Norwegian Fjords June 2007- mini review from a solo perspective

[VernaF7449]

Hello all –on the whole I had a great cruise to the Norwegian fjords and North Cape on the Rotterdam (HAL) from June 11-23 2007. I chose this cruise for several reasons:

-I wanted to do a fjords cruise with minimal time in other areas in Northern Europe

-I wanted a 10-12 day cruise in June, than did not start or finish in the UK

-HAL had the best prices for single supplements

-Bonus was my birthday was during the cruise!

First of all, the main reason for this itinerary is the scenery. And it was beautiful – the ship did a lot of scenic cruising, plus we could see a lot on the excursions. We really lucked out, had a couple of rainy, cool and overcast days (I did use my fleece jacket and wore my gloves and hat a couple of times) but most of the time was good weather.

I booked a K (inside cabin) guarantee in July 2006, and when I left for Copenhagen on June 8 I did not have a cabin assignment yet! I arranged my own air and pre-cruise hotel. I flew from Boston to Copenhagen (via Iceland on Icelandair) and l landed in Copenhagen about 12:45 PM Saturday June 9. A moment of panic when one of my checked bags did not appear on the carousel (it ended up on another carousel, thank goodness).

I used HiltonHonors points to stay for 2 nights at the Airport Hilton in Copenhagen –a beautiful modern hotel. I could walk there from the airport terminal, and back to the terminal to get the train into the center of town. Very easy to do! It was nice to be away from the hustle of the city. The hotel has air conditioning- and since it was unusually hot and humid in Copenhagen when I was there, that was appreciated (many of the hotels there DO NOT have AC). I also got upgraded to the Executive floor (with free breakfast, beverages during the day, and a “happy hour” in the afternoon). I strolled along the Stroget Saturday afternoon, got an early dinner and crashed. On Sunday I walked around the city some more, took a canal tour, went shopping, and then met some Cruise Critic people by Tivoli. Ended the day in Tivoli, which was fun.

I also checked one more time to see if I had a cabin yet on the ship – and I got a C cabin (outside cabin on lower promenade) - a pretty good upgrade!

Monday (embarkation day) I hung out at the hotel until noon checkout, and then got cab to the port. Check in took a little while, I waited about 30 minutes to check in, then got right on board. My cabin 3329 was a good location – right near forward elevators and stairs, easy access to atrium and theater, but since Rotterdam is not that large of a ship that was not a problem. I loved being on the lower promenade –it was like one big balcony. The window has a coating on it so during the day people on the promenade cannot look in (unless the lights were on in the cabin). Of course with the midnight sun it never really got dark for several days. I LOVE the bed and pillows, and slept well (the drapes were pretty good at blocking the light, but a little would come in at the bottom of the drapes –I am glad I brought an eyemask). I do wish HAL had the bed positioned that when you lay on it, you can look out the window (the head of the bed is currently below the windows).

I booked several shore excursions through HAL - a fjord cruise from Stavanger (going by Pulpit Rock), North Cape excursion from Honningsvag, the train ride from Flam, and an all-day overland tour (including a hike to a glacier) between Hellsyt and Geiranger. They were all great, and the last one was my favorite – a stunningly gorgeous day, a nice hike, beautiful scenery along lakes, rivers, glaciers, and mountains, and a pretty scary bus ride up and down a mountain (lots of switchbacks and hairpin turns). We got in to Geiranger about 45 minutes late, and the ship was waiting for us. The other ports were Skagen, Tromso, Trondheim, and Bergen. The ports were interesting, and I was fine with about 3 hours walking around the towns if I did not book a shore excursion. I could see myself going back to Bergen and Trondheim for longer visits.

I was pleased with the service and the ship. There was a problem with the hot water heater – there was only one day that I did not have hot water, but others were affected longer. Some areas also had toilet problems, but my cabin was fine. One day the alarm came on -there was a fire in the incinerator room that was quickly put out.

