Which one would I go back to in a HEARTBEAT? My first impressions of both Bergen and Stavanger...

I'm not going to lie - I loved both these cities, but one in particular edged it for me, so join me on my first visits to discover the winner! Four hours is about as much time as I have got in each, so let's see if I can avoid the rain long enough to form a first impression...
I visited Bergen on Tuesday 11th July 2023,
and Stavanger on Wednesday 12th/Thursday 13th July 2023.
This was part of a flying visit to Norway to try out the ferry, train and bus services.
Map courtesy of Google Maps
Thumbnails designed using Canva
This video is not sponsored and all opinions are my own.
I don’t pretend to be a travel expert, but I love what I do and would be honoured if you came along with me. My channel focusses on the wide-eyed wonder and excitement of finding somewhere new, and my genuine reaction to it. You might not get a history lesson in my videos, but who knows, you might pick up some useful travel tips along the way, add a few destinations to your bucket list and hopefully be entertained by what you see. Thanks for watching, it means a lot to me :)
I do ALL of this myself. Planning, filming, editing, promoting, all with a weekly upload schedule, so please understand not every video will be an epic adventure. But my pledge is to always do my best in any situation.
Donate here to future videos: (thank you!)
www.paypal.com/paypalme/steve...
Or why not become a SteveMarsh Supporter?
/ stevemarsh
FAQs:
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
I was born in Glasgow but have lived in Carnoustie, Dalgety Bay, Stonehaven, Edinburgh, Montrose, and further afield (Salamanca, Spain & Devonport, New Zealand)
WHEN DO YOU UPLOAD?
Saturdays at 10am Scottish time. Occasionally a bonus midweek video will pop up.
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU USE?
I film with a GoPro11 and my iPhone12. I edit on iMovie and use epidemicsound.com for music. I also use canva.com for thumbnails etc.
WHY DON'T YOU SPEND LONGER AT DESTINATIONS?
The usual suspects I'm afraid - time and money! Hotels especially these days make my eyes water like a true Scotsman.
WHERE'S ALICJA?
Alicja will feature as often as possible, but I'm afraid she has a proper job so it can take weeks for our schedules to match up.
DO YOU PAY FOR YOUR OWN TRAVEL?
Yes I do. I've only ever accepted a complementary ticket as compensation for a previous problem. All my opinions are frank and honest reflections of travel as I experience it.
WHY THE ADS?
It's my income, I can't do this for free.
CAN I CONTACT YOU?
I used to list my email address but felt bad not having the capacity to respond to everything so took it down (and I got a LOT of spam so missed many genuine messages along the way).
HOW CAN I SUPPORT THE CHANNEL?
Watching my videos is of course support enough, but if you'd like to support further, I'll pop links below for Paypal and Patreon. All kind donations are super-appreciated and will go 100% towards future filming trips.
DO YOU ACCEPT SPONSORSHIPS?
I don't like to upset the flow of my videos, so I don't even include mid-roll ads anymore (at significant loss of income to myself), so I prefer not to include sponsorships either. I'm open to a small slide at the start/end of each video, but I don't want to get into talking about products, it's something I don't like as a viewer myself (especially as a viewer who pays for KZbin Premium). So it's probably a polite no, although all of this goes out the window if you offer me something which can give me the chance to make a video for my audience that would otherwise be impossible.
#Bergen #Norway #Stavanger

[@davidwelch6796]

Comparing your travelogues to broadcast TV programmes I would say that you win every time. The pace of your editing is relaxed, your pieces to camera are genuine and your unbounded optimism is infectious. Such a refreshing change from shouty presenters who get over-excited at every location. Also your choice of individual places of interest to visit, be they museums or whatever, are just the kind of places that I would like to visit - or at least to know about. Your great work enhances my Saturday mornings, thank you for that.

[@rickmoore3730]

Totally agree . Steve's channel is my favorite travel show for the same reasons .

[@scottie2636]

I agree 100%

[@mikeswift6713]

​@davidgreenlees9053 So true, the commentry and camera work put the so called experts at the BBC etc. to shame. 1:38

[@sheilam4525]

Agree! Steve puts some so called TV presenters to shame.

[@steve-marsh]

Thank you ALL so much!!!!

[@user-kf1he2pk3l]

I still remember well the days when you could sail directly from Newcastle to Stavanger, Haugesund & Bergen. It's a tragedy we don't have that option any more.

[@gwc289]

Yep damn low cost air travel!! Ferries are much more fun

[@damianwalls1262]

Seas a bit rough surely Newcastle to Stavanger

[@user-kf1he2pk3l]

@@damianwalls1262 It can get rough yes, but so can pretty much any sea voyage around the UK. The bay of Biscay is notorious for heavy swells & big waves but there are plenty of ferry crossings to Spain.

