Need help with Norway shore excursions

[lion1956]

We are going to Norway on MSC next July and I need help with shore excursions, the MSC web site sucks and does not describe the excursions clearly, we land in Copenhagen and I will book excursions with Viator before we board the ship but once we depart I would like to book through MSC, firt stop is Warnenmunde (we don't want to go to Berlin-to far away), second stop is Bergen and then Eidfjord and then Kristiansand and last stop Oslo.  Has anyone done shore excursion in these towns and is so what do you recommend, If the answer is don't book any and just walk the port area that is also fine, really need some help here, 

[janetcbl]

34 minutes ago, lion1956 said:

We are going to Norway on MSC next July and I need help with shore excursions, the MSC web site sucks and does not describe the excursions clearly, we land in Copenhagen and I will book excursions with Viator before we board the ship but once we depart I would like to book through MSC, firt stop is Warnenmunde (we don't want to go to Berlin-to far away), second stop is Bergen and then Eidfjord and then Kristiansand and last stop Oslo.  Has anyone done shore excursion in these towns and is so what do you recommend, If the answer is don't book any and just walk the port area that is also fine, really need some help here, 

In Warnenmunde we went to Rostock, a fascinating city with much to see. We were on a different cruise and they offered a tour there. We spent an afternoon wandering around Warnenmunde….very Coney Island-ish, but kind of fun. Bergen, Floyen is a must as well as the Fish Market. A walking tour of Bryggen will give you a good overview of the area in the time of the Hanseatic League. And Oslo: the town hall, Vigeland (sculpture park), National Gallery and Munch Museum (art), Fram and Kon-Tiki (Viking Ship Museum is closed). Enjoy! Just a few ideas.

[lion1956]

Thank you for the help

[kaisatsu]

Bergen and Oslo are both pretty easy to explore on your own.

 

In Bergen, if the weather is nice (cloud cover is not too low to block the view), I would start with the Fløibanen funicular to beat the cruise crowd. You can either ride it roundtrip or choose to walk back downhill on the forest paths. Then explore the UNESCO-listed Bryggen waterfront area. There are guided tours from the Bryggen Museum at 11 and 13 (that includes a ticket to the museum), but I’ve never gotten the timing to work and just did self-guided walks with the guided map from the museum. It’s also fun to walk through the super touristy Fisketorget (which now sells more souvenirs than fresh fish). And I like to pop over to the other side of the harbor to get the iconic view of the full Bryggen waterfront. (I also really like the Hanseatic Museum for understanding the history of how the city fit into the European trading routes, but the museum is under extensive restoration until 2027.)

 

In Oslo, my recommendations depend a lot on personal preferences, since there aren’t just a few clear must-sees. These are my top suggestions in general: The open-air Folk Museum houses historic buildings from all around Norway, including an iconic stave church. It includes a lot of displays explaining Norwegian culture as well as live reenactors during peak season.  Vigelands Sculpture Park is an entire park full of sculptures of the human form through all walks of life. The city of Oslo donated Vigelands workspace in exchange for his work, which was erected in the middle of Frognerpark. The Fram Museum is usually a surprise favorite of many visitors. It’s home to the Fram polar exploration ship that Amundsen used on his expedition that was the first to reach the South Pole. You can explore inside the ship as well as learn about other polar exploration activities. Lastly, the new National Museum is a great addition to the city, housing one edition of Munch’s famous “The Scream” as well as hundreds of other Norwegian and international paintings and design objects. It’s a huge place, so it’s not recommended to try to see it all in a single visit, but it’s very well curated. Getting around in Oslo is quite easy using the Ruter public transit system, which has an English language website and app.

Edited July 16, 2023 by kaisatsu

[kitkat343]

We were in Warnenmunde on a Monday, so Schwerin Castle was closed but we might have done that if it was open.  For our 3 year old, we wound up riding the Molli steam train, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend that unless you really love trains or are traveling with kids (it's a nice experience but definitely not a must see).

 

  

Edited July 16, 2023 by kitkat343

[beachluver9]

We have cruised on MSC to the Baltic region twice.  The first time we left CPH and did the eastern loop to include Tallin, St Petersburg, etc.  The second time we left CPH and cruise the Norwegian fjords.

 

For the most part, we found the MSC tours to be good.  We had one cancelled in Stockholm (24 hrs notice) due to a lack of English speaking passengers, so just did the HoHo instead.

 

The first time we stopped in Kiel and went to Luebeck with MSC.  I believe that excursion is also offered from Warnenmunde.  If was a very interesting excursion and would definitely recommend it.

