12 night Norway and Arctic Circle on Apex with Pre- Cruise in the New Forest ( maybe live!)

[Scottishclover]

Norway, here we come!

 

Another summer, another cruise for these relatively new to Celebrity cruisers. This is our 3rd Celebrity cruise ( all on E class) but second cruise to Norway. Our very first foray into cruising was to Norway on Disney in 2016, and it was always on our wish list to return. So here we are, 8 years later having outgrown Disney heading on the ultimate Norwegian journey right up to the North Cape.

 

Our 12 night itinerary 8th -20th July

 

Luckily for us, only one port is a repeat - Stavanger- and last time we hiked the Pulpit Rock so never got a chance to see much of the city.

 

And that brings me on to one of the main reasons we chose this cruise: hiking. Although we enjoyed our cruise to Italy, Greece and Croatia last year, we unanimously decided our favourite port was Kotor because we went hiking. Yes, we were the fools hiking up the Ladder of Kotor in 40 degrees heat! 

The Celebrity Beyond is just a wee speck in the background.

 

Our plan is to hike in most ports and I will focus a bit on that in this report. As a woman of a certain age who sweats at the slightest movement these days,  just let’s say I am looking forward to hiking in cooler temperatures compared to last year. But if the weather gods could just hide the rain for the next few weeks, that would be helpful🤞

The most important things in our luggage, well maybe after the rain jackets!

 

Our Cruise Dos and Don’ts

 

Do….

- Enjoy  the family time together. DD1 has spent the last year living in Rostock, Germany, on her year abroad and DD2  lives in St Andrews during term time so this trip is a great chance for us all to reconnect.

-Hike at every opportunity and remember the golden rule: every good hike is followed by a good cake😀

-Try something new everyday, could be an activity, food, or more likely a drink🥴 

 

Don’t….

-Moan about the weather. We’re Scots after all, surely we can put up with a bit of rain. That’s hard when you have had absolutely no summer to speak of, at home so far. So yes, we will expect plenty of the dreich weather we are used to in Scotland and if we wake up to sunshine it will be a bonus. 
- Complain at the price of things. Just accept it’s the going rate for Norway and shell out! This one’s for DH.

-Let England doing well at the Euros spoil your cruise😂 Also for DH.

- Get sidetracked hunting down a Norwegian replacement cheese slicer. There’s a story to this one, which I may elaborate on later,  if I am successful on my quest…

 

5 things to know

A few things to know about us, then you can decide if our opinions hold any credibility at all😂

 

1. We’re Scottish so cheapskates. If there’s a cheap way to do it we will. Spoiler: you will not glean any information in this review about Luminae and the Retreat. 
 

2. We are Celebrity underagers! Well according to a recent thread on CC. Me celebrating my 51st birthday on board, DH is 51, DD1 is 21, DD2 is 19. 
 

3. We are active, independent travellers. We prefer to DIY, active excursions, use public transport and get away from crowds.

 

4. Food and drink is not the be all and end all to us. I read a super review recently, which critiqued every meal. You won’t get that from us, although with 2 vegans and 1 coeliac, you might get recommendations and info on how to eat well gluten and dairy free. You also won’t get any fancy wine, craft beer or whisky recommendations. The classic package suits us just fine.  I admit it, I like the cheapo pinot Grigio, DW is not a big cocktail/ spirit drinker and generally sticks to gf beer/cider and well the DDs are Scottish students so obviously do not have expensive taste when it comes to drinks. 
 

5. I’m a teacher, so any badly behaved children better watch out! Only joking, more irritating to me are the PPPs,  more commonly known in my profession as 🤬 poor parents! 

 

So It Begins:  Pre- Cruise Lymington 4th to 8th July

 

I am currently writing this from an ever so sweet Airbnb in Lymington, Hampshire. It’s a really nice alternative to Southampton ( didn’t float my boat ) and London ( to be avoided at all costs when you’re a cheapskate!) A special shout-out to @Jim_Iain for highlighting this gorgeous Georgian town in a previous trip report.  

The cobbles of Quay Hill, Lymington.

 

 

Our Airbnb, built circa 1640. It’s not for you, if you are over 5 foot 10.