[@malcolmstockbridge2569]

@@user-kf1he2pk3l You are spot on, I find the Irish sea the worst, plus weirdly we have across the well known Bay of Biscay probably 30 times and never once had it rough, extremely lucky...our worst ever was coming out of Hamburg..oh my that was a long night.

[@damianwalls1262]

@@malcolmstockbridge2569 Irish sea can be rough indeed

[@Nabium]

18:15 "it's like kitkat but 10x better" I think you just melted the heart of every Norwegian saying that. I haven't tried both, so I cannot tell, but they do seem to go on about it.

[@steve-marsh]

Haha rightly so :)

[@MaryMulholland-zg7jj]

Is there any place you haven’t been to yet Steve ❤

[@AugustusRex-nk8ze]

Oh my God! The KL bar! Love it! It's definitely better than KK. Hi from Sweden

[@smaakjeks]

"they do seem to go on about it." We don't have a lot else going on over here, so

[@TravellingTorunn]

Thank you for this lovely video of these two cities! 😊 They are refurbishing the tram tracks in the city centre of Bergen at the moment, and have closed the 2 stops closest to the city centre for the whole of July. The nearest stop to the centre is at the Bus station. They will reopen on Monday 31st of July. There are big areas in Bergen with old wooden houses (where people live) and cobbled streets and narrow alleyways, on both sides of the harbour. You sadly missed them by just a few metres. A big chunk of the city centre was totally burnt down in 1916. 380 buildings were lost, 2,700 people became homeless. And that area was built up again with modern houses before WW2. But outside this circle of more modern buildings, you'll find the old neighbourhoods. The people living in the wooden houses close to the cruise ship area in Stavanger are often bothered by cruise tourists entering their gardens and wanting go get inside of the houses. They believe the houses are a museum area and that no-one lives there 😳 And it doesn't help to put "Private" signs on the houses and fences.

[@rickmoore3730]

Thanks for that update . I would love to follow Steve's journey but don't have time this trip to Norway . And it's sad that tourists don't respect boundaries . I think it is getting worse from the news I have seen of different locations not to mention defacing historic sites !

[@soykatwobadger2963]

Дякую за розповідь! 🇺🇦

[@coco5241]

it is so nice - and cheap - that you can take the tram to the airport

[@TravellingTorunn]

Yes, In Bergen you can 🙂

[@gunder7057]

Nice video. Trondheim is formally the 3rd biggest city by population. The areas around the town are mostly forest and some farmland. The areas outside Stavanger's city limits are densely populated. One could count Stavanger and Sandnes as one city. So in _reality_ Stavanger is Norway's 3rd biggest city, and Trondheim 4th. I live in Trondheim and has not been in Stavanger since I was a little boy when we visited my grandparents, then pensioners. My grandmother had worked at Bjelland Canning, putting sardines in cans, and on the spears for the smoking oven. It was seasonal work with periods without work or pay. Today the sardines are frozen in ice-blocks, sent to the Baltic countries to be processed and canned by cheaper labour, and then the cans transported back, all transport by lorries, I think. As a little boy my dad and his comrades collected sardine can labels, like today's boys collect football cards. The now very nice little white houses in Strandgata were, I think, once the poor working class housing, now probably not affordable without a solid upper middle class income.

[@ungesalsa2554]

It is actually counted as the 3rd largest in official statistics in Norway (SSB)

[@nct948]

interesting comments, thanks for sharing

[@klmethot]

Steve, you always make me think about traveling to places that I never would have considered. You are a travel ambassador for sure. Thanks for another fantastic video!

[@yellyman5483]

I`m from Bergen. You missed a lot of great places in Bergen. You didn`t go to Haakonshallen which is the castle on Bryggen. That`s 1000 years old and used to house the old Viking Kings. And there`s also Old Bergen with tree houses from the 1700`s. You can book guided tours there,. Bergen is a bigger city than Stavanger and sometimes you have to take the bus to get to a museum like Old Bergen which is a five minute buss ride out of the city. You did not visit Ulriken either which is the highest mountain in Bergen. You get up there by a gondola lift, and the view is spectacular

[@standunitedorfall1863]

That's ok, it will leave plenty of places to check out on the next visit. Loved everywhere he went.

[@smaakjeks]

I live near Stavanger, and I find Bergen really charming :)

[@stevecunningham6494]

KZbin sucks when I paused video to write down names, it doesn't show it

[@checkyourfacts6457]

The Christian Radich is just visiting, but a bigger sailing ship, the Statsraad Lehmkuhl, has Bergen as its home port. But it is out sailing most of the time ...

[@tinawetzel3912]

I love both ships but the Statsraad Lehmkuhl has my 💕!!

[@tomgulbrandsen2399]

The tall ship "Christian Radich" belongs to Oslo and is just on a visit. Bergen's tall ship is "Statsraad Lehmkuhl" and is larger than the Radich 🙂 We have 3 of those white large beauties in Norway and the third one beongs to Kristiansand carries the name "Sørlandet"

[@gabrieleortiz5041]

Thank you for opening up the world to us! ❤ Another great Saturday morning watch. 😊. I loved both towns for different reasons, and am taken by how clean and beautiful they both are. You share such great adventures!

