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Scandinavia & The Nordics
Experience an unforgettable European adventure with our custom-designed Nordics vacations and insightful travel guide.
Travel Around Scandinavia & The Nordics
Discover the enchanting allure of Scandinavia and the Nordics with custom travel experiences tailored to you. Wander through Sweden’s vibrant cities and tranquil archipelagos, steep yourself in Norway’s majestic fjords and dramatic landscapes. In Finland, enjoy the magic of Lapland, meet Santa Claus, and relax in a traditional Finnish sauna. Helsinki offers a perfect blend of modern design and historic charm. Iceland invites you to witness its awe-inspiring geysers, waterfalls, and volcanic wonders, while Denmark offers a blend of charming historical sites and cutting-edge design in its cosmopolitan capital, Copenhagen. This region is a haven for culture enthusiasts, and adventure seekers alike. Whether you’re exploring ancient Viking heritage, savoring Nordic cuisine, or chasing the ethereal Northern Lights, Scandinavia, and the Nordics promise a custom travel experience like no other.

Scandinavian Highlights
Personalize Your Scandinavia & The Nordics Itinerary
Unlock the extraordinary experiences Scandinavia has to offer with our custom itineraries tailored to your unique preferences, desired pace, and interests. Below are some samples, designed to inspire your Scandinavian vacation.
Essential Iceland
- Explore the inside of a volcano!
- Enjoy a snowmobile excursion on the world-famous Eyjafjallajökull.
- Visit the 1000 year old “Great Geyser”.
Essential Norway
- Enjoy a guided tour of Oslo's main sites.
- Board the historic Flamsbana train in Myrdal.
- Visit the Old Bryggen & chat with locals at the fish market.
Essential Scandinavia
- Tour Vasa Museum in Stockholm
- Visit Vigeland Park in Oslo
- In Copenhagen, visit the Royal Library, the largest library in Scandinavia
Essential Stockholm
- Visit City Hall, Stockholm’s political center and site for the annual Nobel Prize festivities
- Tour Djurgården, a natural resort in the heart of Stockholm
- Take a boat to Drottningholm Palace
Essential Swedish Lapland
- Explore the magical city of Stockholm.
- Become a master at ice sculpting!
- Experience a reindeer sledding adventure.
Essential Lapland Finland
- Explore the magical city of Helsinki.
- Go husky sledding in search for Northern Lights!
- Visit a reindeer farm and go horseback riding.
Contact us to plan your personalized Scandinavia & The Nordics Itinerary trip today.
What our Happy Travelers Say
The trip included travel to five of the six Balkan countries formerly known as Yugoslavia … Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro (Macedonia is the sixth). While a complicated and extensive political and religious history connects these countries, each had its own fascinating identity, culture and people. My local guides were phenomenal, most having been born and raised in each city/town that I toured, which made their storytelling all the more rich with unique detail. Milan, my guide in Belgrade, was also a professor of art history at the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts as well as an opera singer and an actor. He had just published a book which he graciously signed and gifted to me.
Highlights from each country …
Slovenia … Old Town Ljubljana was a delightful mix of history, art, architecture, nightlife and shopping … I could plan a trip there this fall and do ALL of my Christmas shopping … a day trip to picturesque and historic Lake Bled provided a great contrast.
Croatia … a fascinating combination of food and cultures (depending upon which border we were close to) … truffle hunting with a cute young brother and sister in Prodani, casual strolls through picturesque historic walled towns in the mountains of Istria, fresh oysters and mussels prepared by a local farmer in Ston ( just outside of Dubrovnik), a stunning flight along the Adriatic coastline from Istria to Dalmatia, waterfront dining in harbors tucked away among the Pakleni Islands, a private cooking class in Split, and a sunset boat ride accompanied by dolphins off the coast of Rovinj.
Serbia … in Belgrade a deep dive into the history of Yugoslavia and Tito’s regime from a scholar’s perspective … personal time with a master violin maker and local “naive” artists and their galleries in Kovacica … and shopping at a local grocery store for the favorite foods Serbs like to eat.
