Hidden Gem: Car-Free, Cosy Norwegian Island

Imagine for a just moment, your own special Norwegian island. It's warm and sunny, peaceful but still accessible. It's big enough to be able to explore, but small enough to walk around in a few hours. The spotless and serene little coves are ideal for swimming or sitting on the beach watching the gentle waves. You can get there in a less than an hour from the mainland, but it feels a world away from the rest of civilisation. You have an adorable picture perfect house and you know all your neighbours. The kids play outside in safety and it feels like a dreamy summer idyll. Well stop imagining, because this place actually exists- IN REAL LIFE!!! Yes, I kid you not.

Off the coast of Vestfold close to Sandefjord in the south east of Norway lies a tiny little island trapped in a bit of a time warp. You'd think this hidden treasure would be on the tourist traIl buts it's actually a well kept secret that only the locals know about (and maybe a few tourists, and of course you, now).

Veierland (that's it's name) is one of my favourite paces to visit in the late srping and early summer. It's a wonderful escape from the rest of the world. The moment we step onto the tiny ferry to cross the inland fjord we feel like we are escaping life for a few hours and taking a little holiday in our own county.

There are no cars on Veierland save for the post mistress with her little ATV and the odd farmer with his quad bike. All the gravel roads are safe to walk along and the peace that comes with no traffic is something to experience. You have to be able to get about on foot or by bike and as you wander around you find that you are overtaken by the odd cyclist or runner. If you want to transport items from the ferry each house has it's own wheelbarrow, carefully marked with the name, that lives next to the tiny ferry point. You load your things into it and trundle it along the gravel track to your house. It can cause funny kinds of traffic jams!

It feels like all the houses on Verierland are the most beautiful and picturesue. They are almost all wooden and there aren't any ugly modern buildings.

It makes for a very picturesque and photogenic experience where every turn reveals an opportunity to look at another pretty house. Its just what you would imagine a Norwegian coastal village to look like. Gardens are immaculately tended and many people seem to grow their own produce.

You can only get to Veierland by boat. Many of the cabin owners have their own little launches and RIBs that they can quickly jump on to make the short journey. For those of us travelling for a visit, we take the tiny ferry that leaves from Sandefjord and crosses the short expanse. It takes about 20 minutes and is a picturesque trip up the coast. It makes a couple of stops en route and as the island is so small you can get off anywhere and still cover the whole island.

Being an island means that Verierland has an abundance of gorgeous, unspoilt and quiet little beaches and inlets. I think there is one for every person on the island. It only takes a few minutes of walking off the path to find yourself on a beach tyhat you can claim for your own for a few hours. The water is clean and safe to dip in and the shoreline is full of oysters, mussels and shellfish It's a foragers dream.

Although many homes on Veierland are privately owned you can rent one to stay for a few nights (or longer). One of the most adorable is this tiny little cabin in the heart of the island. It might not be very big, but who needs some enormous cabin where you are surrounded by so much natural beauty.

Amazingly Veierland has it's own little post office. You can send and receive letters and also have your newspaper delivered. These are put in blue plastic boxes outside the post office building and you and help yourself. I don't think the post office has been updated very recently and you feel like you're stepping into the 1980s.

Not every house on Veierland is a summer cabin. There are many people who live there all year round and do all the usual stuff that we do at home. One of things seems to be a love of growing produce and along the path you will come upon tables and little stands selling homegrown produce like berries and fruit. It's hard to resist such temptatins.

Although Veierland doesn't have any shops as such it does have a little service shop with all the things you might need in a hurry, like milk, toilet paper or rice. You simply walk in, take what you need and pay by a system called VIPPS, which is a remote paying app rather like Apple Pay. It's all very trusting and gives it a cosy village feel.

My favourite pace to stop in Veierland is this lovely farm stand. The produce is not cheap, but just look at how beautiful it is.

Farm stands are becoming pretty popular in Norway and Veierland has at least one. This is probably the biggest and it so aesthetic you wouldn't be able to resist the urge to go in and have a browse. The produce is all straight from the farm next door.

Veierland is not without some entertainment and the cafe at Villa Veierland offers a range of tasty refreshments and meals when you don't feel like cooking. It's also a super place to sit outside and watch the world pass you by as visitor go by on their bikes, or strolling past. And the garden is pretty too!

Of course, the island also has a chuch. Veierland's parish church is on the pilgrim route to Trondheim. In terms of European churches it is fairly new. It was built in 1905 from wood in a typical Norwegian style and seats 150 people.

It's an important stopping point on the St Olav route to Trondheim. Pilgrims following the route experience beautifyl, historica Vestfold and a lovely stop in Veierland on the long route to Trondheimin the north.

I love the peace of this pretty church. It stands slightly apart from the rest of the buildings around it and on a bit of a hill so you see the church from a distance. It has a serenity and calm about it that invites you in for a few minutes or simply to take a rest in the grassy churchyard.

When you plan your next trip to Norway remember to include this beautiful piece of unspoilt Vestfold in your itinerary. And give yourself a chance to escape civilisation for a few hours.