kaisatsu

This is an Arctic cruise, not a fjord cruise. It is a great itinerary if you want an in-depth look at the high Arctic, and as a polar cruise enthusiast, it includes a few of my favorite ports, but if you are looking to visit the Norwegian fjords, this is not it. It includes Norwegian ports, but this is kind of like comparing a cruise of the Pacific Northwest to a cruise in SoCal, since they both include port calls in California.

Mathallen is more of a food hall than a market, but several vendors do sell both prepared food and foodstuffs. It is closed on Mondays but open on Tuesday. Oslo doesn’t really have much in the way of year-round open markets. There is a very small (2-3 stalls) plant market at Stortorvet (in front of the domkirke), and there are frequently a few pop-up vendors selling random things in Youngstorget. Most markets are single-day events or operate only on weekends: https://www.visitoslo.com/en/whats-on/events/market-fair/ https://bondensmarked.no/markedsdager/oslo-omegn-2

Oslo to Myrdal is a much longer segment has a lot of variety (that may or may not be interesting). The first hour is mostly suburban, followed by a few hours of forests and small villages. Once you’re up above the treeline, it’s large open areas with lakes scattered amid rocky terrain. Near the highest altitude, the train passes through Finse (the filming location for Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back, if you’re a Star Wars fan). The Myrdal-to-Voss segment is predominantly at a height above the treeline, so it’s mostly the rocky lake areas. If you search YouTube for “bergensbanen minutt for minutt” you can find the full recording of the train journey created by NRK as one of their first “slow TV” broadcasts. I believe it was early season, so there’s a lot more snow at altitude (nearly all of the snow is gone by mid-July), but you can skim through it to get an idea of what the scenery is like in different parts of the route.

Norway doesn’t really clear sidewalks in winter. In some well-trafficked areas, there may be heating built into the pavement to melt the snow, but this is much less common up north. Expect the sidewalks to be uneven and icy, and I would absolutely recommend using spikes or coils like Yaktrax for traction, regardless of mobility limitations. These are called “isbrodder” or “brodder” in Norwegian and are easily found in shops in the northern tourist towns (since many visitors don’t bring them). Just be considerate about taking them off when you’re inside where they can damage the floors. I would expect it to be very difficult to use a rollator around the city, especially if there has been a lot of recent snow. However, if you are just transferring to the bus for organized excursions, this should be much less of a problem. The streets (and many parking areas) tend to be much clearer than the sidewalks, since it’s much easier to plow and salt them. I would also expect the cruiseline to consider this and to do what they can to facilitate accessibility in transferring to the buses. One last note, I would recommend packing at least one warm wool base layer. Temperatures can be very cold, and if you aim to be outside to see the Northern Lights, that means long periods standing still. A good wool top and bottom are essential for conserving warmth.

I have done NiN both as a one-way from Oslo to Bergen and as a roundtrip from Bergen. Personally I enjoy the Oslo-to-Myrdal stretch because I enjoy watching the changes (city gives way to suburbs; suburbs give way to forest; forest gives way to lakes and rocky fields above the tree line). It’s not for everyone though, especially if you don’t enjoy a more leisurely travel style. However, traveling without luggage is definitely an advantage of the Bergen roundtrip. It’s not a huge hassle, since it’s a common occurrence, but if you have large bags, it’s nicer to travel without them (there’s even a porter service that will take your bags from Oslo to Bergen for this purpose). If your cruise is already a fjord cruise and will be sailing to places like Geiranger, the fjord portion of the NiN isn’t as much of a must-see. The Nærøyfjord is dramatically tight, but I’ve always found Geirangerfjord to be more beautiful. Nærøyfjord is still well worth visiting though! Just that if your schedule doesn’t allow and you are visiting the other UNESCO-listed fjord (Geirangerfjord), it’s not the end of the world if you miss it. (We did the roundtrip just before the Hurtigruten voyage, since we would be sailing mostly in the coastal waters rather than the fjords.) Re: the Flåmsbana, I don’t think the appeal here is really the scenery. The engineering is impressive for its time, but yes, if you’ve been on dozens of other mountain railways, maybe you’lol find it boring. The thing that impresses me in comparison with others is the overall elevation grade with respect to distance. In just a few km, you travel from sea level up to a glacial altitude. I do find that traveling earlier in the season is more interesting since there’s more snow up around Myrdal, but it’s still impressive nonetheless and illustrates just how dramatically steep the fjords are. I think the choice comes down to your travel style. If you like a leisurely pace and watching the scenery roll by, do the full NiN from Oslo to Bergen. If you want shorter travel days, consider the overnight in Flåm along the way (since you have a port day in Flåm, I’d personally skip this if you can handle the long day. Flåm is a pretty small place to spend that much time). If you’re more interested in spending your pre-cruise time on city sightseeing and longer scenic train trips aren’t your cup of tea, do the NiN option on your Flåm port day.

Don’t bother with cash in Norway. The other day we found a few coins and notes that had been in an old wallet for a few years and had to think about what we will do with them. We finally decided to use them at the supermarket during off-peak hours to minimize the annoyance it will cause. Although technically places should take cash, some actually don’t. Last week a woman was berating the barista at my favorite coffee shop because the management (not the barista) had chosen not to deal with cash anymore. Tourist locations are probably a bit more cash-friendly than local spots, but I’d suggest taking out currency in increments of 200 NOK (200, 400, 600, 800) to avoid ending up with 500 NOK bills that can be a hassle outside of supermarkets and tourist shops.

