Quality Holidays For Single Parent Families

       Tel:- 01763 226567

Single Parent Holiday - Extra Information

This page contains some useful information about Norway its history and culture, we hope you will find it useful and interesting.

Destinations

Norway Information

SAMPLE ITINERARY - NORWAY ACTIVITY

 Revsnes Hotel, Byglandsfjord, Norway

 TRAVEL ITINERARY  

 Your Small Families host for this holiday will be Rash

Your Small families hosts, whilst not carers or childminders are friendly but unobtrusive.  They look after any travel arrangements, act as hosts at dinner and activities (where applicable), liaise with local agents/guides regarding any group excursions that may be requested and generally make sure that everything runs as it should. Your host will of course, also help resolve any problems you may have whilst on holiday.

TRAVEL ADVICE

LUGGAGE ALLOWANCE
Your luggage allowance for this flight is 20 kg per person (note: infants under 2 years do not have an allowance).  You may be charged by the airline for any excess luggage.  Please Note:  Recently a maximum weight restriction has been imposed of 32kg for any one piece of luggage; any piece of luggage in excess of 32kg will not be carried by the airline.

 HAND LUGGAGE (Important, please read)
Strict regulations were implemented regarding the size of hand luggage allowed to be carried in the cabin. The maximum dimensions are as follows: 22” (56cm) long, 18” (45cm) wide and 10” (25cm) deep.  All bags larger than this must be checked in.  Regulations also apply on what can and cannot be carried in hand luggage and as these regulations and other security rulings can change at short notice, we recommend you visit www.baa.com prior to leaving home to obtain any updated security or baggage restrictions.

LUGGAGE LABELS
Please ensure that the enclosed Small Families luggage labels are clearly visible on each piece of luggage, especially your hand luggage, for easy recognition by Small Families staff and your fellow travellers. Remember that when you arrive at the airport, everyone displaying these labels are your companions for the week so please introduce yourselves.

(IMPORTANT INFORMATION)
CHECK-IN: Check-In is at London Stansted and we recommend you do so no less than 2 hours before the published flight departure time (please allow for traffic delays). On arrival at the airport do please check the TV monitors for full and up to date information.

Your Small Families host will be travelling with you to Norway and will be at Check-In to meet and assist you if needed.  Flight timings can be subject to changes at short notice, please ensure you check your tickets for exact timings.

In case of problems (on the day of travel only), please call the emergency mobile number -------------------

AIRCRAFT SEATING: Occasionally a situation occurs where the aircraft seating process splits up family members, please check your boarding cards at check-in to ensure that all your family members are seated together.  To avoid this risk, please try to arrive for check-in in plenty of time.

MEETING POINT IN DEPARTURES
We suggest you meet up with your host and your fellow travellers in the seating area outside Dixons approximately 1 hour before the flight departure time (remember to display the luggage labels on your hand luggage).

PASSPORTS AND VISAS
It is your responsibility to ensure that you have a valid passport.  If you are travelling on a British or Irish passport they must be valid for the duration of your stay.  You will not need a visa, however other passports may be different in which case you should contact the Norwegian Consulate on Tel: 020 7591 5500. Children, including babies, who are not already included on a valid 10 year passport will need to hold their own passport to travel abroad.

Where a visa is not required, passports must be valid at least for duration of your stay.  For security reasons, it is very important you check that the NAMES ON YOUR FLIGHT TICKETS ARE EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE NAMES IN YOUR PASSPORTS (middle names excepted, note: we also use the titles Ms, Miss and Mstr on air tickets and electronic ticket vouchers - where issued), please be aware that you may be denied travel should the two not match. Note - Once issued, airlines will charge to re-issue tickets if names do not exactly match your passport.

CURRENCY
The official unit of currency is the Norwegian Krone, which is divided into 100 Ore. One Krone is approximately 8p. Please check with your bank or building society before you travel to see if you are able to withdraw money when abroad. Major credit cards are accepted at most hotels and in some of the larger souvenir shops and restaurants.

You may sign many hotel purchases to your room and then settle the account just before you leave by either credit card or cash.  Personal cheques are not accepted in the hotel.

