Need help planning a trip to Norway

[packercruising]

Thanks, I will spend a lot of time on that thread! :)

[packercruising]

For anyone that might be interested in our Australia/NZ photos, including The Sounds, They are posted here;

 

http://cruisingmemories.shutterfly.com/autralianz-ship

[Gig Harbor Gal]

Great thread! I too am planning our shore excursions for our Norway cruise this June and can't decide between two ship's excursions. One is a 6 hour Flam Railway and Voss excursion that stops at the Stalheim Hotel and Tvinde Waterfall and then lunch in Voss. We then take a train from Voss to Myrdal before boarding the Flam Railway. I should mention that we have done the Flam Railway on a previous trip to Norway, but everything else on this excursion would be new. The other excursion is the Aurland Valley and Aurlandsfjord scenic drive which is a 3 hour drive along the Aurlandsfjord to Aurland and back. From what I've read, the scenery on this second option should be spectacular. Any suggestions?

[packercruising]

Ours is June 8 on Vision Of The Seas. When is yours? Check out TLCOhio's link. It looks like it will be a big help. :)

[TLCOhio]

For anyone that might be interested in our Australia/NZ photos, including The Sounds, They are posted here;

http://cruisingmemories.shutterfly.com/autralianz-ship

 

Appreciate the link. YES, checked out lots and lots of pictures. It helps get some ideas for what we will see down-under. Lots of options to consider there in New Zealand and Australia.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 118,400 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[emckeeve]

Gig Harbor Gal - We're doing the Voss trip in order to see some of the interior towns. We had originally planned a land trip, so we didn't want to miss some of those places. I figure we'll see many other fjords from the ship.

[prudence passenger]

been remiss in not thanking Terry from Ohio for all the wonderful info and pix on the Norway cruise,

we are sailing 25 June on X Connie,

so, thank you Terry for such fabulous info and pix

judi

[Sunnytrip]

I have been reading this thread with interest and wondered if anyone can help me. We are going on a trip on Discovery(fairly small ship) mid March to Norway to hopefully see the Northern lights. We stop off at a number of interesting places and I am trying to sort out which trips to do

 

It is difficult to find information on independent port activities, especially in the Northern ports we visit. Tromso, Alta and Narvik.

 

On other cruises we've done we could jump in a taxi or get a bus quite easily. I want to book some trips and am looking at snowmobiling in Alta (very very expensive if done with cruiseline trip). I don't want to end up missing out as these trips fill up fast but on the other hand if there are alternatives I would like to find out about them.

 

Further South we visit Stavanger, and Bergen (which look doable independently), Andalsnes and Aalesund which looks really nice.

The cruise itself doesn't go into the Geiraingerfjord but there is an all day trip from Aalesund which consists of a 3 hour cruise on another boat through the Storfjord to Geiranger, followed by a drive on the Eagle's road to Eidsdal and a ferry to Linge then a drive back to the port.

As this takes all day we won't have time to look round Aalesund.

I wonder if anyone has any advice as to whether to do the trip (which is expensive) or spend the day in the port looking around on our own. And also any advice on any of the other ports.

[TLCOhio]

been remiss in not thanking Terry from Ohio for all the wonderful info and pix on the Norway cruise, we are sailing 25 June on X Connie, so, thank you Terry for such fabulous info and pix. judi

 

Appreciate so much the kind comments from Judi. Glad to know you're a person of such high class, great taste and wonderful judgment to make these generous comments.

 

Enjoy your upcoming June 25 cruise on the Celebrity Connie. Have heard great things on that ship, especially for sailing in these areas. You will love Amsterdam. Friends were just there last month as a stop over point going down to Kenya and coming back. They really liked the charm and character for that historic city with canals, great art. With your stops in Bergen, Olden, Molde, Geiranger, Alesund, Skjolden, Flam and Oslo. We have been in five of those ports.

 

Below are a few more visual previous on Oslo that I have not previously posted on this thread. Hope this helps get you excited about your upcoming "adventure". Good luck!!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 96,393 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

Norway’s Royal Palace and a main Oslo shopping area:

 

 

 

This is the museum for the Nobel Peace Prize that is located on the harbor near City Hall:

 

 

 

At the separate Munch Museum, just a little distance away from central Oslo, here is the other Scream painting in Oslo in a closer view. There are many others paitings at this museum by the famed artist as shown below in the second picture as our guide explains background for this artist and his works.:

 

 

 

 

 

Nice Oslo park, water feature in the heart of the shopping area you will see when walking to the National Gallery.:

 

 

 

Sailing out from Oslo with the red brick City Hall in the background and the surrounding areas and “hills” showing around this so-called “fjord”.:

 

[packercruising]

Terry, thanks for those pics! We don't get to stop at Oslo.

