Iceland/Northern Norway excursions

[galeforce9]

We’re booked on an aurora cruise next July/August and I’m trying to get an idea of likely excursions and costs through P&O.  I know they won’t be released until 12 weeks before but has anyone been to these ports this year who could help?

 

The locations are

Grundarfjordur

isafjordur

Reykjavik

Akureyri

Alta (summer)

lofoten islands

Honningsvag

tromso 

 

thanks

 

[happy v]

Have you looked on the web site?

If you look up your cruise and view the itinerary it shows a small section of excursions in each port.

 

We went to Isafjordur, Reykjavik, and Akureyri last year I'll look tomorrow to see if I still have the details.

[galeforce9]

28 minutes ago, happy v said:

Have you looked on the web site?

If you look up your cruise and view the itinerary it shows a small section of excursions in each port.

 

We went to Isafjordur, Reykjavik, and Akureyri last year I'll look tomorrow to see if I still have the details.

Thank you.  Haven’t checked yet.  Just assumed they wouldn’t be there 

[brian1]

Hi,we are going to Iceland in Sept with Marella.The local tour companies are quite expensive,only about 30 quid difference,but the ships tours included lunch,so we opted for them.With the weak GBP the ships tours might work out cheaper in most locations.

[kruzseeka]

14 hours ago, galeforce9 said:

We’re booked on an aurora cruise next July/August and I’m trying to get an idea of likely excursions and costs through P&O.  I know they won’t be released until 12 weeks before but has anyone been to these ports this year who could help?

 

The locations are

Grundarfjordur

isafjordur

Reykjavik

Akureyri

Alta (summer)

lofoten islands

Honningsvag

tromso 

 

thanks

 

 

If you are happy to do DIY, one or two of these ports are suitable for independent exploration.

 

Tromso: take the shuttle bus to town, catch a local bus to the cable car then go up yourself - spending as much time as you want to on the top - fab views!  There is a cafe there too.  Come down then walk to the Ice Cathedral - not far - charge to go in.  Then catch the bus back or if you don't mind the walk, go over the bridge back to the centre.   You get your bus ticket from a machine using your card on the way out - paying the bus driver is more expensive but we had to do that when we returned as there was no machine at the bus stop by the Cathedral.  The first time we did Tromso in the summer, I'd read about the University Botanical Alpine Gardens which are across the road from the port (we crossed via a underpass).  It was free to get in and was beautiful.  Apparently it figures in Monty Don's book of the 80 best gardens in the world.  I was amazed by the riot of colour!  We spent a couple of hours there before it was time to get back to the ship (after doing the cable car and Cathedral earlier).  Might be worth checking out on line to see if it's still open to the public. So plenty to do here if it's of interest to you.

 

Alta:  We went to the Rock Museum which is just out of town.  IIirc we got the ship shuttle into town then caught a local bus to the Museum.  It was lovely and very interesting.  The bus stops outside the entrance.  Again easy to DiY and no doubt much cheaper then an organised excursion.  I checked out bus times, entrance fees etc before we went. 

 

Isafjordur: we found small but quite charming.  There is an interesting folk museum very close to the tender point.  You can pay to go in independently - much cheaper then the ship's excursion and really no distance to walk to get there.  We just ambled round the town, found a nice cafe for coffee then wandered up to the Church.  That's worth a visit.  There are a flock of birds on the wall above the altar.  Apparently a sculptor did some but villagers were involved in making many of them.  It's a 3-D display and quite impressive.  The 'botanical' garden on the town map (go through a whale wish bone to enter!) wasn't anything at all and a complete misnomer.  However our friend did a ship's excursion to a botanical garden which clearly wasn't the one in Isafjordur itself and she enjoyed it.  We were glad of a lazy day just walking along the water punctuated by the activities above as we did the two 'big' full day trips from Reykjavik and Akureyri  so were glad of a more relaxed day.  There is a museum about everyday life in a building set back from a green with a fishermen's statue which we didn't go in but I have read reviews which say it's interesting.  

