Carnival Norwegian Fjords Ports - Tour vs DIY

[Zenlotusleaf]

Thanks to everyone who offered input regarding Norwegian vs Iceland Cruise. After much back and forth, our group settled on Norway. 
 

What do you thinking of this itinerary? Which ports would lend themselves to self exploration and which ones would you definitely recommend booking a tour?

 

 

Start: London (Dover) 

Bergen 

Alesund 

Molde 

Olden 

Cruise Nordfjord 

Skjolden 

Cruise Sognefjord 

Haugesund 

End: London (Dover) 

[JimmyTheSaint]

We just came off Carnival Pride yesterday after finishing a cruise to the Norwegian Fjords. Hopefully you get better weather than we did. We prefer to organise our own excursions so we didn't book any through Carnival.

 

Skjolden is very small, the sheep in the field by the dock seemed to be the most popular sight. 

Olden, close to Briksdal Glacier which can be reached on public bus, sightseeing bus and numerous excursions companies all offereing tours at the dock

Alesund, very interesting town, great viewpoint up 418 steps, easily reached from the dock

Bergen, large town, funicular railway and scenic hikes, markets, historic sights, all within 5-10 walks from the ship

Molde, very neat small town, hikes in the hills above,

[hallasm]

I’ll recommend DIY for all ports
In addition I’ll add Loen Skylift viewpoint in Olden.

Scenic cruising into Olden and Skjolden - you must be at the upper deck when entering the fjords early in the morning - sunrise at 4 to 4:30am

[Zenlotusleaf]

Thank you @JimmyTheSaint and @hallasm ! This is super helpful and exactly the advice I was looking for. This will be a family trip with lots of seniors and we’re all cruise newbies. Having to balance interesting/fun with suitable exertion level is a balancing act and I truly appreciate the generosity of wisdom sharing in this group!

[JimmyTheSaint]

The Briksdal Glacier has troll cars ( they're like golf buggies ) that take people from the entrance up to about 200 metres from the glacier. Very useful for people who couldn't do the 40 minutes walk up the hill. Sorry I don't know the cost of these.