Into the Midnight Sun Shore Excursions

rjp50 · January 22

We will be doing this cruise this summer and I am starting to plan our shore excursion strategy. Specifically, for each port I would like to have a plan for using either the included excursion, a paid Viking excursion, a third party excursion or a combination of these. Does anyone who has been on this cruise or a different itinerary but with some shared ports have any suggestions for each of the ports? Any "must do" excursions? Any "don't waste your time" excursions. In general, we are not big on information overload excursions where the guides pump you full of trivia that within a few hours you have forgotten all of it. We prefer sightseeing and ones that are more photogenic.

JM0115 · January 22

6 minutes ago, rjp50 said:

We will be doing this cruise this summer and I am starting to plan our shore excursion strategy. Specifically, for each port I would like to have a plan for using either the included excursion, a paid Viking excursion, a third party excursion or a combination of these. Does anyone who has been on this cruise or a different itinerary but with some shared ports have any suggestions for each of the ports? Any "must do" excursions? Any "don't waste your time" excursions. In general, we are not big on information overload excursions where the guides pump you full of trivia that within a few hours you have forgotten all of it. We prefer sightseeing and ones that are more photogenic.

Pulpit Rock cruise is great!

CCWineLover · January 22

46 minutes ago, rjp50 said:

We will be doing this cruise this summer and I am starting to plan our shore excursion strategy. Specifically, for each port I would like to have a plan for using either the included excursion, a paid Viking excursion, a third party excursion or a combination of these. Does anyone who has been on this cruise or a different itinerary but with some shared ports have any suggestions for each of the ports? Any "must do" excursions? Any "don't waste your time" excursions. In general, we are not big on information overload excursions where the guides pump you full of trivia that within a few hours you have forgotten all of it. We prefer sightseeing and ones that are more photogenic.

The Bergen Grieg house and concert and Stave church!

Fabulous included tour to the North Cape lookout in Honnigsvag.

Wonderful but demanding hike at Lofoten

Excellent included tours in Shetland and Orkney Islands

Not so much:

Tromso included

Edinburgh included

LindaS272 · January 22

For the Norway portions, you might find this recent thread helpful

DrKoob · January 23

Unfortunately I will be of no help but I do want to monitor this thread as we are doing the June 14 sailing of this cruise and now that Viking has posted (but not opened) the shore excursions, I am in the same boat.

rjp50 · January 23

22 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

The Bergen Grieg house and concert and Stave church!

Fabulous included tour to the North Cape lookout in Honnigsvag.

Wonderful but demanding hike at Lofoten

Excellent included tours in Shetland and Orkney Islands

Not so much:

Tromso included

Edinburgh included

Thanks. The listing on the cruise planner for Tromso has two included tours - a walking tour and a panoramic bus tour. Which one did you go on that is not so great? Did you talk with anyone else as to what they did in Tromso which may be better?

CCWineLover · January 24

4 hours ago, rjp50 said:

Thanks. The listing on the cruise planner for Tromso has two included tours - a walking tour and a panoramic bus tour. Which one did you go on that is not so great? Did you talk with anyone else as to what they did in Tromso which may be better?

I saw that - we are going to be on Viking in May up to the north cape. 2nd time around.

We only had a panoramic included tour in Tromso - that was basically worthless. I will definitely do the walking tour this time! Nice that they added this. The town looked particularly interested to walk around. The great optional tour we took does not seem to be offered anymore (a visit to the island of Sommeroy with a guided walk. I also noticed that the prices in Norway have skyrocketed for optional tours!

Edited January 24 by CCWineLover

janetcbl · January 24

12 hours ago, CCWineLover said:

I saw that - we are going to be on Viking in May up to the north cape. 2nd time around.

We only had a panoramic included tour in Tromso - that was basically worthless. I will definitely do the walking tour this time! Nice that they added this. The town looked particularly interested to walk around. The great optional tour we took does not seem to be offered anymore (a visit to the island of Sommeroy with a guided walk. I also noticed that the prices in Norway have skyrocketed for optional tours!

We did “Portals of the Arctic” which was very good. It was a perfect day with great views from the mountain, but it was crowded. However you could take off and hike up high and get away from the crowd. The Polar Museum is also worth a visit.

CCWineLover · January 24

1 hour ago, janetcbl said:

We did “Portals of the Arctic” which was very good. It was a perfect day with great views from the mountain, but it was crowded. However you could take off and hike up high and get away from the crowd. The Polar Museum is also worth a visit.

