Into the Midnight Sun

[LeRenardrouge]

Thank you so much' date=' sounds like Geiranger is the vest.[/quote']

 

We did the kayaking excursion in Geiranger in July 2017.

 

Although the description said you would walk to the kayaking launch site, we met our guide at the main dock in Geiranger and were bused to where we would launch.

 

A pretty rustic site but there is a small trailer where you can leave things such as backpacks, purses, etc.

 

You are provided with special kayaking vests and "skirts."

 

You will be using double kayaks and will launch from a dock. Although the waters are likely to be mostly very calm, there is a current so it was a bit more strenuous than we anticipated. But then, we were somewhat older than most of the other participants so we had trouble keeping up but did "finish the course."

 

Be sure and use the bathroom before leaving the dock area. I think the guys made out at the trailer but nothing for women. The restrooms in the dock area had long lines and about half of them were out of order.

 

VIking normally anchors at Geiranger and you tender to port. Be sure if you schedule an excursion in the morning you have enough time. We had less than 30 minutes between our morning excursion and kayaking excursion so we ate something at the port and also had taken a change of clothes which they recommended with us on our morning excursion. Thankfully, we did not need that change of clothing. :D

 

It was fun.

[roothy123]

JandK:

 

Some people think doing 2 excursions is iffy, especially if they're both Viking ones, since occasionally you get back a little later than scheduled. Also, sometimes Viking has to change the times of the excursions, although usually not by a huge amount. Other people, like me, have no problem doing two. At least by doing ebikes on your own, you can control the timing and get back when you want to. As others have said, you will likely tender. That morning, I would be ready 45 to 60 minutes before you need to be at the ebike place to tell the Viking excursion folks you'd like to get on a tender as an independent cruiser. It's not a long tender ride, and Viking does tendering well. However, you'll probably be sharing with excursion people, so it's not like you can just go down to a boat, jump on, and it takes off immediately. Once ashore, if there are multiple ships in port, you may have to weave your way through a lot of people to get to where you're going for the bikes. Before leaving in the morning make sure Viking is having the kayaking folks meet ashore rather than on the ship. I think they still do that for afternoon excursions.

 

I don't think there's anything to eat at or on the way back down from either of the two viewpoints you're likely to go to. Be prepared to eat quickly when you get back down to G. There are a few cafes, but they may be a bit slow, and I don't know if they offer carryout. (And be prepared to spend money - Norway and Geiranger prices are high. I think a Coke was 8 USD equivalent!) If nothing else, I think there's a small grocery store and deli near the campground by the water that might help. You may want to contact Geiranger tourism to ask.

 

For people taking V's included excursion to the viewpoints, the 2017 excursion included a stop at a lake where you could purchase a snack.

 

There's a great webcam in G by the tender pier. It's easy to google, although this time of year, it's not too interesting.

 

As to which excursion to give up if you decide two are too much: My feeling is that you'll see the fjord and 7 Sisters Waterfall on the way back out, 10-20 minutes post departure, assuming you're not inside away from windows. (You may also see it coming in.) Obviously the view from a kayak is different, but in the end it's still the same fjord, so kayaking didn't appeal to me much. But I'm not the least bit athletic, so take that with a grain of salt. Some people have probably seen plenty of mountain views similar to what you'll see, so no big deal. In the end, though, it's all good, and all beautiful.

 

And: I wish I had known Smithsonian Channel was running that program again. Might have to break down and pay to view it on youtube.

Edited February 23, 2018 by roothy123

[JandKsVistas]

We did the kayaking excursion in Geiranger in July 2017.

 

Although the description said you would walk to the kayaking launch site, we met our guide at the main dock in Geiranger and were bused to where we would launch.

 

A pretty rustic site but there is a small trailer where you can leave things such as backpacks, purses, etc.

 

You are provided with special kayaking vests and "skirts."

 

You will be using double kayaks and will launch from a dock. Although the waters are likely to be mostly very calm, there is a current so it was a bit more strenuous than we anticipated. But then, we were somewhat older than most of the other participants so we had trouble keeping up but did "finish the course."