According to the cruise ship schedule, the Jewel of the Seas call on 5 Aug will be at Filipstadkaia (MSC is using the main pier at Akershuskaia, and Azamara has the other central pier at Revierkaia). Filipstad is the port that serves the Kiel ferry, but it is a bit farther from the center of town. It’s a 20-minute along a wide flat pedestrian path to reach the area round Aker Brygge and city hall. In the morning, there is a bus 81 from the nearby Filipstadveien stop, but it doesn’t run the reverse direction during much of the afternoon. The 33 runs there every half hour starting shortly after 15:00, but it’s probably simpler to walk back if that’s an option. Single and 1-day transit tickets can be purchased from the Ruter app, unless you’re planning to buy an OsloPass, which covers public transit (the OsloPass will only save you money if you plan to visit several museums). Summer weather in Oslo is variable, so expect something between 15°C and 35°C. Generally speaking, I would expect temperatures in the low 20°s. It will feel much warmer in the sun than in the shade, so if it’s partly cloudy, expect sudden drops in temperature as clouds pass over. Yr.no is the best source we have for weather forecasts, but the climate causes a lot of microclimates, and it’s common for it to be raining in one part of the city and sunny in another. Since you are sailing all the way north, you should be prepared for a huge range of weather. The west coast typically gets more rain, so definitely pack your rain jacket and consider weather resistant footwear if you have it. Hopefully you’ll luck into sunny summer weather, but you never know. Layers are key, so have at least one warm layer that you can put on when temperatures drop or winds pick up. This should be layered under a windproof, waterproof outer layer. Up above the Arctic Circle, be prepared for temperatures under 10°C combined with a strong breeze (especially since you’ll be on a ship). Mask use is not very common, since the vast majority of the population is fully vaccinated. If you are not, the local population would benefit from the use of a mask as an extra precaution.

Another thing worth mentioning, while it’s definitely worth it to be up enjoying the fjord cruising in the morning, also remember that fjords are dead-ends. Your ship will repeat the same route on the way out at the end of the day. This is not to say that you shouldn’t make the effort to enjoy the scenery, and some ships will travel at lower speeds and even provide some limited guiding notes over the PA system. However, the mornings tend to be a lot more crowded. So if you can’t get a good vantage point, or if the sun is on the wrong side for a photo you really want, remember that you’ll be back in the afternoon! Personally, my preferred method of fjord cruising is to be up enjoying the sail-in, and then after a busy day in port, relax in a hot tub on a top or aft deck with a good vantage point. In a narrow fjord like Geirangerfjord, looking up at the hills towering overhead is a different perspective and still a dramatic view!

I like the Clarion Collection Aurora for the rooftop jacuzzi. Especially in the winter when it makes for a warm place to watch for the aurora on a clear night.

I don’t think the midnight sun is worth going above the Arctic Circle. If you happen to be up there and it’s a clear night, I think it’s worth staying up to see the sun start to rise without actually setting, but it’s not something that I’d consider a must-see by any means. The light is similar to a normal sunrise and sunset and you don’t even get those special moments as the sun disappears or first appears. Overlaid time lapse photos of the path of the sun are kind of cool, but they require a lot of post-processing. Otherwise you just have a photo of the sun near the horizon with a time stamp that looks wrong. Our first cruise that far north was on the QE2, and it was interesting to come out of the late after-dinner shows and find it completely light out. But if you’re not from a northerly location, you’ll already be astonished by the long days. Southern Norway is already far enough north that it’s a similar latitude to Anchorage. The better reasons to travel that far north are for the change in scenery. Places like Lofoten and Tromsø have dramatic mountain-meets-the-sea scenery, and the norther Arctic areas around Nordkapp have more of a tundra landscape. Lofoten and Tromsø are beautiful, but since most people visit Norway for the fjords, most cruises focus farther south. Geirangerfjord would definitely be my top choice of the iconic fjords, and among the “city” ports (Norwegian coastal cities are not so big) Bergen would be first. It’s also worth noting that the Hurtigruten coastal ships only sail into Geiranger during a few months of the year, and otherwise they stick to coastal waters. Lovely and very scenic, but only during that one high-season-only detour do they actually sail through the iconic fjord scenery.

There are ATMs at the airport, but be aware that several places very much prefer that you do not use cash, so don’t take very much as it can prove difficult to use. We found a few hundred kroner in an old wallet last week and had to brainstorm how we will get rid of it (even most banks are cashless). We settled on using it at a supermarket during off-peak hours.

Ships typically sail too far offshore to have land in sight, so you might as well enjoy the seaward spectacle. Especially since the lights can be seen from such an astonishingly long distance.

I accidentally did a (mostly) drive-by in 2020. It was a 30-day trip and due to weather and sea conditions, once we reached Antarctica we only managed a 15-minute landing at the Dry Valleys and a 30-minute visit to Cape Evans. We did do two zodiac cruises and a helicopter flightseeing trip, but we only managed boots on the ground twice. I love the scenery, and being on a tiny ship let us sail pretty close to some amazing icebergs. But honestly I vastly preferred being able to get off the ship and feel myself surrounded by the environment. Even when you can get super close to shore in a zodiac, it’s not really the same. (Since this was not my first trip, I guess I did know what I was missing, but the first timers seemed a bit disappointed too.)

We did a cruise in northeast Greenland a few years back in late August. We spent around 5 days in the fjords north of Iteqqortoormiit, and we’re lucky enough to see the aurora three nights in a row. The first night was pretty dull, but for those who had never seen it before, it was a special experience. The second night was one of the best displays many had ever seen, and the third was good but not as great as the second. The other nights were cloudy, so no northern lights (at least not from the sea/ground).