Norway Fjords vs Baltic

[Oligorio]

Hi All,

 

Crusing northern Europe is our bucket list, we had an itinerary in the baltic booked for this may, cancelled due to COVId19.

Looking for options for the new itinerary we found one sailing to Norway Fjords. I think this itinerary might be some how very similar to Alaskan while Baltic should be more like a mediterranean.

We did an Alaska cruise past 2018. An a Mediterranean on 2016. We loved them both!

 

The question is: What are the differences between Noway Fjords vs Baltic?  Am I right to assume the Norway one should be more Alaskan like and baltic more mediterranean like?-

 

Be safe, stay safe,
 

Regards. 

[CruiserBruce]

The scenery in Alaska is generally more dramatic than the Norway fjords. There are far more glaciers for cruisers in Alaska. Not that the Norway isn't nice, but a comparison directly to Alaska is not easy.

 

The Baltic has some nice scenery, particularly sailing into Oslo and Stockholm. Baltic is similar to the Med in that it is more about cities, but I find there to be much more historic interest in the Med. Others have disagreed with me on this (this question has been asked here many times), but what interests someone is strictly subjective. St Petersburg is perhaps the most culturally and historically interesting on the Baltic ports (be sure to be on deck for the sail in and out), but again, that is subjective.

[PurpleTraveller]

My Baltics and Norwegian cruises have been two of my favourites but they are very different.

 

The Baltics is more about large and historic cities with lots of history and beautiful buildings. Tallinn and Gdansk are gorgeous and St Petersburg wonderful. The sail in and out of Stockholm is also beautiful. 

 

Norway is about spectacular scenery, quaint villages and sailing magnificent fjords. We went to the very north and experienced the midnight sun which was amazing. 

 

Whichever cruise you choose they are both wonderful. In case you are interested I did reviews of both these cruises. Happy cruising! 😊

 

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com.au/topic/2426743-baltic-heritage-on-crown-princess-3-june-2017/

 

Edited April 16, 2020 by PurpleTraveller

[Schlepporello]

Which cruise line goes to Norway? I'm trying to find one for the last of July 2020 and I'm not having any luck. I'm thinking the corona virus may have scared everyone off for the season.

[PORT ROYAL]

2 minutes ago, Schlepporello said:

Which cruise line goes to Norway? I'm trying to find one for the last of July 2020 and I'm not having any luck. I'm thinking the corona virus may have scared everyone off for the season.

QM2

[hallasm]

1 hour ago, Schlepporello said:

Which cruise line goes to Norway?

Also HAL, Azamara, RCCL, Princess among others.
Some cruise lines might have problems with reposition. Also there might still be strict traveling restrictions. Make sure to check cancellation policies. 

If you want to try something different you can also have a look at Hurtigruten.

[Schlepporello]

Wow! Thanks for the link to Hurtigruten! Unfortunately, the sailings don't work with the time that I have allocated to take off from work. But that's a great line to remember!

[hallasm]

37 minutes ago, Schlepporello said:

Unfortunately, the sailings don't work with the time that I have allocated to take off from work

Do not understand! If Norway is open for traveling in July there is a Hurtigruten departure each day from Bergen. I’ll suggest the seven days Northbound from Bergen to Kirkenes combined with some days in Oslo and Bergen - train ride from Oslo to Bergen is beautiful - possible stop in Flåm with a Norway In a Nutshell tour.

You can easy book Hotel, boat, bus and train segments yourself.

 

just a hint. Check Hurtigruten prices at both the US web in US$ as well as their .no page in NOK - might be big savings when booking at the Norwegian page in NOK rather than US$ .

 

Edited April 18, 2020 by hallasm

[Schlepporello]

8 hours ago, hallasm said:

Do not understand! If Norway is open for traveling in July there is a Hurtigruten departure each day from Bergen. I’ll suggest the seven days Northbound from Bergen to Kirkenes combined with some days in Oslo and Bergen - train ride from Oslo to Bergen is beautiful - possible stop in Flåm with a Norway In a Nutshell tour.

You can easy book Hotel, boat, bus and train segments yourself.

 

just a hint. Check Hurtigruten prices at both the US web in US$ as well as their .no page in NOK - might be big savings when booking at the Norwegian page in NOK rather than US$ .

 

Thanks! I obviously don't understand this cruise line's scheduling. I figure that's one more thing I'll need to learn.

 

[hallasm]

5 hours ago, Schlepporello said:

I figure that's one more thing I'll need to learn

Yes, not an ordinary cruise line  - smaller ships and more like expedition cruises.