Whilst it is possible to obtain Norwegian Krone from an ATM in the nearest town it is not convenient, so we advise taking some currency with you.

ARRIVAL IN NORWAY
On arrival into Norway, you will first have to pass through Passport Control. After immigration, pass into the baggage hall and collect your luggage from the carousel (trolleys are available). Once you have your luggage you should wait with your travelling host until everybody has their luggage. Once the group is complete then follow our Escort through the exit and make your way into main airport hall where you will be directed to our waiting coach for the 60 minute private transfer to the Revsnes Hotel.

TIME DIFFERENCE
Norway is 1 hour ahead of the UK so please remember to adjust your watches on arrival.

ARRIVAL AT HOTEL
Please note that since setting up this holiday the hotel has changed owners and the new owner has withdrawn from the “Best Western” organisation as he did not feel that the cost of being a member was justified. The change has made no difference to the hotel, its service or its facilities.

Upon arrival at the hotel the group will check-in and be allocated their rooms.

DAY ONE
Please find the week’s program attached to this Itinerary. It will be explained more fully when you stop of at the centre en-route to the hotel after your arrival into Norway.

LAST DAY
IMPORTANT:  To avoid any misplaced or forgotten luggage, please ensure you see the porter put your luggage onto the bus before departure.

GENERAL INFORMATION

HAIR DRYERS – If required, please bring along your own hair dryer with universal travel adapter, as rooms are not fitted with them.

TOWELS - Are supplied in the rooms

TELEPHONES - There are telephones in each room.  Please note the charges before making international calls.  To call the UK, dial 00 44 the number you wish to call, omitting the initial 0. (i.e. 0044 1763 226567). The number for the Revsnes Hotel from the UK is 00 47 37 93 46 50.

If you are planning on taking your mobile phone abroad to call home, please call your network provider before you travel and make sure you have this facility activated.  For contract phones this tends not to be a problem but if you are on Pay As You Go, it is very common that you can’t receive or make calls and texts. Also, please note it can be very expensive to use a mobile phone from abroad because you are also charged for calls received.

EXCURSIONS – The day trip by coach to one of the Norwegian Fjords has been included into this holiday

EXCHANGE – It is not possible to obtain money in the hotel. The nearest Cash Point is located in the town of Byglandsfjord situated about 3Km away

CLIMATE and CLOTHING – Generally Norway along with most of Scandinavia experience very warm summers.  For the dry activities you should wear Shorts, T-Shirts and Trainers. For the water activities you will be provided with a wet-suit.

POWER SUPPLY - 200v/50hz is standard.  An adapter for two-pin sockets will be needed.

MEDICAL CARE - There is NO free health care for visitors to Norway - all medical services must be paid for. The hotel has a doctor on 24 hour call.  You MUST NOT leave home without adequate insurance, preferably including cover for an emergency repatriation flight home in the event of serious injury or illness. Please advise your tour leader of your insurance emergency contact details in resort.

TIPPING - It is not customary to offer a tip for services rendered. 

SAUNA – The hotel does have a leisure area consisting of Hot Tubs and Sauna’s.  Please note that the sauna is mixed and generally clothes are not worn.

* Note – All timings, costs, charges, exchange rates etc. were correct at the time of printing but are subject to change.

And finally – worth remembering…..

The Tourist Ten Commandments

 

1    Thou shalt not expect to find things as thou hast left them at home, for thou hast left home to find things different.

