Hurtagruten Line

[ChiefLnc7]

My wife and I are considering using Hurtagruten coastal working vessels for a cruise.  We are seasoned cruises with more than 20 plus under our belts. Have talked with my AAA travel agent and her comments were that they have been approved for booking by AAA and have upped their game concerning meals and such also.  We understand that there is no casinos, no floor shows or movies, and no stores or sales, which we both can do without.  We feel that 15 days might be a good cruise to try out and am pretty sure we can find things to do or take somethings along to keep us occupied.

 

My big question is to all those who have been on the Hurtagruen vessels and done the Norwegian coastal trip, how did you like it?  Was it worth the cost?  Did you get some opportunities to get some shore time?  Would you do it again?

 

Thanks and will say that anyone and everyone can comment, pro or con, likes and dislikes, best ships and/or worse ships, etc.

 

Appreciate it.

 

 

[Heidi13]

Haven't sailed with Hurtigruten, but do know that in addition to their Explorer voyages, they operate a fleet of Ro/Pax along the Norwegian coast. While not cruise ships, as per many of the European ferries, the newer ships will no doubt provide facilities similar to cruise ships.

 

They definitely cater to pax, as opposed to working cargo vessels, which can only carry up to 12 pax.

 

I expect you can research each of their ships on their website.

[GeezerCouple]

On 10/12/2021 at 10:17 AM, Heidi13 said:

Haven't sailed with Hurtigruten, but do know that in addition to their Explorer voyages, they operate a fleet of Ro/Pax along the Norwegian coast. While not cruise ships, as per many of the European ferries, the newer ships will no doubt provide facilities similar to cruise ships.

 

They definitely cater to pax, as opposed to working cargo vessels, which can only carry up to 12 pax.

 

I expect you can research each of their ships on their website.

 

 

Sorry for the late reply, but I just stumbled across this post/thread.

 

Here is a link to the Hurtigruten sub-forum on CruiseCritic:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/663-hurtigruten/

 

There should be lots of information for you to browse there, plus some good responses to any questions that you post.

 

We took the Round Trip Norwegian Coastal Cruise a few years ago, and we LOVED it.

DH was a bit wary, because I made the "mistake" of using the word "ferry"!  I suspect that once he heard that word, he couldn't get images of the Staten Island Ferry in New York City out of his mind, and it is absolutely *nothing* like that. 🙄  Zippo, except that there might be a few cars hidden in the bowels of the ship along with some other freight.  And Hurtigruten's new expedition ships aren't ferries at all.

 

We were both *very* pleasantly surprised.  We went on one of their cruises that had an "Astronomy" theme for a large group of the passengers, with an emphasis on Northern Lights, no surprise.

 

We were on the Trollfjord, and it was very comfortable.  We were fortunate to have an OS (Owner's Suite), which was very spacious.  We did manage to peek into a couple of other cabins, and some of them were very small, but that is clearly described on Hurtigruten's website.

The food was very good.  There was an extra-pay "specialty dining" option (per dinner, not required for the entire cruise), and we found that underwhelming.  Some of our meal were clearly from the regular dining room.  The service was ridiculously slow.  We found the main dining room so much better!

 

The scenery was spectacular.  We went in late Feb/early March, so there would be both daylight and night time, plus having lots of snow!

 

If you go in the winter and think you may be on deck (outdoors) to watch for Northern Lights, please note that the COLD was UNREAL.  Truly brutal... in addition to the cold, there was wind (regular plus ship movement).   We didn't do any excursions such as dog-sledding (DH has severe allergies, alas), but that probably would also have been bitter cold.  [Note that I spent quite a few years in the upper mid-west, so "winter" wasn't new to me.]

 

We hope to return, perhaps in the summer.  However, those winter landscapes... so beautiful!

 

I wouldn't agree about their coastal voyage ships "not being cruise ships". 

One of their older ships (if it's still operating) would probably not be considered a "cruise ship", although it has passengers who really prefer that experience.

 

On the other Hurtigruten ships, there were (this was pre-Covid) lounges and bars, nicely served dinners (buffet lunches, with extraordinary selections), and there are regular cabins and some suites, with daily housekeeping/cleaning.  One difference was that this is also serious transportation along the coast, so that for any passengers who are on the ship for something like less than 24 hours, they don't need to get a cabin; everyone else must, and that's most of the passengers.  So there were a very few souls who would crash on some comfy seating in a lounge.  (That may be more of an issue in the summer/tourist season, but wasn't a problem at all when we were on board.)

To characterize the Hurtigruten ships as "freighters" and not cruise ships would be, in our minds, a serious understatement.  Someone could be on board most of their ships for the entire round trip cruise and never realize there was any non-cruise component to it below the passenger decks.

And their newer ships, their expedition ships (such as to Antarctica)... those seen to be even more special.  I cannot even imagine someone not considering those "cruise ships".

 

The main thing is to view their website and photos to get a sense of "what's onboard" for each of their ships, depending upon the itinerary one prefers.

