A trip to Bergen: what to budget

The advice that makes the difference in Bergen fits in one sentence, and it is geographic: moving one block away from the most central streets is enough to bring the bill down and the cooking up, because the restaurants on the wharf all resemble each other and live off cruise traffic. The local dish to look for is raspeballer, a potato dumpling served with bacon, sausage, salted mutton, melted butter and mashed swede, traditionally on Thursdays: as takeaway from Kjøttbasaren it costs 50 kroner, about €4, the cheapest hot meal in town. Bergen fish soup, fish balls and plukkfisk are also sold to take away. Two reflexes complete the picture: ask for tap water, which is drinkable and normally free, removing a line that adds up fast at Norwegian prices; and do not leave it late, since kitchens close at 11pm at the latest. Tipping is not owed, service staff being properly paid; rounding up five to ten percent is still appreciated at expensive tables. Finally, the city shuts almost entirely on Sundays and public holidays: a badly planned Sunday gets paid for in a restaurant, for want of an open grocery.

The airport transfer is the most profitable decision of the trip, and the numbers settle it. The light rail has its southern terminus in the basement of the terminal and charges the ordinary city transit fare: 49 kroner for an adult ticket, 25 for children and seniors, roughly €4. The dedicated coach asks 179 kroner one way and 309 return, about €15 and €27, for a 30 to 40 minute ride against 45 by light rail; a taxi runs 300 to 350 kroner on weekdays, more at night and at weekends. Put plainly, saving ten minutes costs nearly four times the ticket. The light rail runs from 5am to a little past midnight, with up to twelve departures an hour. Buying the coach ticket before boarding saves ten kroner. In town, the centre is walked: it is flat, compact, and some of the alleys, the smau, are too narrow for cars when they are not outright stepped. The car is the wrong choice here, for a reason specific to Bergen: entering the city triggers a toll read automatically by plate-scanning gantries, and the rental company then debits your card. Every round trip counts, including the ones made by mistake while looking for your way, and downtown parking is paid. The two summits above the city, Fløyen and Ulriken, are reached by funicular and cable car respectively, but also on foot by the trails, the only free option.