summer or winter on hurtigruten

[bobbisailsolo]

Hi, I'm thinking of doing a Hurtigruten Norwegian round trip coastal cruise for 2015. Just not sure whether to do a midnight sun or northern lights. I would love to see the northern lights but I understand there is no guarantee. And it is dark all the time. I am a 60 year old woman traveling solo. Any input on this will be much appreciated.

[BORDER REIVER]

Our forthcoming trip with Hurtigruten will be our first & we are really excited about seeing Norway in Winter & hopefully the Northern Lights.

We have been to the West coast of Norway twice before, experiencing amazing very warm and mostly dry weather, with astounding scenery. The downside to visiting in Summer, is that in most major ports there are at least one, sometimes up to five, huge cruise ships (like the one we visited with) and a vast number of visitors milling around and visiting all the scenic spots.

We are hoping that the winter cruise will be a much quieter and calmer experience, with the scenery show in a different light.

From what I've seen and read from Hurtigruten regulars, once you've done the trip in one season, you'll be back again in another and maybe all four seasons.

[bobbisailsolo]

Border reiver, thanks for the input. Who did u use for your previous cruise? How did you like them? Please be sure to post a review when you complete your cruise.

[BORDER REIVER]

Border reiver, thanks for the input. Who did u use for your previous cruise? How did you like them? Please be sure to post a review when you complete your cruise.

Hi, the first time we visited Norway was in July 2010 on P&O's Aurora after visiting Ireland, Greenland and Iceland. Bergen had 3 cruise ships in the day we visited. We made the mistake of booking some full day coach excursions, which although scenic, were very wearying, and everywhere we visited had a large number of coaches there, packed restaurants and huge queues for toilets.

Last year in May/June we did a 14 day cruise on Queen Elizabeth, visiting 8 ports from Stavanger to Honningsvag. We learned from past experience and only did a few half day excursions, missing out the most popular and overcrowded ones. We did a fjord rib trip instead of Flam railway & visited scenic fishing villages instead of North Cape. In most ports we explored on our own.

On both cruises, the weather was wonderful and the sea was very calm, even West of the Lofoten Islands. However, the big cruise ship life has got a bit tedious, with dressing up and sweltering in formal wear, and that got us looking at Hurtigruten through comments on these forums and a Hurtigruten presentation in our city. We rather like the idea of visiting in Winter, maybe seeing the Aurora, seeing the real Norway rather than the tourist Norway. Relaxed and informal sounds just great. We like a bit of adventure too, so we've booked a husky sledge trip and will visit the North Cape when it's snow covered and quiet.

Hurtigruten is obviously not for everyone, but it has a very loyal following and we're going to use them to travel to Antarctica in a few years time.

We sail from Bergen a month today and I'll be sure to write up a diary for a report.

Edited January 30, 2014 by BORDER REIVER

[SarniaLo]

I have been four times on this trip, once in the spring (late april) and 3 times in winter (Christmas, early Feb and early March). And I'm booked for next fall!

 

I can't tell you about summer since I've never been in that season, but to clear up some misconception, no, it is not dark all the time, even when the sun doesn't come above the horizon, because it is not far from the horizon and it gives a lot of light still. You get sunrise lights from 8-9 in the morning, at mid-day it is almost as clear as a "normal day", and then you get a long and beautiful sunset (provided the day is clear, if it is cloudy it gets darker faster).

 

This trip during winter is very special for me. The lights during sunrise and sunset (several hours altogether) are spectacular, with wonderful colors, and the landscape with the mountains covered in snow is amazing. There are less people on board (although this is getting less true since Hurtigruten goes to great length to advertise their winter trip), it is significantly cheaper than in summer. The only downside is that many tourist places are closed (not so much a problem during the trip, maybe a problem if you want to extend your trip). And if you are lucky enough to see the Northern Lights, it is really unforgettable.

 

To give you an idea of the kind of landscape you can see during a winter trip, you can check on my blog my winter trips (text both in French and English) :

February 2013 starts here (starting with 2 days in Oslo, which you can skip). It was I think my most beautiful trip, it had everything a Hurtigruten winter trip has to offer, I think. At that time of the year, the sun comes out for a few hours.