 

Be sure and use the bathroom before leaving the dock area. I think the guys made out at the trailer but nothing for women. The restrooms in the dock area had long lines and about half of them were out of order.

 

VIking normally anchors at Geiranger and you tender to port. Be sure if you schedule an excursion in the morning you have enough time. We had less than 30 minutes between our morning excursion and kayaking excursion so we ate something at the port and also had taken a change of clothes which they recommended with us on our morning excursion. Thankfully, we did not need that change of clothing. :D

 

It was fun.

Thank you so much! This is so helpful JandK

[JandKsVistas]

Does anyone have experience with kayaking in Molde?

[jerseygrl828]

I am interested in the helicopter tour in Geiranger...anyone do this or know someone that did?

[H2Otstr]

Does anyone who has done this cruise before have the data on which towns are near the port where the ship docks so that one can walk off and enjoy the town, or a list of the ports where Viking offers shuttle service?

 

Trying to decide which tours we want to sign up for when that time comes.

[Cyber Kat]

JandK:

 

Some people think doing 2 excursions is iffy, especially if they're both Viking ones, since occasionally you get back a little later than scheduled. Also, sometimes Viking has to change the times of the excursions, although usually not by a huge amount. Other people, like me, have no problem doing two. At least by doing ebikes on your own, you can control the timing and get back when you want to. As others have said, you will likely tender. That morning, I would be ready 45 to 60 minutes before you need to be at the ebike place to tell the Viking excursion folks you'd like to get on a tender as an independent cruiser. It's not a long tender ride, and Viking does tendering well. However, you'll probably be sharing with excursion people, so it's not like you can just go down to a boat, jump on, and it takes off immediately. Once ashore, if there are multiple ships in port, you may have to weave your way through a lot of people to get to where you're going for the bikes. Before leaving in the morning make sure Viking is having the kayaking folks meet ashore rather than on the ship. I think they still do that for afternoon excursions.

 

I don't think there's anything to eat at or on the way back down from either of the two viewpoints you're likely to go to. Be prepared to eat quickly when you get back down to G. There are a few cafes, but they may be a bit slow, and I don't know if they offer carryout. (And be prepared to spend money - Norway and Geiranger prices are high. I think a Coke was 8 USD equivalent!) If nothing else, I think there's a small grocery store and deli near the campground by the water that might help. You may want to contact Geiranger tourism to ask.

 

For people taking V's included excursion to the viewpoints, the 2017 excursion included a stop at a lake where you could purchase a snack.

 

There's a great webcam in G by the tender pier. It's easy to google, although this time of year, it's not too interesting.

 

As to which excursion to give up if you decide two are too much: My feeling is that you'll see the fjord and 7 Sisters Waterfall on the way back out, 10-20 minutes post departure, assuming you're not inside away from windows. (You may also see it coming in.) Obviously the view from a kayak is different, but in the end it's still the same fjord, so kayaking didn't appeal to me much. But I'm not the least bit athletic, so take that with a grain of salt. Some people have probably seen plenty of mountain views similar to what you'll see, so no big deal. In the end, though, it's all good, and all beautiful.

 

And: I wish I had known Smithsonian Channel was running that program again. Might have to break down and pay to view it on youtube.

 

 

 

We missed it the first time and so we bought it. It was less than $2 [emoji16]. Well worth it!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Slavla]

I heard several expressions of disappointment about the Trolifjord boat excursion. The Lofoten islands is more about the beautiful beaches, fishing industry and lovely scenic fishing villages and bays rather than fjords.

 

The included excursion (at least on our cruise) was only 2 hours long and with so many hours in port, there was so much more to see.

 

We ended up scheduling a private group tour of six of us who met on CC for the full day.

 

In the Orkney Islands, the most popular excursion was the Orkney's Stone age. It sold out before we could book so we again did a private tour for the day with one other couple we also did the Lofoten private tour. Skara Brae was very interesting.

 

This is a great itinerary and it really is hard to narrow down your choices of what to do. We did a couple of excursions on several days and that tended to be cutting it a bit close getting back to the ship, getting something to eat and then ready to leave on next excursion.

