Nordic Countries - Fjord Travel Norway - Northern Lights Cruise Trip

We are thinking of joing the 6-nights Northern Lights Cruise Trip offered by Fjord Travel Norway (http://www.fjordtravel.no/tours/winter/northern_lights/northern_lights_cruise.html).

Appreciate hearing from any one who have taken this tour and comments.

Also appreciate any suggestions regarding seeing the Northern Lights in Norway.

Many thanks!

First point, the Northern Lights are not an automatic event like the Midnight Sun. They do occur mainly between the dates mentioned by Fiord Tours but not every night or even most nights!! You pays your money & you takes your chance.
Second point, you're really putting all your eggs in the Tromso basket. If you don't see the lights there, you won't see them anywhere else with that itinerary.

Suggestions:
1/ Do the Norwegian Coastal Voyage from Trondheim to Kirkenes (4 nights) and fly back from Kirkenes to Oslo. Or even better, do a round trip from Trondheim - Kirkenes - Trondheim. Either of these would give you multiple chances of seeing the lights. As a local agency, I'm sure Fiord Tours would be very happy to quote for that.
2/ Bear in mind that travel & accommodation is much cheaper in Norway outside of the May - September season. Alas, food & drink is expensive 365 days of the year.

I saw the Lights in late March 2004 while on the Coastal Voyage round trip from Bergen - Kirkenes - Bergen. But only one night and that was a bit further north than Tromso.

But do a trip anyway - lights or no lights. Norway is fantastic and the NCV is wonderful.


Cheers

Dave

We appreciate that the Northern Lights is not a “guaranteed” event. The other option is to spend a few nights in Tromso but it will be our first trip to Norway, so we also want to do some other sightseeing. It appears the 6-nights Northern Lights cruise to be a good combination/compromise. We are hoping that we shall also have some opportunities during the short 2-day sail from Trondheim to Tromso. Otherwise, a stay extension at Tromso is an option.

Tromso is a great visit with lots of fun attractions (starting with the Arctic Cathedral and ending with some really great student drinking places). I'd just like to gently suggest that there is so much to see & do in Norway that the Northern Lights may not be the most important thing on some peoples list.
I'd certainly recommend, in no particular order:
Coastal Voyage - Kirkenes - Bergen rather than Bergen - Kirkenes
BERGEN
Self funded trip to Geiranger Fjord from Alesund (using local buses)
Trains (Oslo-Bergen, Myrdal-Flam, Andelsnes- Dombas)
and, as for hotels,
Thon are a reliable chain and Rosenkratz in Bergen and Opera in Oslo are great
Rica ( in Svolvaer - in the Lofotens) is a very friendly hotel
Stalheim (short bus/drive from Voss on the way to Gudvagen) is a hotel I have stayed at since 1976 and is still, in my opinion, the best hotel in Norway

And as a final comment, although Norway is expensive, I've coped over the years by pigging out at breakfast (almost always included in the daily hotel rate) and having the omnipresent hotdog for lunch.

Please do go. You'll love it

Dave

I'd certainly recommend, in no particular order:
Coastal Voyage - Kirkenes - Bergen rather than Bergen - Kirkenes
BERGEN

Hi, Dave:

I'm interested in a fjord trip, as well. I didn't follow your comment above. Would you please clarify.

Thanks, R

Hi, Dave:

I'm interested in a fjord trip, as well. I didn't follow your comment above. Would you please clarify.

Thanks, R

The southbound voyage is from Kirkenese to Bergen and the northbound voyage is from Bergen to Kirkenese.

However, the "cruise" is in reality a coastal ferry with frequent stops and passengers embarking and disembarking as well as goods loading and unloading. It only has limited menu choices and one has to pay for water and non alcoholic drink. Therefore, it should not be compared to other main line pleasure cruises such as Princess, Crystal, etc.

Hey, Clipper:

I haven't started my research on the fjords. I'm planning to do the fjords by myself and would prefer an escorted tour.

I'd be going during June or July this year.

I don't want to do any driving myself in Norway or be on a many-passengered ship (small ships are just fine). No sports.

Which are the MUST-SEE fjords? MUST-SEE towns? MUST-DO activities (a special train, etc.)?

Many thanks.

R

Hey, Clipper:

I haven't started my research on the fjords. I'm planning to do the fjords by myself and would prefer an escorted tour.

I'd be going during June or July this year.

I don't want to do any driving myself in Norway or be on a many-passengered ship (small ships are just fine). No sports.

Which are the MUST-SEE fjords? MUST-SEE towns? MUST-DO activities (a special train, etc.)?

Many thanks.

R

Any answer to your questions would of course be subjective and depend heavily on time and budget constraints.

Based on my trips [another planned for later this year/early next] I would say that the "must see" fjords are the Hardangerfjord, the Geirangerfjord, and the Sognefjord.

The loop from Alesund to Geiranger and back is particularly amazing IMO.

The "must see" cities are Oslo, Stavanger, Bergen, Alesund, Kristiansund [;)], Trondheim, and Tromso but even that list is incomplete.

