After the issue we ran into with our VRBO rental in the UK we were a little worried with the 3 other Airbnb rentals we had coming up in Norway. Because we’d be traveling throughout Norway and staying in some small towns, rentals were more available than hotels at the time of booking this trip. If you plan to visit Norway during the peak of summer, you need to book accommodations very early before rooms fill up.

A note about booking places to stay in foreign countries: it’s important to know that common things you might see in the United States aren’t as common in many places. Things like air conditioning aren’t always an immediate need, so for anyone looking to book and maybe don’t have as much experience, common search filters we use are making sure that any Airbnb have simple things such as Wi-Fi, A/C, or in some cases are a separate dwelling than the main home that’s on the property.

More recently there seems to have been arguments about why picking Airbnb or renting a room from someone’s home is better or worse than staying in a hotel and for each person‘s preference it’s absolutely a good thing to go with whatever you feel is best for your situation. There are so many options available in a standard metro city that booking whatever you feel most comfortable with should always be your main priority.

Note to our readers: in fact, the first Airbnb we booked in a different country ended up being a person‘s second bedroom that at least had a lock on the door, but nothing else to separate us from his own apartment. Lesson learned: check your search filter and make sure you’re thorough with what you research. 

We began planning our trip in late May so we were a bit behind on timing and already finding places completely booked out. We really lucked out with the places we did find available which I contributed to booking for shoulder season (early- mid September).

A topic that has come up as we talk about our trips is “I don’t know how you guys afford that“ and frankly a lot of it comes down to the timing that we book our vacations. We found some terrific discounts based off of the seasons, whether it be pre or post-summer in these shoulder seasons.

There are of course trade-offs though. For instance, availability of restaurants can lack – the number of times we ate cold pizza or salami sandwiches on this trip alone was probably 50-50 compared to any other style of restaurant that we were able to utilize. Most places had simply closed for the season. There were a few nights where we had salami, cheese, and mustard on white bread because we were so hungry and it was already after 8 PM.

Pro tip: pack ziplock bags, you will use them.

Back to the topic at hand

First up, Sogndal – We stayed in this cabin in Sogndal for 3 nights and had amazing panoramic views of the fjord. Although there were 3 other rentals close by, it still felt very private and quiet. This place had amazing floor to ceiling windows with a remote control to open up the curtains and see the gorgeous, unobstructed view of the quiet fjord below.

It also had a private jacuzzi tub, which is well hidden from other people staying near as most of those cabins were close to 100 feet away or more.

Tip on renting a place with a jacuzzi: most times they will keep the temp low if people aren’t using it so you often have to ask the host to turn it up before you get there or if you’ve already checked in make sure to get it warmed up early so you can use it when you want to. Some places will even try and charge you for running it, so pay attention to the details in the listing.

Uniqueness rating of this rental: 7/10

View from this rental: 10/10

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1134880676246647381?source_impression_id=p3_1758648378_P39i6Qb0TgD1Qdzh

After leaving Sogndal we headed to our next location in Stryn, just about 2 hours north of Sogndal. I had forgotten all that this rental had to offer and was completely surprised when we arrived. Our host met us in the parking area and we grabbed our bags to walk the 200m up the forest path to our place. This was one of my most favorite places we’ve ever stayed. The place was a converted container that had everything including a private sauna, cold plunge pool, floor to ceiling windows everywhere, including in the roof and a private creek with waterfall. Our host was so helpful and provided us with ideas on things to do or places to eat. 1000% would stay here again if I ever make it back to Norway.

This place is likely our favorite rental that we’ve ever had. We’ve been lucky enough to stay in a few very nice places, but the charm, uniqueness and exclusivity of this rental stood out above all those others. If you wanna try and book it do so very early as they do close for the season.

Uniqueness of this rental: 10/10

View from this rental: 7/10

Possibility that it made me want to own both a sauna and a cold plunge pool: 10/10

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/560666460967582029?source_impression_id=p3_1758654639_P3n6ICawgT4LTvjz

Our final Airbnb was in Vikebukt which we checked into after leaving Stryn and driving up through Trollstigen. This was a cute little boat house with a great view of the water about an hour northwest of Trollstigen and a good place for us to settle in. We chose this place because it was close to Molde where we’d be hiking the Troll’s Church the following day and within an hours drive to Ålesund which was a cute city with great architecture and noted to be a gateway to the fjords.

This was another fun stop because of the view, especially with the amount of luck we had with the weather. We woke up to beautiful sunrises over the mountains, and went to bed with the sound of the water on the lake. While meant for larger families than just the two of us visiting, it still felt private enough and the hosts were super nice and very gracious.

Uniqueness of the rental: 5/10

View from the rental: 8/10

Norwegian charm: 11/10

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/689665143284738639?source_impression_id=p3_1758654998_P3IAhwOmW9kT-9kD