Thanks! Great idea!

philw1776 · January 24

My takes from our cruise last year. Ignore crossouts.

Did Churchills War Museum on our own pre-cruise. Outstanding. Also took 2 hour boat ride on thames, well worth it.

D2: SUN JUN 25 London

TOWER OF LONDON 4H 9AM-1PM

It was OK but not great. Glad to have seen it.

~~ROYAL GREENWICH BY FOOT 1.5 HR 2PM-3:30PM~~

Missed it but should be worth taking. Love Greenwich

D4: TUE JUN 27 Edinburgh, Scotland TENDER

EDINBURGH HIGHLIGHTS 3H 9AM-12AM

Disappointing bus tour. Just get a view of the castle.

ROYAL YACHT BRITANNIA 2PM ON OUR OWN

Long walk on our own in the rain. OUTSTANDING!!!

D5: WED JUN 28 Orkney Islands, Scotland TENDER

ORKNEY’S STONE AGE 4H 10AM-2PM
Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!
Orkney is much prettier than Shetland. Take this tour.

D6: THUR JUN 29 Shetland Islands, Scotland

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS OF THE SHETLANDS 4H 9:15AM-1:30PM

Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!

D9: SUN JULY 2 Honningsvag, Norway

DRIVE TO NORTH CAPE 3.5HR 8:45AM-12:15PM

Scenic bus ride climbing to the top. Great vistas. Museum at top is OK.

D10: MON JULY 3 TromsØ, Norway

PORTALS TO THE ARCTIC 3.5HR 8:30AM-12PM

Great tour. Enjoyed the ride to the mountaintop & views. Arctic museum was fun. You could just walk to museum on your own from the ship.

WALKING TOUR OF TROMSØ 1.5HR 2:30PM-4PM

Decent. Not great but we enjoyed it.

D11: TUE JULY 4 Lofoten, Norway

LOFOTEN VIKING EXPERIENCE 3.5H 9:15AM-12:45PM

Fun & interesting re-enactments. Scenic setting. Lofoten is very scenic.

PANORAMIC LOFOTEN 2.5HR 2:45PM-5:15PM

OK to do. Terrible guide for us. Vistas well worth seeing as you walk outside the bus.

D13: THUR JULY 6 Geiranger, Norway

~~KYAKING GEIRANGERFJORD 3H 9AM-12PM~~

~~We cancelled because of rain forecast but rain never came.~~

EAGLE’S BEND OVERLOOK & PANORAMIC DRIVE 3H 1:45PM-4:45PM
Very nice. Interesting stops & superb vistas. Do not miss this.
Also do not miss the sail in and sail out with myriad waterfalls.

D14: FRI JULY 7 Bergen, Norway

~~FJORDS CRUISE 3.5H 10AM 1:30PM BOOK ON OUR OWN~~

We did FUNICULAR on our own. Easy. Great vistas.

Edited January 24 by philw1776

CCWineLover · January 24

8 minutes ago, philw1776 said:

My takes from our cruise last year. Ignore crossouts.

Did Churchills War Museum on our own pre-cruise. Outstanding. Also took 2 hour boat ride on thames, well worth it.

D2: SUN JUN 25 London

TOWER OF LONDON   4H   9AM-1PM

It was OK but not great. Glad to have seen it.

~~ROYAL GREENWICH BY FOOT  1.5 HR  2PM-3:30PM~~

Missed it but should be worth taking. Love Greenwich



D4: TUE JUN 27    Edinburgh, Scotland   TENDER

EDINBURGH HIGHLIGHTS  3H  9AM-12AM

Disappointing bus tour. Just get a view of the castle.

ROYAL YACHT BRITANNIA  2PM   ON OUR OWN

Long walk on our own in the rain. OUTSTANDING!!!

D5: WED  JUN 28 Orkney Islands, Scotland               TENDER

ORKNEY’S STONE AGE  4H  10AM-2PM
Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!
Orkney is much prettier than Shetland. Take this tour.

D6: THUR  JUN 29 Shetland Islands, Scotland

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS OF THE SHETLANDS  4H  9:15AM-1:30PM

Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!

D9: SUN JULY 2    Honningsvag, Norway

DRIVE TO NORTH CAPE  3.5HR   8:45AM-12:15PM

Scenic bus ride climbing to the top. Great vistas. Museum at top is OK.

D10: MON  JULY 3 TromsØ, Norway

PORTALS TO THE ARCTIC   3.5HR  8:30AM-12PM

Great tour. Enjoyed the ride to the mountaintop & views. Arctic museum was fun.  You could just walk to museum on your own from the ship.

