hallasm

At 11 pm as MS Trollfjord entered the 100m-wide mouth of Trollfjord. While spotlights picked out the 1,000m-high cliffs that soared into the Arctic darkness.

Sailing Trollfjord during June

14 hours ago, MeHeartCruising said:

Several years ago (so it may no longer be this way), we did not dock within what I would call walking distance of the core Bergen sites.

Most cruise ships does dock at Bergen Cruise Terminal  or  Festningskaien which is close to the city centre. If many ships in port or  larger ships,  also Jekteviken is used - a bit further away - if OP want to know location just post ship name and date.

1 hour ago, Tranquility Base said:

Thanks for all the info.

 

If I want to use cash ( I know there will be places which are card only ) are there usually money changers or banks where I can get local currency in ports.

Thinking Norway, Sweden & Denmark.

Yes, In Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm. In  small ports maybe not -  and some places extremely expensive - a debit card for ATM might be possible. Some shops will accept Euro or US$ - not a favorable rate, however might be better than fee on Credit Card if using ATM.

You might even find shops not accepting cash at all. What is the problem using a credit card? Or a Mobil Phone payment solution.

Short and easy walk to all the sights - first the UNESCO Bryggen wharf, then Fløy Banan (funicular) to mount Fløyen, the Fish market and the center of Bergen.

44 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

 

Not on the continent, but I think Iceland gets the prize for letting you use a debit or credit card for their public toilets.

 

 

(photo by turtles06)

Not only Iceland - also widely used in Scandinavia.

A tour of MS Trollfjord and my cabin Q2-691

I’m just back from a Cruise in Norway - 10 days - did not bring cash at all - everything paid by credit card.

Sailing into the Polar night.
The polar night occurs in the northernmost and southernmost regions of the Earth when the night lasts for more than 24 hours. This occurs only inside the polar circle.

I’ll vote for June. Do not know the itinerary but in a June you’ll for sure have late sunset and if going above the Arctic Circle chances for midnight sun.

Septamber weather can be fair but I’ll expect weather in a June to be better.

... and some inspiration for Olden

A ten minutes walk from the quay will bring you to the centre of Olden - from here busses to the two main attractions the Cable Car Loen Skylift and a 4 hours Journey through the Olden Valley up to the  Briksdal Glacier.

12 hours ago, Danish viking said:

Because of track works in preparing for the Fehmarn Bent tunnel the line is closed so you have to take a replacement bus from København H to Nykøbing F from where the train to Hamburg departs. 

 

Thank you for the update - then the connection at 8:20 or 12:20 via Fredericia might be a nettet option - still only one change but avoiding the bus and changes. Those trains will depart from Oesterport.

You are allowed to take rupees into India (there is however a limit) - also be aware that India in currently changing all their bank notes - old notes are invalid - you might get invalid notes when exchanging at ‘unofficial sources’ - you might also get these invalid notes as change in India.

in Denmark it’s possible to exchange to INR in Forex Bank - might also be possible in Scotland. I did exchange to Rupees here in Denmark before my cruise stops in India.

Some research for Cochin

SelectSys and Globaliser - Thank you for sharing - indeed interesting reading!

interesting to follow those airlines in First Quarter and how it will impact airfare prices.

Is the Stad Ship Tunnel fiction or will the tunnel be build to avoid crossing Stadthavet Sea. Would be great, crossing Stadthavet Sea was definitely the least pleasant experience at my last MS Trollfjord sailing.

Probably not possible to avoid Hustadvika.

I trust you’re committed to reducing the food waste primarily from the buffets. Can you tell about procedures and measures you have in place to minimize the food wast? Any differences from the Costal and expedition voyages?

Hunting the Northern Lights

At Lofoten the Aurora Borealis was visible from 9:00 pm in 40 minutes while we were docked in Svolvær and again two hours later when sailing in the northern part of Raftsundet over Hinnøya.
Two day later for 45 minutes when we approached Berlevåg.

The footage in the video is still photos from the bow and upper deck of MS Trollfjord.

January 15  excursion from Honningsvåg  to North Cape (Norwegian: Nordkapp) -  a 307 m high cliff (1,007 ft) with a large flat plateau on top, on the northern coast of the island of Magerøya in Norway, and views of the Barents Sea to the north
At the plateau you will fine the Globe at North Cape, Children of the World sculpture and the North Cape Hall.

