Winter activity holiday in Norway
| country: | Norway |
| departures: | New departure dates available 1 Aug 08 |
| price: | From £899 (8 days) including flights from the UK. From £729 excluding flights. £85 single supplement. Minimum age 12 years |
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the amazing things you'll be doing
Enjoy a week of mixed winter activities in the scenic Norwegian hills surrounding Hovda.
In central Norway, to the north of the town of Gol, sits the scattered community of Hovda (750m). Consisting of just a few houses and huts, Hovda offers a true experience of the remote and wild landscape of upland Norway. During this active week in the snow, we experience a variety of winter activites from our comfortable hotel. There are approximately 120km of prepared cross-country ski tracks in the area and we spend three days exploring the gently undulating trails at beginner level.
Two days are spent on snowshoes, where guided treks traverse the rolling hills and forests. The dogsledding session will be a highlight of the week, allowing us the opportunity to learn to mush our own team. We also include a magical horse-drawn sleigh ride through the stunning winter scenery.
Activities3 days cross-country skiing 2 days snowshoeing 1 day dogsledding Guiding and equipment for above activities with leader throughout Optional activity - scenic train journey along the fjords
Accommodation: Hovda Fjell Hotell is a friendly, informal and well-run establishment with splendid views over the surrounding winter landscapes. The attractive wood-panelled lounges and cosy bar provide a relaxing retreat in the evenings, as does the sauna. Entertainment is provided within the hotel most evenings. The food is delicious and the meal arrangement is for three-course evening meal, buffet breakfast and self-made packed lunch. All the comfortable twin and single rooms have shower and WC.
In central Norway, to the north of the town of Gol, sits the scattered community of Hovda (750m). Consisting of just a few houses and huts, Hovda offers a true experience of the remote and wild landscape of upland Norway. During this active week in the snow, we experience a variety of winter activites from our comfortable hotel. There are approximately 120km of prepared cross-country ski tracks in the area and we spend three days exploring the gently undulating trails at beginner level.
Two days are spent on snowshoes, where guided treks traverse the rolling hills and forests. The dogsledding session will be a highlight of the week, allowing us the opportunity to learn to mush our own team. We also include a magical horse-drawn sleigh ride through the stunning winter scenery.
Activities
Accommodation: Hovda Fjell Hotell is a friendly, informal and well-run establishment with splendid views over the surrounding winter landscapes. The attractive wood-panelled lounges and cosy bar provide a relaxing retreat in the evenings, as does the sauna. Entertainment is provided within the hotel most evenings. The food is delicious and the meal arrangement is for three-course evening meal, buffet breakfast and self-made packed lunch. All the comfortable twin and single rooms have shower and WC.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Fly from UK to Oslo, transfer by road to Hovda (approx 3 1/2 hours). |
| Day 2-8: | Six days of mixed activities including 3 days cross-country skiing, 2 days snowshoeing and 1 day dogsledding. |
| Day 8: | Return transfer to Oslo. Fly Oslo to UK. |
travellers' tales
Most memorable was seeing the line of fellow members of the group plodding across the frozen wastes in front of me. (more)
Small group adventure holiday
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends its good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as seeing new places.how this holiday makes a difference
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Our winter holidays in general avoid large alpine ski areas, and are less dependent on snow cannons, graded pistes and ski lifts, creating significantly less environmental impact than alpine skiing holidays. Our cross-country ski tours explore the magical scenery and tranquility of the natural winter environments, and use skis that are longer and lighter than alpine equipment. Journeys further afield may utilise public transport and the local economy benefits from our groups purchasing supplies directly.
Snowshoes are the prefect way to explore and enjoy the winter landscape while minimizing our impact. Snowshoers require no ski lifts and no groomed or maintained pistes, and our visit leaves no impact apart from tracks in the fresh snow. When snowshoeing we search out the quieter corners of the mountains, where development and facilities are few. As this sport continues to develop, it will offer mountain communities alternative low impact forms of winter tourism. Dogsled tours and horse-drawn sleigh rides are by nature the most earth friendly modes of transportation. We try to limit the impact on the local environment as much as possible by using traditional travel routes and local suppliers. Our accommodation is family-run, employing locally based staff and ensuring recycling of waste materials and energy saving and efficiency. We have teamed up with Friends of Conservation to support projects at Ranthambore, India, Nava Kiran Orphanage, Nepal and on the edge of the Masai Mara, Kenya. Water consumption in our UK office has been reduced by 30% since 2005, and the range of materials recycled by the office has been broadened. All electricity is supplied from renewable sources such as combined heat and power, and hydroelectric, and regular audits are carried out to compare our energy consumption with received benchmarks set up by the Carbon Trust. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |