Quick Question about the Viking Homelands Cruise

We are considering a May 2019 Viking Homelands Cruise. We are wondering what the pros/cons are for beginning the Cruise in Stockholm versus beginning the Cruise in Bergen. Thanks!

We took this cruise the summer of 2015 and LOVED it! I think this subject has come up before here on the board and I think the "results" have been generally 50/50. We started in Stockholm and ended in Bergen and for what it is worth many on the cruise with us commented that they were (in retrospect) glad they had started in Stockholm. Norway was spectacularly beautiful and sailing into the Fjords was an awesome experience ... many commented that it would have been anti-climatic to start there and move to Stockholm.

Avoiding starting/ending in someplace other than Bergen could give you more flight options if you want to add and pre/post extension. Bergen is a small airport and there aren't many flight options ... especially if you want to let Viking handle the air. They didn't offer the possibility of any "custom" air arrangements into or out of Bergen when we went. For that reason we are tacking on a post extension to Oslo on our British Isles cruise next summer ... it is scheduled to end in Bergen after crossing the North Sea. We are adding the extension to (hopefully) give us better options for flying home from Oslo rather than Bergen.

It is a wonderful trip and you can get some great advice here on the boards! Have fun planning and have a great trip!

There is also differences in the time in ports depending on which way you go. I know ours Stockholm to Bergen, we have very little time in Gdansk..7-1 pm, but then we have more time in other ports. We really wanted to see a lot of Stockholm and are arriving 2 days early and we wanted to be fresh. I know at the end of a cruise we are usually pretty tired :)

I agree with Molymoo completely. We too cruised the summer of 2015, started in Stockholm and ended in Bergen. Norway is breathtaking and ended our trip on a high note.

I agree with Molymoo completely. We too cruised the summer of 2015, started in Stockholm and ended in Bergen. Norway is breathtaking and ended our trip on a high note.

I agree with both of you! We started from Stockholm last July. We spent some good time in Gdansk 8 am to 2 pm but we had noticeably more time in other places than people on reverse direction cruise. And yes, we fell in love with Norway. We knew it's a beautiful country but didn't expect it being so breathtaking. Sorry Etexvrc for stealing you word ;)

We also have taken this cruise - we had a couple of days in Stockholm first - we stayed at the Radisson by the station which was the same hotel that Viking used for their extension for half the price! It was easy to get there from the airport on the train and a short walk - then an inexpensive taxi to the ship. We loved Stockholm. We have been to Bergen several times over the years as we have friends who have a house nearby - it is a beautiful town and area but is much smaller . For a two day city break you cannot beat Stockholm. Also I thought we had enough time in Gdańsk although we missed going to the shipyards which I would have liked to do on the included tour. They are not close to the historic centre. We loved the trip - the only thing we did not do was take the train to Berlin as we can easily get there from our local airport. We had a lovely morning in Warnemunde and then went on an included boat and walking tour to Rostock which we thoroughly enjoyed.

We are taking this cruise in May, from Bergen. We fly into Oslo for a few days, and are taking The Norway in a Nutshell one day train trip to Bergen the day before embarkation.

One night in a Bergen hotel, and then on the ship.

We are taking this cruise in May, from Bergen. We fly into Oslo for a few days, and are taking The Norway in a Nutshell one day train trip to Bergen the day before embarkation.

One night in a Bergen hotel, and then on the ship.

I just switched to the Bergen to Stockholm August 2019 sailing. We also intend to do the train trip from Oslo via the Norway in a Nutshell train trip.

I just switched to the Bergen to Stockholm August 2019 sailing. We also intend to do the train trip from Oslo via the Norway in a Nutshell train trip.

Anyone doing Norway in a Nutshell .. I encourage you to consider using a porter service for your luggage. We did NIAN last year (Oslo to Bergen) staying at Thon Hotel next to the main train station in Oslo the night before. The porter service met us in the foyer of the hotel 30 min before train departure and we travelled NIAN with a light carry bag each. When we arrived in Bergen the luggage was in our room (obviously they do transfers Bergen to Oslo as well). We were very impressed.

https://www.porterservice.no/