Brilliance OTS, 2 June 2012 Trip Report - the Norway, no, Denmark, no, Norway Cruise

[Cotswold Eagle]

So, where were we? Oh, yes, back on board in Bergen by 4 pm. We pulled away from the pier shortly afterwards, leaving the HAL ships behind, and got a different perspective on the harbour with the Bryggen and Fish Market. You can also see the viewpoint on Mount Fløyen above the city.

 

 

The trees on the point in the centre of this next photo hide the aquarium - I now know this to be the Nordnes Peninsula. To the right is the Dokke area of the port and you can see that the other (P&O?) cruise ship has left, but one of the Hurtigruten vessels, familiar sights up and down this coast, has docked during the afternoon.

 

 

OK, LittleMissMagic, this is where I get one up. Forget the Caribbean; this is Norway, this is Bergen, and it is late afternoon in early June. The pool deck is packed for sail away!! (DISCLAIMER: I cannot be held responsible if this doesn't happen on any other cruise to these parts....)

 

 

We picked our way through various islands as we headed for the open sea, with a squadron of seagulls for company.

 

 

And finally, we passed under a bridge and symbolically said goodbye to the Norwegian Fjords as we began our journey back to Amsterdam.

 

Edited June 25, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[Cotswold Eagle]

Of course, the cruise hasn't ended yet. I headed back to the Diamond Event for a couple of drinks and a chat with Putu and a couple of new chums, who were nothing like the terrible Diamond snobs I sometimes read about on these boards ( I hope they feel the same about me!) We were joined by Julie, the British Guest Services Manager, and we had an interesting conversation about many things Brilliance. She explained the efforts they had gone to in order to get prepared for the alternative itinerary and then the panic to change everything back on Saturday morning when the strike was called off. A suggestion to include the British Isles on the alternative schedule had to be abandoned because of visa requirements (this cruise remained within the Schengen area), and I think Julie was quite relieved not to have to tell her British guests, who were escaping the Jubilee at home, that we would be going to Dover or Harwich instead! On the subject of immigration, apparently when Brilliance was doing the India run from Dubai, they would regularly have dozens of passengers without the requisite visa.

 

I enjoyed myself so much here, that I skipped tonight's show (7 pm for second sitting diners), which according to the Compass was an Evening of Romance with Tenor Aaaron Shaw. Hmmn. Perhaps no loss for a solo male, although Kathleen told me at dinner that it had been quite enjoyable. Better than sitting on a tour bus round Bergen, perhaps.

 

Tonight was our second formal night, so I toddled back to my cabin to do my hair and put on the glad rags. Most diners dressed for the formal dinners, but mostly in shirt and tie or lounge suit, I do not recall many dinner jackets on show. I had a very familiar selection from the menu - the mushrooms with puff pastry and prime rib (again!) Both were good, and even the horseradish sauce had improved a little. Tonight's menu also had the trio of desserts, which most of the table enjoyed.

 

After dinner tonight was an event I hadn't experienced before - the Ice Party, held in the Centrum from 10.45 pm. Just beforehand I noticed an impressive sunset - the sun was setting earlier as we headed south.

 

 

The Ice Party had a theatrical element to it, with members of the cast appearing in weird and wonderful costumes, to some "Chilled Grooves" from the DJ, and also an artistic performance element with one of the kitchen crew demonstrating his ice sculpting skills, creating a unicorn from a rectangular block of ice in an unfeasibly short time.

 

 

 

Can you tell what it is yet?

 

The finished article

 

And, perhaps most importantly for some, the evening also incorporated the Sweet Delights Buffet. In an attempt to con my readership, my photo is centered on the fruit display on Deck 5, but let me assure you there were chocolate profiteroles and truffles on Deck 6 too! The buffet was not as lavish as some I have seen, but plenty of folk were tucking in.

 

 

Tired after a long day in the hot sun, I retired to bed shortly afterwards, sad that our days of exploring this marevellous and mysterious coast had come to an end, but looking forward to one last day at sea.

Edited June 25, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[Dragonqueen]

Thanks so much for your time & effort with this review, I am making lots of extra notes on my notes as we sail on Brilliance in OMG only 7 days......I only hope we have the chance to sunbathe only I now know the odds are shorter for the 66days of sunshine for this year :D

[Cotswold Eagle]

Thanks so much for your time & effort with this review, I am making lots of extra notes on my notes as we sail on Brilliance in OMG only 7 days......I only hope we have the chance to sunbathe only I now know the odds are shorter for the 66days of sunshine for this year :D

 

Feel free to ask any questions that might help - I have all the port information given out by RCI and the daily Cruise Compasses, as well as the stuff I picked up in the tourist information offices.