[@MsCroatianCanuck]

Bergen gets my preference...its those goats and I have a soft spot for them. I do appreciate that you did the filming early with no crowds so the focus was on the town. Norway is such a beautiful well kept well organized country and hope to make it there someday but for now , I depend on you to deliver your videos. Thank you for sharing. Take care ☕

[@leif-kareeikeland5209]

La du merke at geitene gikk med en boks hengende under halsen? Det er gps styringen på de slik at de holder seg innenfor et nermere geografisk område.

[@MsCroatianCanuck]

@@leif-kareeikeland5209 znaci drzu koze za turiskicke razloge da prihvacaju turiste, to je to.

[@mod3no]

Well, living in Norway at the moment, I'm obliged to know that Trondheim is the third largest city 😄 And I visited Stavanger a couple years back and enjoyed it quite a lot. It's a quaint and fairly quiet city with really nice views. Now I just need to visit Bergen 😅Great video!

[@Metalmassacre07]

Dra tilbake til drittlandet ditt!

[@andywessel]

Trondheim is the 3rd largest municipality. Stavanger is the third largest city and urban area.

[@gwenkazemi6399]

Where are you originally from? I’m from California. I just visited Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. My great grandmother was born there. I was able to find the church that she was baptized in. Sadly it had burned down two different times since her baptism and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me and of course I cried like a baby. I absolutely loved the city and after watching this video and another one that he did I easily fell in love with the whole country. Maybe one day, like you, I’ll get to live there for a bit 😊

[@gwenkazemi6399]

Thank you so much for the comparison video! I just happened upon your page and immediately subscribed. I’ve only got to watch one other video but can’t wait to watch more. I love how you edit your videos and how you talk to us and give us awesome information. Along with the way you joke a little bit, it’s very cute 😊 I was just in Bergen for the first time two months ago in June. I immediately fell in love with the city! My great grandmother was born there and so my heart was very full and my trip was pretty emotional for me ❤ I was able to find the church she was baptized in as a young girl. Of course being made of wood it had burned down two times and was bombed once but a church still stands there so that was good enough for me. Of course I bawled 😭 I can’t wait to go back! And maybe live there for a while Lord willing. I also was in Scotland several days before that. It is very beautiful as well.

[@KristinJohansen1]

Same! Last summer, during the airline strikes, on a return trip from the U.S. for my daughter’s wedding, we had to take the train to Trondheim until we could get a flight to Alta to get home further north, and that’s when I learned Trondheim was the third largest city. I, too, can’t wait to visit Bergen. Some of our friends recently moved near there and love it (one was originally from there). Norway is just incredibly different from the southern/midwestern U.S. area I’m from. :p

[@erikz1337]

Cool that Stavanger still has a small town vibe with the narrow lanes and wooden houses

[@JohnFox-X333XXX]

When you return in that heartbeat Steve, do make a point of visiting the Shetland Group memorial behind the fish market on the harbourside. It commemorates the WW2 'Shetland Bus' and complements a companion memorial in Scalloway (Shetland).

[@shaznw1]

I'm sad you didn't visit 'old bergen' they moved them all up there to preserve it all, absolutely beautiful small houses, museums, chemist, bergen will always be special to me 🇬🇧🇧🇻

[@Tatia146]

It was lovely to see the old Bergen again. That second hand shop you went to are very popular in Scandinavia. You can hire a shelve or a spot for a week or month and sell all your old stuff. Also cinnamon buns are all over Scandi countries. I make them. I hate cruising! I think those boats should be sat somewhere else! Great video but you should come to Finland. We have towns just like these. Porvoo, Hanko and old Rauma.

[@janetmackinnon3411]

Fond memories of Turku as well.

[@pulchralutetia]

Cinnamon buns (skillingsboller) are the food of the gods!

[@peetieyou]

Those huge cruise ships should not be allowed to dock in harbours, like we see iin Stavanger in your video. They detract from the beauty of the locations they visit. Just look at the problems they have in Venice.

[@cherifurr3935]

I loved Finland too. Ivalo, the Sami people and museum and reindeer ranch were fascinating!

[@okiejammer2736]

💚 Ahh. Thanks so much for Norway! What beautiful cities are Bergen and Stavanger.

[@fredrikxnevad7305]

If you liked the wooden houses at Storhaug(which is the place you where walking at first in Stavanger). You would absolutly love the neighbourhood of Eiganes. Storhaug was historically the poor part of town, but Eiganes are where all the factory owners villas where built. You should check out Ledaal, Breidablikk and Holmegenes which are all museum houses in the Eiganes neighbourhood. It's all about a 5-10 minutes walk westward from the harbour you where at!