 

We arrived yesterday after an hour’s EasyJet flight from Glasgow to Southampton, which was filled to the brim with a gaggle of Cheerleaders and all their relatives heading to a big competition in Bournemouth. Do pom-poms count as extra luggage, I wonder? After an easy half hour train journey to Lymington we enjoyed a sandwich in the sunshine ( well I enjoyed half a sandwich as a cheeky seagull got my other half🤦‍♀️), and then headed on our first hike of the holiday.

We planned to walk part of the Solent Way from Lymington to Keyhaven around 8.3 km. This cuts through a nature reserve where you can see a large variety of wading birds. We don’t often do flat, coastal walks so this was a nice change from our usual hill and glen adventures. The walk gave nice views of Lymington Yacht Haven and the Isle of Wight but the wind was just so strong to continue all the way. Little did we know that when we made the decision to turn, the wind situation wasn’t any better. All in all, we managed about 5 miles there and back. 

The amount of yachts is staggering.

 

Horses were running wild on the heath.

 

We spotted a few wading birds on the marshes.

 

A good part of the walk is along a sea wall.

 

Next up…. What we love about Lymington.

 

[sushraya]

Following along.  This is a cruise we hope to take next year.  We are on the Italy/Croatia one this year.   Did you do a review of your italy/croatia cruise - would love to read it if you did.

 

Also into hiking and H definitely qualifies as a cheapskate 🙂  Not too much into the food/drink scene, especially since we are vegetarians and usually the options for us are not as exciting as the others seem to be.

[Lena11033]

52 minutes ago, Scottishclover said:

DDs are Scottish students so obviously do not have expensive taste when it comes to drinks. 

 

I almost spat my Gin and T all over my computer with this.

 

As my Aunt in Invergordon says, no bad weather just bad clothes because if in Scotland you didn't do anything because of the rain - you'd never do anything.

 

I'm looking forward to following along, I'm on the cruise after

[Scottishclover]

38 minutes ago, sushraya said:

Following along.  This is a cruise we hope to take next year.  We are on the Italy/Croatia one this year.   Did you do a review of your italy/croatia cruise - would love to read it if you did.

 

Also into hiking and H definitely qualifies as a cheapskate 🙂  Not too much into the food/drink scene, especially since we are vegetarians and usually the options for us are not as exciting as the others seem to be.

Here’s the link for you. It was a great cruise. There was lots of variety with the ports.
 

I think Celebrity have stepped up their vegan game recently but I agree the vegetarian options could be more creative. My favourite vegetarian thing to eat on Celebrity is the Israeli Couscous Cake. 

[Scottishclover]

12 minutes ago, Lena11033 said:

 

I almost spat my Gin and T all over my computer with this.

 

As my Aunt in Invergordon says, no bad weather just bad clothes because if in Scotland you didn't do anything because of the rain - you'd never do anything.

 

I'm looking forward to following along, I'm on the cruise after

DD2’s drink of choice is a pint of Tennent’s. Say no more😂😂😂😂

[Georgia_Peaches]

I will be following along on your journey...looking forward to learning more about this itin as we are in the market for a "big" cruise in 2026, having most of 2025 already planned out.  

 

Cheers!

[Lena11033]

34 minutes ago, Scottishclover said:

DD2’s drink of choice is a pint of Tennent’s. Say no more😂😂😂😂

 

wow been a long time since I've seen that name, probably about the same time I drank the equivalent of paint stripper alcohol (you know the cheap no name versions of Smirnoff ice).I'm surprised my insides are still ok, but then my mum and Great Aunt & Uncle used to polish off a bottle of Teacher's in a few hours sooooo I should be fine 😂

[sushraya]

Thanks for the link to your other review.  Great reading.  Our itinerary isn't quite the same as yours - but we've been to most of the places you did on that cruise and it was fun remembering and seeing your photos.

 

We've only cruised in inside cabins thus far.   This upcoming cruise will be our first in an oceanview cabin - the deal the TA was giving us was only a 100$ more than the inside cabin and included several extras - so of course, we went for it.   On one cruise, we did do the four of us in one inside cabin - never again!  The one bathroom, the messiness of my family made one room too difficult for us to handle.  H used to use the showers at the pool or the gym, but still getting ready in time was difficult.  We've done two cabins - one for the kids and one for us the other few times and that has worked out very well.

[Ciaranaman]

Following and can't wait to hear of your adventures!  I think us followers will be in for a fun ride!