 

Alesund

Honningsvag

Tromso

Geiranger

Bergen

Kristiansand

[TLCOhio]

Terry, thanks for those pics! We don't get to stop at Oslo.

Alesund

Honningsvag

Tromso

Geiranger

Bergen

Kristiansand

 

Appreciate the nice comments from our Packer/Wisconsin friend. Most Norway coast cruises do not include Oslo stops. Fortunately for you, your trip will take you farther up to Tromso, North Cape, etc.

 

Below is a little "eye candy" for Bergen that I have not previously posted on this thread. Hope these pictures are building more excitement about your upcoming visits to this wonderful city with so much character and charm. Lots of great options in Bergen. Hopefully your weather there is sunny and super nice as we enjoyed there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 96,393 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

Here is a little different view of the “action” in Fish Market that is right next to Bergen’s main harbor.:

 

 

 

Bergenhus Festning Castle is located in the entrance to Bergen’s harbor and is one of the oldest, best-preserved castles in Norway. Shown is Rosenkrantz Tower, built in the mid 1500’s with dungeons on the ground floor, cannons on the top floor, etc. :

 

 

 

From the Bergen harbor, this is the view of the station, dining place, etc., for the Floibanen funicular railway at the top of its 1050-foot high peak.:

 

 

 

From the higher hill areas of Bergen, here is the view of the rooftops and other harbor area places.:

 

 

 

This closer angle of the Hanseatic merchant warehouses show more building and architecture details on these historic wooden structures used to store dried fish before export.:

 

 

 

This view shows an important central Bergen lake and park at Little Lungegårdsvann and Festplassen. At the park is its music pavilion dating from 1889. It is the site of many local festivals and activities. Several museums are nearby and you can see the fan-shaped, concrete roof of the Grieghallen cultural complex with its 1500-seat theater.:

 

[packercruising]

Cool! Looks like they enjoy eating. :) I am going to share this thread with the roll call, so they can view these, and ask questions, if they want.

[travelite]

I have done the Hurtigruten trip three times (the fourth one is booked for next February), and as I was reading the beginning of your message I was thinking that it could be a great option for you. Compared to "standard" cruises in Norway, Hurtigruten ships are near the coast at all times and thus you can enjoy breathtaking landscapes almost 24/7. For avid photographers interested in natural beauty (which is my case as well, on both counts), it is a winner trip.

You can see my most recent trip report and pictures on my blog starting here (with a Oslo-Bergen train trip), and the previous trip starting here (although for this one the text is in French only, but the pictures hopefully should appeal to you). Both were winter trips.

 

The ships are indeed in port for a limited period of time. However, in the main cities (Alesund, Trondheim, Tromso...) the stops are longer (no more than 4 hours though) which give you some time to visit the cities and/or do a quick excursion. The ship also offers excursions, that sometimes start in one port of call and end in a later one. This being said, the short stops were a bit of a frustration sometimes, and for two of our trips we decided to stop in the Lofoten Islands for a couple of days on the way back, and we took the next Hurtigruten southbound ship after that to continue our journey. Since Hurtigruten ships operate every day of the year, this is an option you can take : exit the ship at some point, stay there a few days, and resume the cruise afterwards. If you do this once during the trip, the hassle of packing/unpacking suitcases is bearable, I think. I highly recommend the Lofoten islands for nature lovers and photographers. It's absolutely breathtaking and my favorite place in Norway.

 

Concerning the noise, as mentioned Hurtigruten ships are dual-purpose ships, passengers and cargo, and there are ports of call day and night. There is no horn blasting at night (it is forbidden after 10 pm, and there are talks of banning them altogether, since some people on shore are complaining about the noise...), and I'm not sure about announcements at night, but if there are, they cannot be heard in the cabins. The thrusters noise can be an issue. For my 2010 trips, we were onboard the MS Polarlys (one of the 1990 generation ship), in deck 3 near the front of the ship, and we could hear the thrusters at night. I talked with passengers from deck 5 and above, who told me they couldn't hear them, so an option could be to get a cabin on a higher deck.

