Geiranger Norway Shore Excursions

[sailingfriends]

Has anyone taken a ships (RCCL) shore excursion in Geiranger? We want to know what they thought of the excursion. We are thinking about several of them and need help deciding the one to take.

 

Looking at: Scenic Norway Overland Excursion-Starts in Geiranger and you rejoin the ship in Hellesylt

 

Journey to Briksdalen Glacier-visiting the Briksdalen and Jostedals Glaciers

 

Geiranger Fjord Panorama

 

Geiranger Fjord Panarama & Norwegian Fjord Center

 

Let us know what you think.

 

Thanks for the help!!!

[Judith02]

We took a Crystal cruise to northern Norway and loved every one of the ports. I presume from experience that most of the ships use generally the same tour agents -- the only difference being the "extras" that some cruise lines add to the tours. We did the Scenic Norway Overland Excursion starting in Hellesylt and joining the ship again in Geiranger. Both are lovely scenic towns. It was a very full day and was great. We had a salmon lunch at a lovely restaurant/hotel. On either side of lunch, there were great views of the area. Just after we left Hellesylt, we went to a restaurant for tea and heard a marvelous group of children play their fiddles. We also went to an usually casual art gallery. Two we especially loved near Geiranger were the tour to the Summer Ski area. In June, it was freezing and snowing and people were having a great time skiing. Our group just watched -- the tour did not include skiing. From there we went 5,000 feet up into the mountain and saw the ship in the fjord below. By the way, dress in layers. It goes from mild to freezing on this tour. Since you are sailing into Geiranger first, be outside to see the great waterfalls just before you port -- Seven Sisters, the Wedding Veil, and the Suitor are beautiful.

 

I don't know where else you will have ports, but we also enjoyed Tromso, Trondheim, the North Cape, Flam, and Antwerp, Belgium on our cruise.

[Bruin Steve]

Judith,

Thanks for the advice...

We are visiting this port in July on the Constellation. I assume that all of the cruise lines use the same local vendors for shore excursions, so I expect our tour to be similar to yours...Right now, we are leaning toward the Scenic Norway Overland Excursion as well...

 

The following is excerpted and edited from the Celebrity Shorex site:

 

>>Approximate Duration: 8 Hours 30 Minutes

Adult: 146.00 (USD) | Child: 79.00 (USD)

There is no doubt that Geirangerfjord is considered by many to be the most beautiful in all of Norway with towering, steep mountainsides and numerous waterfalls. Nestled at the tip of the fjord, the village of Geiranger is a small cluster of buildings catering to the tourist industry. From the pier your coach will drive through the small village of Geiranger, passing several hotels, chalets, and a tiny, octagonal, wooden church. A short photo stop will be made at the Flydal Gorge where you will have a fantastic view of the fjord and ship below. Turning off the main road you will take a toll road further up the snow-covered mountainside to the top of Mount Dalsnibba at 4,500 feet. Weather permitting; you will stop at the top of Mount Dalsnibba to enjoy an excellent view of the valley, fjord, and village of Geiranger. Following the old Stryn Mountain Road through the pass, you will see Djupvatn Lake, which is normally covered with ice and snow until the end of June. A brief photo stop will be made at the Tystigen Summer Ski Center to watch skiers make their way down the mountainside. The roads' 19 hairpin turns will take you past the beautiful turquoise waters of Stryn Lake and onto Stryn. Following the shores of the Nordfjord, a stop will be made for a typical Norwegian lunch in one of the local hotels. After lunch, you will journey through wood-clad hills down to Hornindal Lake. At more than 1,500 feet deep, it is the deepest freshwater lake in Europe. Later in the afternoon, you will stop for a coffee break before beginning the last leg of your journey through the fjords of Norway to the Village of Hellesylt, situated at the head of the Synnulvsfjord. Note: Guests must be able to walk approximately 0.5 mile over even and gravel surfaces with approximately 15 steps. The ship will anchor in Geiranger and use launches to transport guests ashore. Tour participants will rejoin the vessel in Hellesylt on the same day.<<

 

Our itinerary sounds like it varies quite a bit from yours...We don't visit Tromso, Trondheim, the North Cape, Flam or Antwerp...Our other stops in Norway are at Olden and Bergen...and then we visit Copenhagen (with an overnight) on our way back to Dover...Before we visit Norway, we're in Le Havre, Cork, Dublin, Belfast and Glasgow...

[Judith02]

There is no doubt that Geirangerfjord is considered by many to be the most beautiful in all of Norway with towering, steep mountainsides and numerous waterfalls. (Yes, it is gorgeous)

 

A short photo stop will be made at the Flydal Gorge where you will have a fantastic view of the fjord and ship below. (It is just a small spot with a fantastic view of the fjord below).

 

Turning off the main road you will take a toll road further up the snow-covered mountainside to the top of Mount Dalsnibba at 4,500 feet. Weather permitting; you will stop at the top of Mount Dalsnibba to enjoy an excellent view of the valley, fjord, and village of Geiranger. (IT was snowing and a fierce wind was blowing. The view was spectacular.)

 

A brief photo stop will be made at the Tystigen Summer Ski Center to watch skiers make their way down the mountainside. (It was so snowy that the ski area closed down shortly after we got there.)

 

The roads' 19 hairpin turns will take you past the beautiful turquoise waters of Stryn Lake and onto Stryn. (I was actually terrified. No sides to the road. All you see is straight down.)

