Hello all. I've decided that I'm going to take my Mk1 Octavia on an ultimate road trip to Norway this easter. I've never driven outside of the UK before, nor have I undertaken a roadtrip that might take more than a day to complete.

 

My plan is to catch the overnight ferry to the Hook of Holland, and drive through Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and then to Norway. I've decided to go over the Øresund Bridge rather than take 2 ferry crossings so that I'm not juggling the timings of both.

 

As a total noob to continental driving and very long-distance driving - what do I need to know and watch out for on my trip?

Didn't Clarkson race a Mercedes SLR McLaren thing on this route?  Might be worth catching that episode to see how he got on.

 

My advice is once in Holland, drive on the right :P

Haha yes - I'm not too worried about driving on the incorrect side of the road the entire time. Do you know which episode that was?

 

Edit: Found it - Series 6, episode 6. If the Norway Ferry still existed, I'd take that instead, but alas I must road-trip.

Edited 21 October, 20159 yr by asteconn

I think a warning triangle is compulsory, dipped headlights are also compulsory at all times in Norway (and may feel safer in Sweden) and if it's raining in the Netherlands.

 

Do remember to keep right when not overtaking in Germany!

I drove it the other way - Russia -> Finland -> Sweden -> Norway -> Denmark -> France etc. -> home.

 

Can't offer route guidance, but Norway is a truly stunning country with an amazing landscape and lovely people. 

 

We did the bridge rather than two ferries. An expensive crossing, but much easier.

As to Norway, watch out for the scenary!

 

But after that, watch out for the speedlimit. Very low tolerance and very high on the spot fines. I was hitching there a few years back, the only people speeding were not local, norweigian or hadn't been caught already. One guy who was Sweedish had and got himself a huge fine. I have to say it was far more effective than any camera I've seen

 

The roads are mostly excellent. Depends how far up you can go. The main central road is good for mileage but no view, the costal one will take much longer.

 

Ferry crossings on the Fjords are good and can save a lot of miles. Get her to the arctic circle, Lofoten is amazing

I do this for a living

 

It is still possible to get a car onto the Immingham ferry, so give them a call before you finalise any other plans.

 

The old Harwich to Esbjerg route stopped in September 2014 and there have been a few attempts to revive it - the most recent was due to start next month (Regina Line) but they boat they were planning to lease got sold out from under them.

If you're driving up i'd suggest skipping the long drive around and simply get a fast ferry from Hirtshals (northern tip of Denmark) to either Kristiansand or Larvik in southern Norway.

If you're more than an hour from the coast and 3 hours from Oslo then the roads are empty, the scenery is spectacular, and the people are lovely.

Always do the speed limit in any populated area - not just because there are kids running around, but because that's where you're most likely to find the police.
And if you come up behind a slower driver, just wait for a mile or two and chances are they'll pull over to let you past.

Long dotted lines mean it's not advisable to overtake, so only do so on the short dotted lines once you've give the local a mile or two to pull over and they still haven't.

 

How long are you planning to spend in Norway?

You have to do the Troll's Ladder (Trollstigen), and the Lysebotn road, and the number one must see is the ferry from Hellesylt to Geiranger (or the other way around).

 

Lastly, are you sure you want to go at easter? There are still lots of roads in the Norwegian interior which will be closed or covered in snow in April. Some of the best roads in the country aren't certain to be open before June 1st.
Norwegian schools break up for summer holidays around summer solstice weekend so the first 3 weeks in June are golden

Christ, you dont do it by half. I could build up to it first. Drive to Cornwall first, Im from Essex/Suffolk so thats a fair way. Then drive to the south of france. Then maybe do Denmark. Then Norway. I wouldnt want to be doing it in any car other than one I have absolute faith in.