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Norway
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{{Infobox Country
|country = of Norway
|language = Norwegian, Sami, Finnish
}}
'''Norway''' is a country in [[Europe]]. It is a member state of the [[Schengen Agreement]], but is not part of the [[European Union]]. Its capital is [[Oslo]]. Its neighbouring countries are [[Sweden]], [[Finland]] and [[Russia]].
The main challenge while travelling in Norway is the rapidly shifting weather, so be prepared for anything, as they say here: ''There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing'Norway''' is a country in . Most people speak [[EuropeEngland|English]]well enough for reasonable communication. It is People have been told to be wary of foreigners. Recently, it's been all over the news that some gypsies wait on the road with a broken car and steal cars from people stopping to help them, and it doesn't help much, especially if you're not quite white. If you look like a member state hobo your chances decrease further. Look presentable to increase your chance of getting picked up and be friendly. Ask questions. == Regions & Cities ==__TOC__=== In the North ===* [[Schengen AgreementAlta]]* [[Kautokeino]]* [[Lofoten]], but is not part an archipelago* [[Narvik]]* [[Nordkapp]], the Northernmost point of the [[European UnionEurope]]* [[Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands]]* [[Trofors]]* [[Tromsø]]. Its capital is === Other Cities ===* [[Oslo]]. Its neighbouring countries are * [[Bergen]]* [[Fredrikstad]]* [[Horten]]* [[Kristiansand]]* [[Skien]]* [[Stavanger]]* [[SwedenTrondheim]], * [[FinlandVoss]] and * [[RussiaOtta]].
== Hitchhiking culture ==
[[File:2002 hitch hiking in Norway.jpg|thumb|280px|right|[[User:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]] hitch-hiking somewhere in the middle of Norway. January 2002.]]
'''Norway''' is difficult to class as a good or bad country for hitchhiking (see the Discussion page). There are both very good and very bad feedback from hitchhikers in Norway:
[[Hitchhiking]] is not easy, although still very possible and chances of finding a long ride are quite good. In [[Tromsø]] it's even possible to hitchhike instead of taking public transport, by using a 2km sign (not as fast as the bus, however still better than walking).
=== Positive ===
'''Norway''' is not an easy country to hitch in, but it can be rewarding! Even though ''haike'' is not too common in Norway, people are very likely to pick you up and can be very friendly and helpful. Like in Sweden, foreign tourists and immigrants are more likely to [[picking up hitchhikers|pick up hitchhikers]].
According to [[User:Francisco1|Francisco1]] (also said by [[User:Fede|Fede]] [[User:Earlyturtle|Earlyturtle]]) although he didn't look very Norwegian and had no flag (see here below), just common nice cardboard signs, he always found people, many times locals (some foreigners also), any gender, any age, to pick him up, help him and give good advice. He doesn't agree with the idea that most Norwegians are unwelcoming to strangers, and even less nationalist or racist.
''(see also: [[Talk:Norway|Norway, a paradise for hitchhikers]])''
=== Negative ===
According to [[User:thomasmyrman|thomasmyrman]] who hitched with a huge Norwegian flag, many drivers said they only stopped because it made them feel nationalistic pride and that it made the hitcher visible from far away. Consider having at least a small flag (even if you are not Norwegian) which you can buy anywhere in Norway. [[User:Grata|Grata]] also had a bad experience.
''(see also: [[Talk:Norway|No, it is not easy to hitchhike in Norway]])''
=== Hitching ferries ===
On hitchhiking short distance ferries that are usually paid by the amount of people in the car, especially around the fjords of Bergen and the Western coast of Norway:
When your driver enters a ferry, be sure he or she is not the first or second car in line. As soon as the person who collects the money from the cars, is with the first or second driver, get out of the car, go to the sundeck - or whereever else in the ferry - and back in the car when the boat is on the other side. Nobody will check on you during the ride or when the cars leave the ferry. Thus I would highly recommend you to be in a car while boarding a ferry. If you are not, just ask a few drivers! If you still cannot find a car, there's also a few possibilities to sneak if you time it right and you are not seen by the officials.
=== More advice ===
Norwegians have a tendency to always be on the rush on weekdays. Waiting times can be a bit longer around [[Oslo]] and in remote areas where traffic is very light. People expect some chatting since distances are long, and seem to have little tolerance for drug or alcohol use while on the road.
A large part of the population lives near the road, which extends from the [[Sweden|Swedish]] border in the South to almost all the way North, so when going North it's pretty hard to get lost, as long as you are headed the right way.