[@tenorclef4090]

I visited Bergen in 1990. Thanks for the memories! One memory that stands out is my hotel elevator - you had to manually close the grate and then you could watch the floors go by, which I thought was ultra-cool. I wonder if it’s still there.

[@sjedouglas]

I had a weird experience last year. I've been to both cities a few times as I love visiting Norway and with the twice daily flights to both cities from Aberdeen, they're both easy to visit. On a trip I took last September, my flight to Bergen was cancelled but as luck would have it, I was due to pick up a hire car in Bergen and drive to Stavanger that day anyway so I was rebooked onto the afternoon Stavanger flight and other than having to spend far longer in ABZ than anyone really should ever have to, I arrived early evening. Having not been for a while, seeing Stavanger first the first time in over three years was an elating experience and the evening walk around the city with the low sun lighting up the Bybru was incredible. After spending the rest of the week in the mountains, I drove back to Bergen and spent the evening there. It was my first time in the city centre for years and it was perfection, topped off with watching the sun set over the city from Fløyen. All in all, one of the best days I've had. The next day, I drove back to Stavanger as my return flight was now from there instead of Bergen and once I arrived in Stavanger, I didn't feel the same buzz as I'd felt the week before. I still really enjoyed wandering the city in the evening but out of the two, Bergen had impressed me the most on that trip, despite the initial elation that Stavanger provided. It goes to show that how you experience a place has so many variables that I'd imagine that if I did a similar trip, I could easily be swayed back to Stavanger as both cities are really special. Plus the international passport controlled gate at Stavanger reading "International (Aberdeen)" amuses me every time.

[@daveyarnall6675]

Looking closely at the background it appears that both Bergen and Stavanger are very clean and tidy and puts the UK to shame I didn't see any graffiti well done the people of Norway

[@legionnairegonk4425]

I think most countries put the UK (at least England) to shame with litter and graffiti (+ architecture design / pedestrian friendly access). The only exception I can think of was Milan and other parts of Italy which had a terrible graffiti problem last time I was there.

[@ByynDawg]

There is a lot of grafitti in stavanger especially outside the city centre but the streets are clean

[@ScottKinnear]

Consider your comment liked, but i dont want to be no13 to like 😄👍

[@rikgoudriaan281]

Recently a second tramline went into service. They are Stadler built trams

[@MissArdenUK]

Brilliant video Steve! My grandparents on my mothers side are both from Norway and Sweden (on my father’s side we are Scots and Irish - a real mix lol). Anyway, will need to travel back soon to visit my Nordic relatives. Love it especially at Christmas time - just wonderful; and yes it also rains just like Scotland. Sometimes more! 😅. However, I am Scottish and Scotland is forever my home. 🥰

[@suzannebell51]

Both cities were interesting and beautiful, but I agree Stavanger had the edge! My favourite moments were the view from the funicular and the cute goats in Bergen and the harbour with all the interesting boats and House 90 in Stavanger (I love old houses!)

[@peacefulminimalist2028]

There are just as many old wooden houses in Bergen, he just missed them, or didn't show them :) They are on both sides of the harbour

[@ungesalsa2554]

Stavanger is the largest wooden house city in northern Europe actually :) Around 8000 older wooden houses. @@peacefulminimalist2028

[@alfsphone]

Thankyou for yet another exciting trip. At 77 I'm not able to travel so Thankyou again.

[@michaelsaayman2802]

A great video Steve. Thank you, both cities are really lovely. I think you need to revisit both cities and do separate videos. My favourite would definitely be Stavanger. Thank you once again for taking us on a wonderful tour of Norway. Always look forward to your next adventure.

[@richarddouthwaite964]

I'm forever in hope that the crossing starts up again from North East England to Norway, like it used to be. I remember me and my brother trying to catch it once before it left, ringing the ticket office, but it'd gone. It stopped shortly after

[@walterfillingham]

Our closest neighbours, Stavanger the equivalent of Aberdeen in terms of the oil industry. These are two cities I desperately want to see, particularly as school friends have moved there. Brilliant video

[@wandaenman5630]

As always, absolutely FABULOUS...one of the best. Also just a note, that superyacht you saw, the Shinkai is owned by a Russian Oligarch, ex KGB. Vladimir Strzhalkovsky,. (yacht finder) I am putting Norway at the top of my travel list. I love everything about it. So clean, so beautiful. Well done as always Steve.

[@kudzumoose3861]

It would be hard to decide which city was the best. But, WOW!!! I loved this video today. The ride to the top of the mountain and walking around with the goats! All the cobble streets. So clean and modern in many ways, but love the old houses. Loved the harbors and the boats. Another great job Steve. Had never really given Norway much thought. You have changed my mind. Thank you!

[@peteredwards7760]

Top notch Steve. Your videos are very professional and enjoyable .

[@nor-wayking6757]

Christian Radich is a three-masted steel full-rigger from 1937. Christian Radich is Norway's largest full-rigger in operation, and since its launch has served as a training and charter ship with its home port in Oslo.