 

In Geirangerfjord, Viking usually tenders so we did not even try to go back to the ship after the morning tour and got something to eat before meeting up with our kayaking excursion in port. We would definifely not have made if back to the ship.

 

Which private tour company did you use for Lofoten?

[roothy123]

Does anyone who has done this cruise before have the data on which towns are near the port where the ship docks so that one can walk off and enjoy the town, or a list of the ports where Viking offers shuttle service?

 

Trying to decide which tours we want to sign up for when that time comes.

 

I'm a real independent sort, and I don't like shopping much, so if you're the opposite, just go on to the next post. However, in terms of close by adventures I'd say Tromso and Geiranger are the best places in which you can just walk (or tender/walk) off and find things of interest. We did the included tour and then I walked up along the water to see some things I had researched (the church there, across the water, for example.) If you're a walker, that's a great place to do it. Molde was so-so for DIY, and I did enjoy some walking around there. We also paid for the Atlantic Road ship's excursion - pretty good at the price, especially if you're a photographer.

 

Honningsvag and Leknes/Lofoten are places where you won't be able to do much of anything around the port - definitely take a tour! For H, the included tour is quite adequate. For Leknes, I had wanted to rent a car and drive around to see the beautiful scenery. (And I believe Renardrouge's advice is spot on.) However, in Leknes our itinerary called for very limited time on a Sunday, and no car rental was possible unless I wanted to wait until one place opened a ways away and then rent a car for 2 hours! I couldn't even find a tour operator who could help me out. I took the paid excursion to Sund, Nusfjord and Flakstad (spelling may be incorrect!) It was pretty good, although with our time in port, we ended up with less time in Nusfjord than I would have liked. At the Leknes port/tender area, there's little there, and the walk to town is 30 to 45 minutes down the road, I hear. In Lerwick, we rented a car when we were there and had a great time, seeing puffins, ponies and stones. However, on our Viking cruise, the weather didn't cooperate, so we missed that stop. Viking was also scheduled to dock at the ferry port a little ways up north. You could possibly walk down to the (charming) town from there if no shuttle is offered or available. I imagine there are cabs, too - there were at the tender port when we went with another cruise line.

 

In Kirkwall, I believe Viking provided a shuttle, but I forget. You can walk around the town - nice, and a little like Lerwick, but not quite as charming to me. However, I think in Kirkwall, everyone should go see some stones. We did a half tour to Scara Brae and around, private vendor shared with another couple, and I found it quite interesting. Before or after the tour I spent a little time in Kirkwall, just exploring. Edinburgh is often a place where you can DIY, but only if you don't dock at Rossyth as we did - ugh! Edinburgh is a little hard to get to, but once you get there, there are options. Greenwich outside of London proper is great for exploring by foot, or if you want to go to London, the Thames Clipper boats come right there to where you board one of them to get to the ship, sitting close by. The included tour for us (we were there overnight) was pretty good for an included tour in a big city, but of course, in London, there are plenty of things you can do if you're willing to try the Tube, Thames Clippers, etc.

 

Of course, with all of the ship's excursions, if you know how to get back on your own, you could probably take an excursion and then stay in the city for more.

 

I can provide a link to my photos if that will help you.

 

Hope that helps.

[roothy123]

I'm a real independent sort, and I don't like shopping much, so if you're the opposite, just go on to the next post. However, in terms of close by adventures I'd say Tromso and Geiranger are the best places in which you can just walk (or tender/walk) off and find things of interest. We did the included tour and then I walked up along the water to see some things I had researched (the church there, across the water, for example.) If you're a walker, that's a great place to do it. Molde was so-so for DIY, and I did enjoy some walking around there. We also paid for the Atlantic Road ship's excursion - pretty good at the price, especially if you're a photographer.