 

Following the shores of the Nordfjord, a stop will be made for a typical Norwegian lunch in one of the local hotels. (Excellent lunch.)

 

After lunch, you will journey through wood-clad hills down to Hornindal Lake. At more than 1,500 feet deep, it is the deepest freshwater lake in Europe. (A lovely view.)

 

We started in Dover and disembarked in Copenhagen.

[sailingfriends]

We are sailing our of Harwich England, and return to Harwich. We stop in Flam and Geiranger. The Overland tour is picked up in Hellesylt, the ship leave Geiranger and stop for only an hour to pick the tours.

 

We really like the looks of the one excursion that goes to the glacier, but it says you have to be able to walk up hill for 2 miles, which means you got to come back down 2 miles too. Not sure that will work with my husbands feet and our friends too. It is also only 1 hours more, so where will they cut the time from. It appears to be the exact tour as the Overland tour, but something has to give.

 

I am really not a fan of salmon, hope there was something else to eat, if not I guess I best have some fruit in the back pack.

 

Thanks again.

 

Gerry

[Judith02]

It has been our experience that when lunch is included in a tour (unless it is a buffet), an early request to the shore excursion person about a change in a menu can be handled by a restaurant. At the Gyser Center in Iceland, one woman at our table was given a separate lunch from our salmon because she had requested it a couple of days in advance from shore excursions and they had notified the restaurant.

 

The glacier hike on our Norwegian tour was very popular. Dress warm and take proper footwear and a hat.

 

When we went to the North Cape, we made a very short stop at a Sami camp. They are no longer called Laplanders. They had a gift shop, tents, reindeer, etc. When it is clear at the North Cape, the view is marvelous. That night at midnight (with the sun still shining) we cruised beneath the cape and could see their large globe at the top of the cliff. We had a glogg sailaway party when we left the city.

[sailingfriends]

Thanks for the lunch tip, I will try to see what I can do.

 

Gerry

[seayacruisin]

Thanks to all of you who have shared your fjord experience with us. We are booked on Costa's Europa on 6/5/05 and haven't found others that are on that sailing. We are particularly interested in doing some of the shore excursions on our own without going through the cruise line. Our itinerary is as follows: In and out of Amsterdam (we have been to Amsterdam) to Norway ports; Olden, Trondeim, Honningsvag, Tromso, Hellesylt, Geiranger, Bergen. Any information would really be helpful.

 

Jean ;) :) and Don:o :confused:

[Judith02]

We went on a shore excursion in Trondheim to the Classical Music Museum there. We also had a city tour. At the museum, a student took us on a guided tour and actually played some of the instruments from the 19th century. Then there was a small reception and two of the students entertained (a singer and a pianist).

 

Honningsvag is just a stopping area to go to the North Cape. We stopped also at a Sami Village. There is a visitors center there where you can look out at the end of Europe and theree have a post office and various museums. We were there on the longest day of the year and at midnight, the ship sailed back under the Cape.

 

Tromso is a very lovely town. You can do this one on your own. We went to a museum to see Northern Lights, VIking, and Sami exhibits and to a marine museum. Love those seals. There is also the Arctic Church there with a beautiful stained glass window.

 

We were dropped off in Hellesylt and did a day long ship's tour to Geiranger. It was a highlight of the trip. Fjords, waterfall, etc.

[seayacruisin]

Judith 02

 

Thanks for the info. I couldnot find where I posted this question. Finally, I found it. The info is appreciated.

 

Jean;)

[babylene]

We are trying to decide whether to take the short or long tour in Geiranger. The short one goes to the Flydal Gorge Mt. Dalsnibba and Lake Djupvaln. If we do that we can walk around Geiranger in the afternoon and sail to Hellesyit.

 

The long one adds: the Tystian Summer Camp, Stryn Lake, Nordfjord (lunch...anyone know what they serve?) and Hornindal Lake.

 

Question...anyone who has done this tour...was the second half fabulous?

 

Another question...we will be there in the middle of July. Did anyone experience cold weather at that time? Do I need a winter jacket?

 

Thanks

[usavvy2]

In Geiranger, we tendered ashore for our excursion to Mt. Dalsnibba, which looms a mile above sea level. It was a short excursion via bus up the mountain to see the view. The ride was quite a climb and could be a little “exciting” for those with a fear of heights. On the climb we saw a glacier up close. Arriving at the top there was time to stretch our legs for a few photos. (Unfortunately it started to rain almost immediately upon disembarking the bus as the weather closed in on the mountaintop. Still in all, it was quite a panoramic photo opp.) On the return we stopped at a charming little place that served tea and cookies. (The obligatory gift shop was attached to the teahouse.) Once back in the town of Geiranger, we walked around. This town is extremely small and quite a tourist resort. I think there may have been 15 shops in all that’s how small it is. All of Norway is slightly larger than New Mexico (125K+ square miles) and has a population of ~4.5m people.

 

7/28 weather - Honningsvaag

This area gets about 200 days of snow and frost so the tourism season is short, short, short! We were blessed with clear and WARM weather for our excursion. (If you go, you should hope for the best but expect fog and rain.)

 

8/1 weather - Bergen

It rained this day. (We seriously considered taking the Bergen funicular to the top of Mt. Floyen but the weather wasn’t cooperative so we decided not to take that option.) From center city, we used our umbrellas (for the first time on the trip) and walked about a block to the local fish market.

 

also check out my post on the thread Norwegian Fjords weather in July