TRANSPORTATION
Roads:
While driving in the Scandinavia, you'll soon notice that there are very similar and common laws and regulations and the most important driving tips are:
- Speed Limit: The speed limit for populated areas (50 km/h) and for open country roads (80 km/h) is identical in all Scandinavian countries.
- Lights On: Lights need to be on at all times. Dipped headlights during the day are a requirement.
- Seat Belts: Dont't forget to put on your seat belt, which all Scandinavian countries require.
- Drinking: Drunk driving is not tolerated, and acceptable levels are very low. High fines await violators, and drunk driving in Scandinavia will land you in jail.
Railroads:
Denmark is directly connected to the continental road network. From Denmark it is possible to cross to Sweden over the Ă–resund bridge. There are also many ferry connections from Denmark, most of them takes cars. The only overland alternative to the Ă–resund bridge is to enter via Russia to Finland or Norway. Save a few short stretches of regular road, you can drive all the way to Stockholm or Oslo on highway from the German ones, but keep in mind that the tolls on the two Danish highway bridges you need to pass to get to Sweden are heavy, and you could easily be saving money taking a more direct route with a ferry.
Virtually all Scandinavian roads are toll free, but some larger cities (most notably Stockholm) have introduced congestion charges when driving in the centre, and some of longer bridges and tunnels levy tolls to pay for their construction.
Speed limits are uniform, 50kph in cities and 80kph on rural roads unless otherwise indicated. Motorways range from 100 in Norway, 110 in Sweden, 120 in Finland to 130 in Denmark, again unless other speed limits are signposted.
Keep in mind that while Scandinavians routinely disregard speed limits, fines are heavy and if you don't benefit from the high Scandinavian wages, they will feel even more steep, so you will in essence probably be gambling with your holiday budget. Speeding in city zones are considered a severe offence, and there are many unmarked automatic speed traps installed in such zones.
Aviation:
Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) is the multi-national airline of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and the leading carrier in these Scandinavian countries. Its home base is at Stockholm, Sweden and owned by SAS AB. It is a founding member of the Star Alliance and the founder of Air Greenland, Linjeflyg, Spanair, Thai Airways International, and the former charter airline Scanair.
SAS has a 49% stake in Estonian Air. SAS operates out of three primary hubs, Copenhagen-Kastrup Airport, Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, and Oslo-Gardermoen Airport. Copenhagen serves as the focus for European and intercontinental services. In 2006, Scandinavian Airlines carried 25 million passengers and the SAS Group had 38.6 million passengers.
The Scandinavian Airlines fleet includes the following aircraft (active aircraft as of October 2009):
| Type |
Number |
Orders |
Passengers (Business/Extra/Economy) |
Routes |
| |
| Airbus A319-100 |
4 |
0 |
141 (0/0/141) |
Europe, Scandinavia |
| Airbus A321-200 |
8 |
0 |
187 (0/0/187) |
Europe, Scandinavia |
| Airbus A330-300 | 4 | 0 | 264 (34/35/195) | North America |
| Airbus A340-300 | 5 | 0 | 245 (46/28/171) | North America and Asia |
| Boeing 737-400 | 4 | 0 | 150 (0/0/150) | Norway domestic |
| Boeing 737-500 | 9 | 0 | 120 (0/0/120) | Norway domestic |
| Boeing 737-600 | 28 | 0 | 123 (0/0/123) | Domestic, Scandinavia, Europe |
| Boeing 737-700 | 17 | 0 | 141 (0/0/141) | Norway domestic, Scandinavia , Europe |
| Boeing 737-800 | 18 | 0 | 186 (0/0/186) | Domestic, Scandinavia, Europe |
| Bombardier CRJ900 | 11 | 1 | 88 (0/0/88) | Domestic, Scandinavia, Europe |
| Fokker 50 | 5 | 0 | 50 (0/0/50) | Norway domestic |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-81 | 10 | 0 | 150 (0/0/150) | Domestic |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | 20 | 0 | 150 (0/0/150) | Domestic, Scandinavia, Europe |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-87 | 4 | 0 | 125 (0/0/125) | Domestic, Scandinavia, Europe |
| Total: | 147 | 1 |