 

Honningsvag and Leknes/Lofoten are places where you won't be able to do much of anything around the port - definitely take a tour! For H, the included tour is quite adequate. For Leknes, I had wanted to rent a car and drive around to see the beautiful scenery. (And I believe Renardrouge's advice is spot on.) However, in Leknes our itinerary called for very limited time on a Sunday, and no car rental was possible unless I wanted to wait until one place opened a ways away and then rent a car for 2 hours! I couldn't even find a tour operator who could help me out. I took the paid excursion to Sund, Nusfjord and Flakstad (spelling may be incorrect!) It was pretty good, although with our time in port, we ended up with less time in Nusfjord than I would have liked. At the Leknes port/tender area, there's little there, and the walk to town is 30 to 45 minutes down the road, I hear. In Lerwick, we rented a car when we were there and had a great time, seeing puffins, ponies and stones. However, on our Viking cruise, the weather didn't cooperate, so we missed that stop. Viking was also scheduled to dock at the ferry port a little ways up north. You could possibly walk down to the (charming) town from there if no shuttle is offered or available. I imagine there are cabs, too - there were at the tender port when we went with another cruise line.

 

In Kirkwall, I believe Viking provided a shuttle, but I forget. You can walk around the town - nice, and a little like Lerwick, but not quite as charming to me. However, I think in Kirkwall, everyone should go see some stones. We did a half tour to Scara Brae and around, private vendor shared with another couple, and I found it quite interesting. Before or after the tour I spent a little time in Kirkwall, just exploring. Edinburgh is often a place where you can DIY, but only if you don't dock at Rossyth as we did - ugh! Edinburgh is a little hard to get to, but once you get there, there are options. Greenwich outside of London proper is great for exploring by foot, or if you want to go to London, the Thames Clipper boats come right there to where you board one of them to get to the ship, sitting close by. The included tour for us (we were there overnight) was pretty good for an included tour in a big city, but of course, in London, there are plenty of things you can do if you're willing to try the Tube, Thames Clippers, etc.

 

Of course, with all of the ship's excursions, if you know how to get back on your own, you could probably take an excursion and then stay in the city for more.

 

I can provide a link to my photos if that will help you.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Sorry, I should have proofread. My first paragraph pertains to Tromso - good city for exploring on your own. Geiranger is good, too - although there's less right within walking distance than in Tromso. But Geiranger has a tourist info/booking place near the port where you can book same-day, usually short-day excursions. The included excursion Viking gave us was pretty good, and similar to but a bit more comprehensive than the basic one we booked with the on-site we booked in town.

[minka34]

Thank you Roothy123 - you are always helpful! :D

[LeRenardrouge]

Which private tour company did you use for Lofoten?

 

 

We booked with Lofoten Lights and our contact and guide was Claudia.

 

Be sure she knows you dock at Leknes as she will customize a tour going South and west toward the Atlantic for stunning beach scenes Also, Viking does not always stay in port the same number of hours.

 

We did one that lasted about 6 hours. If was 950 NOK per person and max number of pax is 7 (we bad 6).

 

We wenf fo Nusfjord, FLakstad, Ramburg, Sakrisoy (also squeezed in Reine on return), and A with the little "o" over it. I think fhe beach areas were near Haukland and Uttakleiv.

 

They have good reviews on TripAdvisor but we booked indeoendently with them on their website. Also contact email is:

 

contact_us@lofotenlights.com

 

We paid at the end with credit card.

[LeRenardrouge]

We did fhe included panoramic tour of Tromso which covered areas you would not be able to walk, then afterwards walked around town which was very walkable from where ship was docked.

 

I think the walk over across the water to fhe Arctic Cathedral that Roothy mentions would be a fair hike. However, we stooped there on fhe included tour.

 

There are some nice waterfront areas near the ship. There is also a bank/ATM close to where we were docked.

[H2Otstr]

We booked with Lofoten Lights and our contact and guide was Claudia.

 

Be sure she knows you dock at Leknes as she will customize a tour going South and west toward the Atlantic for stunning beach scenes Also, Viking does not always stay in port the same number of hours.

 

We did one that lasted about 6 hours. If was 950 NOK per person and max number of pax is 7 (we bad 6).

 

We wenf fo Nusfjord, FLakstad, Ramburg, Sakrisoy (also squeezed in Reine on return), and A with the little "o" over it. I think fhe beach areas were near Haukland and Uttakleiv.

