Norwegian fjords - Which ports are must sees?

[Hilaurennn]

Hi there, 

 

I'm currently in the process of booking a fjords cruise. I'd really love to know which of the below sounds like the best trip and which ports are must see's. Which one (or 2!) would you choose? Thanks 🙂 

 

1. STAVANGER, OLDEN, HELLESYLT, HAUGESUND

 

2. MALOY, FLAM, HAUGESUN, KRISTINAND.

 

3. ALESUND,HELLESYLT, HAUGESUND, LERWICK

 

4. HAUGESUND,NORDFJORDEID, FLAM, STAVANGER. 

 

 

 

As a second part, If you were to choose between P&O(Iona) or MSC (Virtuosa) to see the Fjords, who would you choose? We're in our 30's, no kids, do not like partying/drinking, wont be going during half term, want a relaxing holiday. Thanks 🙂 

 

[hallasm]

I have no experience with P&O or MSC. 
 

Option 1,4 and 3 (prioritised) has scenic deep fjords. 

Ålesund and Stavanger are OK ports. 
Do som research on excursions in various ports. 
 

Scenic deep fjords: OLDEN and FLÅM. 

HELLESYLT is a small port next to Geiranger (UNESCO site) whit possible excursions to Geiranger. 

Nice coastal towns are: STAVANGER and  ÅLESUND

Hardly as interesting cities:  , KRISTIANSAND and HAUGESUND

Less interesting and small ports: MÅLØY, and NORDFJORDEID. 

possible excursions from NORDFJORDEID to Olden (Loen and Briksdal)

[kaisatsu]

36 minutes ago, Hilaurennn said:

 

1. STAVANGER, OLDEN, HELLESYLT, HAUGESUND

 

2. MALOY, FLAM, HAUGESUN, KRISTINAND.

 

3. ALESUND,HELLESYLT, HAUGESUND, LERWICK

 

4. HAUGESUND,NORDFJORDEID, FLAM, STAVANGER. 

1. Olden is one of the three favorite fjord ports. Hellesylt gives you access to Geirangerfjord, but you’d need to book an additional excursion or ferry to make the trip to/from Geiranger. Stavanger is a bigger city with a handful of sights and close connections to the North Sea oil industry. Haugesund is less interesting, but has some WWII history. This includes one great port, one with potential, a larger coastal city, and one port that is less exciting.

 

2. Flåm is another of the favorite fjord ports. Måløy is a less common port, so I don’t know as much about it. Kristiansand is not a highlight. Haugesund is described above. That’s one great port, one unusual, and two less exciting. I don’t think I’d recommend this one unless you’ve been before and are looking for new destinations.

 

3. Ålesund is a coastal city known for its art nouveau architecture. It’s well-liked as a Norwegian coastal (I.e. not fjord) port. Lerwick is a wholly different country, though the Shetlands share some climate and cultural similarities. Personally I think it fits thematically and geographically better into a Scotland cruise. This is the most varied with excursion access to one iconic fjord, a pleasant coastal city, a Shetland call, and one less exciting port. However, you don’t actually call on any of the favorite fjord ports. You do get some pretty fjord sailing into and out of Hellesylt, and you have access to Geiranger while in port.

 

4. Nordfjordeid is a pretty small port, and you’ll have a nice sail-in but not as long as the sail-in to Olden. This cruise gives you one great fjord port with Flåm, one additional fjord port with Nordfjordeid, a larger coastal city with Stavanger, and Haugesund, which you’re getting on all of them.

 

If you’re primarily wanting the fjords, I’d choose 1 or 4. They each have two fjord ports - one favorite and one that’s less popular. I lean towards 1, because it’s not hard to visit Geiranger from Hellesylt with a little planning, which gives you two of the three favorites. Unless you’re particularly interested in the Flåmsbana railway, in which case 4 might be the better choice for you personally.

Edited September 8 by kaisatsu

[Hilaurennn]

 

Thank you both, so much! Very, very helpful. There has been 1 more cruise thrown into the mix, with Cunard. The ports are as follows:

 

Honningsvåg, Tromso, bodo, Trondheim, Alesund, Stravanger,

 

 

Could you kindly tell me where you'd place this please?

 

 

Thanks 🙂 

52 minutes ago, hallasm said:

I have no experience with P&O or MSC. 
 

Option 1,4 and 3 (prioritised) has scenic deep fjords. 

Ålesund and Stavanger are OK ports. 
Do som research on excursions in various ports. 
 

Scenic deep fjords: OLDEN and FLÅM. 

HELLESYLT is a small port next to Geiranger (UNESCO site) whit possible excursions to Geiranger. 

Nice coastal towns are: STAVANGER and  ÅLESUND

Hardly as interesting cities:  , KRISTIANSAND and HAUGESUND

Less interesting and small ports: MÅLØY, and NORDFJORDEID. 

possible excursions from NORDFJORDEID to Olden (Loen and Briksdal)

Edited September 8 by Hilaurennn

[hallasm]

10 minutes ago, Hilaurennn said:

Honningsvåg, Tromso, bodo, Trondheim, Elesund, Stravanger,

 

This is an Arctic Circke Cruise - Not a Fjord Cruis - no deep fjords. what time? Midnight Sun in June July inside Arctic Circle just south if Bodø.

Honningsvåg is North Cape.

Tromsø and Trondheim are nice coastal cities. Bodø not that interesting. 
Ålesund and Stavanger - See above.

