Norway On A Budget: How To Plan Your Visit

Are you planning a Norway adventure, but you’re worried about whether it’s possible to travel Norway on a budget?

When planning a trip to Norway, your budget can often be the biggest challenge. Norway is known for its expensive prices, in fact it’s one of the most expensive countries in the world, but there are still plenty of ways to plan an affordable trip.

We spent a few weeks travelling Norway in our motorhome, and it really is one of the most incredible countries in the whole world. We travel on a budget, and we didn’t want to let this stop us from being able to visit and make the most of this spectacular part of the world.

To help you make the most of your Norway visit without breaking the bank, here are some of our tips on how to travel Norway on a budget.

Experiences

First, decide what type of travel experience you’d like to have in Norway. Do you want to stay in one location and explore the area or do you prefer travelling all around Norway in your campervan or motorhome and seeing everything it has to offer?

Once you have decided, we found it really helpful to plan exactly the route we wanted to take and the stops we wanted to make along the way.

This way, we could work out roughly how much we might spend in fuel, which is always one of our biggest out goings, and also work out what costs we might incur along the way such as sights to pay for etc.

Accommodation

Depending on your choice, different accommodation options may work better for staying within budget. If you’re looking for cheaper accommodation options, consider booking hostels or camping sites instead of hotels or resorts. You’ll also find that Norway has lots of Airbnb options, which can be more affordable than hotels.

Norway is one of the very best countries for wild camping spots out of all of the countries that we have travelled to across Europe.

In the few weeks that we spent in Norway, we hardly paid for a campsite, only when we needed to get some washing done! We found so many amazing free spots to stay overnight and because we travelled in the off season, most of the places that we stayed we had all to ourselves.

If you are happy to wild camp in your campervan or motorhome and only stay on campsites when it’s really necessary, then this is probably the best way that you’ll manage to save money whilst travelling Norway.

Another great way to save on Norway travel is to look for package deals or discounts online. Many airlines and tour companies offer discounted tickets or packages that include transportation and accommodation in Norway. Utilizing these deals can help you save money instead of booking all components separately.

Food

When it comes to food, Norway offers plenty of options for eating on a budget. Look for cafeterias or local restaurants that offer reasonably priced meals over more expensive options like fine dining establishments.

Supermarkets also provide a more economical option for buying food, although they are still more expensive than supermarkets in other countries and the selection can be limited.

We bought our own food from the supermarkets for the whole time that we were in Norway and cooked our own food in our motorhome, I think we maybe only ate out once in the few weeks that we spent there.

For us, this is something that we don’t mind compromising on in order to save money when we travel as we really enjoy cooking our own food and eating our own meals anyway.

To find out how much our trip to Norway in our motorhome cost us, please read our blog post here – How Much Does Van Life Norway Cost?

Finally, Norway is full of amazing sights and activities that don’t cost anything. Norway’s famous fjords and landscapes can be explored without any admission fees.

Our favourite thing, and the thing we did the most in Norway, was just to get out on hikes and take in the stunning natural scenery, which doesn’t cost a penny, and also gets you outdoors and getting exercise so for us this was a win win!

Norway has some of the very best hiking routes in all of the world so whatever part of Norway you visit, you won’t be short of hiking routes to get out and explore.

There are also an abundance of absolutely beautiful fjords and bodies of water to get out and take part in free water sports and activities like swimming or kayaking.

Tips for travelling Norway on a budget

Here are some tips to help you plan your visit:

1. Accommodation: Consider staying in budget-friendly options such as hostels, Airbnb rentals or making the most of wild camping in your campervan or motorhome. You can also look for accommodation in smaller towns and villages, as these tend to be less expensive than the larger cities.
2. Transportation: Public transportation in Norway is reliable and convenient, so consider using buses, trains, and ferries to get around instead of renting a car, if you are not travelling in a camper or motorhome. Invest in a rail pass or bus pass to save money on multiple trips.
3. Food: Eating out can be expensive in Norway, so consider cooking your own meals or buying food at local supermarkets. Street food and local cafes offer good options for budget-friendly meals.
4. Activities: Norway is known for its stunning natural beauty, and many of the best sights can be seen for free. Go on hikes, explore the fjords, and enjoy the scenic views without spending a lot of money.
5. Avoid Tourist Traps: Norway is home to many tourist hotspots, but these can often be overpriced. Consider seeking out lesser-known destinations to save money and experience a more authentic side of Norway.

By following these tips and planning ahead, you can make the most of travelling Norway on a budget without breaking your budget.

Norway is full of stunning sights and amazing experiences that don’t have to cost a fortune. With careful planning and a bit of research, you’ll find that Norway can be an affordable destination for travellers looking for an unforgettable experience.

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Kirsty Lunn

I love everything about travel, from seeing new places, learning about new cultures and trying new foods! I believe that travel is one of the best forms of education you can get, I have learnt so much about myself and about the world from travelling all over. Travel is something I feel so passionately about, and I love the fact that we are now lucky enough to have this opportunity to do what we love as much as we can, it’s a dream come true.

 

Before we started travelling, I worked in local government in administration. I had been in this job for several years and had reached a complete brick wall where I was so fed up, but didn’t know what else to do. The only thing I knew that I wanted to do was to travel, and had wanted to do that for many years.

 

There were hundreds and hundreds of places on my wishlist that I wanted to go to, and I knew that going on a weeks holiday maybe twice a year if we were lucky wasn’t going to cut it.

After being in lockdown due to the Covid pandemic, and working from home staring at the same 4 walls every day, 2021 seemed like the perfect time for us to take the risk to finally do what we had dreamed of for so long.

It was a hard decision to completely change our lives, but so far it has been the best decision we have ever made!