It's common knowledge that truck drivers are very friendly and that the hitching is great if you go out to the shipping areas around Dyre Halses Gate in [[Trondheim]] and North of Strandveien<sup>Which one? Does this question refer to the previous misspelling of Strandveien?</sup>, but some hitchhikers have said otherwise. It's also much faster traveling alone considering that trucks and some commercial vehicle can only take 1 passenger. Around four in the afternoon, drivers have loaded incoming goods from that day and are leaving for a late/overnight haul to the next major city.
Do think of the weather, it can get pretty cold and rainy (or snowy) and the distances are very big between the more populated east side of the country and the cities in the West Coast, or the North. Maybe taking a warm tent as I did was the best idea ever, the experience of camping in the woods in those mountains was very nice. Remember, hichhiking is about patience, so maybe you'll have to wait for a good while (it IS true that there are not that many cars), but just enjoy the beautiful landscapes and you can always walk along the roads, they are not highways properly said. The Hurtigruten is a daily shipping service on Norway's coast, it stops in most towns along the way, starting in Bergen and going all the way up to Kirkenes on the Russian border. In many towns it stops for 3 or 4 hours and while it's in port, you can go onboard as a visitor for free. Just have your ID handy. Many ships have saunas and some have hot tubs that you can use for free. In Statoil gas stations, you can buy one of their cups for the equivalent of 30 euros and drink as much coffee, tea and hot chocolate as you like for one year. === Hitching rides on ferries =Highway rest areas with paid showers == Eastern Norway E6 Svinesundparken, Halden, Østfold E6 Fugleåsen, Ski, Akershus E6 Ormlia, Eidsvoll, Akershus E6 Circle K Minnesund, Eidsvoll, Akershus E6 Biri travpark, Gjøvik, Oppland E6 Vinstra vegpark, Nord-Fron, Oppland E6 Dovreskogen, Dovre, Oppland E18 Ørje, Marker, Østfold NR 3 Myklagard, Løten, Hedmark NR 3 Shell Koppang, Stor-Elvdal, Hedmark NR 3 Alvdal, Hedmark Southern Norway E18 Kjellstad, Lier, Buskerud E18 Furulund Kro & Motel, Stokke, Vestfold E18 Horisonten Lillesand, Aust-Agder E18 YX Lillesand, Aust-Agder E18 Circle K Lillesand, Aust-Agder E39 Circle K Livold, Lindesnes, Vest-Agder Western Norway E16 Shell Dale, Vaksdal, Hordaland E16 YX Skulestadmo, Voss, Hordaland E16 Shell Gudvangen, Aurland, Sogn og Fjordane E16 Steinklepp, Lærdal, Sogn og Fjordane E39 Esso Vikeså, Bjerkreim, Rogaland E39 Søylandskiosken, Gjesdal, Rogaland E39 Heiane, Stord, Hordaland E39 Bergen travpark, Vågsbotn, Hordaland E39 Haugsvær, Masfjorden, Hordaland E39 Esso Skei, Jølster, Sogn og Fjordane E134 Best Kyrping, Etne, Hordaland Central Norway E6 Oppdalsporten, Oppdal, Trøndelag E6/E39 Circle K Klett, Trondheim, Trøndelag E6 Stav Gjestegård, Malvik, Trøndelag E6 YX Gråmyra, Levanger, Trøndelag E6 Best Brekkvasselv, Namsskogan, Trøndelag E39 Digerneset, Skodje, Møre og Romsdal NR 70 Håsøran, Sunndalsøra, Sunndal, Møre og Romsdal Northern Norway E6 Mosjøen, Vefsn, Nordland E6 Fauske, Nordland E6 Innhavet, Hamarøy, Nordland E6 Buktamoen, Målselv, Troms E6 Circle K Storslett, Nordreisa E6 Shell Talvik, Alta, Finnmark E6/E75 Tana bru, FinnmarkNR 80 Bodø havn, Nordland
=== Hitching rides on ferries ===If possible, try to find out the ferry schedule. Hitch on the side where the cars drive into the ferry because in many places it's hard to hitch on the other side. You can maybe knock on people's windows when they wait for the ferry, especially if they come early and have to wait long, it's easy to talk to them. You can maybe try to hitch into cars that have already paid for the ferry but on almost all car ferries, and definitely all the short distance ones, you pay extra for each passenger so that would be sneaking. In a few ferries the driver might have paid for the car not dependent on passengers, but that is a rare case. Blackriding the ferries is also very easy most of times. Just don't show up too much, there is always a queue (long or not) of cars waiting for it, ticket sellers are on board or at the harbour and they go directly, one by one to each car to make the ticket. When the ferry arrives and the ticket sellers (can recognize them easily) are busy making tickets to cars just enter the ferry and nobody will tell you anything, the guys at the entrance of the boat are not supposed to check tickets just to tell cars where to go so they won't stop you nor anything, just think that you have already paid before. Of course if there are other "backpackers" stay away from them cause they are the first to be approached for tickets when the boat arrives. Fede, his brother and a Polish hitchhiker (that makes 3 people together) easily entered in that way every time, from [[Lofoten]] Islands to [[Bodo]] as around Sognesfjord and [[Bergen]] Popular Ferry routes to Denmark and Germany are Kristiansand-Hirtshals, Larvik-Hirtshals (ColorLine), Oslo-Frederikshavn and Oslo-Göteborg-Kiel (StenaLine). With ColorLine, cars carrying up to 5 people don't pay extra, so it's possible to hitch a ride on the ferry for free (not correct anymore any more as of November 2012: extra passenger is 5€EUR 5. It would be an acceptable price, but since ALL of the drivers buy tickets on-line with 50% discount, it's almost impossible to catch a ride at the ticket office. We had to give up and hitchhike all the way to Oslo, Sweden and then Denmark. So you better don't rely on this possibility) StenaLine operates overnight only, so even if you manage to find a car, they'll still force you to pay for a very expensive berth (500+ kr). If you're heading to Denmark (the ports of Hirtshals and Frederikshavn are quite close to each other) it makes no sense to take the StenaLine from Oslo, because it takes a really long time (12h!!! that's the way to make you spend as much as possible on board) and you can sail from [[Larvik]] in about 4h, which is reasonably close to Oslo to reach in about 2 hours.