 

Reykjavik and Akureyri as I said, we did the Golden Circle and Jewels of the North.  Expensive but as brian1 has said, it includes lunch.  If you haven't been to Iceland before well worth doing as you get to see some spectacular waterfalls, geysers, mud springs etc, and Thingvellir National Park is fascinating.  You can stand astride the tectonic plates there.  The geology is amazing.  Excursions are expensive in Norway and Iceland - unavoidable but if you want to see the main sites I think it's the only way to go in Iceland.  Perhaps private tours may be a little cheaper but it's worth thinking about the lunch included aspect - food and drink tend to be very expensive in these countries.  The cost for the equivalent Golden Circle on Marella is £110 p.p. and Jewels of the North £100 - I would expect them to be very similar on P&O.  Unfortunately I haven't got a record of what we paid on P&O but I have an impression that it was £90+ for that type of trip but it's a few years ago now. 

 

We went to the Lofoten Islands last year and did a trip which included Nusfjord.  Really recommended.  

 

It's a really interesting itinerary.  Enjoy!

[Danamis]

We recently returned from a Norway/Iceland tour on Arcadia. In Isafjordur we walked into the town where there was a Tourist Information office. From there we picked up a local minibus tour -BS tours, for £45.00. The guy was really personable and did a great tour. Well worth the money. On a cruise 5 years ago  to the Lofoten Islands there was nothing to see within walking distance. We were mainly walking past houses. I would book a tour if we went there again. We went in June and were lucky to have really warm weather even in the Arctic Circle!

[Dorset cruise fan]

We visited your Iceland ports on Oriana last month. Reykjavik, I took advice from the Cruise Critic forum and we hired a car from Europecar as they have a pick up point at the port. It worked really well for us as we were able to do the Golden Circle at our own pace and as husband is a geologist he wanted to take his time. I think the ship tour was around £100 each and those who did it said the lunch was very good. Isafjordur we went kayaking in the morning then to the abandoned village of Hesteryeri in the afternoon. It was a beautiful sail across the fjord and a beautiful place to visit if you like natural beauty with not much there. In Isafjordur there is a company called Borea tours, you can look at their website and they have some interesting trips but being a tender port we were worried about timings. Borea tours provided the kayaking but we booked through P&O. Akuyreri we did the  Jewels of the North with the swim in the Nature Baths which was £130 each. You can do the same tour without the swim. We loved the nature Baths, fantastic views and our skin felt lovely (albeit smelly) but we did feel we wasted alot of time getting on and off buses and waiting for people. It would be difficult to do this independently although there are private tours that offer the same. In Reykjavik there were tour operators touting for business at the port so you can probably pick something on the day but we prefer to know in advance. We noticed at Akuyreri there was also a Europecar office so if we went again we'd probably do our own thing. The best whale watching trip was on the ribs out of Isafjordur but it may just have been luck on day. I still have the excursion brochure so if you want me to check any information I can do so.

[happy v]

As promised excursion list,

ISAFORDUR

vigur island  £78

sights, history and culture  £76

old town  £46

hesteyri by boat  £80

best of  £72

foxes and folklore  £74

flavours of sudureyri  £68

kayaking  £94

AKUREYRI

highlights  £60

flight to grimsey £255

nature and history  £68

jewels of the north  £85

akureyri and godafoss  £64

myvatn baths  £84

 whale watching  £84

jewels of the north and myvatn  £115

game of thrones  £90

horse riding  £92

REYKJAVIK

golden circle  £124

ring of fire  £82 

blue lagoon  £110

panoramic  £50

4x4 adventure  £140

whale watching  £92

intro to Iceland  £60

4x4 glacier and ice cave  £280

puffin watching  £69

glacier walk  £210

secret lagoon  £80

tuk tuk tour  £57

kyaking  £94

dyandi waterfall  £147 

whale watching from a rib  £132.