[@morendin12319]

Its actually the third biggest full-rigger after Sørlandet, and Statsraad Lehmkuhl, wich is the biggest. Statsraad Lehmkuhl has its home in Bergen but was out of port when this was filmed. All of them are beautiful ships 😁

[@okiejammer2736]

Love your dry sense of humor and your obvious love of discovery!

[@FrankHerfjord]

The Christian Radich is literally a floating high school and there are several of them in Norway. A friend of mine went to the Radich and here in Stavanger we have Gand which is much different and a massive ship. Also massive thanks for the video. I find it impressive that you are able to maintain honest enthusiastic spontaneity for all our enteretainment in what is obviously a carefully planned gig with all the stress included. It's yuge asmr when somebody presents your home town in this way. I must also say that I understand that Michelin restaurants are just too expensive for many. But it is a crime that the only two star restaurant in Stavanger has two stars because it easily among the very best on the globe. And while it is seriously expensive, it is much less so than the top three starred restaurants on the continent, like Noma. It's not a place you drop in to but it is something you save up for. And if you stay at somehwere other than the luxurious hotel it happens to be located at, it will in fact cost you less than the best in restaurant in London. For a Londoner, that is, with a return flight! Same deal for Aberdeen I would guess and possibly for Manchester although the flights are not frequent.

[@AQUAHOLIC]

It looks to me like you've nailed it! 😄

[@steve-marsh]

Haha cheers Nick! 🤣

[@robhawk83]

BERGEN: The tram tracks you saw are in use, but were closed due to work between this stop ("Byparken") and "Bystasjonen" two stops further on. Usually there is a train every 2-3 minutes from here. If you had moved further south and west in the city you would have seen the light-train. There is also a museum tram that runs on the old tracks further west in the city between the theater and Møllenpris in the west of the city centre. If you only visited a small part of Bergen, there was a lot you didn't get to see. If you had looked more at the train station, you would have seen that it is built alongside the bus station and a large shopping centre, so there were many shops and cafes that you didn't get to see other than those on the platform itself. :-)

[@rickiecheese36]

I was on one of those cruise ships last year (Royal Caribbean) and visited Bergen and Stavanger. Bergen is lovely but quite touristy, Stavanger is more like "real" Norway I think. But its worth going to Bergen just for the view from Mount Floibanen, incredible. Thanks for another great video Steve 👍

[@steve-marsh]

Well said! Agree completely!

[@mistywolf312]

I bed hopped across Norway staying with friends I met online and the 2 places that stood out were Oslo and Stavanger, both are cities where people live as opposed to cities where people work or just visit like Bergen. The weather can be pretty unique in Norway. The people are unfailingly friendly unless your language is Germanic apparently, which tends to get a more icy reaction, I guess its going to take another generation for the memories to fade a little more. They do not forgive easily.

[@yellyman5483]

I live in Bergen. There`s a lot of people who live in Bergen. The city are taking steps to limit the cruise ships from entering the city, because of the heave toll the tourist make on the city. As far as Norwegians not liking Germans. Well that was true back in the old days. Germany invaded Norway, and they killed a lot of innocent civilians. All of my grandparents lived through WWII, and it was a terrible time for all of us. But nobody holds that against the German people today. My grandfather did NOT like it when former German soldiers came back to Norway as tourist after the war, but that was a thing back in the 1960`s and does not apply now.

[@KayJay01]

Germanic is a language family, you probably meant German. Norwegian is a Germanic language :) I don't see why people here reacted badly to someone being German. Maybe if you spoke to the older folk who grew up in post-war Norway, but the current middle-aged and younger don't associate Germany or Germans with the war at all.

[@mikeswift6713]

You’ve done it again, I love Bergen and it rains so much they have a Rain Festival (Rainworks) in late May. It has changed a bit in the 19 and 25 years since we visited, the Fish Hall wasn’t built, there was just the outdoor market. The cars on the Fløibanen have changed a couple of times since 1997, very flash now. The ship moored just across our hotel in 1997 was the tall ship Statsraad Lehmkul, it and the Christian Radich shared a staring roll in the T.V. series The Onedin Line though not under their proper names. In 1997 the Newcastle - Bergen ferry stopped at Stavanger to drop off and pick up passengers so we didn’t see the town. If you had more time in Bergen the Bergen Old Town was just like the wonderful wooden buildings and cobbled streets in Stavanger. The canning and oil connection reminded me of a Norwegian language series we watched called Lykkeland about the burgeoning oil industry and a canning company which switched to the oil business, a fascinating watch. Did I miss the 3rd largest city in Norway? I guessed Tromsø, but it’s Trondheim. Pointless Fact, 6.5 km south west of Bergen there is a district called Fyllingsdalen, Yorkshire also has an RAF Fylingdales where the early warning station is.

