Norwegian Fjords

The city center is a charming mix of old city walls and a large modern shopping centre. With multiple restaurants, museums, cinemas and theatres there is plenty to be explored. Time spent at embarkation and disembarkation ports may be limited which may restrict availability of shore excursions.

Haugesund, homeland of the Viking kings and birthplace of Norway, is a place where you can inhale the Viking spirit. Surrounded by beautiful coastline, spectacular waterfalls and majestic fjords it’s no wonder the kings called this extraordinary setting home. Populated for thousands of years, you can walk in the footsteps of the great kings at the Nordvegen History Centre and travel back over 3,500 years. St Olav’s Church, dating from 1250 AD, is a monument to the former days of glory, and next to the church stands one of Norway’s tallest pillars, Virgin Mary’s Sewing Needle. In nearby Rehaugene you can explore the ‘Pyramids of the North’ – six intriguing Bronze Age, earthen burial mounds. And if you are feeling like a spot of retail therapy, you’re in luck – not only is Haugesund filled with charming markets it’s also home to Norway’s longest pedestrian street.

The peaceful village of Olden has the perfect Fjordland cruise setting – nestling at the southern end of one branch of the beautiful Nordfjord and at the entrance to the gorgeous Oldedalen Valley.

A lake in the valley has been turned a rich, deep green by the river pouring down the mountains from the vast, million-years-old Briksdal Glacier. Giant waterfalls also cascade down making the views even more spectacular as you travel through the valley to the foot of the glacier – one of the offshoots of the vast Jostedal Glacier now designated as a national park. Other tours head overland to the inner Nordfjord area with its wind-blown rocks, towering mountains and verdant valleys. Also in the area are folk and glacier museums, a skiing centre on the glacier plateau and northern Europe’s deepest lake – Hornindalsvatnet.

Because it was completely rebuilt after being destroyed by fire in 1904, Alesund looks quite different to other Norwegian towns along the country’s west coast now better known as simply ‘Fjordland’.

Stretching across three islands at the mouth of the magnificent Geirangerfjord, Alesunds architecture is now an eclectic mixture of mock-Gothic and neo-classical with more than a dash of Art Nouveau. Turrets and spires dot the skyline and you can trace the towns trend setting style development at the Art Nouveau Centre, one of several fascinating museums in the town. The pick is the open-air Sunnmre while the Atlantic Sea-Park is also worth a visit as one of the largest aquariums in northern Europe.

A delightfully remote Arctic archipelago, the Lofoten Islands offer a vista of natural beauty spectacular even by Norways high standards. Yet it was as recently as 1984 that the first cruise ship called at any of its ports: Leknes, Svolvaer and Stamsund.

Enjoy the best of all possible worlds in Norways first-ever capital, which is still its third largest city and one of its most popular Fjordland cruise ports, Trondheim. Looking south along the picturesque Trondheim fjord, the most northerly in Norways west coast Fjordland region, are lush forests and valley but look north and you see the beginnings of the vast expanse of the Arctic Ocean. But, whichever way you are heading, there is much to enjoy in Trondheim before you set sail. Visit Stiftsgården, the King of Norways official residence, which also happens to be the oldest wooden building in northern Europe, while the Archbishops Palace is the oldest secular building in Scandinavia. Among the pick of several fascinating museums is one featuring the decorative arts with its collections of 16th century ceramics and Art Nouveau artefacts. For the best bars and restaurants, try the 18th century Bakklandet waterfront district.

People have been cruising to Andalsnes for more than 120 years because of its stunning location. For, an Alpine town as well as a cruise port, Andalsnes nestles where the towering Romsdal Alps meet the northern end of the sparkling Romsdalfjord.

A small, friendly town with shops and markets, Andalsnes is also close to the famous Trollstigen road. This leads through pretty villages, past scenic fjords and majestic mountain peaks and across the stone bridge over the cascading Stigfossen waterfall to the Trollvegen (Troll Wall) which – at nearly 6,000 feet – is the highest vertical drop in northern Europe.

Another way to see the Troll Wall and even more dramatic Alpine scenery besides is to take the Rauma Railway steam train which leaves from a station right by the cruise port.

Please note snow based shore excursions are not available on autumn cruises.

The city center is a charming mix of old city walls and a large modern shopping centre. With multiple restaurants, museums, cinemas and theatres there is plenty to be explored. Time spent at embarkation and disembarkation ports may be limited which may restrict availability of shore excursions.