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My mom’s family immigrated to the United States from Norway, so I’ve always known my ancestry was ~50% Norwegian. I asked my dad’s parents where their side of the family was from, and they thought a mixture of Germany, England and Ireland.
Well, it turns out that my dad must have had a good chunk of Norwegian and Swedish in his history. My siblings recently did genetic testing, and the results showed we are about 90% Norwegian and Swedish. That’s much higher than I thought.
Visiting Norway
To be honest, I’ve never had a strong desire to visit Norway. My parents and my brother’s family traveled there, but I’ve never prioritized the trip.
Why not?
The main reason is the cost. Everything is so expensive there.
Also, it’s not a place where I would want to land and spend the entire time in one city. I would want to travel to a few places and cruise on a fjord.
Traveling to Norway has always seemed more difficult and more expensive than many other destinations in Europe, like France and Italy. So, it’s never made it to the top of my list.
What’s Changed
Seeing how much of my ancestry is from Norway prompted me to take a closer look at traveling there. And honestly, with how much travel my family does and how much my husband and I plan to do in the future before we get too old, it would be a little weird for me NOT to go to Norway.
Another thing that has really changed my mind is understanding the high cost of things in Norway and how to save money while traveling. This post on TPG about traveling to Norway is a great resource. Knowing that Norwegians only go out to eat a few times a year helps to explain the high cost of restaurants there. By staying in an Airbnb, avoiding taxis, pre-booking trains and requesting a VAT refund, maybe the trip won’t be outrageously expensive.
Final Thoughts
I’m more curious to visit Norway (and maybe Sweden) after seeing the results of DNA tests. I have moved it closer to the top of my list. While it’s not my #1 priority for the next few years, I’d like to travel there within the next 10 years.
Have DNA results prompted you to travel anywhere that wasn’t on your list before?
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Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
You might want to check this series of articles from my 2014 Norway trip.
https://loyaltytraveler.boardingarea.com/sep-2014-norway-oslo-larvik-bergen/
Your best friends for Norway travel are Choice Privileges points. In fact, most Choice Hotels have fixed reward night rates and have not changed since 2014, while the US Dollar is worth 50% more in NOK than it was five years ago. Inflation has not been anywhere need that level, so food prices are generally lower in 2020 than in 2014.
I am a budget traveler and I have visited Norway five times since 2014.
Subway sandwiches are not normally my type of dining. In Norway they are common and often the cheapest food to pick up for a bite to eat.
@Ric Thanks for sharing your link and info. Wow, you’ve visited 5 times!
I really enjoyed my short visit to Norway and do recommend it. Bergen would be the best base, as you can do “Norway in a nutshell” tour from there. It’s not as impressive as Alaska scenery wise, but it’s uniquely Scandinavian. The costs for everything are high, but if you combine your visit to Norway with another country while in Europe, it shouldn’t bankrupt you. I remember a hamburger in McDonalds costing $8, and that was many years ago. But you can buy groceries and cook in the apartment. I definitely think a visit to Norway and maybe Sweden is in order based on your family’s DNA tests. 🙂
P.S. I did one of those tests and turns out I’m part Finnish. My Russian grandfather lived near the border with Finland, so one of my relatives came from that country. Was kind of a surprise.
@Leana That’s neat that you discovered you are part Finnish. Apparently I have relatives in Bergen. One of my relatives did an extensive research project on this, but at the time I wasn’t that interested.