~Bernadette

[Travelexpert35]

Looking forward to following along. Always wanted to see Norway so this will give us a good idea of what to see and do. Enjoy your cruise with your family!!

[Scottishclover]

Lovely Lymington

 

Well what a surprise Lymington has turned out to be. Due to a poor weather forecast, we decided to spend the day pottering around town.

 

To set the scene: Lymington is yachting central and sits on the Solent. One walk up the High Street tells you it’s an upmarket place. The evidence is there to see in black and white- the 2 main food shops are M&S Food and Waitrose, I found a Hugo Boss dress in a charity shop for £60 and according to DD1 even the wee neds look posh😂 The local ladies in Lymington must be the best dressed in England as every second shop is an exclusive boutique. Let’s just say DH is very pleased our suitcases are fit to burst and I couldn’t possibly squeeze another item of clothing in! There’s also a fully plant based cafe, a gluten free “flapjackery” and abundance of coffee shops serving lots of gf and vegan goodies. 
 

After a long lie and leisurely breakfast we had a wee explore. I found St Thomas Church cemetery particularly interesting. Many of the older headstones were completely covered in moss and lichen with the details of the deceased completely obscured and then there were these flatter memorial plaques in a more modern section. I’ve never seen this before. 
 

 

 

After a quick lunch of a vegan pasty, we headed back out to browse in our favourite type of shop- a bookshop. There’s a nice selection in the town, including an independent called Imaginarium, although we all agreed our local independent bookshop back home was a cut above. The rain stayed off long enough for us to sit outside and enjoy a coffee down at the Quay. It was altogether a relaxing day but had we wanted more excitement we could have headed down to Lymington Sea Water Bath. A few brave souls were swimming but the fun park wasn’t exactly crowded. 
 

Tomorrow we are off to the Jurassic Coast in Dorset to try out some more coastal walks. 

[woldridge]

I am so happy you are doing a live on this cruise.  I had to cancel this cruise about 6 weeks ago because of husband illness. I was so excited about it and had planned for the last 18 months.  Even though I am sad to miss it, I am looking forward to cruising Norway and the Artic through you.  Thanks for doing this!

[bundtkate]

Excited to follow this live! We're booked on the 14-day version also on Apex in August 2025 and I'm still overwhelmed with what to do in ports. We love a hike, prefer DIY, and are also supposedly on the young side for Celebrity at 37 (me) and 40 (DH) so I'm sure we'll find some inspiration in your experiences. We are, however, from hot dry Texas so we'd probably manage the 40 degree heat better than the rain so I'll echo your hopes for sun. Thanks for taking the time to share with the rest of us and I hope it's a wonderful trip!

Edited July 6 by bundtkate

[NBliving]

Looking forward to following your journey!

[Mark.Jules]

I am so excited to follow along with you on your adventures. Thank you in advance for making time during your holiday to give us a write up. 

[843 Mimi]

Thanks so much for the information and pictures. We lived in Lymington almost 20 years ago and have wonderful memories.

[cruisegirlppp]

Following along...we almost had this cruise booked but DH said it seemed too cold?!?!

[chemmo]

Also following along…Each time we have cruised from Southampton we have enjoyed a ‘New Forest’ stay. The most memorable perhaps being the ancient Red Lion Inn in Boldre when it had an apartment above. Quite magical.

Must as I appreciate the desire of those travellers visiting the UK to head for the major sights of London, Winchester or Salisbury pre cruise (don’t blame them, fantastic locations) there really are lots of quality options much nearer the cruise port…

 

Scottishclover, I hope you have a fantastic visit to the Jurassic coast and you don’t find a fossil too big to fly back home after the cruise! Sincere best wishes for a fantastic cruise!

[Scottishclover]

Thanks to everyone who is following😀

 

@chemmo We love to go outside the box pre- cruise. We’ve done Skane in Sweden instead of Copenhagen, Haarlem instead of Amsterdam Lauderdale- by- the- sea instead of Miami and North Vancouver. All were inspired choices. We are small town people at heart.

 

@cruisegirlppp Cold is all relative. It might be fine  for us but freezing for others. I heard locals here complaining about the cool summer. I thought it was quite pleasant out today.

 

@843 Mimi How lucky to have lived in such a lovely place. You should have kept your house. The house prices are now absolutely eye-watering. It’s obviously a very sought after area.

 

@woldridge so sorry you had to cancel. I’m sure it will be a bucket list cruise. Maybe I will tempt you to rebook for next year.