 

Most importantly, you know what your Meet & Mingle invite will look like.... Have a great cruise!

 

David

Edited June 25, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[Dragonqueen]

Many thanks David,

I have already stayed up later than I should, :) enjoying every snippet that you have given us. I have been on Explorer to Canada & New England last year & I am pleasantly surprised by the different events on board that you have described for your cruise, it sounds like RC have tried to fill every minute with various types of entertainment.

[ebk2795]

Cool - an excuse to post another picture of the old girl. She looks good :)

 

 

Thanks!

 

Here she is in Hamilton, Bermuda in August 2007.

 

Eileen

[Mltoot]

Thanks so much for the great review. We take the Brilliance July 11 Norway cruise and your review has been very interesting and helpful.

Mary Lou

[brazilgirl]

Your review is so helpful....after reading about the tedious lines for the funicular , I am seriously thinking of doing the hike for the views in Alesund , based on your experience and skip the Bergen Mount.Queues are for Disneyworld , not Norway!

Or is it not to miss? Would love your opinion!

Thanks!

Kim

Edited June 26, 2012 by brazilgirl

[critterchick]

Interesting, thanks, it's the first time I have seen one. And I notice on another current (and very interesting, by the way) review that they got their M&M invite on one of the invitation cards used for most functions, which is what I have seen before:

http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=34239569&postcount=15

 

But I don't suppose any of us sail RCI for consistency in all things across the fleet:)

 

Hope you are enjoying the review!

 

Very much! We're doing a short fjords trip on Vision in September, followed by Brilliance's transatlantic cruise, so I can't wait to see what you have to say about the ship!

 

And not to digress to much (;)), but Empress was our first cruise. I wanted to sail on her again before she departed the fleet but it was not meant to be...

 

I walked back to the ship, browsing the shops along the way. I bought some postcards (from memory 7 NOK each), but it seems you can buy just about anything here!

 

 

 

Where, pray tell, is that shop? My dad is a fan of all things moose and would love a souvenir from there!

[Lilly57]

Your review is so helpful....after reading about the tedious lines for the funicular , I am seriously thinking of doing the hike for the views in Alesund , based on your experience and skip the Bergen Mount.Queues are for Disneyworld , not Norway!

Or is it not to miss? Would love your opinion!

Thanks!

Kim

 

Hello Brazilgirl,

 

We were on this cruise too and thought the funicular was one of the highlights of Bergen.

 

As advised by the threads on this forum, we made our way early to the Funicular, leaving the ship around 8.20, a short leisurely walk to the ticket office, we were one of the first passengers to arrive before the ship excursion, the view is spectacular and I would have hated to miss it. As we returned around 30 minutes later, the queue was already half way down the street. So many thanks to all who post their information on CC, it saved us a long wait in line and left us more time for the HoHo bus which was also worth doing here, especially as the last stop was right by where Brilliance was berthed. Hope you have a fantastic time

 

Lynda

[villauk]

Brazilgirl (Kim),

 

As Lynda stated, get to the funicular early and there should be less of a wait. We had kids and getting them into gear that morning had been a struggle. It also didn't help there being quite a few ships in port that day. It's definitely worth seeing the view.

 

In Alesund we went to the top of the mountain on the small train. Obviously having kids, this added more to the fun.

[sg1phileshipper]

I'm doing the Fjords on the Vision in September. And except for the motion, I'm really looking forward to it. Those pics are amazing and so is your review. Thanks for taking the time to post; can't wait to sail.

 

Cindy

[sg1phileshipper]

We were then supposed to go up to the top of a mountain called Dalsnibba for a spectacular view, but this early in the season the road was not open all the way. We drove up above the tree line and to the heights where snow was still lying. Our final stop was a frozen and snow covered lake at an altitude of 1030 metres, called Djupvasshytta. Here we frolicked in the snow and there was an opportunity to visit a restaurant and shop.

 

Djupvasshytta

 

Still quite a lot of snow up here!

 

The frozen lake

 

Simply and truly breathtaking. One question though: Did you take a ship organized excursion and if yes, which one did you take? Thanks for your answer

 

Cindy

[Cotswold Eagle]

Where, pray tell, is that shop? My dad is a fan of all things moose and would love a souvenir from there!

 

I can tell you exactly, but need another photo for that :) In this shot of the Bryggen you can see the historic Hanseatic buildings to the left (and the dock where we docked would be further to the left) - well the Moose Shop is on the ground floor of the second from the left of the row of taller stone buildings to the right, obscured by the low green building on the wharf.

 

Short answer, if you are walking the Bryggen, you'll see it! Or Google map "Bryggen 11" and it's on Street View.