 

They have good reviews on TripAdvisor but we booked indeoendently with them on their website. Also contact email is:

 

contact_us@lofotenlights.com

 

We paid at the end with credit card.

 

Roothy, how often did you find that you needed local currency and approximately how much did you get/use from the ATM?

[LeRenardrouge]

Roothy, how often did you find that you needed local currency and approximately how much did you get/use from the ATM?

 

I csn't speak for Roothy but we got the equavalent of $200 in local currency (conversion worked out to about 1,566 Krone/NOK) at the ATM in Tromso and that was all we got for the whole time in Norway. Almost everywhere will take credit cards or debit cards. We have a special small balance account with a debit card for use overseas.

 

We carry very little cash. ATMs are everywhere and we try to use only ones associated with a bank.

[H2Otstr]

I csn't speak for Roothy but we got the equavalent of $200 in local currency (conversion worked out to about 1,566 Krone/NOK) at the ATM in Tromso and that was all we got for the whole time in Norway. Almost everywhere will take credit cards or debit cards. We have a special small balance account with a debit card for use overseas.

 

We carry very little cash. ATMs are everywhere and we try to use only ones associated with a bank.

 

We do, too. Thanks for that information.

[doglover3]

Honningsvag and Leknes/Lofoten are places where you won't be able to do much of anything around the port - definitely take a tour! For H, the included tour is quite adequate. For Leknes, I had wanted to rent a car and drive around to see the beautiful scenery. (And I believe Renardrouge's advice is spot on.) However, in Leknes our itinerary called for very limited time on a Sunday, and no car rental was possible unless I wanted to wait until one place opened a ways away and then rent a car for 2 hours! I couldn't even find a tour operator who could help me out. I took the paid excursion to Sund, Nusfjord and Flakstad (spelling may be incorrect!) It was pretty good, although with our time in port, we ended up with less time in Nusfjord than I would have liked. At the Leknes port/tender area, there's little there, and the walk to town is 30 to 45 minutes down the road, I hear.

Roothy,

We seem to have similar taste in many of the port activities. We are looking at the included excursion and the one you took out of Leknes when we cruise this June. My one hesitation with the paid excursion to Sund, Nusfjord and Flakstad is the fishery museum doesn't really interest me. Do you remember if there was anything else to see while you were in Sund and, if not, how much time did you spend at the museum? I would consider taking the included excursion, but can't figure out what to do with the rest of the time in port.

[Slavla]

We booked with Lofoten Lights and our contact and guide was Claudia.

 

Be sure she knows you dock at Leknes as she will customize a tour going South and west toward the Atlantic for stunning beach scenes Also, Viking does not always stay in port the same number of hours.

 

We did one that lasted about 6 hours. If was 950 NOK per person and max number of pax is 7 (we bad 6).

 

We wenf fo Nusfjord, FLakstad, Ramburg, Sakrisoy (also squeezed in Reine on return), and A with the little "o" over it. I think fhe beach areas were near Haukland and Uttakleiv.

 

They have good reviews on TripAdvisor but we booked indeoendently with them on their website. Also contact email is:

 

contact_us@lofotenlights.com

 

We paid at the end with credit card.

 

Thanks so much for the advice.

[Bigred84]

On the included excursion in Thomson do you get to go into the arctic cathedral or is just a drive by?

[roothy123]

On the included excursion in Thomson do you get to go into the arctic cathedral or is just a drive by?

Maybe this can be better answered by someone else, but we did the included excursion in Tromso, so I'll give it a shot: The excursion only included a drive-by of the cathedral, although we may have driven around or behind it; don't remember for sure. I did have a chance to go inside when I walked to it from the harbor, but didn't go in. There was an entrance fee - maybe NOK equivalent of 5 or 6 dollars; not sure if USD or credit cards were accepted. I just peered inside, walked around the church to take some pictures (plus from the bridge) and didn't really see what was inside. I think a lot of the attraction is the outside - and I did take several pictures of it from different vantage points.