2    Thou shalt not take anything too seriously, for a carefree attitude is the basis for a fine holiday. 

3    Thou shalt not allow other tourists to get on thy nerves, for thou art paying good money to enjoy thyself. 

4    Remember to take only half the clothes thou thinkest thou needest and twice the money 

5    Know at all times where thy passport is, for a person without a passport is a person without a country. 

6    Remember that if we had been meant to stay in one place, we would have been created with roots. 

7    Thou shalt not worry, for he who worrieth hath no pleasure 

8    When in Norway thou shalt be prepared to do somewhat as the locals. 

9    Thou shalt not judge the people of a country by one person who hath given thee grief. 

10   Remember, thou art a guest in other lands and he that treateth his host with respect, shall be honoured.

We would like to wish you a

most enjoyable holiday in Norway 

NORWAY ACTIVITY WEEK PROGRAM 2007

A Brief History
Norwegians, like the Danes and Swedes, are of Teutonic origin. The Norsemen, also known as Vikings, ravaged the coasts of northwest Europe from the 8th to the 11th century and were ruled by local chieftains. Olaf II Haraldsson became the first effective king of all Norway in 1015 and began converting the Norwegians to Christianity. After 1442, Norway was ruled by Danish kings until 1814, when it was united with Sweden—although retaining a degree of independence and receiving a new constitution—in an uneasy partnership. In 1905, the Norwegian parliament arranged a peaceful separation and invited a Danish prince to the Norwegian throne—King Haakon VII. A treaty with Sweden provided that all disputes be settled by arbitration and that no fortifications be erected on the common frontier.

When World War I broke out, Norway joined with Sweden and Denmark in a decision to remain neutral and to cooperate in the joint interest of the three countries. In World War II, Norway was invaded by the Germans on April 9, 1940. It resisted for two months before the Nazis took complete control. King Haakon and his government fled to London, where they established a government-in-exile. Maj. Vidkun Quisling, who served as Norway's prime minister during the war, was the most notorious of the Nazi collaborators. The word for traitor, quisling, bears his name. He was executed by the Norwegians on Oct. 24, 1945. Despite severe losses in the war, Norway recovered quickly as its economy expanded. It joined NATO in 1949.

The country became the second-largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia in 1995. Norway continued to experience rapid economic growth into the new millennium.

In March 2000, Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik resigned after parliament voted to build the country's first gas-fired power stations. Bondevik had objected to the project, asserting that the plants would emit too much carbon dioxide. Labour Party leader Jens Stoltenberg succeeded Bondevik. Stoltenberg and the Labour Party were defeated in Sept. 2001 elections, and no party emerged with a clear majority. After a month of talks, the Conservatives, the Christian People's Party, and the Liberals formed a coalition with Bondevik as prime minister. The governing coalition was backed by the far-right Progress Party. But in Sept. 2005 elections, the centre-left Red-Green coalition gained a majority of seats, and Jens Stoltenberg of the Labour Party once again became prime minister. Norway is a Constitutional monarchy.

Norway is situated in the western part of the Scandinavian Peninsula. It extends about 1,100 mi (1,770 km) from the North Sea along the Norwegian Sea to more than 300 mi (483 km) above the Arctic Circle, the farthest north of any European country. Nearly 70% of Norway is uninhabitable and covered by mountains, glaciers, moors, and rivers. The hundreds of deep fjords that cut into the coastline give Norway an overall oceanfront of more than 12,000 mi (19,312 km). Galdhø Peak, at 8,100 ft (2,469 m), is Norway's highest point and the Glåma (Glomma) is the principal river, at 372 mi (598 km) long. 

The Climate in Norway
Given the extreme northerly position, the mainland climate is surprisingly mild. Norway is the northernmost country in the world to have open waters. This is due to the trade winds forced across the Atlantic Ocean by the American continent and the warm currents flowing north from the Equator towards the Norwegian Sea.

Norway’s climate fluctuates greatly from year to year, especially in its most northern parts, which are located at the edge of the global temperate zone. The lowest minimum temperature recorded is -51°C in Kárášjohka-Karasjok in northern Norway. The average annual temperature swings from some 8°C along the western coast to below freezing in the mountains. The coldest months of the year are January and February and the warmest time in the inland areas is mid-July.

The climate in Norway differs from that of the rest of Scandinavia. The tall mountain ranges dividing mainland Norway provide protection from precipitation to large areas of inland eastern Norway. This gives the area a more continental climate than would be expected in light of its proximity to the coast.

Some of the areas east of the mountains have an annual rainfall of less than 300 mm, with some areas recording a maximum rainfall of 3000 mm annually.

