hallasm

… and one can argue that July 27 is a bit late - No snow in the mountains and much les ps water in rivers.

Clouds cannot be predicted, but it may be a good idea to check the moon phase

Anthem of the seas is my favorite ship. Cruise in June which is a good month. One deep fjord into Flåm - excellent port of call Stavanger with nice excursions opportunity to Lysefjord and Pulpit Rock Haugesund and Molde not that interesting. HAL is a bit early Deep fjord cruising into Eidfjord and Geiranger - Geiranger is my favorite with nice viewpoints - some might be closed due to snow Ålesund and in particular Bergen are very nice coastal cities. Option 2 is the best itinerary but a bit early. If I should choose between the two I’ll probably chose option 1 due to ship, time and still Flåm and Stavanger are two Nice ports. Enjoy Norway.

March is generally a good month for Northern Lights. With an overnight stay in Honningsvåg, Alta, and Tromsø, and with possible excursions to areas with fewer clouds there should be a very good opportunity. The best northern lights I have seen from ships in this area.

Thank you for the update. When is your voyage and is it one way or return?

On Hurtigruten sailings I have not been on many excursions - mainly wandering around the bows at the longer stops - it is my impression that the offer of local excursions that fit with Hurtigruten's relatively short stay is limited and that Hurtigruten seizes many local resources for their excursions. The same applies to Havila - I suspect they use the same resources as Hurtigruten. In the second context, I have used the tour operators below. The price level in Norway is quite high, so the local excursions are not cheap either. Barents Safari in Kirkenes Blue Puffin in Honningsvåg A bigger operator is 50 Degrees North

Decent itinerary - Bergen is the most interesting coastal city in Norway - with lots of sights. Olden and Geiranger are fine deep fjord ports of call with excellent opportunities for excursions on your own to viewpoints. Haugesund is less interesting. May might be a bit early - som viewpoints in Geiranger might be closed due to snow.

Mange tak for the clarification.

Absolutely not. This is a frenzy against the cruise ships because it is assumed that they pollute - "in an attempt to raise awareness of the environmental and social damage it claims is caused by the cruise industry." You cannot compare Havila and Hurtigruten with cruise ships or cruise industry. Their ships are all small and are part of Norway's infrastructure/public traffic. In addition, they are powered by electricity when sailing in the deep fjords.

?? Yes - much more Norway and deep fjords in itineary 2. Personally I prefer beginning of June - snow in the mountains and water in rivers/waterfalls. Will be warmer in July/August - and less water in rivers. Summer holiday primarily in July - but not necessarily more crowded. Maybe in bigger cities. Ask your Norwegian fjord questions in this topic - you might want to create specific topics for other ports - or search for more relevant topics for ‘non fjords’ related ports.

Since you have posted in the Norwegian Fjords topic, I assume that you would like an assessment in relation to the deep Norwegian fjords Both itineraries include Skolden and Olden - but itinerary 2 has many more Norwegian ports of call. Itinerary 1 also only has Haugesund, which is less interesting Itinerary 2 has also more interesting deep fjords: Flåm, HellesyltGeiranger and Skjolden. Also included are interesting coastal towns such as Ålesund, Bergen and Stavanger.

it's about 50 km (32 miles) from Reykjavik to the Blue Lagoon - not walking distance. There are buses or shuttles from the Cruise terminals to the Blue Lagoon - they can be ordered on their website together with entrance fee.

Correct. Many hotels in Copenhagen has two separate beds in double rooms - and some three.

Depending on where you are flying to and which airline, you should expect to be at the airport between 9 and 10. It takes 30 to 45 minutes by taxi from Oceankaj terminal to the airport depending on week day. Just note it will take some time to get the ship cleared. If you can disembark at 8 a.m., you will have plenty of time.

Typically taxis waiting at the port. Expect more traffic on your way to the airport Monday mornings.