As per most HAL ships, the typical passenger age was 60+. There seemed to be several multigenerational families traveling together, but there were very few children and teenagers (fine with me). The Crows Nest was pretty quiet most nights. I am not a night person anyway, but I enjoyed listening to music. The ship band (HALCats) were fun to listen to, they played on deck for a couple of hours most days and in Crows Nest most nights.

I enjoyed the food in both the Lido and the dining room. I did not participate in too many of the ship activities –I mostly read and looked at the scenery passing by. I did go to a couple of movies, and most of the shows.

We had a Cruise Critic gathering one morning, and most of the people on the roll call showed up. I went into ports with some of them too, saw them all over the ship and I never felt alone, I could always join people for breakfast and lunch, by the pool, at a bar, etc.. Cruise Critics is great - especially as a solo traveler it was wonderful to know people before the cruise! It was easy for me to meet people on the ship. But I could go off and do my own thing when I wanted to, which was great! That is the best part about solo cruising.

My one (minor) disappointment was my dinner seating –I requested a large table for the main (8 PM) seating, and I got a window table for 4. Two of the people never showed up, and the other person was a very nice woman from England (now living in France). I checked about moving to another table, but there was realy nothing “better” at the time I wanted. I probably could have pushed more, but I did like the table by the window! My tablemate was nice, but I would have preferred more dining companions. This was not enough to wreck my vacation, however and I did enjoy her company. I did meet other solo travelers on the ship, but we were scattered all over the dining room, no apparent effort to put us together. Maybe other large groups had the larger tables?

They did remember my birthday! It was on the 1st formal night. There were lots of other birthdays, and they must have sung Happy Birthday to 7 or 8 other people before they got to me. I already had dessert, but they wrapped up the yummy cake and I had some of it for breakfast the next morning (the cake was brownie on the bottom, chocolate mousse on top.)

On Saturday June 23, we got off the ship in Rotterdam, and I took the ship transfer to Amsterdam Airport (about 1 hour trip) - I got off the ship by 8:15, at the airport by 9:30 AM, and my flight was not until 2 PM! Again I flew through Iceland back to Boston, an uneventful trip. Then a 2 hour drive back home.

All in all a great cruise! I would actually do this itinerary again, but there are many more that I also want to do.

Now I can start planning my next cruise – on the Prinsendam in May 2008 (11 days Lisbon to Amsterdam). That one is with a friend.

[Lois R]

Hi Verna:) welcome home and glad you had a good time!

 

About the dinner table, I would have definitely gone to

the Maitr'd and asked for a change. Even if you 2 got along,

it probably would have been more fun if they had moved both

of you. Not sure why they didn't make more of an effort to assist?

 

Anyway, sounds like you had a great trip:D!

[Solo Cruiser]

Verna: I'm pleased that you had a wonderful cruise. I'll add that itinerary to my list of trips to take as it sounds terrific. And, wow, what a great upgrade. My upcoming cruise on HAL is my first on that line. I've got an H guarantee booked. Hope the ugrade fairy comes to visit me too. :D

[airlink diva]

I enjoyed your review for your cruise.

I too returned from a longer cruise on HAL (10 day) and I agree that meeting people on the roll call gives you people to hang with. I met most of the people on the roll call and like you I had tours with some of them and saw them on the ship alot. It got to the point that another solo cruiser stated that it seem like everyone on the ship knew me.

I agree with you that HAL really did'nt make an effort to place the solo cruisers together. I lucked out and ended up with a table with two great families and enjoyed myself. On my other HAL cruises, I was with all solo cruisers. I think that we are used as fillers on tables.

I'm looking forward to my 14 day cruise next December

[FinelyRetired]

Thanks so much for taking the time to write your review.

 

I was especilly pleased you also spoke of your ports; the ones where you did ship excursions and the ones where you felt comfortable walking on your own. Valuable information for us solos.

 

There's lots of wonderful information here about ship life for solos, much less about the ports, hotels, etc.

 

Martha