I can recommend golden circle, blue lagoon, jewels of the north. I haven't been to your other ports in summer. This is a fantastic itinerary you are guaranteed a great cruise.

[eddie11]

We thoroughly enjoyed IGtours.

Booked online

Everything ran smoothly each of the three days (including the tender port).

Our tour groups were 15(ish), which started with a swift trip around town to pick up independent travellers from hotels: 6 and 5.  The 2nd & 3rd days  were just people from the ship

Fantastic, personal, service and no waiting round for  50 people to return to a large coach

[brian1]

19 hours ago, kruzseeka said:

 

If you are happy to do DIY, one or two of these ports are suitable for independent exploration.

 

Tromso: take the shuttle bus to town, catch a local bus to the cable car then go up yourself - spending as much time as you want to on the top - fab views!  There is a cafe there too.  Come down then walk to the Ice Cathedral - not far - charge to go in.  Then catch the bus back or if you don't mind the walk, go over the bridge back to the centre.   You get your bus ticket from a machine using your card on the way out - paying the bus driver is more expensive but we had to do that when we returned as there was no machine at the bus stop by the Cathedral.  The first time we did Tromso in the summer, I'd read about the University Botanical Alpine Gardens which are across the road from the port (we crossed via a underpass).  It was free to get in and was beautiful.  Apparently it figures in Monty Don's book of the 80 best gardens in the world.  I was amazed by the riot of colour!  We spent a couple of hours there before it was time to get back to the ship (after doing the cable car and Cathedral earlier).  Might be worth checking out on line to see if it's still open to the public. So plenty to do here if it's of interest to you.

 

Alta:  We went to the Rock Museum which is just out of town.  IIirc we got the ship shuttle into town then caught a local bus to the Museum.  It was lovely and very interesting.  The bus stops outside the entrance.  Again easy to DiY and no doubt much cheaper then an organised excursion.  I checked out bus times, entrance fees etc before we went. 

 

Isafjordur: we found small but quite charming.  There is an interesting folk museum very close to the tender point.  You can pay to go in independently - much cheaper then the ship's excursion and really no distance to walk to get there.  We just ambled round the town, found a nice cafe for coffee then wandered up to the Church.  That's worth a visit.  There are a flock of birds on the wall above the altar.  Apparently a sculptor did some but villagers were involved in making many of them.  It's a 3-D display and quite impressive.  The 'botanical' garden on the town map (go through a whale wish bone to enter!) wasn't anything at all and a complete misnomer.  However our friend did a ship's excursion to a botanical garden which clearly wasn't the one in Isafjordur itself and she enjoyed it.  We were glad of a lazy day just walking along the water punctuated by the activities above as we did the two 'big' full day trips from Reykjavik and Akureyri  so were glad of a more relaxed day.  There is a museum about everyday life in a building set back from a green with a fishermen's statue which we didn't go in but I have read reviews which say it's interesting.  

 

Reykjavik and Akureyri as I said, we did the Golden Circle and Jewels of the North.  Expensive but as brian1 has said, it includes lunch.  If you haven't been to Iceland before well worth doing as you get to see some spectacular waterfalls, geysers, mud springs etc, and Thingvellir National Park is fascinating.  You can stand astride the tectonic plates there.  The geology is amazing.  Excursions are expensive in Norway and Iceland - unavoidable but if you want to see the main sites I think it's the only way to go in Iceland.  Perhaps private tours may be a little cheaper but it's worth thinking about the lunch included aspect - food and drink tend to be very expensive in these countries.  The cost for the equivalent Golden Circle on Marella is £110 p.p. and Jewels of the North £100 - I would expect them to be very similar on P&O.  Unfortunately I haven't got a record of what we paid on P&O but I have an impression that it was £90+ for that type of trip but it's a few years ago now. 

 

We went to the Lofoten Islands last year and did a trip which included Nusfjord.  Really recommended.  