The most important agricultural areas have an annual rainfall of between 500 and 1000 mm, with most rain falling in July and August. There are about 100 rainy days in inland Norway and some 150-200 rainy days on the coast. The strength and direction of the wind in Norway varies greatly as a result of fast-moving pressure fronts, and the winds along the coast and in the mountains are often quite strong.

Northern Norway is the kingdom of light.
During three summer months the sun never sets. During the totally dark winter, a mystical light is dancing across the sky. The Northern Lights manifest as rays arcs or curtains of colour that range from greenish white to deep red. Seeing the Northern Lights blazing across the winter night is an extraordinary and mystical experience. The phenomena is caused by charged particles from the sun that get caught in the Earth's magnetic field, causing air molecules and atoms to light up. The northern lights are best seen between November and February.  Northern Norway is the best place to experience the lights, but it can also be seen in Southern Norway on occasions. 

From mid-May to the end of July the sun never sets. This enables you to do things you can’t do anywhere else in the world, such as play golf around the clock!

Norwegian Fjords are famous world wide.
A fjord is a valley formed by glaciers and filled with the sea to form a steep-walled inlet. You will find two of the world’s three longest fjords in Norway and National Geographic has ranked Norwegian fjords the most popular of all World Heritage sites.

The fjords were curved out in a succession of Ice Ages. The ice retreated approx. 12 000 years ago and has made the Norwegian fjords famous world wide. Cruising the fjords, hiking on a glacier and skiing in the middle of the summer are all popular activities.

Norwegian Cuisine
is in its traditional form largely based on the raw materials readily available in a country dominated by mountains, wilderness and the sea. Hence, it differs in many respects from its continental counterparts with a stronger focus on game and fish.

Modern Norwegian cuisine, although still strongly influenced by its traditional background, now bears the marks of globalisation: Pastas, pizzas and the like are as common as meatballs and cod as staple foods and urban restaurants sport the same selection you would expect to find in any western European city

The one traditional Norwegian dish with a claim to international popularity is the smoked salmon. It is now a major export, and could be considered the most important Norwegian contribution to modern international cuisine. Smoked salmon exists traditionally in many varieties and is often served with scrambled eggs, dill, sandwiches or mustard sauce. A more peculiar Norwegian fish dish is Rakfisk, (fermented trout), a culinary relation of Swedish Surstromming, (a delicacy of fermented Baltic herring). Surströmming is sold in cans, which when opened release a strong, foul smell. It is for this particular smell, (similar to fish gone bad or garbage left in the sun for a couple of days), that surströmming is infamous for in popular culture and it is often held that people who try surströmming can be confident that they will never forget it and due to the smell, the dish is often eaten outdoors!

A large number of fish dishes are popular today, based a large variety of species, such as salmon, cod, herring, sardine products and mackerel. Seafood is used fresh, smoked, salted or pickled. Variations on creamed seafood soups are common along the coastline.

Meat and Game
High cuisine is very reliant on game, such as moose, reindeer and fowl. These meats are often hunted and sold or passed around as gifts, but are also available at shops nationwide, and tend to be served at social occasions. Because these meats have a distinct, strong taste, they will often be served with matching condiments like wild berry jam, juniper berries and rich sauces. Lamb's meat and mutton is very popular in autumn, mainly used in farikal (mutton stew with cabbage).

Fruit and desserts
Fruits and berries mature slowly in the cold climate. This makes for a tendency to smaller volume with a more intense taste. Strawberries, apples and cherries are popular and are part of a variety of desserts. German and Nordic-style cakes and pastries, such as sponge cakes and Danish pastry share the table with sweet breads Coffee is also extremely popular.

Alcohol
Both industrial and small-scale brewing have long traditions in Norway. Restrictive alcohol policies have encouraged a rich community of brewers, and a colourful variety of beverages both legal and illegal. The most popular industrial beers are usually pilsners and red beers, bayer, while traditional beer is much richer, with a high alcohol and malt content. The climate has not been hospitable to grapes for millennia, and wines and more potent drinks are available only from the wine monopolies.

Distilled beverages include akevitt, a yellow-tinged liquor spiced with caraway seeds. Norway also produces some vodkas, bottled water and fruit juices.