 

@sushraya all 4 of us are in an inside. We did a veranda last time on Apex but never really  used it. We would rather save the money and use it for excursions. I agree, you do have to keep things organised.

 

A short review of our day in Dorset to follow. 

[cruisetonowhere10]

Looking forward to following this..

[MNSails]

Following as well - we're on the 14 night version next August, and are also in the "young for Celebrity" crowd (early 40s). Looking forward to your experiences in the various ports in particular. Enjoy your trip!

[ecslady]

Looking forward to your LIVE.  This itinerary is on my bucket list, maybe for 2026.

[KissKowgirl]

My DH and I are on this cruise August 2025.  I am looking forward to following your adventures!

 

[Scottishclover]

Discovering  Dorset

 

Wow! What a great day we had exploring Dorset. This would be very doable  if you are staying for a few days in Southampton. 

Step 1: Jump on a South Western train to Weymouth - get a ticket before  though or there’s a hefty fine of £100. And there were “revenue protection” teams checking. Our train took around 50 mins and we got off at Wareham Station. 

Step 2: At Wareham Station get on the number 30 Jurassic Breezer bus. We went to Corfe Castle first but you could head straight to Lulworth Cove. For the return just do the reverse. It is really that simple. 
 

Our plans had to change a bit this morning due to a delayed train so we ended up at Corfe Castle first. These buses are double deckers and you get a great view from up top. They are almost like hoho but without the commentary . And the best thing about it for these stingy Scots was it only cost £2 for a single journey. After 15 minutes we arrived in Corfe Castle Village and if you ever pictured a quintessential English chocolate box village with old stone buildings and thatched roofs, then this was it. We had a wee stroll around, had a coffee but decided against visiting the castle, which had been built in the time of William the Conqueror . We had our own conquests ahead of us though so got on the bus again to Lulworth Cove.

 

Corfe Castle from the village centre.

 

We saw hundreds of houses with thatched roofs today but this was my favourite. Even the garage was thatched!

 

Once we got to Lulworth Cove ( a pretty hairy journey by all accounts) we had a picnic lunch before heading off on our coastal walk towards Durdle Door. I wasn’t really prepared for all of humanity to have the same idea as us, especially as the wind would blow you off your feet. To use some good old Scottish slang - it was hoachin’ !

 

The first section of the path is quite steep if you are not a seasoned hiker. There was a long snake of people on the path ahead of us. We reached Durdle Door in around 30 minutes. On the way I got a lecture about land use conflict and tourism v the environment by DD2 who had studied this area in her Higher Geography class at school. She then went on to explain how the arch is formed. Beyond the Podium speakers better watch out! Someone is after their job😂 According to her, it is the most walked stretch of coastal path in the UK. I could well believe it but no wonder when you have this sight at the end.

 

I was surprised at how turquoise the water was. 
 

The beach at Durdle Door was relatively busy but further along there was a bit of rockfall so you had to be careful. 

 

You could see the undulating cliff paths ahead, so knowing we could get a decent workout with even more ups and downs, we opted to carry on. By this point the day tourists in flip flops  whittled away and it was really only booted and suited hikers on the route. We covered 7 and a half miles in total. There were some quite steep ascents and descents. In fact, it reminded me a bit of the walk across the Pentland Hills just outside Edinburgh but without the cliffs. 
 

 

 

Our phones recorded 146 floors but the walk was manageable if you have a reasonable level of fitness. 
 

You could do this is a circular walk but we chose to do an out and back and stay close to the coast. Once back, we had a quick look at Lulworth Cove before catching our transport home. I could easily have stayed longer but I knew DH was itching to get back to watch the England game.

 

Lulworth Cove has an unusual horseshoe shape. This wasn’t the greatest vantage point. 
 

I was so glad we decided to do this trip as it’s a part of the UK we are never in and it is absolutely stunning. I can see how it is in danger from overtourism though. 
 

I’ve just realised I said this would be a short review- if anyone is still reading you will have realised I don’t do short. Oops! 🙊 

 

One more day to discover the delights of the New Forest then Norway on Monday 🙌

[mauimary]

Loving your review. Long is good with me. We are on this same cruise at this same time next year so I am all in!  I  have enjoyed your previous reviews on past cruises. We cruised with our University kids and we really enjoyed their company.