Norway Fjords Cruise

[hexdragon]

I am looking at the 12 day Norwegian Fjords cruise. However I was on a 7 day SE Alaska cruise last year, (Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Tracy Arm). I'm a little worried that this will be a little, "Been there, done that"...

 

Has anyone done both SE Alaska and Norway, and can compare the two???? :confused:

[TLCOhio]

I am looking at the 12 day Norwegian Fjords cruise. However I was on a 7 day SE Alaska cruise last year, (Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Tracy Arm). I'm a little worried that this will be a little, "Been there, done that"... Has anyone done both SE Alaska and Norway, and can compare the two????

 

From what we saw in Norway, plus in hearing from a decent variety of people who have done both, their clear summary is that much of what you see in Alaska is more at a longer distance from your location or the ship. In Norway, as a few of my photos below illustrate, it is much more "up close and personal" in the fjords, etc.

 

The nature, settings and landscapes are very, very dramatic in Norway! If that's not what you get there during your upcoming trip, I'm happy to "double your money back" on what you paid me for this travel advice.

 

Does this help? Other reactions and questions?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,331 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 58,930 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

After being tendered from Geiranger, we sailed out and passed by two super famous waterfalls. YES, yes, we saw lots and lots of waterfalls on this trip, but these two were among the “best of the best”. First is the “Seven Sisters”. Next shown is directly opposite in this narrow fjord and is called several names, including “The Suitor”. The majesty for these feats of nature is pretty amazing.:

 

 

 

 

 

These Norway Coast cruises offer spectacular fjords and other interesting sights. You will see mountains, farms, green fields, churches, etc. along these beautiful internal coastlines of the fjords.

 

 

 

 

 

[Mercury]

Hi hexdragon

 

We went on an Alaskan cruise on Celebrity in 2000 and a 12night Norwegian Fjords cruise on Princess in 2008.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to do Norwegian Fjords although, having said that, we did 5 cruises in between the Alaskan and Fjords cruises.

 

The scenery is absolutely beautiful in Norway in a different way: Firstly, the language and culture are very different. The ports are also far less commercialized. For example, in the Fjords we were always the only ship in port except for Bergen.

 

I would suggest you look at the Ports section of Cruise Critic and go through the descriptions of the Norwegian Ports you will be visiting. That might give you a better feel for whether this is the cruise for you or not.

 

My DH and I love scenic cruises (we have also cruised Antarctica on a smaller ship) so I may be biased. If you love a more quiet, beautiful, serence type of cruise, you will love the Fjords. Otherwise, it might be an option to do a Scandi/Russia cruise which is also wonderful and full of history.

 

Hope this helps in some way!

[hexdragon]

Well the thing is if I do go, it won't be until 2013...

[Goldiedog]

We did Alaska cruise tour with HAL last September and it was fabulous, but the previous year we did Norway and although Glacier Bay was amazing, we did prefer Norway. There are no glaciers in Norway to see from the ship but we did prefer Noway to Alaska, the reason being everything is not on such a vast scale so everything seems much closer. Everything in Norway is joined up by tunnels through the mountains, one of which was 16 miles long, amazing to see them, we went in May and had snow one day and 70 degrees the next. If you have the chance to go I would recommend it, on the down side it is very expensive, a beer cost £7 ( about $12), currency in Krone but we found in many places they accepted dollars and euros.

[Bruin Steve]

Hex,

Here's my take:

We did a 13 night Alaska cruisetour on Summit in 2004...we really enjoyed it...A lot of great scenery...Not so much on Culture/history/art/architecture, etc. We loved it, but we also agreed we were in no hurry to go back...It was like "Have to do this ONCE in our lives"...

 

In 2005, we did a 14 night cruise on Constellation through the British Isles and Norwegian Fjords...Loved that one as well, but, as to the Norway part, it was, like Alaska, a lot of fantastic scenery...BUT, where it did differ from Alaska was that there was some foreign culture involved--which made everything a little more interesting...

