Norwegian Fjords

[mickeysgal]

3 minutes ago, hallasm said:

‘Arctic Circle cruising’ is just another word for ‘Sea day’ - you are passing the Arctic Circle but nothing to see. There is an ‘Arctic Circle Globe’ at Vikingen island, but you’ll probably not be close enough.

Inside Arctic Circle you’ll have midnight sun.

That’s what I thought. Thank you. 
What is your opinion of this itinerary? 

[Capt_BJ]

we got close on both of our trips up there with similar itinerary .... on VIKING

 

 

altho the crude map provided to show your basic itin' shows an 'outside passage' don't be surprized if you actually sail an 'inside route' akin to Alaska's inside passage .... with lots to see close up.

 

If you're on a fun line they may celebrate crossing the circle with a Blue Nose Ceremony where after an arctic plunge into COLD waters you get a a frosted nose and a drink of aquavit <those big blue bags are MORE ICE ... they replenished every few dippers>

 p.s. the Artic Circle is at 66 - 34N <technically it moves but this is close enuf and what most nautical charts reflect.> tromso is  a lil above 69N and north cape 71

Edited September 23, 2023 by Capt_BJ

[hallasm]

1 hour ago, mickeysgal said:

What is your opinion of this itinerary? 

Stavanger and Tromsø are two fine Coastal cities with good excursion opportunities.

Olden and Flåm two deep fjord ports - Olden: Loen Skylift viewpoint and Briksdal glacier - Flåm: the railway and Stegastein Viewpoint. Sailing through the fjords to the ports is 5 to 6 hours - be at upper deck to enjoy the scenic cruising at sun rise (4:30 am). 

Honningsvåg: North Cape is a must.

I have only visited Kristiansand on business - not the most interesting city. Anyway a good itinerary 

[PATRLR]

On 9/15/2023 at 4:22 AM, Ciadan said:

Norwegian Fjords cruise on the QM2 (Cruise M421) in July 2024.  It's our first cruise together, and our first visit to Norway.  Our itinerary is:

 

Southampton, England, UK 14JUL24

At Sea 15JUL24

Kristiansand, Norway 16JUL24 In Port Arrive early morning Depart early afternoon

Olden, Norway 17JUL24 In Port Arrive morning Depart early evening

Innvikfjorden, Norway(Cruise-by) 17JUL24 Cruise By Arrive early evening Cruise By Depart evening

Nordfjord, Norway (Cruise-by) 17JUL24  Cruise ByArrive evening Cruise By Depart evening Alesund, Norway 18JUL24 In Port Arrive early morning Depart afternoon

Stavanger, Norway 19JUL24 In Port Arrive morning Depart afternoon

Oslofjord, Norway19JUL24 Cruise By Arrive afternoon Cruise By Depart early evening

At Sea 20JUL24

Southampton, England, UK 21JUL24

 

 

On 9/15/2023 at 6:25 AM, hallasm said:

 The itinerary on the web makes the cruise look significantly better than it actually is. There is one deep fjord stop: Olden. Innvikfjorden and Nordfjord are the Long fjords you sail through in the morning and evening to get to Olden.
Kristiansand, Ålesund and Stavanger are coastal cities. in Ålesund and Stavanger Some good opportunities.

A bit strange sailing from Stavanger and past the Oslofjord - not the most interesting fjord in Norway.
I am sorry for the not too positive assessment.

 

@hallasm - First I want to thank you for all your feedback in this thread.  I've read it a few times now as I work my way through planning a Norway focused cruise.  The deep fjords are a priority for us.

We too started looking at that QM2 cruise.  If I understand what you are saying,  when Cunard writes "cruise by", they are just putting words around the trip they need to make to get into and out of Olden and later in the week Stavanger. So that QM2 itinerary is really Sea/Kristiansand/Olden/Alesund/Stavanger/Sea.   1 deep fjord, 1 good coastal city (Alesund), 1 OK coastal city (Stavanger) and Kristiansand which you don't speak highly of (and frankly I haven't found anything to contradict that sentiment).    

It's not a bad itinerary, but, probably not as good as some others.