North Cape Hall, a visitor centre, was built in 1988 includes a café, restaurant, post office, souvenir shop, a small museum, and video cinema.

The European route E69 highway has its northern terminus at North Cape, which makes it the northernmost point in Europe that can be accessed by car.
It is possible to visit North Cape during winter, but when there is heavy snow and wind, the last stretch of road is only open for convoy driving at certain times.

January 13, 2019 at 07:10 am MS Trollfjord crossed the Arctic Circle.
The position of the Arctic Circle is not fixed; as of 13 January 2019, it runs 66°33′47″ north of the Equator.
Njord, Ruler of the sea and winds in Norse mythology blessed the passengers "May good luck and happiness follow you on the voyage and forever after".
This tradition involves the captain of the ship ladles ice water down the back of the passengers.

I assume that you’ll stay some days at Lofoten. I would disembark in Svolvær due to the arrival time  - then you’ll be at a hotel at a reasonable time. Drive from Svolvær to Stamsund is an hour (weather depending). My suggestion for flying out of Bodø was  to either drive or take bus/ferry from Lofoten  to Bodø - diffetent alternatives.

Regarding driving at Lofoten I'll recommend to post that question at the 'Northern Europe & Baltic Sea' board - here many from Norway can answer your questions about weather and driving in March.

Do not expect extremely bad weather in March - and if a bad winter storm does hit the area I'll expect that both Stamsund and Svolvær can be hit - however Svolvær a bit more protected.

For Kirkenes I'll suggest two nights - visit to Snow hotel, with dinner,  snowmobile and King Crab safari, Husky safari and Aurora express - however not much to do and see in the small city of Kirkenes. I'll recommend Thon Hotel. If only one night you can consider a stay at the Snow hotel - temperature is 25F in the rooms - you'll be provided all necessary gear in order to survive the night.

I'll consider not sailing the last part from Lofoten to Bergen with Hurtigruten - I would rather end my tour in Bodø and then take the flight to Oslo - southbound there are no longer stops at the last part of the trip.

March will be a good time for Northern Lights both at Lofoten and further north - we did experience very nice Northern Lights both in Svolvær and in Kirkenes.

Sorry that I gave you ‘false hope’ - some links with more inspiration

https://2kalaallitnunaatigo.wordpress.com/

https://greenland-expeditions.com/

Sounds like a great adventure - bit confused by the title including ‘Land or Sea’ - should rather be ‘Air or Sea’ - there are no roads between any towns or communities in Greenland - only transport by boats, helicopters and airplanes.

You can get to Greenland via KEF in Iceland or CPH in Denmark. 

SARFAQ ITTUK is the only ferry service along the west coast. Hurtigruten and others does have expedition cruises to Greenland.

You can find more information at https://visitgreenland.com - they are trying hard to develop the tourism in Greenland. Big Island with a total population of only 50.000.

Greenland is a great area to explore  - unfortunately I haven’t been there yet. On my list. Hope someone at CC have made the trip, but I sense that most people traveling in Greenland are not CC members. 

On 1/15/2019 at 12:13 AM, Bella0714 said:

Mind if I ask a question about booking through Vantage? Why are their prices nearly three times higher than the Hurtigruten.no prices?

You cannot compare Vantage or Collette price offerings with Hurtigruten prices - Hurtigruten price is cruise only while Vantage and Collette does include flights and hotels in their price offerings.

Just back from a Hurtigruten voyage from Bergen to Kirkenes - saw the Norther Lights three time during the voyage. Here are five of my pictures.

First four pictures are from Lofoten - last picture from Berlevåg (just east of Honningsvåg).

The first two pictures are captured while the ship was docked in Svolvær - and the three last pictures when the ship was moving.

11 minutes ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

his would get you to the airport about 3 hrs before your departure time - which is the recommended time allotment to clear security/customs and catch your flight.

Will depend on airline and destination for flight out of CPH - and maybe day of the week.

I'm travelling out of CPH very frequently - very rare that it does take more that 20 minutes for check-in and security - might add some time if flight from CPH is outside Schengen area (passport control) and for sure at least two hours before departure if flight to USA - I have never been at CPH airport 3 hours before departure and never missed a flight.

If you dock at 6 pm and book a car in advance you'll be at the airport before 8 am - no problem to catch a 10:50 flight.