 

It's a really interesting itinerary.  Enjoy!

Hi,I've got a quick question.Whilst I will eat anything, some of the Icelandic delicacies look like a bush tucker trial to my Mrs.Do they do "normal" food at lunches,like corned beef sandwiches,lol,that was a joke by the way.

[kruzseeka]

1 hour ago, brian1 said:

Hi,I've got a quick question.Whilst I will eat anything, some of the Icelandic delicacies look like a bush tucker trial to my Mrs.Do they do "normal" food at lunches,like corned beef sandwiches,lol,that was a joke by the way.

 

I must confess I have fairly conservative tastes and I can't remember exactly what we had to eat but I know we found it very acceptable - and geared to their audience rather than presenting us with 'unusual' fare.  We did a big trip from both Reykjavik and Akureyri and I think one of the restaurants was at one of the sites we were visiting (the geyser?) and the other might have been a place overlooking the Mytvatn (sp?) Lake.  I think we had soup and salmon at one.

Sorry can't remember any more but have no memory of being fazed by the fare.  

Only 15 days to go! 😉

Edited August 18, 2019 by kruzseeka

[Dorset cruise fan]

We had soup and salmon, loads of really nice bread and help yourself to tea and coffee at a hotel overlooking lake Myvatn on the Jewels of the North tour.  Some who had the Golden Triangle tour and enjoyed a very extensive buffet complained that there wasn't enough food but it was plenty and as the guide said, we were about to go swimming and it's not good to eat too much before a swim.  We arrived into Akuyreri 4 hours late due to a medical emergency and all the tours had been re-arranged for us.  I'm sure private companies who are used to dealing with cruise ships would do the same but it did take the pressure off.

[AndyMichelle]

2 hours ago, brian1 said:

Hi,I've got a quick question.Whilst I will eat anything, some of the Icelandic delicacies look like a bush tucker trial to my Mrs.Do they do "normal" food at lunches,like corned beef sandwiches,lol,that was a joke by the way.

There are many who think corned beef is a bush tucker trial, especially the younger generation.

I get constant comments of 'why are you eating that stuff, the war is over'...😀

Andy 

 

[brian1]

18 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

There are many who think corned beef is a bush tucker trial, especially the younger generation.

I get constant comments of 'why are you eating that stuff, the war is over'...😀

Andy 

 

The Mrs loves it and pie and mash.I'll take or leave both.

[AndyMichelle]

3 minutes ago, brian1 said:

The Mrs loves it and pie and mash.I'll take or leave both.

She sounds like my kind of woman...

Have to draw the line at jellied eels  though.

Andy

[brian1]

6 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

She sounds like my kind of woman...

Have to draw the line at jellied eels  though.

Andy

Yeah,I swamp the pie in chilli vinegar and still can't get any decent taste.Sacrilage I know.The Aussies over on the meat pies thread can't believe we put vinegar on meat pies,lol.

Edited August 18, 2019 by brian1

[AndyMichelle]

4 minutes ago, brian1 said:

Yeah,I swamp the pie in chilli vinegar and still can't get any decent taste.Sacrilage I know.The Aussies over on the meat pies thread can't believe we put vinegar on meat pies,lol.

No, vinegar on pie n mash is essential.

Andy

[Les_ldh]

18 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

There are many who think corned beef is a bush tucker trial, especially the younger generation.

I get constant comments of 'why are you eating that stuff, the war is over'...😀

Andy 

 

‘I remember growing up being given corned beef as a treat, and I still really enjoy it now. The younger generation don’t know what they’re missing 😂. Do you remember corned beef fritters? One of my favourites as a kid 😋

[brian1]

Now spam is another matter,yuk.

[Les_ldh]

45 minutes ago, brian1 said:

Now spam is another matter,yuk.

What’s wrong with spam? 😂 

 

 I think the topic may be starting to drift a little 🤣