[@richardstreet7518]

Bergen is stunning however it has a reputation for rain!!!Bergen is the start of the post boat that hugs the coastline as far as Kirkenes on the Russian border.. stopping at amazing places such a Tromso Tromdheim and the Lofoten islands.. it is sold as a cruise outside of Norway but its a lifeline ferry for locals...

[@johnsmuth5062]

We're booked on this in December. Bergen to kirkenes and back. 15 days hurtigruten

[@richardstreet7518]

@johnsmuth5062 good chance of seeing Northern lights.. make sure your cabin is a quiet one....

[@sky37blue]

Yes, I've heard about the rain in Bergen from a Norwegian before, so it must be worse even by Norwegian standards

[@irenestrmnss4496]

​@@sky37blue😂😂😂 Bergen can start with rain, windb and end in sunny sunset , like lots of the coast areas. Trondheim too. Weather is all we talk about in Norway 😅😂😂😂🙋‍♀️🏞🌞☔🏖🏕🌛🌞🌦🌨🌩❄🌅👍

[@nct948]

@@irenestrmnss4496 as do us Brits, as it is changing so much within a single day sometimes 🤭

[@jackiewheaton4199]

I know a lady who lived in Bergen 6? years I think. She says it's always raining in Bergen.This is the first one of your videos I've watched. I really enjoyed it.

[@jkardez4794]

Very nice indeed . Of course Bergen wins by a small margin but those museums in Stavanger were definitely very niche and remarkable. The weather playing hide and seek is to be expected. Thank you for a great experience Steve .

[@akwiredtaste]

Another great video. I just returned from two weeks in Norway and I went up to the far north, well in to the Arctic, and its a stunning country from south to north, but I have to admit that I watch your videos because of you, as much as because of the destinations you visit. You're a natural presenter; you look good, sound good, and your videos never make me want to nod off as so many other travel videos do (plus we share a surname!), so thanks for this video and all the others. Keep it up!

[@rabh6746]

Another cracking video Steve, Stavanger was my favourite also as its hard to beat old school😉Very expensive country but its so beautiful, I'm not a fan of those giant cruise ships that look like tower blocks! At least you felt at home with the weather 😂

[@Topper_Harley68]

We who live in Stavanger hates them, they pollute a lot even when they are docked.

[@Herefords]

This was so interesting. Can't wait to see more.

[@user-qf1vx2wn2w]

Incredible views 😮

[@Egalitarianism]

Thankyou Steve - what impressed me most is that Norway and its people are unashamadely proud of their culture - no multiculturalism here to dilute the quality of the lives of the native Norwegians - clean streets, the locals freely enjoying their cuisine and the beer! fantastic - not to mention the fabulous museums! They are a wealthy people, not just because of oil but because of their democratic values: the dignity of all human beings, liberty and non-conformity, coupled with the importance of educating their entire population to the point where men and women are both economically active. The foregoing is what enables a Nation to to be prosperous thereby avoiding poverty! - a perfect recipe for the well-being of all human beings!!!

[@martinc.720]

"... no multiculturalism here to dilute the quality..."???

[@allanmorton6022]

Really liked bergen, seemed to have good tourist areas and so clean. Great trip up the funicular, never seen a queue before for such a trip. The city must get really busy. The start of the video was like a Sci fi movie with the deserted streets! Stavanger looks really pretty with its little houses and harbour. Your sleep patterns must be very erratic though!

[@svenhaheim]

Loved the video I just moved away from Stavanger after living there for 40 years and realized I never visited those museums :) now at least I got a peek.

[@jimbucher1049]

Excellent Tour...Thanks Much !!

[@moikehunt8928]

I subscribed to your travel channel after discovering your wonderful Føroyar trilogy. I toured Norway on that same trip but didn't get to the two cities you showcased here. Suffice it to say, you have stirred my travel juices once again. Thank you for sharing your adventure.

[@steve-marsh]

Welcome aboard, thank you!

[@izabela1961]

What a beautiful journey! I've only been to Bergen but looks like both cities are interesting. Those colourful wooden houses! And the rainy gray clouds make the landscapes even more dramatic. Plus these cruise ships, bigger than the harbours 😊 and ... the seagulls. And the goats❤

[@christoguichard4311]

Another thoroughly enjoyable video Steve! 😊 Never stop! 😊

[@Dan_Gyros]

Another insanely stunning part of the world, thanks for sharing Steve!

[@glenyshillary4195]

I absolutely loved Bergen fifty years ago. It still had an underdeveloped feel at the time. I stayed inland at Os. Beautiful location onthe fjord. Loved sailing from Stavanger, after a cruel North sea crossing. Norway is such a beautiful place. Thanks again for taking us along.

[@RogEdwardsTV]

Definitely preferred Stavanger - but both have harbours I could spend all day at. Like the look of the CityBox Hotels too! 😊

[@samahdy]

One of your opening comments gave me a laugh. "It was absolutely chuckin' it down with rain." My tour guide when I was there in Bergen and it was pouring and I commented on it said, "Well, It's not really bad weather in Norway until the cod come knocking at the door..."

