lofoten, Norway scenic trip: July 19-25, 2024

Into the Wild is a chance to take a moment for you. To dive deep into your wild woman self. To rediscover the wonder and beauty of both earth’s nature and YOUR nature. To experience Norway’s beauty with other women.

Come unite in one of the most gorgeous and scenic mountainous places on earth: Lofoten, Norway. Experience the intensely remote canyons, waterfalls and glaciers, together, with women across the globe! This retreat is specifically a scenic road trip type of experience, designed to help you rediscover you through the beauty of these small fishing villages, nature, beaches that will take your breath away- bonding with new friends as you go.

If you’re a woman into scenic beauty- this trip is for you. Come as you are and leave as your best self.

Below is the information on what you come away with from this retreat.

Join us and rediscover your wild woman.

Cost for Norway is $2900 per person for 6 nights. All lodging, food, and transportation during the retreat is included, and ALL rooms are shared occupancy. You just need to get yourself to the Svolvær Airport (SVJ) airport and back. SVJ airport transfers will also be provided by Into the Wild. The best way to arrive into Svolvær is through Oslo, and sometimes there is a Layover in Bodo. While getting to Lofoten is time consuming, it’s not a terribly hectic experience and if you understand that it takes time, it will be no problem. Some travelers may want to spend a night in Oslo on each end of the trip (or perhaps more if you want to explore Oslo) which is a great idea.

Note: this retreat operates a little differently on the front end: You will need to arrive into Svolvær on the 19th- but it’s likely that you will need to leave your home on the 18th, transfer through Oslo, and then land in Svolvær. This retreat starts ON the 19th, but be aware you’ll need to leave on the 18th from the United States, most likely. Before purchasing tickets, be sure to run your options by Wendy at Wendy @ intothewildphotocamp.com. Additionally, this retreat ends on the 25th with breakfast and a drop off at Svolvær (SVJ).

Who:

Women. From anywhere. Women with a passion for the outdoors or adventure- or both. Women who want to learn and discover. Women who want to uncover or rediscover themselves.

Why:

When is the last time you enjoyed a week abroad for yourself? To develop the inner you, your skills and to have adventures you deserve?

NOTE: This particular Norway retreat is all about scenic views and incredible experiences and roadtripping between villages. There are 2 optional hikes.

When: July 19-25, 2024. You DO NOT want to miss this.

IMPORTANT NOTE: tHIS RETREAT WILL INVOLVEs two optional hikes of easy/moderate difficulty. Again, they are optional and if you don’t want to hike, you can spend time in the village shopping or dining.iF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS AT ALL ABOUT THIS, JUST ASK! wendy@intothewildphotocamp.com

Additionally, we will be moving from one lodging to another quite frequently. This will help us see more and drive less. Pack accordingly!

COVID-19 disclaimer: there will be no refunds due to pandemics or illness. In severe, unforseen circumstances determined by the retreat hosts, we will opt to postpone the retreat for an agreed upon time in 2025.

If you are uncomfortable with travel during these uncertain times, we suggest that you wait until you feel more certainty to be wild with us :)

Additionally, due to the nature of retreat planning, refunds are not available. If you can no longer attend after purchasing, you can sell your spot to another individual, which usually ends up being no problem since most retreats sell out.

A reminder: your expenses are all paid, except your flights to and from Svolvær, Norway from your home. We cover lodging, activities, food, transport, etc!

Note: During this trip, it will not get dark at night :)

Because we wanted something that was deeper and more immersive, we will be mostly staying in hotels, but perhaps a few guest homes and airbnbs. ALL rooms are SHARED rooms.

THIS IS THE PLANNED ITINERARY (weather permitting):

July 19: Arrive in Svolvær Airport (SVJ). You will need to book your own flight here as a small additional flight once you get to Oslo (Consider using google flights to book from your major airport all the way through to Svolvær (SVJ).  Today is mainly about arriving and having our first dinner together, then resting up for our road trip through Lofoten. This trip is for 2024, but I checked flights into EVE for this year and many of them from Oslo arrive at 5:30pm which is absolutely perfect.

July 20: Today we start with breakfast and then we will immerse ourselves in the dramatic scenery of Trollfjorden on a scenic boat trip. We’ll admire the sea eagles flying above and learn about the area's Viking history as we travel through the fjord. There will be time to explore the town and then we will go to Henningsvaer, where we will spend 2 nights.

July 21: Breakfast and a quick drive to Kabelvåg. (We are using Henningsvaer as a base to explore the area). In this quaint town we will visit the Lofoten Museum, explore the sights the village has to offer, and then explore Henningsvaer. This town used to be a thriving fishing village. Today it is Lofoten’s hippest village with its cool cafes, restaurants, bars, boutiques, and art galleries. We will visit Trevarefabrikken and have lunch  at Lysstøperiet Bakery & Cafe. Optional hike for the afternoon- steep but not long, you’ll climb to the top of a mountain and see the entire view of Lofoten! Very optional. Dinner.  2nd night spent in Henningsvaer.

July 22: Breakfast and time for a little road trip to other islands! We will eat breakfast and then head out to Gimsoy, where we will take a scenic drive to get a fantastic view of fjords, islands, tall mountains, and beautiful white-sandy beaches! Lots of good photo ops here. We will also take a hike to Hoven Mountain. This is a suitable hike for anyone and has gorgeous views (you can opt out of this top if you want!). We will eat lunch at Hov Farm and then drive off the island of Gimsoy to hit Lofotr Viking Museum, an incredible place. We will continue our drive to Ballstad where we will stay two nights.

July 23: Breakfast and then exploration of Ballstad, with an afternoon trip to Unstad to see more gorgeous sandy beaches with turquoise water. We can hit up Unstad Arctic Surf’s cafe for the world’s best cinnamon rolls. We will also stop on our way back at Lofoten Gårdsysteri so we can visit a farm with goats to feed, some delicious cakes, cheese, sausages, coffee, drinks, etc in their cozy farm cafe. Next we will visit Haukland Beach, perhaps Hofoten’s most famous, gorgeous beach. If we have time and interest there is a very easy track hike around the beach. We’ll return to Ballstad for dinner and bed.

July 24: Today we will start with breakfast and then wind our way down through the remaining islands, visiting Nusfjord, Sound, Reine, and A. Yes, the town’s name is A. Our true destination however is Reine, a cozy and extremely photographable town. We will do the usual- eat, wander, shop if desired, and take tons of pictures. Reine will not disappoint. We will spend absolutely all day just soaking in the last of the amazingness of Lofoten, and after dinner we will take the 2.5 hour drive back through the islands to Solvaer to spend the night so that you can all catch your flights back to Oslo the next day. Ideally you’d catch a flight in the morning, but if that’s not possible we can make anything work.

July 25: Breakfast, Departure.