Both of my other trips were on the MS Lofoten (and the upcoming one as well), now the oldest ship of the fleet, which has no thruster so no noise problem! ;) Although you can hear the engine if you have a cabin number 2XX near the back. Again, opt for a cabin on a higher deck. On our first trip, our cabin was a 4xx and was completely silent. This ship has a lot of soul and character, but is more susceptible to the state of the sea (no stabilizers) and has less amenities than newer ships.

 

I hope this helps and I'll be happy to share more of my experience if you have other questions.

 

Do you have suggestions for a day in the following ports: Stavanger; Geiranger; Olden? Any info. for DIY touring/sightseeing would be appreciated.

[diane.in.ny]

See below for the my full live/blog with lots of pictures.

 

Hi Terry

 

I've just started research on a North Cape cruise and came across this thread. You mention your blog but I don't see a link to it. Would love to read it. Can you include the link here please?

 

Thanks!

Diane

[TLCOhio]

I've just started research on a North Cape cruise and came across this thread. You mention your blog but I don't see a link to it. Would love to read it. Can you include the link here please? Thanks! Diane

 

Appreciate, Diane, your follow-up and interest for visiting these great areas in the future. Here's that link below. Let me know any added or follow-up questions. Just post on the live/blog. I'm more like to catch it there and am happy to respond from there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 119,580 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[diane.in.ny]

Appreciate, Diane, your follow-up and interest for visiting these great areas in the future. Here's that link below. Let me know any added or follow-up questions. Just post on the live/blog. I'm more like to catch it there and am happy to respond from there.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 119,580 views.

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Terry, as you can see from the above, the only link is to another forum thread. What am I missing?

 

Diane

[TLCOhio]

Terry, as you can see from the above, the only link is to another forum thread. What am I missing? Diane

 

That link does go to another Cruise Critic forum thread, but on it is the live/blog that goes through all of the different stops on this cruise up to the North Cape and back, various stops, lots of photos, backgrounds on many ports, etc. Not sure exactly what you were expecting and/or needing. What info are you seeking? What ports are you planning to visit, most in need of, etc.? Others have made comments, asked questions, etc. Just skim ahead to what if of value or interest to you.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 119,580 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[diane.in.ny]

That link does go to another Cruise Critic forum thread, but on it is the live/blog that goes through all of the different stops on this cruise up to the North Cape and back, various stops, lots of photos, backgrounds on many ports, etc.

 

LOL I guess I was expecting a link to an outside blog, like the one I have in my signature. I will head over to the thread and work my way through it.

 

Thanks again

 

Diane

[TLCOhio]

LOL I guess I was expecting a link to an outside blog, like the one I have in my signature. I will head over to the thread and work my way through it. Thanks again. Diane

 

Yes, Diane, there are "trade-offs" and pro/con factors in doing an independent blog versus one on an active web locations such as here with Cruise Critic. Yours has worked well and looks good. The Norway one is near 120,000 views, while the visual report in 2011 for the Med is approaching 144,000 views. On both, got lots of nice comments, good questions, wonderful sharing, etc. Getting ready in 100+ days to doing a Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Celebrity Solstice, Australia-New Zealand cruise and other land ventures there and in Hawaii. Should get some decent interest on that live/blog.

 

Let me know any follow-up questions for along that great Norway coast.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 143,592 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[diane.in.ny]

Yours has worked well and looks good.

 

Thanks

 

The Norway one is near 120,000 views, while the visual report in 2011 for the Med is approaching 144,000 views. On both, got lots of nice comments, good questions, wonderful sharing, etc.

 

Your posts are definitely interesting and helpful

 

Getting ready in 100+ days to doing a Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Celebrity Solstice, Australia-New Zealand cruise and other land ventures there and in Hawaii. Should get some decent interest on that live/blog.

 

We did that a bunch of years ago, with 12 days spent first doing a self drive in New Zealand. It was before I did my online blog. If interested, happy to share some of what were highlights for me.

 

 

Be happy to try and find my Australia/New Zealand trip report if you are interested. It might be buried somewhere on my computer :)

[TLCOhio]

Be happy to try and find my Australia/New Zealand trip report if you are interested. It might be buried somewhere on my computer :)

 

YES!! Would love to get any of your insights, tips, etc., from your Aussie-NZ travels. No rush. Realize that it's not immediately handy. Whatever works on your schedule to share. Appreciate your insights!!