WALKING TOUR OF TROMSØ   1.5HR   2:30PM-4PM

Decent. Not great but we enjoyed it.

D11: TUE  JULY 4   Lofoten, Norway

LOFOTEN VIKING EXPERIENCE   3.5H   9:15AM-12:45PM

Fun & interesting re-enactments. Scenic setting. Lofoten is very scenic.

PANORAMIC LOFOTEN   2.5HR   2:45PM-5:15PM

OK to do. Terrible guide for us. Vistas well worth seeing as you walk outside the bus.



D13: THUR  JULY 6 Geiranger, Norway

~~KYAKING GEIRANGERFJORD   3H   9AM-12PM~~

~~We cancelled because of rain forecast but rain never came.~~

EAGLE’S BEND OVERLOOK & PANORAMIC DRIVE  3H  1:45PM-4:45PM
Very nice. Interesting stops & superb vistas. Do not miss this.
Also do not miss the sail in and sail out with myriad waterfalls.

D14: FRI JULY 7   Bergen, Norway

~~FJORDS CRUISE  3.5H  10AM  1:30PM            BOOK ON OUR OWN~~

We did FUNICULAR on our own. Easy. Great vistas.

Phil - nice job.

We did all of these excursions (Viking and on our own) except Tromso back in summer '22.

Concur totally with your assessments!! Surprises: The North Cape was breathtaking; the Funicular on your own in Bergen had the most incredible views - you could see the ship down below!

janetcbl · January 24

18 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

Phil - nice job.

We did all of these excursions (Viking and on our own) except Tromso back in summer '22.

Concur totally with your assessments!! Surprises: The North Cape was breathtaking; the Funicular on your own in Bergen had the most incredible views - you could see the ship down below!

And the walk down from the top of the Funicular is on an easy well marked path with some beautiful views.

BlairsvilleCruiseGirl · January 24

3 hours ago, philw1776 said:

D4: TUE JUN 27 Edinburgh, Scotland TENDER

EDINBURGH HIGHLIGHTS 3H 9AM-12AM

Disappointing bus tour. Just get a view of the castle.

We're doing Midnight Sun in May/June and were thinking of doing the included Edinburgh Highlights just to get an idea and what is where and then heading off on our own. Is that possible or do we have to go back to the port (and if so, do you know if Viking has shuttles running to/from downtown)?

CCWineLover · January 24

1 hour ago, BlairsvilleCruiseGirl said:

We're doing Midnight Sun in May/June and were thinking of doing the included Edinburgh Highlights just to get an idea and what is where and then heading off on our own. Is that possible or do we have to go back to the port (and if so, do you know if Viking has shuttles running to/from downtown)?

That is exactly what we did. Got on the include highlights bus - it drove around town and past the castle. We could get off and walk on our own. About 50% got off. There was a shuttle that left about every 30 minutes from a square nearby. So we did about 3 hours on our own. Made it worthwhile as the bus ride was not that worth it (but it was an included tour).

Edited January 24 by CCWineLover

Frenchberet · January 24

We’re still talking about some of our favorites from the Midnight Sun itinerary —

- Grieg’s House & recital (Bergen)

- Sea Fishing (Lofoten)

- Husky Trek (Tromso)

- King Crab Safari (Honningsvag)

- Greenwich Observatory (we did this on our own following Viking’s included excursion)

Great cruise, have fun!

BlairsvilleCruiseGirl · January 25

21 hours ago, Frenchberet said:

We’re still talking about some of our favorites from the Midnight Sun itinerary —

- Grieg’s House & recital (Bergen)

- Sea Fishing (Lofoten)

- Husky Trek (Tromso)

- King Crab Safari (Honningsvag)

- Greenwich Observatory (we did this on our own following Viking’s included excursion)

Great cruise, have fun!

We're thinking of doing the Sea Fishing in Lofoten. How was it? Do you have any tips or suggestions? Or pictures? And lastly, did you tip the captain or mates on the fishing boat? We're trying to figure out how much/if any NOK we need to bring. Thanks!

Frenchberet · January 25

2 hours ago, BlairsvilleCruiseGirl said:

We're thinking of doing the Sea Fishing in Lofoten. How was it? Do you have any tips or suggestions? Or pictures? And lastly, did you tip the captain or mates on the fishing boat? We're trying to figure out how much/if any NOK we need to bring. Thanks!