[@LauraGargiulo]

two beautiful cities in a row!! thank you Steve!!

[@326Alan]

Thank you so much! All your tips and notes are fantastic material. I watched your first video to the Faroe Islands, booked a trip almost immediately, and was there when you uploaded the 3rd video :) It was a trip of a lifetime. Thank you!!

[@steve-marsh]

No way! So glad you enjoyed such a magical place!!!!

[@326Alan]

@@steve-marsh I'd been studying the language and culture for a while and you provided that push to get out there! ☺️

[@CiaranRKelleher]

Steve, I’m loving the Scandi vibe from the last couple of months. I think wooden houses/buildings are amazing. I don’t know why we don’t have more here.

[@Republic3D]

Thanks for the visit! Just discovered your channel and now enjoying it!

[@jonm4989]

Excellent job Steve, very enjoyable.

[@alanguyers9311]

Yes the tram is to the airport and football stadium

[@barvdw]

And there are apartments in the stadium, too, very odd.

[@victorseal9047]

Love the oil museum. I look forward to the day when the majority of the oil industry is in a museums. 😮 😅

[@LynneFarr]

Both are terrific. Thanks again for all the boats and harbor scenes.

[@davefields3020]

Another marvelous video, Steve! You do a great job of showing your destinations - and make us all want to go and visit!

[@grapesodatravels]

Oh my days! Bergen is awesome! The beautiful place where you had cinnamon bun is probably worth the trip alone! Stavanger looks lovely but I'd plump for Bergen. Although the antique shop would probably prove costly. #ILoveBricABrac

[@grapesodatravels]

And now I've seen the back end of the video. Now I want to eat sardines in Stavanger!

[@michaelbushell4356]

Really liked the oil museum. The BBC broadcast a fantastic series, State Of Happiness which covered the discovery of oil in the North Sea, the development of the industry and finished with scenes in that safety dinghy you were in. Great stuff.

[@dt3434]

Great video thanks. Been to both locations and on the ferry between, enjoyed that experience too. Thanks for showing us around and for the effort you put into these Vlogs. Cheers from Melbourne, Oz.

[@johnpilkington518]

cool as usual absolutely fantastic thanks Steve 👍👍

[@davidstevensasidewayslook8831]

Unlike our government the Norwegians saved ALL their oil revenues and put it into a Sovereign Wealth Fund for th benefit of the nation.

[@steve-marsh]

Well said!

[@sailingviking7885]

How can you ever choose between two cities that are both unique in their own ways. Both topography and partly local culture are so different, even though both are Norwegian cities. In many ways, Bergen is wrongly called the city between seven mountains, while in reality it is the city that surrounds seven mountains. Most people who visit Bergen only see the central part which lies between the two most famous or more famous mountains (Ulriken and Løvstakken). Most of the city today lies east, west, south and north of the most characteristic part of the city. Each of the suburbs is unique in its own way. Although the undersigned was born and raised in Bergen, I have also spent several years in Stavanger, a city that is easy to fall in love with. Still, it must be said that Bergen is much bigger than Stavanger and has much more to offer than what a short-term visiting tourist manages to experience in a few days. I find the comparison you make somewhat tasteless and provocative.

[@onlyme064]

When it comes to the size of these two cities, I think people also need to take into consideration that Stavanger have theire neighbor cities like Sandnes, Sola and Randaberg thats grown into each other like one city. That means the two cities are quite similar in size and population. When it comes to the weather, Bergen has the most rain, because of the surrounding mountains and Stavanger is a bit more windy. Bergen because its a bit bigger than Stavanger has a bit more tourists, but since Stavanger is the oil capitol of Norway it has the most international population in Norway with more than 100 different nationalities living there. And if people would like a trip to the famous Pulpit Rock, the cliff abut 600 meters above water in the Lysefjord, then Stavanger is the place to visit.

[@GHExploration]

One of the best videos yet, both beautiful & beautifully kept cities, great work 👌

[@tanyabassett8287]

Thanks for taking us around both cities, some more for the bucket list 😊

[@perperald21]

About the cruise ships, people in Stavanger has had it with these gigantic floatsams laying 30 meters from their homes, and passengers looking into their living room windows and freely going into their gardens! In several other towns and cities people are also starting to get annoyed, but in Stavanger with its quaysiude close to residential areas it is the worst. Yes, wooden towns and cities are common in Norway, they have all burned afew times, on average a city fire every 10 years, and a devastating city fire every 100 years, but you can find houses that have survived 500 years, a lot was destroyed in the years 1940-1945, first the Germans in april- may 1940, and then the British in the the years 1941-1945..... However, towns like Egersund, Flekkefjord, Farsund, Lillesand, Grimstad, Tvedestrand, Arendal and Tvedestrand are small towns ranging in size from 10 000 to 50 000, and Kristiansand a small city of around 100 000 all have wooden central areas, and some are all wooden, no concrete or glass to bee seen

[@andybaker2456]

I was wondering what the residents of those beautiful houses thought about having that monstrous cruise ship docked in front of their homes! I don't think I'd be too happy about it either.