 

I would say the included tour in Tromso was OK - guide will point out some interesting places you'll basically drive by and hear about. (I didn't take pictures, though - hard to do that from a coach unless you're seated in a good spot and better prepared for photography than I was. Put your camera on "Sports" to shoot from a bus!) I think we drove by an "arctic garden" on that excursion. It wasn't anything special - just a drive by of a very wooded area with plants that didn't look too fabulous, at least to those of us who live in places with non-arctic gardens! The commentary and guiding were good, but in the end for someone like me who likes (lives?) to take pictures, the excursion was a little blah. However, there WAS a great viewpoint that the coach stopped at, with time to walk down and pose before a typical/beautiful mountain scene. (My photos from Tromso are here: http://www.pbase.com/roothy123/tromso_&page=all) The excursion was a way to see things outside of Tromso, but I had just as much fun taking my map and wandering around before or after the excursion. I think the ship docked practically right across the street from a tourist information center, so a stop in there could be helpful. Viking also has fairly general maps of each port if you ask for one, but I like to go prepared, as I'm a directionally-challenged wanderer and thus need something as detailed as possible.

 

Also, I realized that in my comments on which port stops are easiest for DIY walking/exploring, I forgot Bergen. In that city, it was pretty easy to get from the port to places of interest to tourists, and there's also a tourist information center not far away, plus a fort that's quite close to the pier where we docked. I found the sail in to Bergen very pretty - colored buildings, early morning sun - very pretty!

[roothy123]

Roothy,

We seem to have similar taste in many of the port activities. We are looking at the included excursion and the one you took out of Leknes when we cruise this June. My one hesitation with the paid excursion to Sund, Nusfjord and Flakstad is the fishery museum doesn't really interest me. Do you remember if there was anything else to see while you were in Sund and, if not, how much time did you spend at the museum? I would consider taking the included excursion, but can't figure out what to do with the rest of the time in port.

 

The fishery museum in Flakstad is a bit of a mishmash of old things - not a real fishery museum with glass displays, lots to read, etc. It's really more of a collection of perhaps one person's old things! It actually turned out to be reasonably interesting, fun, and photogenic. If you're just into poking around, looking at things, and taking pictures you'll probably be able to spend all the time you're given. (If not, there's a tiny restaurant right there for diversion!) There really is nothing else near by - not really a town or anything, just the "museum." (See my photos from Leknes here, but ignore the comment re having to pay at Nusfjord; that's if you come on your own):

http://www.pbase.com/roothy123/lofoten_islands_and_honningsvag&page=all) At the fishery museum, there was a blacksmith welding (making?) small cormorants, and some people spent a good amount of the time there watching him and then buying a cormorant. Other people mostly just poked around. I'm not a museum person, but did find this "museum" reasonably interesting! The church at Flakstad was a good stop, and so was Nusfjord. The tour guide added a short stop at a beach on the way back for maybe 10-15 minutes. (I don't remember the name, but maybe it was one of the ones that have been mentioned, and/or the one that was in the included excursion.) I guess the guides really want to show visitors that even in northern Norway, there are beaches! However, I just walked for a minute or two, and then went back to the coach - not much to see/do unless you wanted a coffee or a sweatshirt!

 

The port of Leknes is really between the towns of Gravdal and Leknes. One ship can dock there; others must tender in (short ride.) There's no terminal, but there were one or two touristy- type places right there, a big welcome troll, and I believe some cabs. If I had had more time after the excursion, I might have looked for a cab to take me to Gravdal, because the modern, red glass church there interested me. However, I don't think there's much in Gravdal - or Leknes! At least I got to photograph the church from where the ship tendered us.

 

I would either suggest trying to find an excursion by local vendor (and share with others to make it less expensive) or taking the Sund excursion from Viking. Then again, if you're in port longer, you may have more Viking excursions available than we did - if Viking had been able to offer a drive down to A, I probably would have taken that. However, I ended up being pretty happy with the Sund etc. excursion we DID take. And the scenery that afternoon and night was awesome, so overall it was a memorable day.

[roothy123]

We do, too. Thanks for that information.

