Saman Posted August 10, 2017 #1 Share Posted August 10, 2017 Hi i have been on a cruise before but i had nothing to do with organising it , i would like to visit fjords in norway and from what i can see best option is by cruise , i live in Spain so i have to consider port cruise leaves from has to be somewhere i can fly to from here . I am thinking of booking to go either may june or september 2018 for max 7 nights . I have looked at Fred Olsen , Msc , Hurtigruten? but could do with some advice. As whole trip is quite scenic i think we would be better with a balcony i am aware it's qite abit more expensive , for the 3 adults traveling i seem to be seeing prices of about 3000 euros plus whatever our flights are . Should we book now or at times do sales come on? nearer the date will cabins with balconys of sold out i have seen majority of cabins on MSC have balconys , do usually last minute offers come up ? Thanks in advance . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
easyboy Posted August 10, 2017 #2 Share Posted August 10, 2017 Once you have chosen the cruise line, it would be better to book at once with a refundable deposit. This will enable you to choose the ideal balcony cabin lcation you want. You can monitor the price movement after till final payment date to avail of price drops. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jocap Posted August 10, 2017 #3 Share Posted August 10, 2017 I don't know where in Spain you're travelling from, but there's usually cheap flights to Southampton from the bigger airports such as Malaga, Alicante etc, and then there's a large choice of ships- it's just a day at sea first. Also Fred Olsen from Newcastle- there used to be Easyjet cheap flights from Barcelona- probably other towns too. We're with Fred O next, but in a cabin with a window, as we spend more time out on deck than looking at the fjords from the cabin. I don't think refundable deposits work in the EU- they certainly don't in the UK.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saman Posted August 12, 2017 Author #4 Share Posted August 12, 2017 Thanks for your help , i have not found any refundable options , i live in Mallorca so no problem getting flights , at the moment from what i can see our best option might be MSC 7 nights from hamburg , will check out the MSC fórum and see what info i find there as not quite sure if better to book direct or online through another agent . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jocap Posted August 12, 2017 #5 Share Posted August 12, 2017 You can do either.. with an agent, you might be given an extra, such as some on board spend, but it's safe enough to book direct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallasm Posted August 12, 2017 #6 Share Posted August 12, 2017 (edited) Welcome to Cruise Critic - You will be able to find an answer to most of your questions. I am thinking of booking to go either may june or september 2018 for max 7 nights . I have looked at Fred Olsen , Msc , Hurtigruten? but could do with some advice. Note that Hurtigruten offerings are very different from the 'ordinary' cruise lines. Other possible cruise lines are Costa, Holland America, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean - departure ports might be Copenhagen, Southampton, Amsterdam or Hamburg. All easy accessible at a reasonable cost from Mallorca. Just plan to fly into the departure port at least the day before. many airlines serving Mallorca don't have the best regularity records. As whole trip is quite scenic i think we would be better with a balcony i am aware it's qite abit more expensive , for the 3 adults traveling i seem to be seeing prices of about 3000 euros plus whatever our flights are . Sure - I'll recommend a balcony Should we book now or at times do sales come on? nearer the date will cabins with balconys of sold out i have seen majority of cabins on MSC have balconys , do usually last minute offers come up ? Cruise lines has reduced the number of Norwegian Fjords sailings - many cruises are sold out but some 'short notice' offerings in you can travel at short notice. But probably not a balcony. Once you have chosen the cruise line, it would be better to book at once with a refundable deposit. This will enable you to choose the ideal balcony cabin lcation you want. You can monitor the price movement after till final payment date to avail of price drops. Please note that the booking conditions and rules in Europe are very different from USA. ... not quite sure if better to book direct or online through another agent . I alway book directly at the cruise line web. Not a problem at all Edited August 12, 2017 by hallasm spelling correction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NantahalaCruiser Posted August 15, 2017 #7 Share Posted August 15, 2017 Thanks for your help , i have not found any refundable options , i live in Mallorca so no problem getting flights , at the moment from what i can see our best option might be MSC 7 nights from hamburg , will check out the MSC fórum and see what info i find there as not quite sure if better to book direct or online through another agent . Consider using an online US TA in order to obtain a refundable option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saman Posted August 20, 2017 Author #8 Share Posted August 20, 2017 Welcome to Cruise Critic - You will be able to find an answer to most of your questions. Note that Hurtigruten offerings are very different from the 'ordinary' cruise lines. Other possible cruise lines are Costa, Holland America, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean - departure ports might be Copenhagen, Southampton, Amsterdam or Hamburg. All easy accessible at a reasonable cost from Mallorca. Just plan to fly into the departure port at least the day before. many airlines serving Mallorca don't have the best regularity records. Sure - I'll recommend a balcony Cruise lines has reduced the number of Norwegian Fjords sailings - many cruises are sold out but some 'short notice' offerings in you can travel at short notice. But probably not a balcony. Please note that the booking conditions and rules in Europe are very different from USA. I alway book directly at the cruise line web. Not a problem at all Thanks for all your help ,if flight schedules for 2018 are similar to 2017 we should beable to get a flight thats leaves Mallorca at 6 in the morning so even if we have a couple of hours delay we should still make it ,we do usually avoid early flights though so if we do travel over day before would you recomend we stay the night in Hamburg or Kiel ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jocap Posted August 20, 2017 #9 Share Posted August 20, 2017 It depends where your ship is leaving from- we try to stay near the port, but from what I remember, the St Paul's area of Hamburg was a bit noisy... Kiel is about 90 kilometres away, so are you picking up the cruise there? Going through the canal? If your flight is to Hamburg, then I'd think about an airport hotel....I don't know any, as we've only sailed in on ferries. You can try asking on here on the ports- Europe- pages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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