Oceankaj terminal 1 (quay 301)

I think it is quite an acceptable route. Stay few nights in Bergen - one option is the train from Bergen to Oslo with a detour from Myrdal to Flåm - one or two nights in Flåm. Instead of continuing from Flåm to Oslo, it is of course also back to Bergen

With 34 port stops in 5 days most stops are 15 minutes - but they have at least one longer stop each day. Most excursions are in ports with long stops but as WisRiver is saying- some starts in one port and ends at a later port. In ports with longer stops you can arrange your own tour other just walk around the city. All stops are close to the center. An example if a short stop - part of entertainment on board - at 10:30 pm

Latest information regarding delay of Havila Polaris and Havila Pollux Havila Kystruten has not yet received a response to its application for a license to the Irish central bank, the company has decided to postpone Havila Polaris' start-up on the route until 7 April The Tersan yard announced delayed delivery of Havila Pollux due to force majeure following the earthquake disaster in Turkey. Havila Kystruten is now planning the first round trip on route for Havila Pollux on 27 May 2023.

Yes, Havila has had major problems with delivery of the ships due to Corona and financing because the ships were originally leased by a Russian-owned company subject to sanctions due to the war in Ukraine. But there is no need to worry if you buy the voyage directly from Havila. You will be fully compensated in the event of bankruptcy. As a holidaymaker booking a package holiday and/or associated travel arrangements, you benefit from a high level of consumer protection under EU rules. “Havila Kystruten has provided a statutory guarantee to the Norwegian travel guarantee fund to protect you, the passenger. For more information see: https://reisegarantifondet.no” link in Norwegian Language- you can use Google translate for translation. More information in terms and conditions. Also read their cancellation policy and make sure you have an appropriate Travel insurance.

Hurtigruten and Havila sail exactly the same route - the same ports and the same timetable. Food and excursions a comparable. Norwegian west coast is sea food - but don’t panic - you’ll not get sea food all 11 nights. Havila are new ships with larger cabins. North bound is 6 nights - south bound is 5 nights - total of 11 nights for round trip. The crews on the four Havila ships come from Hurtigruten. Passengers sailing from port to port often eat in the café. You can safely choose Havila - and fine if their price is lower. You can consider to to do only north bound and then extend your stay in Bergen and Kirkenes - many good winter excursions and more northern lights. The Railway from Oslo to Bergen is a great option - with one or two nights in the Flåm area. During winter Hurtigruten (or Havila) will not sail the deep fjords. Personally I do find the 11 night round trip ‘too much of the same’. However, some would disagree with me on that assessment.

I have no immediate knowledge of hotels with three bed rooms. One option is to search on hotels.com or booking.com. Best Western Hebron is close to restaurants, but on the edge of the 'Red Light District' - however the area is safe to walk in. NH Collection is a bit secluded by the harbor - a bit far from the center and restaurants.

I think it will be at Oceankaj and not Nordre Tolbod - without knowing the date I cannot be sure. It takes between 30 and 45 minutes to the airport from Oceankaj by taxi - depending on the day of the week - expect longer on Monday morning. It should be possible to be at the airport before 08:30. Even with a later arrival at airport it is possible to catch a flight to WAW.

Every year on June 23, we celebrate Sankthans with a bonfire, sing midsummer carols, bonfire speeches and send the witch to Bloksbjerg (Mountain in Germany - Brocken) Sankthans is an old remnant of pagan customs, where the longest day of the year, the summer solstice, was celebrated. There are many private and public Saint Hans events with bonfires - including at Bryggen, Refshaleøen, Ofelia Plads, Nyhavn and Frederiksberg Have. I would suggest that you return at the beginning of June - then I can make a current list of events. Also post your hotel. Examples of public events in Copenhagen 2022

I have no knowledge of legislation or problems with biofouling in Norwegian waters. However, as stated, the Norwegian Parliament has adopted a resolution to stop emissions from cruise ships and ferries in the Norwegian World Heritage fjords as soon as technically possible and by 2026 at the latest. However, there is a proposal to allow the use of biogas under certain circumstances for a transitional period of 5 years, so that new cruise ships powered by biogas can still sail the fjords until 2030. The Norwegian Maritime Authority (NMA) has submitted a proposal for a regulation on vessel emissions in World Heritage fjords by 1 January 2026 – and ships of 10,000 GT and upwards will be permitted to use biogas for a five-year period as part of a transitional arrangement.