 

If Scenic fjords 1 and 4 in first post - if midnight sun (June/Juli) the Arctic Circle cruise.

 

 

 

Edited September 8 by hallasm

[Hilaurennn]

2 minutes ago, hallasm said:

This is an Arctic Circke Cruise. what time? Midnight Sun in June July inside Arctic Circle just south if Bodø.

Honningsvåg is North Cape.

Tromsø and Trondheim are nice coastal cities. Bodø not that interesting. 
Ålesund and Stavanger - See above.

 

Question not understood. Please clarify.

It's in June 🙂 - and ah yes, I've just seen - North cape cruise!

 

The question was, if you were to choose between the above fjords cruises or the arctic circle cruise with the above ports, which would you choose? or is it pretty incomparable to the first 4 mentioned?

[hallasm]

9 minutes ago, Hilaurennn said:

The question was, if you were to choose between the above fjords cruises or the arctic circle cruise with the above ports, which would you choose? or is it pretty incomparable to the first 4 mentioned?

The deep Norwegian Fjords (1 and 4) and the North Cape cannot be immediately compared - two very different cruises - I have been to all the ports mentioned and it is a question of fjords or North Cape.
 

Maybe also a cruise line - I have no experience with Cunard either but it is my opinion that it is the best of the three mentioned - followed by P&O and MSC in last place - might also help.

 

Edited September 8 by hallasm

[Planning to cruise]

I have no experience of P and O. 

I only know of MSC from my daughter and family with teenagers.  She and her husband would prefer Cunard and told me that she knew I would hate MSC but that it was fine for them as the teens were having a fantastic time.  I dont do party ships.  I will let you make up your own mind.  

I do sail Cunard regularly.  They are a quieter line than MSC and have regular fjord cruises.  We have been to most fjord ports.

You may wish to avoid a very large ship with many passengers for a fjord cruise where tenders are sometimes needed.

 

To see the fjords you need an itinerary that does not focus on the coastal ports.  You can probably do better than any of the options you have so far.  I would suggest that you investigate a bit more.      

[kaisatsu]

I would recommend cruising the fjords over cruising the Arctic. I love the Arctic but it’s not what most people are expecting when they think of Norway, and the fjords are beautiful and well worth seeing.

 

Few Norway cruises would be much of a party atmosphere, regardless of the cruiseline, since it’s an expensive place to travel and the draw is the scenery. That said, I haven’t heard great things about MSC in terms of the shipboard experience, but I’ve never cruised with them. I have sailed Cunard on a cruise that combined the fjords with the high Arctic, and it was a much older passenger demographic than any other cruise I’ve done. We were in our late 20s then and were actually mistaken for staff several times. My only qualm with Cunard for the fjords is that we were doing a fair amount of hiking, and returning to the ship in muddy trekking gear got us some unpleasant looks from some of the fancier passengers.

 

There are so many Norway cruises these days, since they reduced the Baltic market after the loss of St.Petersburg. I’d be surprised if you can’t find something better. Geiranger, Flåm, and Olden are the top three fjord ports, so a sailing that visits two of them is great. For other fjord ports, look on Google Maps, etc to see how far inland they are and how narrow the waterways are. Longer sailing from open water and narrower waterways mean better scenery. Among the coastal cities, Bergen is a perennial favorite and well worth visiting.

[kitkat343]

19 hours ago, kaisatsu said:

 

 

There are so many Norway cruises these days, since they reduced the Baltic market after the loss of St.Petersburg. I’d be surprised if you can’t find something better. Geiranger, Flåm, and Olden are the top three fjord ports, so a sailing that visits two of them is great. For other fjord ports, look on Google Maps, etc to see how far inland they are and how narrow the waterways are. Longer sailing from open water and narrower waterways mean better scenery. Among the coastal cities, Bergen is a perennial favorite and well worth visiting.

I'd absolutely agree that people should try to sail to  as many of the ports of Geiranger, Flam and Olden as possible.  

 

Cunard did an excellent job in Norway, but do note their dress code is enforced over most of the ship on formal nights (and I observed women in full evening gowns  even in the buffet) although they very kindly overlooked my ordinary black day dress since I was chasing small kids around and can't wear anything that needs to be dry cleaned right now.  Cunard also has a step test which you need to pass in order to be allowed to tender (they will make you take a large step in front of them to demonstrate you are physically capable of participating in the tender), and you might be tendering in Flam.

[NightOne]

2 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

I'd absolutely agree that people should try to sail to  as many of the ports of Geiranger, Flam and Olden as possible.  

 

 

 

THIS 😉

[CCJack]

We were on a Cunard Norway Fjord cruise and enjoyed it very much.  Sailing into the Fjords in the early am is one of my fondest travel memories.

 

Cunard was very good.   They did have a dress code (at least when we were on it just before Covid).... I am fine with a dress code, and fine without.  It is an issue where we just go with the flow rather than complain.  The ship was beautiful.

 

We also have been on an MSC med cruise.   A few things about MSC will cause me to avoid them in the future, however that may be just me, or maybe we had a one-off experience.  (mostly I was irritated that in the MDR all drinks (including water, coffee, etc.) were handled by the bar server and the food waiter had nothing to do with drinks.  Long story short.... the two servers were not in sync and we ate nearly every meal with no liquids in front of us at all... then the table water came long after food was consumed and dishes cleared, and coffee came well after that.)) 

 

I have not been on P & O.

 

Have fun... enjoy your cruise no matter what you decide.