(edit title) Where is worth visiting in northern Scandinavia Personal recommendations for must-see places Options

[c_hris]

i'm travelling with some friends from england around scandinavia and the baltics in july...road trip...camping...hotels etc.

we start in stockholm, head up north into arctic circle, back down through finland, then onto baltics.

if anyone has done a similar trip or can recommend some must see places (or places to avoid) in northern sweden, norway, finland etc then i would be most grateful.

thank you

[Sofia_stockholm]

Northern Sweden isn't my strongest part, but in Norway you simply have to see Nordkap and Hammerfest.

[Johno]

Just remember that you have really long days and short nights, the longer the farther north you go which simply makes it very different. You will see reindeer all through Finland north of the Arctic Circle. The fells (tunturi) in Finland are nice and you can use the ski lifts in the summer to go right up the top for the views. Visit Rovaniemi, Kemijärvi for Pyhätunturi, Kuusamo for Rukatunturi and the Kiutakungas river walks.

[unkle strunkle]

A little further south in Finland, I enjoyed the town of Savonlinna and particularly Olavinlinna Castle when I visted there.

http://www.muuka.com/finnishpumpkin/castle...lavinlinna.html

[Johno]

Yes, Olavinlinna - well worth a visit. The East side of Finland with its big lakes much better than the flat West coast. Imatra if its a Sunday when they let water through the rapids.

Only be prepared that Finnish towns are really small and you can drive for miles without seeing much. Even on so called scenic roads you may just be driving for miles and miles with trees as the view. A Finnish friend said they had started putting occasional bends in some new roads because driving straight for miles just between trees either side sent people to sleep.

[Monark540]

Beautiful scenic overlook in Norway - written up in all of the travel and design mags when it opened last year - its on my bucket list:

SCENIC OVERLOOK
If you want to enjoy panoramic views of the fjords, valleys and villages you need to get up in the mountains.Whether you walk or drive up the effort is well worth it, for up in the mountains the views are unforgettable! Aurlandsvegen mountain road offers many viewpoints- the most spectacular is viewpoint Stegastein - 650 m. above sealevel with a spectacular design , situated 6 km from Aurland village centre and 35 km from Lærdal village centre. Another viewpoint offering beautiful views of the fjords is the mountain peak Prest – also on Aurlandsvegen road. The path up to Prest begins some 10 km from the centre of Aurland, on the road to Lærdal. A steep path from the blue cabin to Prestevarden (1363 m. above sea-level) – panoramic view – round trip 2.5 hours. If you want to take a short hike: Easy walk for about 15 minutes offering a fantastic fjordview .

Aurland is located about 150 km Northeast of Bergen

[Puffin]

Did a road trip last year to the North of Sweden and then over to Norway and Tromsö which is beautiful and I can recommend the whale watching trip from the quay

If you like hiking there is a fell station up on Riksgränsen on the shore of the Törnetrask lake which has great trails and the Abisko fell station has a youth hostel where you can stay and a cafe/resturant where you can eat
http://www.abisko.nu/sommar/englishpages/index.asp


However up in the far North of Sweden you have to time your trip right - as you can see from their live webbcam - there is still a fair amount of snow - often you can still ski at midsummer
http://www.stromma.se/sv/Riksgransen/Webbkamera/

[c_hris]

wow...some great ideas there...thank you everyone...nobodies mentioned mosquitoes yet!

[Johno]

Crossed my mind, but you said July and they get worse later in the summer. Since you are aware ... just take the midge cover with you.

[The Lix-a]

Yep Mosquitos, be warned! theyve really come out right up here in the north now. The best repellent i got is this bottle of white stuff just called Mygga effektivt skydd from the pharmacy. I tried everything in my 5 yrs here but this actually works, a godsend, i have to wear it in bed too.
To go in the north of sweden theres Abisko national park, its quite grand, nice mountains, scandinavias largest alpine lake. Im supposed to be goin up there in july when my friends come to visit, never been up there before, everyones always talking about it and how nice it is.
Theres Sarek National Park too which is kind of nearby, lower down, they say It is home to 100 glaciers six of Sweden’s 13 highest peaks.

[Timmo]

Lofoten Islands off the coast of Norway are stunning if you have the time to get over to them. The communities (e.g. Raine and Å) are attractive as well as the land/sea scape - you could spend weeks up there.
Only direct road access is at the north end just past Narvik, although there are ferries from Bodo. http://www.lofoten.info/index.jsp in case you need inspiration.

[c_hris]

this is so much better than expedia...keep the suggestions comin' please folks

[Sofia_stockholm]

I've got some pictures in the kitchen that Mum took whenshe was travelling north along the Norwegian coast last year. Don't forget to take a look on Friday. Also, if you can afford it, I would recommend Hurtigrutten - the boat that runs from Bergen and up to Hammerfest (I think it is). Spectacular scenery, though rather costly.
http://www.hurtigruten.co.uk/?country=GB

[*Grandma Death*]

I've always wanted to go to Kjerag, in Norway. It's a mountain located above Lysefjorden. All the pictures I've seen look amazing. And also, I want to do this:

 

 

[Sofia_stockholm]

Good Lord!
If that was me standing there you'd see a stream of yellowy liquid dripping off the rock. I'd die if I had to hang mid air over a gorge like that!