Edited October 1, 2023 by PATRLR

[hallasm]

4 hours ago, PATRLR said:

It's not a bad itinerary, but, probably not as good as some others.

Thank you for your kind comment.

I’m happy to be able to help, especially now that restrictions on cruise ships' emissions in the deep fjords can be seen in ships replacing the deep fjords with less interesting ports.
Your assessment of the given QM2 itinerary is absolutely correct.
Personally, I would prioritize Geiranger or Flåm as 2025 is probably the last time these ports can be visited with an 'ordinary cruise ship'.

[Taconix]

Our July 2024 cruise includes port days in Bergen, Alesund, and Geiranger and I am so happy to have followed this thread. Hallasm, you are amazing and I have pages of notes from your posts. Thanks to everyone for their advice. 

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, Taconix said:

Our July 2024 cruise includes port days in Bergen, Alesund, and Geiranger and I am so happy to have followed this thread. Hallasm, you are amazing and I have pages of notes from your posts. Thanks to everyone for their advice. 

We had those three ports and made each of them basically differently themed.

 

Geiranger was for scenery, both taking pictures during our sailin and then taking one of the onshore bus tours that stopped at various sites.

 

Bergen for us was about museums, though we also did go to the funicular for scenery.

 

In Alesund we took a ship's excursion that highlighted the art deco architecture of the city.

[Taconix]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

Bergen for us was about museums, though we also did go to the funicular for scenery.

Which museums did you visit in Bergen and what do you recommend?  Did you go on your own and what transportation did you use?

Thank you!

[ontheweb]

26 minutes ago, Taconix said:

Which museums did you visit in Bergen and what do you recommend?  Did you go on your own and what transportation did you use?

Thank you!

We used the hop on hop off bus.

 

We first went to the University where there were several museums. It was not opened yet so we walked around the gardens. DW wanted to go to the cultural museum, but it was closed for renovations, so we went to the maritime museum which was fascinating.

 

We then went to a series of museums called Kode. There are 5 altogether. We first went to one that DW saw featured Norway's premier artist, Munch. We tried 2 more that basically had very little, but then found out there was another one that had a few more by Munch and several by Picasso and one other famous artist whose name escapes me at the moment,.

 

I was ready to go back to the ship worrying about missing our boarding time, but DW insisted on the Funicular. Luckily we did not have much of a wait after the Funicular for the Hop on Bus. Boarding time was 4:30 and we got on at 4"18

[Kbwhat53]

On 9/18/2023 at 9:03 AM, LindaD22 said:

We are in Alesund for a short day, I think - from 1100 to 1800. This looks like it won’t be enough time for an excursion on the Troll Road, which are 7-8 hours. How best to spend our time?  This will be with Royal Caribbean next June. 

We are doing Jewel of the Seas June 2024…I’m starting to search out what to see but with winter coming all the excursions are now winter based. I’m hoping to find some interesting sites to see.

[ontheweb]

14 hours ago, ontheweb said:

We used the hop on hop off bus.

 

We first went to the University where there were several museums. It was not opened yet so we walked around the gardens. DW wanted to go to the cultural museum, but it was closed for renovations, so we went to the maritime museum which was fascinating.

 

We then went to a series of museums called Kode. There are 5 altogether. We first went to one that DW saw featured Norway's premier artist, Munch. We tried 2 more that basically had very little, but then found out there was another one that had a few more by Munch and several by Picasso and one other famous artist whose name escapes me at the moment,.

 

I was ready to go back to the ship worrying about missing our boarding time, but DW insisted on the Funicular. Luckily we did not have much of a wait after the Funicular for the Hop on Bus. Boarding time was 4:30 and we got on at 4"18

One correction, there are 4, not 5 Kode museums, so I guess we saw them all. BTW, pay once, and it is good for all of them. Not sure, but when I wrote Picasso and one other famous artist, I think (again not positive) that other artist was Klee.

 

DW basically does the museum research as she is a retired art teacher. Sometimes she just overtaxes me in museums. On this trip, we spent 4 1/4 hours in the British Museum on our pre-cruise day (way too long for me) and 2 1/2 hours in the Rijksmuseum on our port day in Amsterdam (better but still a bit long for me especially as we had already been to one museum and still had others to see.)