Yeah, that is a lot - thus the multiple visits.

If I had to boil it down to a bare minimum I would say that an Oslo – Bergen - Alesund/Trondheim - Oslo ITN would serve as a good but incomplete Norwegian sampler.

The wonderful N.I.A.N.T train and bus tour would cover you on the Oslo to Bergen leg and you could then fly [quite cheaply] from Bergen to Alesund or Trondheim and do the Geiraner loop.

A lot to do, not yet even considering the various costal steamer cruise options.

Pity about not wanting to drive; yes it is expensive but my drives from Bergen to Alesund through Fjaerland, Alesund to Trondheim, and Alesund to Geiranger and back have been some of the most amazing travel experiences I have ever had.

Hey, Clipper:

I haven't started my research on the fjords. I'm planning to do the fjords by myself and would prefer an escorted tour.

I'd be going during June or July this year.

I don't want to do any driving myself in Norway or be on a many-passengered ship (small ships are just fine). No sports.

Which are the MUST-SEE fjords? MUST-SEE towns? MUST-DO activities (a special train, etc.)?

Many thanks.

R


The primary purpose of our trip is to see the Northern Lights and we shall be going during winter 2010/11, most likely January~February 2011.

So I couldn’t tell you very much about the fjords but we were in Bergen one summer a few years ago for a day as one of the ports of call on a Scandinavian cruise. We did join one of the shore excursion fjord seeing tours. Not much memory and it did not thrill us enough for the urge to return quickly.

This is the link to Fjord Travel Norway: http://www.fjordtravel.no/index.html

And the official Norwegian tourist office: http://www.visitnorway.com/en/Articles/Theme/What-to-do/Attractions/Nature/Let-there-be-northern-lights/

... I've coped over the years by pigging out at breakfast (almost always included in the daily hotel rate) and having the omnipresent hotdog for lunch...Another option, since breakfast is almost always an extensive buffet, may be to take food for lunch. Hotel attitudes to this vary: some post signs forbidding taking food from the breakfast room, others provide baggies to help you do it! In my experience the former are more likely to be found in cities. The latter are more common in the countryside where one might want a couple of sandwiches and some fruit to eat on a hike and, as a hotel guest, has no other practical way to get them. I'm not suggesting sneaking lunch out when a hotel asks you not to, just saying that in some places this may be a legitimate option.

Dear FTers:

I'm going to Norway this summer and have a week on my own to travel in fjord country without a car.

I'm considering a packaged tour, but with some tweaks. If the tour company doesn't allow for the tweaks, then I'll be planning the trip on my own.

Please give me your thoughts on the following tweak:

The tour company is providing the standard Bergensbanen and Flam Railway trips to Flam from Oslo and then immediately after, the express steamer to Balestrand where I'll be for two nights.

I've requested the day end in Flam and that the next morning I take the express steamer to Balestrand. I think after six hours of train travel I'll be exhausted. (The tour itinerary has the steamer to Balestrand right after arrival in Flam.)

Also, I've requested the tour company add a cruise down the Naeroyfjorden and also a visit the Urnes Stavkirke in Luster, to the northeast of Sogndal. I would need to take the steamer to Balestrand before Naeroyfjorden and Urnes Stavkirke as I don't want to cart my luggage around with me. Can all this be done in one day?

Would I be better off going directly to Balestrand after arriving in Flam and doing the Naeroyfjorden and Urnes Stavkirke the next day? Both are UNESCO sites, but should I consider something else?

On a different matter, if the tour company doesn't agree to my changes and I start making my own reservations, I'm having to deal with the ferries, trains, buses, steamers, etc., on my own. How complicated is this? Should I purchase a particular type of rail pass? What about reservations for transportation?

Thanks for your consideration.

Tomayto

We are thinking of joing the 6-nights Northern Lights Cruise Trip offered by Fjord Travel Norway (http://www.fjordtravel.no/tours/winter/northern_lights/northern_lights_cruise.html).

Appreciate hearing from any one who have taken this tour and comments.

Also appreciate any suggestions regarding seeing the Northern Lights in Norway.

Many thanks!

With regards to seeing the Northern Lights you won't go wrong by visiting Tromso. Probably a number of operators offering sightseeing trips in the "Aurora season" (November-March), but one of the most well-known with transportation from downtown Tromso is www.lyngsfjord.com (see also the http://www.destinasjontromso.no/english/index.html web-site for other suggestions).

Cheers,
Jan

With regards to seeing the Northern Lights you won't go wrong by visiting Tromso. Probably a number of operators offering sightseeing trips in the "Aurora season" (November-March), but one of the most well-known with transportation from downtown Tromso is www.lyngsfjord.com (see also the http://www.destinasjontromso.no/english/index.html web-site for other suggestions).

Cheers,
Jan

Thanks. After some research, we have decided to take the Hurtigruten from Bergen to Kirkenes next February. Hopefully we shall be able to catch some Northern Lights.