 

We are doing some pre-cruise options for Cairns/Port Douglas, the Rainforest and Great Barrier Reef, then Kangaroo Island near Adelaide before departing from Sidney’s scenic harbor for our 14-day Solstice cruise. And, doing the mid-cruise ship over-night trip to and in Queenstown, a couple days in Auckland and then stopping in Hawaii on the way home to break up that long, long flight back. Our cruise will stop in Hobart, Tasmania, then going up the NZ coast with day-long stops at Dunedin, Christchurch/Akaroa area, Wellington, Napier/ Hawke’s Bay, Tauranga and Bay of Islands.

 

Don't be shy. Let me know any Norway questions.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 119,812 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[diane.in.ny]

We are doing some pre-cruise options for Cairns/Port Douglas, the Rainforest and Great Barrier Reef, then Kangaroo Island near Adelaide before departing from Sidney’s scenic harbor for our 14-day Solstice cruise. And, doing the mid-cruise ship over-night trip to and in Queenstown, a couple days in Auckland and then stopping in Hawaii on the way home to break up that long, long flight back. Our cruise will stop in Hobart, Tasmania, then going up the NZ coast with day-long stops at Dunedin, Christchurch/Akaroa area, Wellington, Napier/ Hawke’s Bay, Tauranga and Bay of Islands.

 

 

Your trip is very different from ours. As part of your cruise, do you sail Milford Sound? If not, it is worth doing out of Queenstown. We loved Tasmania and also did the Hobart stop. Wish we had more time in Tasmania.

 

At Dunedin, see if you can rent a car and drive out to the end of the penninsula. Well worth it for visit to albatross center and penguin site if you are interested in that sort of thing.

 

http://www.albatross.org.nz/

http://www.penguinplace.co.nz/

 

Or if you are into train rides, we also enjoyed the Taieri Gorge Railway trip

 

http://www.taieri.co.nz/

 

The Te Papa museum in Wellington is worth the visit. Welllington is a very walkable city and can easily be done on your own. We took the cable car up and walked down

 

http://www.wellingtonnz.com/sights-activities/wellington-cable-car

 

In Auckland, you might want to visit a museum or two. Auckland is also a very walkable city. However, if you have a few days, I would suggest renting a car and driving around the north island. A visit to Rotorua is well worth it. We found the volcanic activity fascinating.

 

That's about all I have on New Zealand that coincides with your itinerary.

 

As for Norway, I've reviewed your ports of call with ours and made some notes. Thanks!

[angeleyes27]

We were in Australia and New Zealand in 2011, although we did it only on land. We first flew out and spent 3 nights in French Polynesia (Moorea & Tahiti). Very beautiful and a relaxing way to unwind before our adventure. We went on the beach, took a circle island tour, and went for a picnic where we swam with stingrays.

Then we flew to New Zealand where we spent 2 nights in the Roturua and Auckland area, seeing the geothermal areas and Maori culture. We went in thermal pools and went to a hangii, very interesting. They use the sulfur springs to cook. Then we spent 5 nights on the South Island. We drove to Mt. Cook as soon as we got there. The drive was beautiful and we saw the whole mountain out our hotel window. We drove from there to Dunedin where we stayed in Larnasch castle, had a castle banquet. We went to the albatross colony and the penguin colony as well as took a wildlife cruise. It is the largest albatross colony & you see the penguins very close up. From there we drove to Queenstown. We took a steamship across the lake to a sheep farm and took the gondola up the mountain. The next day we took an all day trip to Fiordland and saw the fjords from a boat. Very cool! We were there in September which is similar to our March so it was about 20 degrees when we went.

From there we flew to Melbourne, Australia for 2 nights where we drove the Great Ocean Road. That was my favorite part of Australia, Beautiful scenery and kangaroos and koalas in the wild, reasonable prices. Then we went to Sydney which is a nice city, where we toured the opera house, the harbor front & Sydney tower. From there we went to Cairns & the Great Barrier Reef. The first day, we took the skyride up to the top of the rainforest which was cool and then had dinner in Cairns. The next day we did a reef trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. The following day we went to Cape Jubilation on a rainforest tour and we had breakfast with the birds in Port Douglas before flying to Hawaii, where we rested for 3 nights before heading home. Any questions, feel free to ask. I couldn't figure out how to put the pictures on here.

[angeleyes27]

The last picture was Milford Sound, Fiordland in New Zealand. This is me on the Great Ocean Road west of Melbourne

[angeleyes27]