[@6yjjk]

I'm not surprised. That ship is just obscene.

[@steve-marsh]

It quite literally takes away daylight!

[@perperald21]

@@steve-marsh It surely does, and view of the sea as well, and now they come in all 12 months of the year, hopefully they will find oteher places to anchor

[@progster999]

Bergen or Stavanger ? Bergen is by far the finest/prettiest town/city in Norway and Scandinavia. Yes, it always rain there.... Half of the annual amount of rain we in Paisley get. But the town is still pretty and it the surrounding area is stunning. In which you can do..... Take the daily catamaran (boat) to the Sogndal and Flåm in Sognefjorden, the second longest fjord in the world. The Flåmsbanen train. The coastal express to the North Cape and Kirkenes. The train to Oslo. The Aquarium. The hikes around the seven mountains (the mountains surrounding Bergen)..... Whilst Stavanger has more or less just the express boat to the Pulpit Rock and not much else. Again, a great video from you.

[@jeanettesiebert5312]

Always enjoy your videos to these unique locations. Also like that you break down the costs and suggestions of transportation choices. Thank you for your informative and beautifully shot videos!

[@858493]

Thank-you once again Steve again very enjoyable made my Saturday night here down under regards Doc...just love your adventures thanks again Mate

[@sky37blue]

Similar sized country as Scotland with roughly the same resources, yet light years ahead of Scotland.Hmmmm....

[@martindornan1667]

Independent Norway gets to control and keep its natural resources to create an oil fund of about 1.4 trillion dollars. Scotland is controlled by the incompetent Westminster. With about the same total amount of oil equivalent produced as Norway Scotland has an oil fund of 0 dollars. Just as well Norway gained it's independence from Sweden on June 7th 1905 or the same may have happened to the Norwegian natural resources.

[@abcabcboy]

Very different history, and a more egalitarian culture to begin with.

[@sky37blue]

@@abcabcboy lol, let the mental gymnastics begin. They're not egalitarian enough to send all their oil revenue to Stockholm though. To reference a tweet I saw today. Schrödinger's Scotland: simultaneously too poor to be independent but rich enough to "power up Britain."

[@MeganAlbright]

Thank you for the wonderful tour Steve

[@JMontyGO]

My goodness some of those ships are huge! Thanks for sharing Steve!

[@xix94]

Fantastic video as always love satuday with Steve

[@cindymarasligiller2115]

Awesome video! Thank you

[@davefoster3166]

Really enjoyed this comparison video Steve. Both cities look well worth a visit.

[@gallaghim]

Both places look very decent for a visit. Just loved those lounging goats, too, heh. I admire your adventurous spirit to get out and see these places.

[@geoffmphotography9444]

Terrific travel video. Steve does it again!

[@tonysuggitt3489]

Fantastic,,enjoy everyone of your videos,thank you

[@michaelstaunton1632]

A really really special video, a lovely area indeed, the early morning filming a great idea too . Well done great content 👌👌👌

[@glengamble526]

Both are incredible!

[@andyboddy62]

Thank-you loved it Steve

[@malcolmgreening6936]

Great video, loved it as it brings back memories from 60 yrs ago when I first visited to a trip 2 yrs ago. Lovely clean places, x expensive, and so few cars in the centres ! memorable !

[@robbojax2025]

Nice relaxing tour of new places for me.

[@kathymytton7466]

Great video. Thanks.

[@scottc1589]

Okay Steve, you've convinced me. Stay longer in Stavanger. What an amazing place!

[@steve-marsh]

Some place eh! And cool trips out of town too I believe!

[@tor3948]

looked like you had some nice days here in Norway. Thank you for a nice vlog about Bergen and Stavanger, professionally done and produced Steve:)👍

[@user-qf1vx2wn2w]

Great tour of Norway 🇳🇴 😊

[@TXMEDRGR]

What a wonderful trip, I really enjoyed the video. I've not been to Scandinavia but the countries always seem so civilized in the videos I've watched. The museums were very interesting and I enjoyed seeing them. Thanks!

[@grumgrum2174]

One of your best videos. Good stuff.

[@davidoliver1169]

Steve. Always thoroughly enjoy your great videos and this is a good one as ever. Both places look fab. Take care. D

[@philkruger4753]

Bergen for me. Love the railway and views. Beautiful walks at 6.00 in the morning no rubbish or graffiti just the sound of seagulls. And not to many people. What a lovely place ❤❤

[@calxtra5361]

BOTH CITIES ARE BEAUTIFUL Thank u for this video!!!

[@janevanreenen8768]

Beautiful thank you 😊

[@steve-marsh]

A pleasure!