Bosnia and Herzegovina … my biggest and most pleasant surprise of the trip (Belgrade came in a close second) … Sarajevo was a fascinating city with something to see and learn about around every corner. My local guide, Muhammad, was instrumental in describing a very complicated history, but also showing me the very vibrant multicultural atmosphere that it is now his adopted city.
Montenegro … a coastline and atmosphere that consistently makes you think you are on a movie set … Kotor, Perast, and Herzeg Novi … a tour by boat of the hidden submarine tunnels from WWI, and a day trip up the historic Serpentine Road (22 switchbacks that follow the old caravan route that Roman traders used) to the Old Royal Capital of Cetinje.
I would be remiss if I didn’t say a word about the very personal attention that Arina paid both leading up to my departure and also as my trip progressed in real time. A few weeks before my departure I developed some concerns about news that I was reading about political unrest in Bosnia and Serbia. Arina, who lives in Belgrade, was able to assure me that everything remained very peaceful. I’m really pleased that I followed her advice because I didn’t find anything remotely similar “on the ground” to what I was reading in the international press. Arina also arranged many lovely personal touches during my travels and helped me understand occasionally unique local logistics.
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We had an amazing trip and could go back tomorrow. All the guides were great (as well as the drivers) and were well prepared for our requests and also had great suggestions for other things to do. Everything went as planned which is a real bonus these days. The hotel locations were great and we especially enjoyed the Raffles in Warsaw and our room with a balcony in Gdansk at Blu.
Thanks again for all of your help in planning this trip, and look forward to working with you on a future trip.
Bill
We're very glad we listened to Silvia’s hotel recommendations (they were so nice) and acted on many of her preferred restaurant recommendations. We ate extremely well and enjoyed the wines immensely.
Overall, we could not have been more pleased.
Thank you to Exeter and especially Silvia for bringing us this enchanted journey. We cannot wait for the next one.
We are a group of 10 (five couples) who were matched with Ala to plan a fall trip to Croatia. Ala designed a terrific trip for us that was filled with interesting activities, great lodging, and a good balance of busy time and free time. It’s not easy to manage five couples who all had different arrival and departure plans and other assorted issues (food allergies for one, recovery from recent back surgery for another). All was handled well.
The “little things,” such as airport transfers and the timeliness and quality of the vehicles and drivers we had everywhere, were flawless. Ala was easy to work with and very responsive as questions came up when we got close to the actual trip. We had 11 days of picture-perfect weather and several highlights (all Ala’s suggestions) were Krka National Park, our 5-bedroom oceanfront villa at the incredible Maslina Resort in Hvar (several in our group said it was the best place they’d ever stayed), the sound healing under an open-air tent at Maslina, the wine tasting at Dubkovic Winery, the bicycle tour and farm lunch on Hvar, walking the walls of old Dubrovnik, and the all-day boat ride in the Elaphite Islands. I would be hard pressed to find a favorite but I know we would never have found some of these things on our own. And our guides in each location were terrific and well matched to our group personality. We requested guides who could joke around with us and that’s exactly what we got. Good guides can make such a big difference.
Restaurant suggestions were always good but sometimes we opted for just pizza or bar food instead. When we told Ala we’d like suggestions for good pizza places, two were presented for each location in our itinerary.
Croatia really surprised me. I had heard it was beautiful and always was curious about Dubrovnik but it really surpassed my expectations. I would highly recommend it and wouldn’t hesitate to use Ala.
Ala and her team created the most perfect Croatian vacation trip for me, my husband and the other couple that we were traveling with this month. I've had the good fortune to have travelled all around the world and never have I experienced such an incredible team to ensure that literally every detail, every activity, every hotel we stayed at was top-notch.
If you are even considering a vacation to this incredible country, I would highly recommend speaking with Ala and her team first. I know I will be recommending Ala friends and family that want to visit Croatia and I can do it with complete peace of mind knowing I am referring them to the best!