 

 

ps Sorry for the wonky photo, it's only posted to do a job! I must have been enjoying my lunch....

Edited June 26, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[Cotswold Eagle]

Simply and truly breathtaking. One question though: Did you take a ship organized excursion and if yes, which one did you take? Thanks for your answer

 

Cindy

 

Thank you, Cindy. I took a 3 hour ship's excursion, called Geiranger Fjord Panorama (GG04). I just looked it up and we did it in the opposite order to the description and, as I mentioned, only got as far as Lake Djupvatn (which is where these photos are taken), not Mount Dalsnibba. Later in the season you should get to the summit, which I am sure will be even better!

 

Have a great cruise.

David

Edited June 26, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[prish]

David,

 

Just thought I'd add for those that were considering walking to the top of the mountain, it takes a good hour to reach the peak viewing area. While we were standing in the queue for the funicular, we discovered that they only accepted payment in NOK or credit cards. So, having put all our Norwegian money together and noting the price per person, we realised we had insufficient funds for all 7 of us to use the funicular. Being very thoughtful, my DH offered to walk and meet us at the top. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the ticket office to pay, the lady informed us we could purchase a family ticket - and guess what? Yes, we would have had enough money for us all to travel on the funicular. My DH was absolutely exhausted when he reached the top (which was before us, by the way! Shows how long the queue was). He was extremely relieved when we informed him we had enough money for him to travel back down on the funicular;) You are able to buy a one-way ticket from the top. There are also a couple of stops along the way.

 

Wanted to inform others of the payment arrangements. We also saw a few people with prepaid tickets. The two queues were split, one for those with prepaid tickets and excursions, the other was a general queue for purchasing tickets. Both queues fed into one once you were near the main entrance. We waited for well over an hour and a half in the queue.

Hi Jenny, thanks for the tip about prepaying tickets for the funicular, how does one do it, on the Bergen tourist info site? It'd be great if you could give me the link. And how does the "family" ticket work, how many people, adults + kids or can it be just adults? Thanks in advance!

 

And David, thanks again for the great write-up and the gorgeous pictures:)

[villauk]

Hi Jenny, thanks for the tip about prepaying tickets for the funicular, how does one do it, on the Bergen tourist info site? It'd be great if you could give me the link. And how does the "family" ticket work, how many people, adults + kids or can it be just adults? Thanks in advance!

 

And David, thanks again for the great write-up and the gorgeous pictures:)

 

Prish

 

Here is the link with all the information.

 

http://www.floibanen.com/

 

We didn't have prepaid tickets, as stated, but there were a couple of girls next to us with vouchers. Reading the site information, they could have arranged them through a guide etc.? Not too sure :confused:. The prices and timetables are listed on the link. The family ticket was for 2 adults + 2 children and we purchased the other 2 as single return tickets (as my DH walked :D) - it does work out slightly cheaper than individual tickets. Hope this helps?

 

Jenny

[Cotswold Eagle]

Lots of good advice from Jenny and Lynda about the funicular. I would agree, try to do it early, before the queues, and use the HOHO for the rest of the day is probably the best plan. For one thing the view helps you get your bearings.

 

Of course, as always have a Plan B and be flexible to adapt to different circumstances. I wouldn't think the view is great in cloud and rain :)

 

ps I believe you can buy funicular tickets at the Tourist Information Office, but I can't see that you can do it online.

Edited June 26, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[brazilgirl]

Since we are traveling with kids( 3! ) too , the getting up and off the ship is more o f a challenge. I think being first in line would be a challenge!

I have gone on line to see about prepurchasing tickets , but alas , not possible!

I will play it by ear , maybe try it after lunch.

Thanks for the info everyone!

Kim

[Cotswold Eagle]

So the final day of our cruise, another sea day, and we awoke to rain and fog in the North Sea. Not much sunbathing taking place this morning, but I did notice one hardy gentleman having his habitual outdoor morning swim! There were a lot of activities planned around the ship, and after a late breakfast my first appointment was in the theatre, where I had been invited to a backstage tour. I did one of these on Grandeur last year and enjoy seeing how the magic works and meeting the cast and crew.

 

We were hosted by Sheila, the production manager on Brilliance for 10 years! Having met Bart the lighting tech on Grandeur, I know how some of these folk really, really enjoy life on "their" ship. Assisting Sheila were one of the dancers and one of the singers, whose names I disgracefully do not remember - sorry, ladies. They talked about their life on board, the challenges of running a theatre and putting on shows on a moving ship, and showed us round backstage. I found it much more spacious than on Grandeur, but still a confusion of costumes and props.

 

In the wings - yes, they do have the Cruise Compass pasted up, it helps the CD remember what is going on!!

