This apartment was an utter delight. Its location atop a high hill overlooking Bergen was its best attribute. You enter from the 2nd floor where you find the bathroom, washer, and bedroom. The bedroom's french balcony does not have a view as it is blocked by other houses, but there is a narrow strip from which one can see a bit of Bergen. There are very efficient black-out blinds on the window if you have trouble sleeping in all the summer light.
The bathroom window opens directly onto the neighbor's back porch, but this was not a problem as the window is opaque and can be opened from the top allowing airflow while maintaining complete privacy.
On the first floor is where I found extra towels, pillows, and a drying rack for the laundry which I brought upstairs.
A steep narrow spiral (but new and very sturdy) wooden staircase takes one up to the bright 3rd level. On this level is a delightful room containing kitchen & combined living/dining.
The french balcony here has a less obstructed view than downstairs. There are rooftops in the way, but I still enjoyed looking out and thought the view was quite nice. On sunny days the room is flooded with beautiful sunlight. On cloudy days the upstairs is still nice and bright due to all of the windows. The windows all have blinds.
The dormer windows all open and provide lovely breezes on the days where there is sunshine, and sweet views of the wooded hillside above and its cute houses.
There is a comfortable futon couch upstairs (which could use a new clean futon cover - the current one is shabby) I opened it up completely and used it to take naps in the afternoons. It would make a very acceptable 2nd bed.
This apartment was cosy and charming. I loved it!
The only thing I found off-putting was the owner - not exactly warm & welcoming. Perhaps fresh flowers, a fruit basket, or even a small note would be a nice touch. Also, meeting the renter at the apartment would be more civilized than making the renter (probably coming off a trans-atlantic flight) trudge down the steep hill to collect the key from owner's house. Since I was traveling alone and could hardly leave my luggage for 30 minutes unattended in the street..on Claus Fasting (street of rental house) I had my taxi driver take me there from the airport and he had a lot of difficulty finding the house. He finally located it, but couldn't figure out how to drive to the apartment so he parked a block away and I walked the remainder. I rang the bell and the landlord met me outside with the key. I paid for the apartment then asked if there was information in the rental pertaining to the wifi and she indicated that there was. I've rented many vacation rental apartments abroad, but never have had such a brief interaction with the landlord with so little information exchanged. Outdoors and in the drizzle at that. Strange. If you have a telephone to phone the landlord perhaps they could be persuaded to meet you at the apartment and avoid the 3-ring-key-circus. (alas, I did not)
When I reached the apartment the key worked fine and I went inside. The 1 page information sheet was in a frame on the wall. Extremely brief, but I figured everything out.
The bed was very comfortable and everything in the apartment was very clean and orderly. Just lovely.
Another problem occured with the key the next day. I had turned the latch to lock the door but could not turn it back to get out. It was stuck fast and took 10 minutes of very concentrated effort to get it unstuck and open. This was the case when I returned also. I left the door unlocked after that, preferring to leave everything unlocked rather than struggle with the key again.
I emailed the owner about the stovetop because I could not understand the 1 sentence instructions and they replied with 1 sentence answer to read the instructions... hmmm not very helpful. Several days later I figured the stovetop out. I gave them the benefit of the doubt, and attributed their manner to cultural differences rather than rudeness. (although at another rental in Bergen a week later the landlord was extremely welcoming and kind) Their demeanor would not keep me from renting this apartment again.
The kitchen did not have a baking sheet of any kind to put inside the oven to warm things up, and there was not a microwave. Having no choice I placed things directly on top of the broiler pan. There was only 1 dishtowel provided and no dish drainer. There were coffee filters, a good coffee pot, and plenty enough dishes and pots & pans.
the rewarding view climbing up the hills.
The price of 4800 NOK for 6 nights stay was a very good value for this tiny house and it really was so charming. I would definitely recommend it to other travelers looking for an off-the-beaten-track location in Bergen. It is straight uphill so if you have difficulty walking it might be a problem. I however, who am not very fit, managed the hill just fine...although i was huffing and puffing the whole way up. It was worth the extra effort because it was very fun to meander back down the hill each day as the tiny lanes that wind through the wooden houses are so atmospheric and quite beautiful. Also you can easily take a taxi for the cost of approx. 120 NOK if your hands are full of shopping bags or you just don't feel like walking. Look for a taxi queue when you are out and about.
There is a Safari grocery store 1/4 of the way down the hill that is convenient and also a couple of convenience stores and a pizza shop in the same vacinity as the Safari.