 

GC

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

 

Sorry for the late reply, but I just stumbled across this post/thread.

 

Here is a link to the Hurtigruten sub-forum on CruiseCritic:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/663-hurtigruten/

 

There should be lots of information for you to browse there, plus some good responses to any questions that you post.

 

We took the Round Trip Norwegian Coastal Cruise a few years ago, and we LOVED it.

DH was a bit wary, because I made the "mistake" of using the word "ferry"!  I suspect that once he heard that word, he couldn't get images of the Staten Island Ferry in New York City out of his mind, and it is absolutely *nothing* like that. 🙄  Zippo, except that there might be a few cars hidden in the bowels of the ship along with some other freight.  And Hurtigruten's new expedition ships aren't ferries at all.

 

We were both *very* pleasantly surprised.  We went on one of their cruises that had an "Astronomy" theme for a large group of the passengers, with an emphasis on Northern Lights, no surprise.

 

We were on the Trollfjord, and it was very comfortable.  We were fortunate to have an OS (Owner's Suite), which was very spacious.  We did manage to peek into a couple of other cabins, and some of them were very small, but that is clearly described on Hurtigruten's website.

The food was very good.  There was an extra-pay "specialty dining" option (per dinner, not required for the entire cruise), and we found that underwhelming.  Some of our meal were clearly from the regular dining room.  The service was ridiculously slow.  We found the main dining room so much better!

 

The scenery was spectacular.  We went in late Feb/early March, so there would be both daylight and night time, plus having lots of snow!

 

If you go in the winter and think you may be on deck (outdoors) to watch for Northern Lights, please note that the COLD was UNREAL.  Truly brutal... in addition to the cold, there was wind (regular plus ship movement).   We didn't do any excursions such as dog-sledding (DH has severe allergies, alas), but that probably would also have been bitter cold.  [Note that I spent quite a few years in the upper mid-west, so "winter" wasn't new to me.]

 

We hope to return, perhaps in the summer.  However, those winter landscapes... so beautiful!

 

I wouldn't agree about their coastal voyage ships "not being cruise ships". 

One of their older ships (if it's still operating) would probably not be considered a "cruise ship", although it has passengers who really prefer that experience.

 

On the other Hurtigruten ships, there were (this was pre-Covid) lounges and bars, nicely served dinners (buffet lunches, with extraordinary selections), and there are regular cabins and some suites, with daily housekeeping/cleaning.  One difference was that this is also serious transportation along the coast, so that for any passengers who are on the ship for something like less than 24 hours, they don't need to get a cabin; everyone else must, and that's most of the passengers.  So there were a very few souls who would crash on some comfy seating in a lounge.  (That may be more of an issue in the summer/tourist season, but wasn't a problem at all when we were on board.)

To characterize the Hurtigruten ships as "freighters" and not cruise ships would be, in our minds, a serious understatement.  Someone could be on board most of their ships for the entire round trip cruise and never realize there was any non-cruise component to it below the passenger decks.

And their newer ships, their expedition ships (such as to Antarctica)... those seen to be even more special.  I cannot even imagine someone not considering those "cruise ships".

 

The main thing is to view their website and photos to get a sense of "what's onboard" for each of their ships, depending upon the itinerary one prefers.

 

GC

 

In the marine industry, the Hurtigruten ships are known as I described them in my post - Ro/Pax, which is any Roll On/Roll Off ship that also accommodates passengers. Some of the larger ships with extensive accommodation and pax services are known as Cruiseferries.

 

While they may provide many of the same services and standards as modern "Cruise Ships", they are not classed as cruise ships. With almost 30 yrs in command of Ro/Pax, and many years as Navigator on cruise ships and ocean liners, I do know the difference.

 

Since the enclosed vehicle decks should be off-limits to pax when the vessel is at sea, it is hardly surprising many pax are not aware of the vehicle decks.

[GeezerCouple]

7 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

In the marine industry, the Hurtigruten ships are known as I described them in my post - Ro/Pax, which is any Roll On/Roll Off ship that also accommodates passengers. Some of the larger ships with extensive accommodation and pax services are known as Cruiseferries.

 

While they may provide many of the same services and standards as modern "Cruise Ships", they are not classed as cruise ships. With almost 30 yrs in command of Ro/Pax, and many years as Navigator on cruise ships and ocean liners, I do know the difference.

 

Since the enclosed vehicle decks should be off-limits to pax when the vessel is at sea, it is hardly surprising many pax are not aware of the vehicle decks.

 

Are the newer Hurtigruten ships also "not classed as cruise ships"?

I'm not sure if they also are set up to carry any type of freight or cars, but I haven't seen them - yet.

 

Yes, "cruiseferries" would make sense as a category to those not knowledgeable or experienced with ships of these types or with the terminology.  But with only the word "ferry" used, it's hard, at least for some of us with certain experiences, not to have images of something like a Staten Island Ferry come to mind, and it certainly wasn't anything like that.  We did enjoy seeing some of the port activity, but at least when we were watching, it was relatively limited.  But if someone on board didn't know or happen to watch, it would have been easy to overlook.