In fact working ships with daily departures and 34 port stops with cargo and car service along the route - many short stops and few longer. It's a return service - 12 days Bergen to Kirkenes and back - but you can book from/to any port along the route - my suggestion is the 7 day Bergen to Kirkenes northbound. Very nice scenery, good food and service - but not the same level of entertainment as cruise lines. In addition they do have expedition teams and daily lectures onboard.

Edited April 19, 2020 by hallasm

[John Bull]

On 4/19/2020 at 8:25 AM, hallasm said:

Yes, not an ordinary cruise line  - smaller ships and more like expedition cruises.

 

 

We haven't sailed Hurtigruten, but friends have.

They thoroughly enjoyed it, but rated it more like an up-market ferry than an "expedition cruise".

As Hallasm's post, lots of ports-of-call - several per day, many of them just to embark / disembark passengers.

Something interesting pretty-well all the time, but no real opportunities to get deeply-immersed.

Norway is very expensive. 

 

As a cruiser I can see parallels between the Baltic and the Med. - ports are mainly important, historic and interesting cities (a lot of them capital cities), and rather more countries in a Baltic cruise than a Med. one.

But, like Norway, generally cooler and less-reliable weather.

And minor headaches with different currencies - but plastic widely used, even for small transactions.

I see you hail from Dom. Rep. If you need a Schengen visa (currently Americans, Canadians etc don't) you will need a multi-entry one because you leave a Schengen country to go to St Petersburg, then from there you go to another Schengen country.

As per Hallasm's post, St Petersburg is the jewel in a Baltic cruise - choose a cruise with at least one overnight (ie 2 days) in St Petersburg rather than a rushed single day call.

Because the Baltic is all about the ports I suggest you wait until you ca be pretty certain that the current little inconvenience (British under-statement) is over and done with. It'd be a great shame to spend your time & money on a Baltic cruise and find several ports-of-call cancelled.

 

I'd choose a Baltic cruise over a fjords cruise any day - in fact, I'd choose to repeat a Baltic cruise rather than take a first fjords cruise.

But that's my choice, might not be yours.

 

JB  

[LondonTowner]

We’ve done two Baltic Cruises and two Norwegian Fjords. We have enjoyed all of them, but there is more to see and do in the Baltic. The weather tends to be better in the Baltic too.

 

Each of our cruises have had very different itineraries and there are plenty of cruise lines going to both places.Lots of cruises to both places on various cruise lines from Southampton. Quite a few Baltic cruises leave from Copenhagen and Cunard also operate from Hamburg.

 

However, with Coronavirus and cruise ships not currently sailing I can’t see the industry returning to normal for a long time.

[Coral]

If you like Alaska, you will like Norway. Though they are not similar. Norway has more fjords and Alaska has more glaciers. I love them both. 

 

Baltics is nothing like the Med. I have done Baltics and some of the Med on land only. I personally prefer the Baltics. I love history and architecture in Russia. St. Petersburg is one of my favorite places. Both are very historic and they both have very different histories. 

 

 

[stickey_mouse]

Thanks for the post! I wanted to ask a very similar question. I'm trying to decide between a 9-night fjord cruise (Amsterdam-Copenhagen) and 11 night Baltic cruise (Copenhagen-Stockholm). It seems that St. Petersburg is the crown jewel of the Baltic, but what are the "can't miss" ports or sights in any given Norway itinerary? 

[hallasm]

9 hours ago, stickey_mouse said:

but what are the "can't miss" ports or sights in any given Norway itinerary?

Sailing through the scenic fjords in the morning and evening is a must - Geiranger and Flåm are my favorites - alternatives are Olden and Skjolden.

A visit to Bergen is also a must.

Norway are enforcing new strict environmental regulations on heritage fjord sailings - in few year’s  ‘ordinary’ Cruise ships will not be allowed in the fjords.

 

[Sunshine3601]

On 4/18/2020 at 11:01 AM, Schlepporello said:

Which cruise line goes to Norway? I'm trying to find one for the last of July 2020 and I'm not having any luck. I'm thinking the corona virus may have scared everyone off for the season.

We are currently booked for b2b with 8 night baltic cruise leaving out of copenhagen on august 8th on jewel ots with rcl then we stay onboard for 7 night norway cruise starting on august 16th. 

Excellent itineraries.  We planned on spending 2 extra days in copenhagen before cruise.  We booked this in 2019.  Before covid hit they were almost sold out now there are plenty of cabins available.  Not sure these cruises will happen but cannot find similiar itineraries for 2021.

[LondonTowner]

Norway is more about the stunning natural beauty and scenery. Bergen is a small town with a nice atmosphere and a few things to do. However, I really don’t think you can compare the Baltic cities with so much culture, history and art. It just depends which appeals to you more, although we like both.