Introduction
I‘m on my way back home from Haugesund. The small town actually has its own very little airport. However, instead of taking the short flight of thirty minutes to Bergen, I figure I might as well take the bus instead. At least that way I get to see a bit of the countryside.
Haugesund bus terminal.
Getting to the Airport
Haugesund bus terminus is located on the outskirts of the town centre. But the place is so small that nothing is really far away here.
The journey from Haugesund to Bergen takes three hours and includes a ferry that spends about 45 minutes at sea.
The bus is very comfortable and configured for long distance travel. Large items of luggage have to be placed in the hold.
Every seat has its own USB port.
The route is quite scenic and takes us through a forrested landscape.
The trip on the ferry is lovely.
The boat has a fully stocked self-service restaurant with a large variety of hot and cold dishes available.
The bus ends at the Bergen terminus, which is in short walking distance of the railway station.
As I still have quite some time to kill before my flight, I deposit my luggage in a locker at the station and then take the funicular railway from the centre of Bergen up to the Fløyen, from where you have great views of the city.
I then walk back down to Bryggen in the old town, which takes about an hour at a leisurely pace.
To get from Bergen to the airport by public transportation there is the tram or bus. Plan for about 45 minutes to get to the airport if you‘re taking the tram. Longer with the bus. The tram tends to be quite full. So if you‘d rather sit, you may want to consider the airport bus instead.
The tram stop is located by the side entrance to the railway station.
The airport station is on the lower ground level.
It is easily accessible by escalator and lift.
Check-in
Check-in for all flights is in the new terminal, which also houses domestic departures. KLM has two dedicated check-in counters.
There is a dedicated fast track for security, which is also available to SkyTeam members.
Security ejects passengers airside in the domestic terminal. It’s only a short walk over to international departures.
Bergen Business Class Lounge
International departures are from the old terminal. Since my last visit they‘ve opened a new lounge, which is rather nice.
The lounge is located one floor up from the public airside area.
There is plenty of seating available, but all the window seats are already taken.
And the food options are decent.
Boarding
Boarding for the flight starts on time. I‘m on 1F, so I figure I might as well wait to board last and avoid the initial scrum.
While I wait, I shamelessly ogle the gorgeous blue 737 I’ll be travelling on this evening.
And, of course, a close up shot.
The KLM livery makes a refreshing change form the usual Eurowhites.
The Cabin & Seat
Very soon KLM will start taking delivery of its new fleet of Airbus NEO narrow bodies, and I think that‘s a good thing because the 737s are starting to show their age. They‘re still well maintained, they just look slightly old-fashioned.
Today’s my lucky day, because I manage to get the whole row of three to spread out.
The Crew & Service
The crew on this flight are great, your typical friendly KLM crew. I really don‘t know how they do it, but in the many years I‘ve travelled with KLM I‘ve yet to encounter a bad crew.
The Meal
The meal is served in a box. I think I would prefer a tray. But then again, a) you‘re not eating the tray/cardboard box and b) I‘m not here for the food anyway.
The box comes with a menu explaining its content.
The ‘Extra Serving’ remains an enigma, though.
It is a nice cardboard box, though.
With the salt and pepper sachets tucked away in an envelope.
The main dish is a fennel and carrot salad with cheese and orange.
To be honest, I think I would prefer a nice cheese sandwich instead. The meal is accompanied with walnuts and three macarons.
To drink I have a sparkling water and then a tea.
The Punselies they used to serve with hot beverages have been replaced with chocolate biscuits.
Arrival in Amsterdam
The scheduled flight time to Amsterdam is one hour and 45 minutes. However, today we land thirty minutes early, after a flight time of only one hour and 15 minutes. The flight ends at the D pier.
The weather in Amsterdam is partially cloudy and quite fresh.
As we taxi in, I take a photo of these funky airbridges on the E concourse that I‘ve only ever seen in Amsterdam. They have been designed so that passengers can also board through the rear door. I‘m not even sure they‘re still in use.
Conclusion
The flight with KLM was nice. Of course it helped that the forward cabin was not very full. And the crew, as usual, were great. Where I think there is some serious need for improvement is the catering, and I really don’t understand why KLM insists on serving these rather odd and oddly paired dishes.
Yeah, those boxes are just the least premium plating you can with. But, on the plus side, they at least provide a menu, so you know what you are getting. Not all airlines do that…
Looks like the trip on the bus was definitely better than going by place. Those views and scenery are lovely.
Norway‘s a lovely country. And best of all, most of it is empty!
The only time i flew out of Bergen was on SK518—– a DC9-51, via Stavanger to Heathrow——in 1980 they still had first class.
There used to be quite a few of those weird routings in those days.