 

The second time we sailed with MSC we stopped in Warnenmunde.  We took the MSC excursion to Schwerin.  This was also a good excursion and gave you a view of the countryside along the way since there was not a direct highway.  The only negative about Schwerin is that English is not readily spoken by the residents and you are given a good bit of time at the end of the tour to shop, grab a beer, etc.  So, download the German version of google translate before you leave home.

 

We found MSC excursions to be much better priced that duplicate tours offered on other lines.  The shore excursions desk (land and sea) struggles a bit due to the language barriers created with so many international passengers.  We were able to see what we wanted to see and did not feel like we were being robbed of $ in the process, unlike other lines like Princess, Holland America, etc.  We took a few at the Norwegian ports, but nothing that stood out as a great tour.  Not bad, just not great.

 

One recommendation for MSC... the bartenders were not familiar with American-style cocktails, but could make anything you wanted if you could give them a recipe or good description.  

 

Also, the wine lists are comprised mostly of French and Italian wines.  This is not a problem if you like red wine and sweet whites.  I drink Sauvignon Blanc and could not get a Marlborough on the ships to save my life.  Our post-excursion routine on the ship was to head to the German section of the buffet, grab a cold beer in a frozen mug and a hot freshly baked pretzel!

 

Enjoy!

[Donna S Maryland]

We did a HAL cruise July 2023 and we went to Eidfjord and Bergen.  Here are my write-ups if this helps. 

 

Eidfjord: In the am, we walked around town, going to the view point and walking to see the Viking burial mounds. You can also take the troll train to see these places, but we liked walking through the neighborhoods.  The town is very small, very walkable. In the afternoon, we did the Go Fjords Voringfoss and Hardanger Nature Center Tour. Had booked this tour online about 6 weeks in advance as a port day excursion on our cruise. The bus came on time and was easy to find just beside the tourist information center by the Pier in Eidfjord. While this was supposed to be an electric bus, we were told that bus was having issues, so a gas bus was substituted. The bus was comfortable and clean. The driver was very nice. Note that there is not a typical tour guide on the bus, just the driver. He plays a pre-recorded audio tape during the drive which provides some general information about the town and surroundings that you pass through. The audio on our tour was only in English. The tour was exactly to the itinerary, with two stops. First stop was the Hardanger Nature Center. Entrance fee was included with the tour and we had 1.5 hours  to browse the nice exhibits at our own pace and watch the film. There is a gift shop, bathrooms, and cafe...which has a grass roof complete with goats. The museum exhibits are nicely done displays in English and Norwegian, with some interactive displays. The museum is not large, we felt we had an appropriate amount of time there. The movie is very nice, so be sure to catch that. Second stop was the Fossli Hotel and Voringfoss waterfall, where we had 50 minutes. Unfortunately, there was lots of fog/clouds there so we could barely see the actual waterfall, but could hear it roaring. We had enough time to walk over the new steel bridge, but there are lots of steps which could be a bit challenging for some. There are also observation platforms closer to the hotel with fewer steps. We had just enough time for a quick visit to the separate gift shop, but did not go into the actual hotel. Scenery along the drive was nice. Overall, a good way to get out of Eidford for 3 hours to see these two places, and much cheaper than the same shore excursion through the ship. 

 

Bergen: We did not book any excursions for this port, electing instead to walk around the city ourselves.  Lots of great stores – and not just the souvenir/tourist stores along the Bryggen waterfront, but a wide variety of department stores, high end brand stores, as well as wonderful bookstores and a great gaming store.  This is a flourishing city, not just a tourist area. Walked through the fish market and along the waterfront. We arrived at the funicular station around 11:00 am and there was a very long line at the ticket window (there were two cruise ships in town that day).  But, the line moved steadily and the funiculars were running constantly, so it took us about 30 minutes to get to the top. It was partly cloudy on the day we were there, with short periods of rain. We luckily were able to have some sun and clear views when we first arrived at the top, but then more rain settled in.  We walked around the top, enjoyed the views while we had them, saw the goats, strolled through the troll garden and the teenagers enjoyed the adventure park. There is a gift store, restrooms, and refreshments at the top.  We stayed about an hour, would have likely stayed longer without the rain. Lines were definitely much shorter when we returned in the early afternoon. We enjoyed a nice lunch by the fish market at the Harbour Cafe sitting outside and watching the crowd go by (burgers were good, as were the Ceasar salads, and the fried cheese and garlic shrimp tapas).  We had some good soft serve ice cream at one of the food trucks by the fish market and then strolled over to the lovely lake, opera house, and art museum area. Took a train to the SK Brann football arena, but unfortunately, the team store was closed. We were able to fool around a bit on one of the outside practice fields with a beat up ball we found. 