[Taconix]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

One correction, there are 4, not 5 Kode museums, so I guess we saw them all. BTW, pay once, and it is good for all of them. Not sure, but when I wrote Picasso and one other famous artist, I think (again not positive) that other artist was Klee.

Yes, after reading your post, I started looking at these museums online—both the Kode Museums and the University Natural History Museum and gardens. Very exciting! I will probably pick one or the other to visit. 
I definitely over-museum my husband.  He has agreed to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, but we are (I am) researching an additional activity for our day in port there. I can’t burn him out too early because we have post-cruise days in Reykjavik which is home to a couple of my favorite museums. 

[Taconix]

13 hours ago, Kbwhat53 said:

On 9/18/2023 at 11:03 AM, LindaD22 said:

 

We are doing Jewel of the Seas June 2024…I’m starting to search out what to see but with winter coming all the excursions are now winter based. I’m hoping to find some interesting sites to see.

This thread is full of ideas (many summer activities).  Regarding the day in Alesund, there is a link on page 17 in this forum included by Hallasm with lots of information specific to Alesund. That’s one of the ports we will visit in July!

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, Taconix said:

Yes, after reading your post, I started looking at these museums online—both the Kode Museums and the University Natural History Museum and gardens. Very exciting! I will probably pick one or the other to visit. 
I definitely over-museum my husband.  He has agreed to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, but we are (I am) researching an additional activity for our day in port there. I can’t burn him out too early because we have post-cruise days in Reykjavik which is home to a couple of my favorite museums. 

Glad to be of help. I am sure if you went to the trouble of researching those museums you will enjoy whichever one you pick.

 

We visited the Anne Frank House years ago when we were in Amsterdam on a land trip (actually we had booked a river cruise and it was chartered out from under us after we had made final payment.) I do believe these days, especially in the busy summer months, you have to pre-book timed tickets to the major Amsterdam museums such as the Anne Frank House.

 

On this cruise, one of the museums we found fascinating was the Portuguese Synagogue. Admission also gets you into the Jewish Museum. And we were lucky to get into the Ryjksmuseum (probably spelled wrong). DW checked and there were no timed tickets for when she checked, but there were for the following half hour, so she bought those. BTW, there were no tickets at the box office for the connected Van Gogh Museum.

 

DW said we are not spending a lot of time waiting in the airport, so she booked for us an excursion to the airport in Reykjavik that included the Perclan Museum, a museum about Iceland geology. It was fascinating. We could have used more time there. (And unfortunately, our plane was delayed so we spent way too much time anyway at the airport.)

[gnome12]

2 hours ago, ontheweb said:

We visited the Anne Frank House years ago when we were in Amsterdam on a land trip (actually we had booked a river cruise and it was chartered out from under us after we had made final payment.) I do believe these days, especially in the busy summer months, you have to pre-book timed tickets to the major Amsterdam museums such as the Anne Frank House

You MUST pre-book tickets to Anne Frank House. See the website for details about when they go on sale because they sell out quickly. 
https://www.annefrank.org/en/museum/tickets/

[hallasm]

@ontheweb & @gnome12 Off topic - this is the Norwegian Fjords topic!

[gnome12]

38 minutes ago, hallasm said:

@ontheweb & @gnome12 Off topic - this is the Norwegian Fjords topic!

Yes, I realized that after my response. 

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, hallasm said:

@ontheweb & @gnome12 Off topic - this is the Norwegian Fjords topic!

I was also responding to a post. Cruisers going to the Norwegian fjords almost always go to other places also. Sometimes advice is needed.

[DrJamba]

Our HAL cruise itinerary was just changed replacing Eidfjord with Nordfjordeid, and Alesund with Molde.

 

Does anyone have suggestions for activities in the new ports of call?

 

Thanks!

[mickeysgal]

On 9/23/2023 at 4:26 PM, hallasm said:

Stavanger and Tromsø are two fine Coastal cities with good excursion opportunities.

