jodi0553

Hello from the North Sea! The Sky is enjoying our first day at sea and relatively clear skies making the Wintergarden a fantastic place to camp out for the morning. Thank you all so much for the replies about excursions, I'm going to use quite a bit of your info, as we returned from breakfast to find out hiking trip to the glacier in Tromso was cancelled due to too much snow on the trails and then we learned that all other excursions in Tromso are fully booked. We were so excited to see a glacier up close, guess that just means another bucket list item that has to be added to our "next" arctic adventure! Found the excursion desk staff to be incredibly knowledgeable even regarding ideas for independent exploration; we learned of a short but high payoff hike in Geiranger, just go right off the ship and hike 15 minutes to the waterfall.

Alright, I've got one more question for those of you just wrapping up this trip and experienced cruisers. We're usually "plan it all ourselves and rent a car" travelers but decided a ship would be the best way to see Norway. We HATE crowds; we usually run and hide from bus crowds and do all we can to go places at off-times (a la Rick Steves). So, should we still do the included Viking bus tours in each port? In some ports, we've rented cars already - plan to see Shetland and Orkney independently - and in London we're prepared to take the tube to get around. We are used to walking 4-6 miles a day when traveling, too. That said, I love the history and culture lessons that the group tours provide. Are there any included tours that are walking tours that are a must do? Any included tours that are bus tours that we should avoid? We booked the included tours in most ports with the understanding that any can be cancelled if we change our minds. Thanks for the advice!

All, I just found this thread two days ago searching Roll Calls other than my own (I'm on the July 1 sailing of the Sky and had been following the Star roll calls but was unaware of the Bergen - London Sky roll call). I can't even begin to tell you how excited for my trip you all have made me! Keep sharing and keep this thread alive for everyone who is cruising in the future. Carolyn, I've showed everyone who will listen to me your Instagram photos, you have an incredible eye! Thank you all for taking time out of your trip to share your experiences!

A friend told me yesterday that she hoped I'd have fabulous weather for my cruise and I just laughed. I explained a bit better what I'd be expecting and she was horrified. I told her it's ok, we went to the temperate rainforests in the Pacific Northwest for our honeymoon in the rainy season (October); I imagine the weather will be very similar! Goretex is your friend!