March 2012 starts here. We stopped for 2 days in the Lofoten Islands on the way back and it was fantastic (and there were virtually no other tourists!).

 

And the Christmas 2010 trip starts here, with text in French only, but the pictures can give you an idea of what it really looks like when the sun doesn't come out. I didn't expect that, to be honest, I also thought it would be dark all the time. I brought 3 huge books because I thought I would get bored, and I ended up reading only 10 pages of the first one.

[bobbisailsolo]

I am leaning towards a winter sailing as the prices are so much better for a single. With so few people on board, will it be too boring?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BORDER REIVER]

I am leaning towards a winter sailing as the prices are so much better for a single. With so few people on board, will it be too boring?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Boredom is a state of mind. Some people need to be kept busy or need be doing something or to be entertained. I'm quite happy just sitting (or standing outside) for hours and watching the scenery, or seeing the hustle and bustle of people at different ports.

We have friends who love the big cruise ship atmosphere, going to shows, quizzes etc & I know they would hate the Hurtigruten experience. We've decided that we'll love it.

[bobbisailsolo]

Okay, So I think I want to do a hurtigruten norwegian coastal cruise in the off season... Early December. As I will be traveling solo, I'm wondering which ship I should choose. I know the passengers are fewer during the winter months, so I'd like to be on the most lively. Are the newer vessels preferable. Reading the reviews, I'm surprised how many folks choose the older ones. Also looking for some pros and cons for the round trip as opposed to the one way.

Thanks again for all the input!!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BORDER REIVER]

Most of the Hurtigruten reviews I've read seem to suggest that "lively" isn't the norm and that the "entertainment" is the scenery. Experienced Hurtigruten regulars will advise you better.

We're sailing on the Nordnorge, purely by chance that the date of sailing suited us best. The only ship we (I) wanted to avoid was the Lofoten, purely because it's small and, I believe, not stabilized. I am not a good sailor, other than on large cruise ships. I can cope with rough seas on very small boats, so long as I can stand outside.

[bobbisailsolo]

Perhaps lively was not the right word...I meant which ships might have the most guests during off season. I would like to have fellow passengers to chat with...from time to time...

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SarniaLo]

I think it's a bit hard to say which ship gets the most passengers... It varies according to the date as well (a ship can be full for one round and have only a dozen full-time passengers on the next...). And as I said before Hurtigruten advertises heavily its winter voyage so there are more and more people in the winter. I have noticed that American passengers usually favor the newest ships (Trollfjord, Midnatsol and Finnmarken) and German passengers the "mid generation" ones. There are also fans of the old MS Lofoten (I'm one). You will have people to talk to on any ship I think (and there is also all the local trafic). Best pick a ship that appeals to you and/or a date that would suit you.

[RSF Cruiser]

We (4 Americans and 2 Norwegians) went on the Midnatsol over New Years 2012-2013. We fit SarniaLo's profile... We chose the Midnatsol because it had a hot tub (yes, we went in it every evening), there is a small gym, and it left Bergen the day we wanted to start our voyage.

 

There were about 500 passengers, mostly from Germany. The rest of the passengers were scattered from various countries, and everyone was friendly. If I remember correctly, a little over 100 did the round trip. Only my daughter and I did the round trip from our little group, and we were thrilled we did. There were no Northern lights on the way up, and a spectacular showing on the way south. And the scenery we missed on the way up, we got to see on the way down. We never got bored - there was too much too see (we love the outdoors, mountains, and beautiful scenes). We got off at most stops, if just to walk around the port area for a few minutes. If time and the cost is not a problem, I would do the round trip.

Edited February 9, 2014 by RSF Cruiser

[SarniaLo]

If time and the cost is not a problem, I would do the round trip.

I definitely second that. There are no cons to the round trip for me except time and money. The port visited during the day on the Northbound trip are visited during the night on the Southbound trip so you don't visit the same places twice, and you need the round trip if you want to see the whole coast. In the winter time you need the Southbound trip to see the Vesteraalen and Lofoten during the day, and the Northbound trip if you want to go to the North Cape (for instance, but there are many other great moments that you will only experience on one leg of the trip and not the other, and they are not all on the same leg).