A note about hitching trucks! Alert, it is no longer possible to hitch trucks on Stena lines and probably Colorline as well. Only drivers allowed. when i asked several trucks in Frederikshaven they all said not possible.
* Mo i Rana - Karlsøya - '''1 day'''
* Karlsøya to [[Tampere]], [[Finland]] - '''2 days''' or 1 day and 1 night
According to [[User:Mila77|Mila77]], female* A i Lofoten to Tromsö 2 Days on quite low traffic, maybe possible on 1 day in summertimeNote by Mila77: (now Mila.77) Please do calculate more time than usually in Norway. Remember they have a galhuge land but very few inhabitants. In the areas outside of cities, there are almost no people living. That means especially in the north, you will need much more time for the same distance than in Germany for example. You cannot compare this. Be prepared to wait much longer than you have ever in your life. There are few cars coming. However those who pick you up are very friendly.
* [[Lofoten]] - [[Trondheim]] - '''2 days'''
According to [[User:ThorRune|Thor-Rune]], one guy.
* [[Nordkapp]] - [[Tornio]] (Baltic Sea, border between Sweden and Finland) 14 hours
According to [[User:peregrine|Peregrine]] in 2013, one gal*[[Stavanger]] - Mandal - half day (14:00 to 18:00)*Mandal - [[Oslo]] - "1 day" (09:00 to 16:00)*Mandal - Kristiansund - 30 minutes (10 min wait)*Kristiansund to Tonsberg - 4 hours (10 min wait)*Tonsberg to [[Oslo]] - not recommended as it was bad to wait on interstate: 1st attempt - 30 min, failed, got something to eat, returned and it was rush hour - the slower traffic helped! 10 min wait, hour ride to Oslo!*[[Oslo]] - Swedish border - a few hours, 20 min wait in the rain, do not use hitch wiki's suggestion for the spot, 2 women took pity on me because they'd seen others standing at the "dangerous spot" and it was raining... According to [[User:Francisco1|Francisco1]]*[[Göteborg]](Sweden) - [[Bergen]] - two days by road number 7 (camping in Flå, between Honefoss and Gol)consider a complete day (with as much light hours as possible) for [[Oslo]] - [[Bergen]]I definitely recommend taking road 7 passing by the Aurlandsfjordet (fjord) at Aurland and Flåm, very beautiful '''Distances''' - NOTENote: By car, not including waiting time and change of rides:
* Oslo - Bergen : ca. 7 hours
Hope that's of any help :)
Check out [http://no.avstand.org/nordkapp/lindesnes]this :)
== Useful Language Bits ==
* Thank you - Tusen takk
* Cheers - Skål
* How are you? - Hvordan går det?
* North - nord
* South - sør
Additionally, the consonant J and the combination GJ is pronounced the same way you would pronounce Y (young). For instance, "jobb" (work) would be pronounced "yobb".
== Regions Trashwiki & Cities Nomadwiki ==[[File:2002 hitch hiking in Norway.jpg|thumb|280px|right|[[User:Sigurdas|Sigurdas]] hitch-hiking somewhere in the middle of Norway. January 2002.]]
{{hitchbase_country|147}}
{{IsIn|Scandinavia}}
{{Template:Europe/countries}}
[[Category:E6|E6]]
[[de:Norwegen]]
[[es:Noruega]]