June 15 - 29, 2007

Friday-Sunday, June 15-17

Evening departure from Toronto or New York with arrival on Saturday afternoon in Copenhagen, Denmark. You will get your first impressions of Denmark as we drive into the 800-year-old city of Copenhagen and learn about this smallest of the Scandinavian countries. A 3-hour city tour on Sunday morning will include Christiansborg Palace, the Little Mermaid, the magnificent Grundtvig Church and other highlights. There will be time to explore the shopping district. Evening dinner at the world-famous Tivoli Gardens.

Monday & Tuesday, June 18 & 19

After leaving Copenhagen, we will enjoy the drive across the Storebaelforbindelsen Bridge which connects us to the fairy-tale island of Funen. We will then head for Aalborg via Odensee, Hans Christian Andersen’s home, and the Little Belt waterway. Aalborg is on the rural Jutland Peninsula and we will overnight in this area. Tuesday morning we will take a pleasant two-hour ferry ride from Frederikshavn across the strategic Kattegat to Gothenburg, Sweden’s thriving second-largest city and one of Europe’s major seaports.

Wednesday & Thursday, June 20 & 21

Wednesday morning we will leave Gothenburg and drive along the Swedish west coast, past picturesque fishing villages and make a stop at Vitlycke to see the ancient Viking rock paintings. We cross into Norway at Svinesund and proceed along the shores of the beautiful Oslo Fjord to Oslo, the capital of Norway. In the afternoon we will see Vigeland Sculpture Park with over 175 sculptures and ascend the Holmenkollen hills to the famous Holmenkollen Ski Jump to view the city. Thursday morning we will visit the National Gallery, with works by world artists and particularly by Norwegian artists including Munch. After lunch, we'll see the Resistance Museum and Oslo’s richly decorated City Hall. Free time to explore on your own or rest.

Friday & Saturday, June 22 & 23

Friday we will drive across the Sollihoegda Plateau and along the scenic Tyrifjord to the Hadeland Glassworks where we will visit the factory and see skilled craftsmen at work. We continue along glittering Lake Kroederen and the Hallindalselva River in the Hallingdal Valley. The afternoon’s drive will be very beautiful as we travel to the resort center of Geilo, our destination for the night. Saturday’s journey takes us across the wild and barren Hardangervidda, a mountain plateau lying at a height of between 3,300 and 4,600 feet, with its many lakes and grazing area for large herds of reindeer. We will see the Voeringsfoss, one of Europe's largest waterfalls, and then descend to the fjord village of Eidfjord. There is majestic scenery in this fjordland. You will enjoy a stop at a typical West-Norwegian farm to learn about farming in Norway. Later we will arrive at Bergen, an old Hanseatic town where we will stay for two nights.

Sunday & Monday, June 24 & 25

Sunday, we will have a 3-hour city tour and see the 12th and 13th century houses and wooden buildings built by the merchants of that era and make a visit to Troldhaugen, the home of the world-known composer Edvard Greig. After some free time, we will take a cable car to Mount Floyen for a breathtaking view of this seafaring town and a delicious dinner at Restaurant Floien before returning to the hotel. As we leave Bergen on Monday, we will drive along the Vosso River, one of the finest salmon rivers in Norway, to the resort town of Voss. We will continue on to Gudvangen where we sail by fjord ferry on a two-hour cruise on the impressive Naeroy Fjord and into Sogne Fjord, the longest and deepest fjord in the world. This cruise is a photographer’s dream! We disembark at the village of Laerdal with its many old wooden buildings and continue past Borgund with the best-preserved of Norway’s stave churches and end our day at the charming resort center of Beito.

Tuesday & Wednesday, June 26 & 27

Leaving Beito, we drive past Fagernes, through the Valdres Valley, across the Tonassen Mountain Pass, known for the fierce battle between German and Norwegian forces during April 1940, past Dokka and Gjoevil and along the shores of Lake Mjosa to Kongsvinger. We cross the Norway-Sweden border at the village of Sunne and travel on to Karlstad, our destination for the night. Wednesday, we drive to the old town of Orebro which has a long tradition as a commercial area. We continue through Sweden’s Lake District to the picturesque town of Mariefred where you will have time to browse. In the afternoon, we will arrive in Stockholm and take time to visit the Skansen Open Air Museum, where various restored buildings depict life in different parts of Sweden throughout the centuries. Lodging in Stockholm for two nights.

Thursday & Friday, June 28 & 29

We will begin the day with a three-hour city tour of Stockholm, a city situated on 14 islands. The tour will include an inside visit to the famous City Hall with its elegant Golden Hall, a stroll through the Old Town with its cobblestone streets and medieval buildings, and a coach ride to Southern Island for a view over the city and harbor. Afternoon free time for rest, packing or last-minute shopping. Farewell Dinner. Early Friday morning, we will transfer from the hotel to Stockholm International Airport for our return flight. Your tour of Scandinavia has come to an end. You will have made new friends, seen fabulous scenery and created wonderful memories.

Tour Leaders

Wilmer and Janet Martin of Waterloo, Ontario, have previously led tours to Scandinavia, as well as to many other countries. They are the Canadian partners of TourMagination and manage the TourMagination office. A local guide will join the group in Copenhagen.

For further information regarding the complete tour fare, please This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it . We would be happy to be of assistance.