 

AND, we ARE going back...This coming July, we're doing an Iceland/Norwegian Fjords cruise on Eclipse...

 

Now, to be completely truthful, it's not anywhere near my first choice in European cruises...My wife chose this one...mostly, I guess, to mix things up a bit. Last summer, we did a Dover to Rome 16-nighter...The Summer before that, it was the Baltic and the Summer before that, it was the Mediterranean with Egypt and Israel...

 

If I am going all that way to Europe, I much prefer the Mediterranean as a first choice...so much culture, history, archaeology, art, architecture and more...the weather is warmer, the food is better...it's all simply fascinating...EVERY port is fascinating and different...and there are countless different combinations of ports in different itineraries...

 

The Baltic is a great choice as well--we've done it three times now: 2001, 2008 and 2010...St. Petersburg has great history/art/architecture, Stockholm and Copenhagen are enchanting cities, Tallinn and Gdansk are secret gems...

 

So, of the various European cruises, the Norwegian Fjords is the least diverse, the least historical, the least culturally significant...You do it mainly for the scenery--which is in some ways similar to Alaska...and similar to New Zealand as well...

 

Between Alaska, New Zealand and Norway, Norway may be the most interesting outside of the scenery since the culture and language and history is different (Alaska is very American and New Zealand is culturally similar in a lot of ways--shared language, reasonably similar culture and some similar history)...Norway is a bit different...But, of course, a lot of your time will be spent sailing through fjords, driving through mountains, seeing glaciers and waterfalls, etc.

 

If you are afraid of it being too similar to a cruise you've just taken, maybe consider the Med instead...

 

Good luck...

[TLCOhio]

Hi hexdragon. We went on an Alaskan cruise on Celebrity in 2000 and a 12night Norwegian Fjords cruise on Princess in 2008. I wouldn't hesitate to do Norwegian Fjords although, having said that, we did 5 cruises in between the Alaskan and Fjords cruises. The scenery is absolutely beautiful in Norway in a different way: Firstly, the language and culture are very different. The ports are also far less commercialized. For example, in the Fjords we were always the only ship in port except for Bergen. I would suggest you look at the Ports section of Cruise Critic and go through the descriptions of the Norwegian Ports you will be visiting. That might give you a better feel for whether this is the cruise for you or not. My DH and I love scenic cruises (we have also cruised Antarctica on a smaller ship) so I may be biased. If you love a more quiet, beautiful, serence type of cruise, you will love the Fjords. Otherwise, it might be an option to do a Scandi/Russia cruise which is also wonderful and full of history. Hope this helps in some way!

 

hexdragon: Well the thing is if I do go' date=' it won't be until 2013...[/quote']

 

Great added info and insights from Mercury in South Africa. Very helpful.

 

Lots of time for research and planning for hexdragon. Keep the good questions rolling.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,331 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 59,027 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[Redtravel]

I loved the Alaska cruise. However, the Norway cruise was better. It was one of my all time favorites. The fjords are fabulous. Enjoy. Do the Flam train.

[Mercury]

Love your photos Terry! They bring back such wonderful memories from our Norwegian Fjords cruise!

[TLCOhio]

Love your photos Terry! They bring back such wonderful memories from our Norwegian Fjords cruise!

 

Appreciate, Mercury, the kind comments and "shout out" from South Africa. Have that part of the world on our future visit "wish list".

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 64,569 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 59,151 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[tally10]

We did Alaska on Princess and it was beautiful. We did the "Norway in a Nutshell" Globus tour in 2006 which included a fjord cruise on the smaller ships. No comparison. The glaciers and fjords in Norway are awe-inspiring. You can't see anything more spectacular than that!!! We paid very little for that Globus tour and saw and did so much that they could not possibly have made any money on it!;)

[Mercury]

Appreciate, Mercury, the kind comments and "shout out" from South Africa. Have that part of the world on our future visit "wish list".

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

 

 

If you ever need any info on South Africa, come over to the Ports Section of CC (Africa). I visit there quite often and will be happy to try to help with any questions!