We aren’t fishermen by any stretch of the imagination but we loved this excursion! There were only 10-12 people onboard a medium sized boat so there was plenty of room. The company provided waterproof jumpsuits and fishing equipment. We were out for about 2 1/2 hours and caught a bunch of pollock, each maybe 24 inches long. It was a lot of fun. The guide was very informative and helpful. We tipped him but I don’t recall the amount.

katlew · January 26

We really enjoyed the included bus tour on Shetland. It helped we had a very good driver. He turned us on to a wonderful local fish & chip shop for lunch. We did the Shetland Museum on our own in the afternoon.

In Orkney, we did the included tour in the morning and in the afternoon we booked our own tasting and tour at Highland Park as it was much cheaper than Vikings. It is a hike to get up to the distillery if you are walking.

The Edinburgh included tour was not great at all. It was the beginning of the Tattoo and the bus could barley get through the packed streets. We actually spent a lot of time sitting in traffic.

Do the Bergen tramway on your own. We also did the Flam railway from Oslo to Bergen on our own which was nice.

We did the Trollstigen Troll Road optional tour. It is a long day in the bus & ended up being so foggy we couldn't see anything. We did have one nice stop at a garden along the way.

CatalinaUK · January 26

2 hours ago, katlew said:

The Edinburgh included tour was not great at all. It was the beginning of the Tattoo and the bus could barley get through the packed streets. We actually spent a lot of time sitting in traffic.

The Edinburgh Tattoo also coincides with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (a big comedy/theatre festival). Edinburgh gets so crowded in August that many locals prefer to leave the city during August (if possible).

If anybody is coming to Edinburgh in August, be prepared to walk up Royal Mile to the Castle rather than be driven there. There are simply too many people for traffic to run smoothly. Princes Street (the main road artery) is also hellish in August.

DrKoob · January 27

Thanks for all the wonderful ideas. We are doing this cruise in June, so we won't run into the Tattoo or the Fringe. We have been in Edinburgh for both, and if you have a chance, you need to see the Tattoo. The absolute most incredible show. Sadly, you can only do it if the ship is doing an overnight. It doesn't end until close to 10:30 pm. But the previous posters were correct: the traffic is a mess in August.

basinview · February 1

Viking offers 2 included tours in Lofoten/Leknes: "Panoramic Lofoten" (bus tour) or "Panoramic Lofoten by Land & Sea" (boat from Leknes to Henningsvaer and return to Leknes by coach). Has anyone done these excursions? Any thoughts on which one might be better? Thanks

Edited February 1 by basinview

janetcbl · February 1

8 minutes ago, basinview said:

Viking offers 2 included tours in Lofoten/Leknes: "Panoramic Lofoten" (bus tour) or "Panoramic Lofoten by Land & Sea" (boat from Leknes to Henningsvaer and return to Leknes by coach). Has anyone done these excursions? Any thoughts on which one might be better? Thanks

I have spent time in the Lofotens, but have not done these tours. If you are interested in Art, Henningsvaer has some art galleries and is a charming, picturesque town.

Peregrina651 · February 2

Tromso, save your pennies and do it on your own.

The best view of the Arctic Church is from a distance. Interior is plain and simple.

Cable car closes if it is windy. Cable car gets fogged in regularly. No refund from the tour if you miss the cable car. Take a cab there and back if the weather is clear.

Polar Museum. Great but I found the museum too small for groups. We ended up wandering off on our own.

FoggyEthan · February 2

2 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

Cable car closes if it is windy. Cable car gets fogged in regularly. No refund from the tour if you miss the cable car. Take a cab there and back if the weather is clear.

Ugh! What happens if they close it and you're already at the top! 😎

janetcbl · February 2

17 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

Tromso, save your pennies and do it on your own.

The best view of the Arctic Church is from a distance. Interior is plain and simple.

Cable car closes if it is windy. Cable car gets fogged in regularly. No refund from the tour if you miss the cable car. Take a cab there and back if the weather is clear.

Polar Museum. Great but I found the museum too small for groups. We ended up wandering off on our own.

I have mentioned before: if you enjoy art, the Northern Norwegian Art Museum is definitely worth a visit in Tromso.

Edited February 2 by janetcbl

Into the Midnight Sun Shore Excursions

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ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS OF THE SHETLANDS 4H 9:15AM-1:30PM

Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!

WALKING TOUR OF TROMSØ 1.5HR 2:30PM-4PM

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ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS OF THE SHETLANDS 4H 9:15AM-1:30PM

Into archaeology. Scenic, informative & fun!

WALKING TOUR OF TROMSØ 1.5HR 2:30PM-4PM

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