 

Within weeks of our return from the Hurtigruten RT coastal cruise, DH got an email from an old college friend.  Among other topics, he mentioned his annoyance that his wife had insisted and they were soon to take a trip "in Norway on a FERRY!!" and he was not a happy camper.  It was a Hurtigruten ship very similar to the one we had just enjoyed, so DH wrote back with a "not to worry" message and some photos from the ship and the scenery.

 

We especially enjoyed seeing some of the very small, remote towns.  The settings were absolutely beautiful.  Well, the scenery was stunning the entire way, town or no town.  It remains one of our favorite trips ever, and we hope we get a chance to enjoy Hurtigruten - and Norway - again.

 

Thank you for adding some information.

 

GC

[Heidi13]

3 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

Are the newer Hurtigruten ships also "not classed as cruise ships"?

I'm not sure if they also are set up to carry any type of freight or cars, but I haven't seen them - yet.

 

Yes, "cruiseferries" would make sense as a category to those not knowledgeable or experienced with ships of these types or with the terminology.  But with only the word "ferry" used, it's hard, at least for some of us with certain experiences, not to have images of something like a Staten Island Ferry come to mind, and it certainly wasn't anything like that.  We did enjoy seeing some of the port activity, but at least when we were watching, it was relatively limited.  But if someone on board didn't know or happen to watch, it would have been easy to overlook.

 

Within weeks of our return from the Hurtigruten RT coastal cruise, DH got an email from an old college friend.  Among other topics, he mentioned his annoyance that his wife had insisted and they were soon to take a trip "in Norway on a FERRY!!" and he was not a happy camper.  It was a Hurtigruten ship very similar to the one we had just enjoyed, so DH wrote back with a "not to worry" message and some photos from the ship and the scenery.

 

We especially enjoyed seeing some of the very small, remote towns.  The settings were absolutely beautiful.  Well, the scenery was stunning the entire way, town or no town.  It remains one of our favorite trips ever, and we hope we get a chance to enjoy Hurtigruten - and Norway - again.

 

Thank you for adding some information.

 

GC

 

Ships such as the Roald Amundsen are designed as Expedition Ships and I do not believe they have any vehicle decks, so they are small cruise ships.

 

It is most unfortunate that many people still relate a ferry to bare bones transportation, but many of them are now as luxurious, and provide similar level of service as modern cruise ships. Especially in European waters, but even in Canada we have ferries with significantly enhanced the pax experiences operating on both coasts.

 

On the West Coast, we have a ship that daily, alternates northbound and southbound 15 hr voyages through the BC Inside Passage, the parts of the coast that the cruise ships no longer sail. Built as a Cruiseferry, it offers a reasonable standard of passenger service and amenities, and the scenery is spectacular. However, prior to departure they load the cars and trucks onto the vehicle deck and discharge them upon arrival, so it is still a ferry. This would be close to your experience on the Norway coast with Hurtigruten.

 

Even my last command, which carried 470 cars and 2,000 pax had 2 full passenger decks, with 3 venues to eat - snack bar, cafeteria and buffet. The quality in the buffet was consistent with your mainstream cruise lines. That was on a short run of only 1 hr 30 mins.

[Etta1213]

On 7/18/2022 at 10:34 PM, Heidi13 said:

 

In the marine industry, the Hurtigruten ships are known as I described them in my post - Ro/Pax, which is any Roll On/Roll Off ship that also accommodates passengers. Some of the larger ships with extensive accommodation and pax services are known as Cruiseferries.

 

While they may provide many of the same services and standards as modern "Cruise Ships", they are not classed as cruise ships. With almost 30 yrs in command of Ro/Pax, and many years as Navigator on cruise ships and ocean liners, I do know the difference.

 

Since the enclosed vehicle decks should be off-limits to pax when the vessel is at sea, it is hardly surprising many pax are not aware of the vehicle decks.

What "rolls on, rolls off"? Cars? Some type of cargo containers?

[Heidi13]

13 hours ago, Etta1213 said:

What "rolls on, rolls off"? Cars? Some type of cargo containers?

 

The cargo can be any vehicle capable of being driven on and off the ferry - cars, caravans, motorhomes, buses, trucks, etc.

[chengkp75]

On 7/7/2023 at 9:36 PM, Etta1213 said:

What "rolls on, rolls off"? Cars? Some type of cargo containers?

I worked a RO/RO ship for years, see this photo:

 

The ship carried autos, tractors, construction vehicles, farm vehicles, regular 20' and 40' cargo containers loaded on low-boy trailers (even double stacked), and M-1 Abrams tanks for the US Army.  We also carried locomotives imported from Sweden for the NJ Transit Authority, again carried on low-boy trailers.  The ship has two large ramps on the stern that go from the ship to the dock, and virtually anything that can fit through the doorway can roll on or off.