Nikki Davidson
The guides in each city were so fantastic. They each had a wealth of experience as guides, planned the routes well and asked about our interests when we first met so they knew what we wanted to see and do. They were all spot on time! The guides made the trip a truly special experience. They helped us to understand each city, its history, special characteristics and helped us with questions about how to navigate the city and use public transportation. The guides expedited getting into busy museums or other venues because our guides had passes to jump queues. They maximized our time so that it was spent enjoying the sights and venues instead of standing in lines and figuring out how to purchase tickets. They knew where to go and when to go there. Some venues required advance tickets and Leigh took care of that. Leigh arranged our very own private saloon boat tour of the canals of Amsterdam. Leigh checked in on us along the way on our trip and sent us special notes. She arranged to have a gift sent to my hotel room in Helsinki on my birthday.
Leigh arranged really great hotel rooms with the best views possible. And our stateroom on the Silja line cruise from Stockholm to Helsinki had an amazing view so we saw the sunset and sunrise over the Baltic from our room and that was stunning. With Exeter involved in making the hotel reservations we were treated like special guests at each hotel by the staff.
The drivers were all outstanding. They were polite, helpful, on-time and made all our connections and excursions seamless and stress free. We actually started our trip in Gothenburg Sweden at the Volvo factory. After that Exeter took over and we proceeded on our dream trip to Stockholm, Helsinki and Amsterdam. We did no driving. We used trains and boats all arranged by Leigh at Exeter. And in each city we used drivers arranged by Exeter for excursions outside the city centers, such as when we went to the delightful town of Porvoo, Finland.
When we took the train from Gothenburg to Stockholm our train was over an hour delayed and it was late evening when we arrived in Stockholm. The driver who met us in Stockholm, arranged by Exeter, had waited for us. While waiting she arranged for the hotel to have food for us upon arrival. Also when we arrived at our room at the hotel Leigh had arranged for a lovely charcuterie tray to be sent to our room. So although we arrived late and were worried about being hungry, everyone involved made sure that was taken care of without having to ask.
I can't say enough positive about Leigh Landis and Exeter International. I feel we got more than our money's worth. Without Exeter we would have wasted so much time trying to figure out what could be seen each day in each city, how to get tickets, how to find a good restaurant and figure out how to make reservations etc. We did not have to worry about any of that. All the details were taken care of in advance and all we had to do was enjoy it!
We will be forever grateful for Leigh and Exeter!
Scandinavia & The Nordics Travel FAQs
Scandinavia and the Nordics have become top destinations for travelers looking to indulge in a variety of unique experiences. Whether you’re a foodie eager to explore culinary landscapes, an adventure seeker craving thrilling outdoor activities, or a family searching for the perfect vacation spot, this region has something extraordinary to offer. Experience the best of culinary travel, family adventures, active pursuits, and self-drive journeys.
Exploring Scandinavia and the Nordic countries is a remarkable experience, and getting around is easier than you might think. The region boasts an excellent rail network that connects major cities and scenic destinations. Whether you value the comfort of a private car, the convenience of rail travel, or the freedom of driving yourself, there are several options to suit your travel style.
Of the five Nordic countries—Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Iceland—only Finland uses the Euro. The other four countries have retained their own national currencies.
Whether you’re chasing the midnight sun or the Northern Lights, understanding the seasonal nuances of Scandinavia and the Nordics can help you plan the perfect trip. Each season offers its unique charm, ensuring a memorable adventure no matter when you choose to visit.
Is seeing the Northern Lights Guaranteed?
While witnessing the Northern Lights in Iceland, Norway, Sweden nd Finland is a bucket-list experience, remember that nature doesn’t follow a schedule. Prepare well, stay informed, and enjoy the adventure of aurora hunting, even if there’s no guarantee of seeing the lights.
Keep Exploring Scandinavia & The Nordics
Why Travel with Exeter?
Europe awaits. From hidden gems to classic cities, our experts have firsthand knowledge of the places you’ve been longing to go. For us, Europe is about experiences, not just ticking off boxes on a sightseeing “best of” list. We work with our in-the-know local experts to open doors to adventures that are often closed to the general public. For you – the discerning traveler – this means customized, impeccably planned vacations that go beyond the ordinary. Let’s start crafting your ideal Europe vacation today.
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