Norwegian Coast with Hurtigruten

Taken at the Breakfast Table

While we are not a cruising family per se, the guide book said it was a must to catch the Hurtigruten up or down the coast. And so we did.



We joined the boat at Tromso at midnight and spent 19 hours on board until  Svolvear, in the Lofoten islands. The arrival into Lofoten is meant to be the most breathtaking scenery in Norway, however as it was winter, it was dark. Even so, I tend to agree.

As we arrived to embark, other guests were heading off for a midnight concert at the Arctic Cathedral before returning to the boat for the 1 am departure.




We boarded and went straight to bed, three in one cabin and two in another. Given we were on the boat for such a short time, we opted for the cheapest - the inside cabins with no windows. If you are travelling for longer, I would spend the money for a window or balcony. One suite near us appeared to have a glass wall, which would be magnificent!

The room phone has an option to press for an aurora alarm. Set it on arrival.





For the windowless, the front top lounge has great views but my favourite place to be was the jacuzzi, which was surprisingly empty, so I was lucky enough to have it and the views to myself. The sauna also has windows, though as you pull into port amazingly quickly, I'd keep your swimsuit on!

Sauna

It was easy to get tables with views at breakfast and lunch, and I did use the guest laundry to catch up on a week's worth of travel gear that needed washing and drying.

Because of the shorter hours of daylight in winter, it does mean you lose some of the scenery. We had an option to visit the Hurtigruten museum in Stokmarknes for 40 minutes and see the original Finnmarken (the first ship of the line), but that was our only excursion option, due to our limited time on board.


There were pancakes served on the open deck so we could see the scenery as we entered an extraordinarily narrow Trollifjord fjord. At some points the fjord is only 100 metres wide, with mountains up to a 1000 metres high towering above the decks.  As it was dark, a spot light would suddenly switch on to show the captain what to avoid. It was amazing how close the boat had to manouvre in the dark. Unfortunately, while my eyes could see, my camera could not. It was an extraordinary sight to behold.






All in all, we enjoyed the ease and the break from non stop travel, but one day was probably enough for us, given our limited time in Norway. I can honestly say that we saw a lot of scenery we would never have seen on our own.



If you are not normally a cruise person, consider a short leg on Hurtigruten as a transport alternative between cities. Norway is a country quite often best seen from the water, and the Hurtigruten is an easy and enjoyable way to do this.




Practicalities:
Hurtigruten 
Hurtigruten Museum 

 Further Reading:
Tromso - Share my Snaps!
Svalbard - Share my Snaps!
Learning things are not always as they seem
May you live in interesting times
I saw a polar bear

 Linking with: #WaterThursday