For many years I have heard stories about Ullensvang hotel from colleagues and they have been raving about it like it was most amazing place in the world. In August 2012 I decided to take my wife on a surprise trip to Hardanger and I saw that Ullensvang hotel is located here so I decided to stay at the hotel to check it out. We drove from Stavanger on a Friday afternoon and when reaching Odda and Hardanger fjord you get a spectacular view. The fjord stretches out from Odda and on both sides there are majestic mountains with waterfalls and on the one side you can also get a glimpse of the Folgefonna glacier. On both sides apple trees are clinging on in the slopes leading down to the fjord. When we parked at the hotel a young boy came over to help with the luggage – he was a poster boy for the typical Norwegian with his bunad inspired work outfit and blond hair sticking out under the hat. Once you get into the lobby there is a display of the Hardanger bunad (the traditional Norwegian costume from this area). But if you walk a few more steps you also get a beautiful view of the fjord in front of the hotel!

We got room 628 and after traveling a lot and staying at pretty nice hotels around the world I have to be honest to say that I was not expecting much as Norwegian hotels normally don’t have that much to offer. But I was pleasantly surprise when walking into the room. The room was not that big but it had light walls, two beds pushed together to form a double bed, a dark purple/greyish carpet, dark wooden furniture with purple colors in the fabric, a small TV on a small fridge, a desk with a chair and a mirror. There was also a dark wooden wardrobe by the entrance to the bathroom. We got a room with a view towards the apple tree garden and the mountains but I’m sure that you can get an amazing fjord view if you pay a bit extra. The bathroom seemed to be brand new and was tiled in large, light tiles and the bathroom furniture seemed modern and new. The shower option was in the bathtub and a glass panel prevented water splashing everywhere and it worked pretty well. There were not that many bathroom amenities…only a body and hair shower gel and small bars of soap.

We also had breakfast included in our stay and they have a pretty good breakfast indeed – breakfast is usually good in Norwegian hotel and Ullensvang could also offer a great selection of bread, cereal, locally produced apple juice, cheese, cold cuts etc. There was also a bit of egg and bacon but as usual Norwegian hotels are better on the cold food compared to warm food for breakfast. The hotel also had a dinner buffet at night which was very good. At night they had a wide variety of cold cuts including some typical Norwegian stuff such as rømmegrøt (sour cream porridge), fenalår (salted and dried leg of lamb), smoked whale meat etc. But they also served various fish (salmon and trout), crab, roe and various meat (pork, reindeer, beef etc). The dessert selection was also outstanding serving cheese, a selection of cakes and again typical Norwegian favorites such as karamellpudding (flan) and tilslørte bondepiker (apple jam and cream). The dinner buffet is about 500 Norwegian kroner per person (about 85 USD).

The hotel also has an a la carte restaurant which we checked out on Friday night. They had a small but good menu and to start with we got some cold cut with a strawberry jam which sounds like a weird combination but it was actually a pretty good combination. I continued with the duck confit starter and had rack of lamb with roasted vegetables which was excellent. Together with a good bottle of Italian wine we really had an excellent meal at the Zanoni restaurant. In the end we had some dessert made from local products and I also got a small glass of dessert wine to round it off.

The hotel is large and provides lots of activities. If you move outside there is a beautiful garden leading down to the fjord. You can rent a pedal boat or a rowing boat if you want to get away from the hotel, you can rent a fishing rod if you want to try to catch a fish for dinner…or you can head over to the activity part of the hotel where you can play squash, tennis, table tennis, work on your swing in the golf simulator etc. There is also an indoor/outdoor pool and it seems like they are working on expanding the pool area where the water will be heated (of course).

The room cost about 2000 Norwegian kroner per night (including taxes and breakfast) which is about 340 USD per night and hence it is quite expensive. We did get free wifi included but I’m a bit annoyed to see that you have to pay extra to get access to e.g. the fitness room. Maybe stuff like that should be included when you pay that much for the hotel room itself. I would also have liked to see more amenities in the bathroom (shampoo, conditioner etc). But all in all I was very impressed with the hotel. The hotel is filled with items that tell a story about Norway, the history and the location. I’m glad to see that they are also serving some traditional Norwegian dished for breakfast and dinner to let the tourists get a taste of Norway. But the best of all is of course the location of the hotel…located just a step away from the beautiful Hardanger fjord gives the hotel a breathtaking view. Once you step out of the hotel you get an amazing view of the fjord and the mountains that surrounds the fjord. If you are going to the area I can really recommend a stay at this hotel.

