Balestrand, Norway

An appealing first stop along the Sognefjord, BALESTRAND has been a tourist destination since the middle of the nineteenth century, when it was discovered by European travellers in search of cool, clear air and picturesque mountain scenery. Kaiser Wilhelm II got in on the act too, becoming a frequent visitor and sharing his holiday spot with the tweeds and hobnail boots of the British bourgeoisie. These days, the village is used as a touring base for the immediate area, as the battery of small hotels and restaurants above the quay testifies, but it's all very small-scale, and among the 1500-strong population farming still remains the principal livelihood.

The only car ferry direct to Balestrand is the summertime service south from Mundal, on the Fjærlandsfjord; otherwise, the nearest you'll get is Dragsvik, 9km along the fjord to the north of Balestrand. Buses stop beside the quayside.

For accommodation, the all-year Midtnes Pensjonat (Tel:57 69 11 33, Web: www.midtnes.no ; Price: Kr600-800, Price: Kr800-1000 with fjord view), about 300m from the dock behind the English church, is a low-key, pleasantly sedate affair with a few workaday but spacious rooms in a modern wing adjoining the original clapboard house; make sure to get a room with a fjord view. Close by, the Balestrand Hotel (Tel:57 69 11 38, Web: www.balestrand.net ; May– Sept; Price: Kr800-1000) is very similar, with thirty unassuming rooms kitted out in modern, modest style. Another good choice, just 150m uphill from the dock, is the HI hostel (Tel:57 69 13 03, Web: www.vandrerhjem.no ; late June to late Aug; doubles Price: Kr350-600, dorm beds 190kr), which is part of the neat and trim Kringsjå Hotell (same number; Web: www.kringsja.no ; Price: Kr350-600). The big deal hereabouts, though, is Kvikne's Hotel (Tel:57 69 42 00, Web: www.kviknes.no ; Price: Kr1000-1200; May– Sept), whose various buildings dominate much of the waterfront. It's worth popping into the bar to take a look at the fancy fittings – some of which are in a sort of Victorian Viking-baronial style – but don't take a room without having a gander first.

For food, both the Kringsjå and the Midtnes serve tasty, excellent-value dinners, but the cream of the gastronomic crop is the restaurant at Kvikne's Hotel, which serves up a banquet-sized buffet (300kr) every night – go early to get the pick.