Olden and Flåm two deep fjord ports - Olden: Loen Skylift viewpoint and Briksdal glacier - Flåm: the railway and Stegastein Viewpoint. Sailing through the fjords to the ports is 5 to 6 hours - be at upper deck to enjoy the scenic cruising at sun rise (4:30 am). 

Honningsvåg: North Cape is a must.

I have only visited Kristiansand on business - not the most interesting city. Anyway a good itinerary 

 

Hello  - for Olden, our port time is 8-5.  So I'd like to be back at the ship at 4pm.  Is it possible to do both the Loen Skylift and the Briksdal glacier on our own - somehow?  Any suggestions as to how?  The cruise line has two distinct (very pricey) excursions and there is no combo of the two.  

 

Also, in Kristiansaid, they are offering a train excursion - Setesdal Line Railway.  Anyone ever ride this steam train to Royknes?  Is it worth it?

 

thanks in advance...this thread is awesome.  

[hallasm]

27 minutes ago, mickeysgal said:

Is it possible to do both the Loen Skylift and the Briksdal glacier on our own - somehow? 

With some planning it should be possible - otherwise prioritize the Skylift.

Try to search the forum - many posts on shuttle bus options
Link to some options

https://www.oldencruise.com/shore-excursions/briksdal-glacier-shuttle-bus/

 

29 minutes ago, mickeysgal said:

Also, in Kristiansaid, they are offering a train excursion - Setesdal Line Railway.  Anyone ever ride this steam train to Royknes? 

You might be able to arrange tour on your own. The museum is 45 minutes fro Kristiansand by public bus.
link to the museum.

https://www.visitnorway.com/places-to-go/southern-norway/kristiansand/listings-kristiansand/setesdalsbanen-railway-line/87119/

https://www.vestagdermuseet.no/setesdalsbanen/

[frogfish12]

@hallasm I was about to book....Windstar changed the port times about a week ago. The original times were Flam10:00-15:30. Olden 11:00-18:00. Geiranger 10:00-17:00. They are now Geiranger and Olden both 7:00-13:30 and Flam 8:00-14:30

 

Approx what time does the ship enter the fjord? Are the times bad now? Will I be able to see as much? Also there doesn't seem to be enough time for excursions? Should I even consider this cruise? Thank you again!!

 

Can't find any other cruise with these 3 ports and an itinerary that I like. Plus I've a feeling there will be more changes, maybe land-based is the better way...

 

[Anubi]

28 minutes ago, frogfish12 said:

@hallasm I was about to book....Windstar changed the port times about a week ago. The original times were Flam10:00-15:30. Olden 11:00-18:00. Geiranger 10:00-17:00. They are now Geiranger and Olden both 7:00-13:30 and Flam 8:00-14:30

 

Approx what time does the ship enter the fjord? Are the times bad now? Will I be able to see as much? Also there doesn't seem to be enough time for excursions? Should I even consider this cruise? Thank you again!!

 

Can't find any other cruise with these 3 ports and an itinerary that I like. Plus I've a feeling there will be more changes, maybe land-based is the better way...

 

I've been looking at a couple of Oceania cruises that do some of those ports.  Have a look at that; they have a good booking deal going right now.  

[hallasm]

5 hours ago, frogfish12 said:

Approx what time does the ship enter the fjord?

Fjord sailing takes 5 to 6 hours - sunrise will be at 4:30 am - with early arrival you must be at upper deck at sunrise.

 

5 hours ago, frogfish12 said:

Also there doesn't seem to be enough time for excursions?

In olden you’ll have time for the Skylift viewpoint and Flåm I’ll suggest the railway - sufficient time - Geiranger plenty of time.

5 hours ago, frogfish12 said:

maybe land-based is the better way..

different experience - haven’t tried so can’t comment. Research hotels, train, bus and boat transportation- you should be able to book the individual transportation and hotels yourself.

[hallasm]

4 hours ago, Anubi said:

couple of Oceania cruises that do some of those ports

Not sure if Oceania is visiting the deep Norwegian fjords - have not looked ant all itineraries.