Anyone been to Gravdal or Leknes (Lofoten Islands)?

[kaisatsu]

I'm planning our port days for our upcoming Norwegian coastal cruise (on the QE2), and I'd like to rent a car at our Lofoten Islands port. The cruise itinerary lists our port as a tender at Gravdal, but I can't find any information online about a port in Gravdal! The closest thing I can find is Leknes Havn, in Gravdal's nearby twin-city of Leknes.

 

If you're cruised through Gravdal or even Leknes, can you tell me where the tender pier is located? According to a local taxi company, it's 3.5 km from Leknes Havn to the Leknes city center (and costs $25 each way), which is a bit far to walk (and a bit expensive)!

[kaisatsu]

PS - I'd love to know if Cunard will offer a shuttle those 3km into Leknes or if they expect us to wander around the tiny town of Gravdal.

[sfocruiser]

I'm planning our port days for our upcoming Norwegian coastal cruise (on the QE2), and I'd like to rent a car at our Lofoten Islands port. The cruise itinerary lists our port as a tender at Gravdal, but I can't find any information online about a port in Gravdal! The closest thing I can find is Leknes Havn, in Gravdal's nearby twin-city of Leknes.

 

If you're cruised through Gravdal or even Leknes, can you tell me where the tender pier is located? According to a local taxi company, it's 3.5 km from Leknes Havn to the Leknes city center (and costs $25 each way), which is a bit far to walk (and a bit expensive)!

 

We were in Lofoten last summer on the Prinsendam. The ship provided a shuttle to Leknes. We took the shttle and 15 minutes later had finished with our tour of the city. Not much there one or two shops, though the local library had free internet Lofoten is very much about the scenery. We went to the Leknes tourist office and got bus information for the fishing village of Ballstad. We had a perfect weather day (shortsleves and sunglasses). Ballstad was a postcard fishing village and we had a great hike around the area. The village had one cafe where we availed ourselves of the local beer (which was cheaper than Oslo) while soaking in the sun. Apart from the cafe and a gallery there were no shops or facilties. The bus driver was very helpful and he dropped us very close to the ship's pier on the way back. I've posted a few pictures of Ballstad here and would be happy to answer any other questions. Here is also a link to the bus schdule (in Norwewgian)

 

http://www.177nordland.no/ruter/t/18-766.aspx

 

 

 

 

 

[sfocruiser]

Pictures of the dock area, Leknes and the bus

[kaisatsu]

Wow! You really did have picture-perfect weather! Your photos are as gorgeous as the postcards and tourism shots I've seen of the islands!

 

We've been comparing the prices/hassle of joining an all-day ship excursion to Nusfjord, Sund, and Flakstad with renting a car and driving around ourselves. I'd just about convince myself that if we had to pay for a taxi to/from Leknes, we might as well just do the ship's tour. Now I'm back to being undecided!

[PersistenzaretiniKa]

i've been to gravdal last year with costa classica, but we took the shore ex. when it's the first time in a place i don't know i always prefer to book the shore ex

[anchorage1977]

SFO Cruiser, I think we might have been on the bus with you (and might have even taken a few beers at the pub together) in Ballstad from Leknes! I recall another couple from the ship in the small village (we were a group of 4). Not to mention our photos are nearly identical LOL.

 

Here's a link to the post I made on our travel blog regarding the call...

 

http://happyalaskan.blogspot.com/2009/03/leknes-lofoten-islands-norway.html

 

What a small world!

Happy Alaskan

[RSF Cruiser]

My daughter, two Norwegian friends from Oslo, and I will be in Lofoten in August - for anyone who has been there - how long should we plan to stay? We love hiking, scenery, and wildlife - none of us are fishermen. We want to get above the arctic circle, and from our internet surfing, this area looks magnificient. Will two days be enough? Should we plan to stay a bit longer and hike? We'll be getting there by ferry with a car and our Norwegian friends have never been there, either.

[kaisatsu]

From my experience, 2 days should be enough to give you a taste. I think the average visit is usually more like 3 days, but 2 would still give you a good taste. Just on our single port day, we were able to see almost all of the area south of Leknes, though it didn't give us any time for hiking, etc. One thing I would have liked to do if we'd had more time was to take a boat trip south and maybe see the maelstrom.

 

It does take some time to get around the islands, since the roads are often winding, and in a lot of places, you have to just follow the winding coastlines, because the roads can only fit in the area between the mountains and the sea. So I'd recommend figuring out which area you most want to explore, and deciding where to stay based on that. Also, if your Norwegian friends haven't suggested it, staying in a rorbu (traditional fishing hut) is supposed to be the quintessential Lofoten experience.

 

(You might also consider posting this on the LonelyPlanet forums.)

 

-Meg