Read more about the hotel on http://www.hotel-ullensvang.no/

Regards
Gard
gardkarlsen.com – trip reports and pictures

If you come to Norway in May and you happen to be there on May 17th, you will notice that there is something special going on. There will be parades, there are people wearing strange outfits, teenagers running around in blue and red overalls etc. 17th of May if Norway’s Constitution Day and it is one of the most important holidays. The special outfits that people are wearing on this day is called Bunad and it is a traditional Norwegian dress and it comes in different versions depending on where in the country you are from. Stavanger Expats has written this article about May 17th and the “russ” – the “russ” are the kids running around in red and blue overalls and this marks the end of 13 years of schooling.  You can also find an article here about the history, the outfits, the parades etc.

Regards
Gard
gardkarlsen.com – trip reports and pictures

I have a Stavanger restaurant blog and you can find it on http://eatingoutinstavanger.blogspot.com/ . I write a bit about the restaurants and bars in Stavanger and I have just updated it with reviews of Bølgen & Mor and the new Renaa: Xpress. Hope that you can find the information useful if you are living in Stavanger or coming here to visit . What is your favorite restaurant in Stavanger? And is there a signature dish that you would recommend others to try out? Feel free to share it in the comment field below!

Regards
Gard
gardkarlsen.com – trip reports and pictures

Here is a nice video that I found focusing on Stavanger and the surrounding area. It is a pretty accurate presentation…but the weather is not always that nice You can find more information about Stavanger and the area on http://www.greaterstavanger.com/

As I live in Stavanger, I have had the pleasure of visiting the amazing Pulpit Rock (or Preikestolen as it is called in Norwegian) many times. I went there in June 2011 and the weather was perfect for trekking. Here is a short video showing you what you can expect if you do this trek in the summer time. You can also read more about it in this trip report.

Regards
Gard
gardkarlsen.com – trip reports and pictures

Good news people – according to Norwegian newspapers, Avinor will introduce free wi-fi on Norwegian airports very soon. The rumor says that the free wi-fi will be available already in May/June 2011 on the larger airports in Norway.  I was just at Geneva airport and I was happy and surprised to see that they had a free wi-fi network and hopefully the setup will be as easy on the Norwegian airports as well. But I guess time will tell

The Airbus A380 is not that uncommon anymore as a few airlines have now got it in service. But it seems like there is still quite an attraction connected to this giant plane and there is still interest for the plane in Norway (well, at least amongst the plane-geeks and in the press. Anyway, Lufthansa has announced that their Airbus A380 is coming on a visit to Norway (Oslo) on September 15th at 5 PM. I’m not sure that average Joe will be able to get a glimpse inside but at least you can see it land I had the pleasure of flying Emirates A380 last year and this year and here is a summary of the trip last year. This year I used it when flying from Dubai to Sydney so I got to spend many, many hours on the plane. But I wouldn’t mind trying out the Lufthansa A380 to see how that compares

24 hours timelapse of the Pulpit rock (Preikestolen) near Stavanger in Norway. I have been there many times as you can see here: http://gardkarlsen.com/preikestolen.htm . Thanks to O-fagspatruljen for posting this on Youtube

I’m a big fan of the Google maps but the main problem when it comes to my hometown Stavanger has been that the downtown area has been very blurry when checking out the satelite image. But a few weeks back this was fixed and now you can finally check out how Stavanger looks from above. This combines with Google Streetview will now give you an idea of what to expect when you visit Stavanger

In Bergen you can take the cable railway known as Fløibanen to the top of the 320 meter high Fløyen mountain. From there you get an amazing view of the city of Bergen and the surrounding area. Check out http://www.floibanen.no/ for more information. If you are coming to Bergen it is well worth the 70 kroner (about 12 USD) for the round trip ticket to enjoy the view.