Another option is to leave the ship in Trondheim on the way back (a lot of people do that), the last day of the trip is not the most interesting one (which doesn't mean it's bad), from Trondheim you can easily go back to Oslo and from there to everywhere else.

[bobbisailsolo]

Thanks all for the input. Appears consensus is go for the round trip, and pic the ships that suits my schedule! It's unfortunate it's so expensive as a single in the summer, as I think I would have preferred that, but to pay nearly 4000 more seems senseless!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SarniaLo]

Thanks all for the input. Appears consensus is go for the round trip, and pic the ships that suits my schedule! It's unfortunate it's so expensive as a single in the summer, as I think I would have preferred that, but to pay nearly 4000 more seems senseless!

I don't know if it is the same in the US, but here in France we sometimes get "no single supplement" offers on selected dates (although it might be more often for winter voyages than for summer ones).

If you enjoy your winter trip you will want to go back (in a different season?) ;) so maybe then you can just wait for such an offer.

[digitl]

Hi, I'm thinking of doing a Hurtigruten Norwegian round trip coastal cruise for 2015. Just not sure whether to do a midnight sun or northern lights. I would love to see the northern lights but I understand there is no guarantee. And it is dark all the time. I am a 60 year old woman traveling solo. Any input on this will be much appreciated.

For me, the northern lights win every time, interesting as the midnight sun is. But that's personal preference.

 

As others have suggested, the ship you sail on is important though if you're stuck on particular dates then the choice is pretty much removed. Be aware that it can get rough in parts so you might want the stability of a larger ship.

 

Having now done the complete round trip we would be content to do just the northbound. The longer stops are in places which offer more of interest and are at sensible times of day. But, again, that's personal preference.

[bobbisailsolo]

I suppose the round trip might give me more opportunity to see the northern lights...might being the key word here. I think I will opt for a December trip. After christmas.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[RSF Cruiser]

Being in a Norwegian port for New Years Eve was incredible. We were in Tromso, and I have never seen fireworks like that - the harbor is surrounded by mountains and the city, and everyone sets off fireworks, so there are fireworks EVERYWHERE! The display went on all day, and at midnight the quantity and quality of fireworks was like nothing I've ever seen, and I've seen some pretty spectacular fireworks displays before. Based on other posters, other Norwegian cities also have similar displays. So if you are going after Christmas, sounds like you might be able to be on one of the ships for New Years Eve.

[bobbisailsolo]

RSF, do you recall which date you departed Bergen to arrive in tromso on New Years Eve???

Thanks!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[RSF Cruiser]

We left Bergen Dec 27 on the Midnatsol.

[RSF Cruiser]

I forgot to mention, most businesses close during Christmas and New Years, and some even until the first week of January. What that meant was in many of the stops, none or few of the shops were open. That wasn't a problem for us, but for some it might be.

[bobbisailsolo]

Ah! Good to know... Were restaurants open?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SarniaLo]

Ah! Good to know... Were restaurants open?

I'm not sure you have enough time to go to the restaurant anyway in most of the ports of call...

Are you worried that you will not find food to your liking on board, or is it a problem of price? Food on board is expensive, but restaurants are as well.

 

I was in Svolvaer for New Years Eve (2010) and there was also a spectacular display of firework. It is a good period to go, and those voyages (including Christmas and/or New Years Eve) are usually sought after so there should be enough passengers to keep you company (expect a lot of German passengers though - how good is your German? :p).

[bobbisailsolo]

Sarnia, No, not worried about food on board... Just thought since it will be cold, and no shops to browse, might like a meal in port. I was under the impression in some ports, the larger ones, you might be there several hours. Did you do many excursions?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[RSF Cruiser]

Bergen was the only place where we ate in a restaurant. On December 26 (Boxing Day), most places were closed, but we did find an open place to our liking. When we returned in January (7th?), every place was open and we had no problems finding a wide array of restaurants and stores to spend our remaining Kroners!