[edinburgher]

On 7/15/2023 at 11:51 PM, lion1956 said:

We are going to Norway on MSC next July and I need help with shore excursions

You might find it more helpful to read past threads and posts for all your ports due to the amount of information within them.,as reading them might help you decide.

 

To find them, go to the N. Europe and Baltic Ports GENERAL forum, not an individual thread, and input the name of one of your ports in the empty search box under your username.  Hit the little spy glass and within a few seconds, all past threads including that name will appear ready for you to read.  rrepeat the process with your other ports in turn.

 After reading them, you may find that tours are not needed in every port as there are some you could very easily DIY.  And be aware that Viator is not a tour company, but a middleman, so you won't know which company you are booked with unless you can track them down online by using the Viator description. It means that any questions you might have, or issues, will all need to go through Viator.

 

And you said

 

I will book excursions with Viator before we board the ship but once we depart I would like to book through MSC

 

If you plan to cancel any tours regarless of which company you use, you need to read the T'c and C's very carefully as there may be cancellation penalties.

[bookbabe]

On 8/12/2023 at 9:34 PM, Donna S Maryland said:

Bergen: We did not book any excursions for this port, electing instead to walk around the city ourselves.  Lots of great stores – and not just the souvenir/tourist stores along the Bryggen waterfront, but a wide variety of department stores, high end brand stores, as well as wonderful bookstores and a great gaming store.

Gaming store?  Would you remember some more details?  Location or name?  And what type of stuff did they have?

 

I might actually get DH to agree to spend the afternoon shopping if I can add a good gaming store to the itinerary...   😉

 

[Donna S Maryland]

Bookbabe

13 hours ago, bookbabe said:

Gaming store?  Would you remember some more details?  Location or name?  And what type of stuff did they have?

 

I might actually get DH to agree to spend the afternoon shopping if I can add a good gaming store to the itinerary...   😉

 

The store is not far from the fish market area, on Standkaien street, called Outland Bergen. Legos, D&D, MTG, comic books, Pokémon, and others. My teenagers loved it.  https://www.outland.no/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=GMB

[newcruisers70]

We just did Eidfjord and Kristiansand and both were great.  As others have already mentioned, in Eidfjord a tour to Voringsfossen is great if you like waterfalls.  There is also a nice ~2hr hike (the yellow route) through the forest, by an old Viking burial ground, and to a great view point above the town and harbor.  It does require some uphill hiking.  Maps are available in the Tourist office right by the cruise port. 

 

Kristiansand: The Movik fort is a WWII site that has the 2nd biggest land based cannon (with a range of 55km) in the world, which the German's put there to defend the coastline and close the Skaggerak straight between Norway and Denmark to allied ships (another one was placed on the Denmark side).  The whole site has been turned into a museum and is very interesting, especially for history/military buffs.  There is a public bus every 20 minutes between the fort and Kristiansand, and is easy to do to/from the cruise port.https://www.kristiansand-norway.com/attractions/kristiansandkanonmuseet.html

[dsrdsrdsr]

You may already know this, but when researching Kristiansand, don't make the same mistake as a port lecturer on one of my ships and confuse it with Kristiansund.  They are sometimes known as Kristiansand S and Kristiansund N to avoid confusion.  Cruise ships call at both places!

 

Happily, no-one on this thread has got confused, so all is well so far!  I could tell you about Kristiansund, but I had better not!

[edinburgher]

On 7/15/2023 at 11:51 PM, lion1956 said:

We are going to Norway on MSC next July and I need help with shore excursions

all of your ports have been asked about before now, indeed some are FAQs and it would be helpful for you to read some of the previous threads and replies which will contain suggestions and also helpful information. 

 

Use the SEARCH TOOL to find them.  Also mentioned in post #8. If you do not know how to use it, go to the GENERAL forum for each port, not an individual thread.  Most, if not all will be on the N. Europe and Baltic Sea forum.  In the empty SEARCH BOX under your user name, input the name of one of your ports, hit the little spy glass and within seconds, all previous threads containing that word will appear ready for you to choose which to read.  Repeat with your other ports one at a time.

 

For best results be careful with your spelling, eg you misspelled WARNEMUNDE, and a wrong spelling will give you no results.

Edited September 10, 2023 by edinburgher