extraordinary country and its blend of the old and new, natural and hi-tech. Why the Vikings ever left there is beyond me.

Media coverage so far has included Travel Weekly and the Bath Chronicle.

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