doobieb

We just completed the 12 days Costal Express on trollfjord.We had an arctic superior room, 150 sq ft. I agree that it was cozy, but we did have enough storage. One side of the bed required you to get in bed facing the wall or you had to back up and try again- no room to turn around! We did book one excursion independent of the ship in Alta. It was a sleigh ride with the small polar horses.I think it was about $150 each, compared to a similar excursion provided by Hurtigruten for closer to $400. It was a highlight of the journey. Pick up and return at the pier. Experiencing polar dark was as much fun as seeing the northern lights for us. We could certainly see well enough for walking around. We found that all the staff were great.They were funny and joked with us, knowledgable when giving briefings, and great whenever we interacted. We were blessed with calm seas and no rain, just the lovely snow almost daily. Good advice about the dry heat- I could not drink enough water the whole journey, but it was made worse by wearing a motion sickness patch. Once I took that off, it was better. 12 days was almost not long enough!

It turns out that we did need a little NOK. Once was at a small Christmas market- a vendor only wanted cash, no credit cards. The other time was in the far north town. We decided to eat lunch in town and after a short power outage, cash registers were down. We negotiated for 3 sandwiches and 3 drinks using all the cash on hand. Certainly did not need cash any other time and could have skipped those two purchases if we only had cards. Glad to not be holding lots of NOK at the end of the trip.

We changed a small amount of US $ so we would have cash for any Christmas markets in small towns. Already had a need to use it.

Thanks @Gretchendz We are on board now and have had very mild seas- some noticeable bumps that don’t seem to last too long. This is my second cruise without seasickness- but I am wearing a medicated patch. It seems to work but causes dehydration. I cannot get enough water to drink.More annoying than anything. I am so sorry to hear about the hurricane force winds you had. We have been spared that. Weather must change rapidly along the coast- we have had sunshine every day thus far. The Christmas tree went up today. The food is unique. I love the plan to source locally. I am eating some things never had before. Many opportunities to try reindeer.🦌 Thanks for sharing your impressions. We were pretty well prepared clothes-wise for the trip. Just had to buy a couple of items (gloves) because we lost them once on the ship. Hurtigruten staff is outstanding. My husband had a minor medical emergency and the nurse on Trollifjord setup a plan for him to taxi to a walk in hospital. It went perfectly and by the end of the day, all was resolved. 👏

@Gretchendz Your trip is complete. What are your thoughts? Seems your trip had some rough waters. How did you handle that? All ok? We boarded Trollfjord yesterday and so far seas are very smooth. Arctic Superior room on Deck 7 is just fine. We had a place for all our stuff.. Upgrades once on board were $5000, so we declined. Our lunch on board was very good and we toasted with sparkling wine. . Today we will try to get our dining time straight so we are with our travel group of 6 for meals.

Thank you @grayjay. After two days in Oslo, we are no longer worried and your reply helps us with that decision. Today we tipped a guide in US$ and he was fine with that. It is so much easier using a card and we won’t go home with many NOK we can’t use.

@Gretchendzquestion for you about cash on this trip: We have been advised that cards are the only currency needed in Norway. Was that the case for you? What about in some of the smaller ports, and local vendors…? Did you need cash at any of the stops, to tip, etc? We board tomorrow Nov 25 and have left that task unresolved. But just in case we can take steps today if needed. Thanks in advance for your feedback! Debbie

Watching Trolifiod on Marine Traffic and noticed “gale force” winds and 5+meter waves ……yikes I had not thought about cancelled ports, but it is understandable. About that baby on board with @Gretchendz, that is certainly impressive customer service. Actually have heard nothing except outstanding customer service on board. But that sounds exceptional. Yesterday was an almost perfect day in Oslo. The hotel staff kept saying, “this weather is a gift. Don’t fail to enjoy it.” And it was. Good luck to those on the ship now. We have fingers crossed that an upgrade to a suite might be a reasonable cost once we board tomorrow. If not, the AS cabin will be just fine. So excited!

We board the Trolifiod on Nov23 and are booked in an Arctic Superior cabin. Yesterday we received an email offer to upgrade. Anywhere from $8,000 down to $5500. What did you end up doing?

@GeezerCouple Now my mouth is watering for a good hot chocolate! It is on my list. We are on the Nov 25 sailing and hoping for calm seas. The Christmas Market in Oslo opened today! 🌲🎄

@Gretchendz I would like to see ice fishing but not actually do it. We are tossing around the possibility of the snowmobile ride to the North Cape. It may depend on if we survive 5e cold on the sleigh ride.❄️❄️❄️❄️

@Gretchendz Thanks for all the info! Good to look at the menus. We are looking forward to the interesting foods. And it is good to know they keep the ship warm. We rarely need heavy winter clothing here, and just recently donated all of our heavy coats, hiking boots, extra warm hats…..Evidently I need to keep things much longer than 10 years without using.😜 But now we are as prepared as possible clothing-wise. We will be in Oslo 2 days before our trip and 2 days in Bergen after. Friends in Bergen said locals enjoy the Christmas markets as much as visitors. Do you plan to do any excursions? We have booked a sleigh ride with a private company while we are in Alta.

No😕! We are on the Nov 23 sailing. Sure hope you can post some comments during your trip. I hope you have a fabulous experience! Let us know if you discover anything we mght appreciate knowing. Do you plan to visit any Christmas markets? What kind of cabin will you have? We are a group of 3 couples who have each been buying gloves, insulated underwear, wool socks, heavy parkas…..😜. Living in the south does not prepare us to have any of the correct clothes.We will be on deck 7 in an Arctic superior cabin. Right now we are just hoping we are ready for the cold outdoors. Can’t wait!

Thank you for this info! We will be on the Trollfjord in November for the Polar Express. Two traveling companions do not eat seafood and are very concerned. I shared your reply and hope they will reach out to the appropriate ship staff to plan other options. I think they are in good hands and feel somewhat relieved.For my DH and myself, bring on the King Crab!