Warm welcome to new country
Norway
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Jun 12 - Jun 17, 2025
We had a wonderful visit to Norway and Denmark, made easy, fluid, enjoyable and more personal working with Kadri via kimkim. Our hotel in Bergen, Oslo XVI, was perfect for location, comfort and quality. The food and culture tour we took was just what we wanted to start out with, to get to know the city more intimately and Diane was a great guide around the city to food stops we may not have found on our own, and she treated us to stories and tastes that made us feel so good and grounded in the city. The Fjordrive tour we booked on our own was also wonderful with such a warm welcome from our driver/guide Bjarte. His lux van, warm nature and expertise in all things Norwegian coupled with the exquisite beauty of Norway itself made the all-day tour to fjord and viewpoints wonderful. Kadri gave us all the information we needed to make the city of Bergen our own -- we loved it! Bergen is an incredible place to visit -- so much to do. so walkable, so beautiful, so friendly, and with Kadri and Kimkim team's help we were able to be in city for the first time as if we knew what we were doing. The transfers to airport and hotel were also lovely and stress-relieving for us. The only trouble we had was due to my lack of preparedness. Our phone service isn't perfect when traveling abroad and when we encountered a flight delay, I struggled to know how to reach the driver picking us up in Copenhagen. The best I could do was alert the kimkim team by email -- it was all I could think of to do. While the team (Kadri) responded quickly, they were not able to alert the driver in time to save us an unexpected fee. If I had a do-over, I would make certain I had all contact numbers and means of contacting support more at my fingertips. Everything had gone so smoothly the whole trip that we weren't ready for the flight delay when it happened. Overall, what I appreciated most from Kadri and kimkim was the access to local knowledge and expert choices/information so kindly shared with us, that made this first visit to Norway, 2nd visit to Denmark, really special from beginning to end.
Hotel Reviews
This hotel is perfectly situated in a beautiful, bustling part of Bergen making walking or access to trains, tours, and funicular easy. Though there can be a lot going on around there, our room overlooking the square was quiet and comfortable. Breakfasts in the morning are lovely as well, and the staff are welcoming and helpful.
This beautiful hotel may still be finishing up its renovation. It is ideally situated close to the water for easy, beautiful walks, but our access to our room was strangely blocked by large covered carts containing supplies (?) maybe? So our first encounter with the floor we were on and getting to our room felt strange -- as if we were on a storage floor rather than a floor occupied by hotel customers. Otherwise, all else was nice -- nice aesthetic, clean room, comfortable bed. Just not outstanding, yet.
Activity Review
I felt as though this was the best thing we could have done to start out our wonderful time in Bergen. Our guide, Diane, was friendly and kind and knowledgeable, and she helped us feel at home in the city, taking us to places we wouldn't have found on our own and introducing us to foods we may not have tried. She took us through the big, wonderful fish market (incredible) and we tried a warm fish cake unlike anything we'd ever had before that was so much fun to eat. She gave us bites of dried cod to try. She walked us up and down and around the old parts of the city and told us interesting stories as she popped us into a cool coffee shop and a wonderful old bathhouse now local hangout and a cool pub. This tour was great from beginning to end and gave us a welcoming, wonderful introduction to the city.