I agree with the others - little need to get NOK, or if you do, don't get much! Being independent, and being (light) street vendor shoppers, we occasionally need small bills or change for public transportation and/or street vendors. I think we got about $100 worth, and ended up paying cash for some munchies in the Bergen airport on the way home.

[doglover3]

The fishery museum in Flakstad is a bit of a mishmash of old things - not a real fishery museum with glass displays, lots to read, etc. It's really more of a collection of perhaps one person's old things! It actually turned out to be reasonably interesting, fun, and photogenic. If you're just into poking around, looking at things, and taking pictures you'll probably be able to spend all the time you're given. (If not, there's a tiny restaurant right there for diversion!) There really is nothing else near by - not really a town or anything, just the "museum." (See my photos from Leknes here, but ignore the comment re having to pay at Nusfjord; that's if you come on your own):

http://www.pbase.com/roothy123/lofoten_islands_and_honningsvag&page=all) At the fishery museum, there was a blacksmith welding (making?) small cormorants, and some people spent a good amount of the time there watching him and then buying a cormorant. Other people mostly just poked around. I'm not a museum person, but did find this "museum" reasonably interesting! The church at Flakstad was a good stop, and so was Nusfjord. The tour guide added a short stop at a beach on the way back for maybe 10-15 minutes. (I don't remember the name, but maybe it was one of the ones that have been mentioned, and/or the one that was in the included excursion.) I guess the guides really want to show visitors that even in northern Norway, there are beaches! However, I just walked for a minute or two, and then went back to the coach - not much to see/do unless you wanted a coffee or a sweatshirt!

 

The port of Leknes is really between the towns of Gravdal and Leknes. One ship can dock there; others must tender in (short ride.) There's no terminal, but there were one or two touristy- type places right there, a big welcome troll, and I believe some cabs. If I had had more time after the excursion, I might have looked for a cab to take me to Gravdal, because the modern, red glass church there interested me. However, I don't think there's much in Gravdal - or Leknes! At least I got to photograph the church from where the ship tendered us.

 

I would either suggest trying to find an excursion by local vendor (and share with others to make it less expensive) or taking the Sund excursion from Viking. Then again, if you're in port longer, you may have more Viking excursions available than we did - if Viking had been able to offer a drive down to A, I probably would have taken that. However, I ended up being pretty happy with the Sund etc. excursion we DID take. And the scenery that afternoon and night was awesome, so overall it was a memorable day.

Thank you for your feedback. It's very helpful, as always. We also are in port for a short day, around 6 hours, and hopefully will be docked. The port information seems to indicate that and we look like the only ship there that day. Your description of the excursion sounds like it will fit the bill for us and I don't think we will have time to consider driving down to A. I prefer that both DH and I have the ability to look around and enjoy the scenery, rather than one of us driving, so renting a car does not appeal. DH has been reasonably successful taking photo with his iPhone from a coach, so that should work out. Now I just have to see if we can manage to nab two spots on that excursion. We will sign up for the included if there are no spots left and try to get on the Sund excursion once we're on board.

[Elizabetho55]

I agree with the others - little need to get NOK, or if you do, don't get much! Being independent, and being (light) street vendor shoppers, we occasionally need small bills or change for public transportation and/or street vendors. I think we got about $100 worth, and ended up paying cash for some munchies in the Bergen airport on the way home.

 

 

 

What about when you tip the tour guides and bus drivers? We always try to tip in the country’s currency. We feel uncomfortable tipping in US dollars since they then have to exchange it and probably pay an exchange fee.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[jiminyC_fan]

What about when you tip the tour guides and bus drivers? We always try to tip in the country’s currency. We feel uncomfortable tipping in US dollars since they then have to exchange it and probably pay an exchange fee.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I agree. We always tip in the country's currency . Personally, I think it is better for them. We ran out of NOK because the sky ride (forgot the name) In Bergen couldn't accept CC that day because their system was down. In fact, a couple stores were unable to as well. I felt really bad tipping in Bergen and Oslo. I can't remember if we tipped USD or Euros at that point.