 

Backstage - imagine 12 people getting changed at once in here!

 

Walking through the ship to get a coffee afterwards, I came across the remnants of an apple strudel making demonstration - clearly some hungry campers on board this morning. The Walk for Wishes was also scheduled this morning, shortly afterwards, for those who wanted to walk their elevenses off.

 

 

At 1pm, I attended an interesting talk given in the main theatre by Captain Henrik. Not your ususal Captain's Corner, this was a presentation, "The Secrets of Ship Navigation". He talked us through the preparation, planning and execution of their navigational plans (two types - sea voyage from pilot station to pilot station, and getting in/out of port) and the technology they have to help them. I don't know how long he has been doing this, but it was clearly very relevant (and designed to be reassuring) in a post-Concordia world. He was asked specifically how that tragedy could have happened if they were following the same type of procedures, and very properly replied that he did not know and would not speculate until the trial and full accident report are done. He did stress the importance of Bridge Resource Management and his expectation that other officers on the bridge would challenge him if he deviated from the agreed plan.

 

An interesting format to his title slide, bearing in mind Concordia?

 

Captain Henrik Loft Sorensen

 

One thing Captain Henrik told us was that he was expecting the weather to get worse, the further south we got, with increasing swell. Sure enough, after a slightly brighter middle of the day, by mid-afternoon we had increasingly rough seas. It was forecast to be too choppy for a pilot boat, so he explained he had arranged for a helicopter transfer of a pilot in the small hours (I am afraid I did not either stay up or wake up to report on this!)

 

I also popped into the Art Auction held in the Colony Club at 2 pm, mostly for a glass of champagne, but also to have a look at the art, none of which particularly inspired me. There were trivia competitions, dance classes, sports tournaments, scrapbooking and other crafts, not to mention ADVANCED napkin artistry, taking place around the ship. I think I took a nap....

Edited June 26, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle

[ollienbertsmum]

I think I took a nap....

 

 

Dreaming of your next trip I hope .... and all the friends you will have on board with you. Um, where were we all going?

[AF-1]

Coswald Eagle; what a wonderful review with pics; you now want to make me book a cruise thru the Fiords and Norway.

[critterchick]

I can tell you exactly, but need another photo for that :) In this shot of the Bryggen you can see the historic Hanseatic buildings to the left (and the dock where we docked would be further to the left) - well the Moose Shop is on the ground floor of the second from the left of the row of taller stone buildings to the right, obscured by the low green building on the wharf.

 

Short answer, if you are walking the Bryggen, you'll see it! Or Google map "Bryggen 11" and it's on Street View.

 

 

ps Sorry for the wonky photo, it's only posted to do a job! I must have been enjoying my lunch....

 

Thank you! I can send him a belated birthday present (since he will have just turned 91 in August)! And I'm glad you enjoyed your lunch!;)

 

Dreaming of your next trip I hope .... and all the friends you will have on board with you. Um, where were we all going?

 

I don't know, but sign me up - it'll be a fun group!

[Cotswold Eagle]

Dreaming of your next trip I hope .... and all the friends you will have on board with you. Um, where were we all going?

 

Well, I'm going to the Eastern Caribbean on Explorer in December, so see you all there. Mine's a strawberry daiquiri :D

[Cotswold Eagle]

Of course, time and tide wait for no man, even if he is having a nap. Pausing only to fill out a survey and sort out my tips (vouchers and envelopes arrived earlier), I headed up to see Putu in the Diamond event for the last time and allow him to force a couple of glasses of champagne on me, before heading to the theatre for the 7 pm Farewell Showtime. The Enchantment Duo (surely, for this week, the Brilliance Duo?!), who we saw earlier in the cruise, did another performance, which is pretty impressive as the ship is starting to roll noticeably by now.

 

 

 

They were followed by Tracy & Reuben again, two of the RC Singers, who sang a few numbers, before Paul Lancaster, the Cruise Director, had his final say, including the obligatory funny questions list. I have seen Paul (and Chris, the Activities Manager, who we met at the M&M) around the ship a few times and said 'Hi' - he seems very friendly and approachable, but because of the nature of this cruise (being all about the fjords, to be honest) I haven't had much interaction with him or his staff. It all seems to have gone reasonably well, though.

 

Tracy & Reuben having fun

 

Paul Lancaster in typical pose

 

And then, of course, the Captain, officers, cast and representatives of staff and crew came on stage for ther farewell.

 

 

My final dinner was salmon cake, chicken kiev and Viennese chocolate cake, nothing outstanding, but all perfectly acceptable. The waiters sang their farewell song (I think I forgot to mention it, but they also sang on Italian night, as you would expect), tip envelopes were handed out and we said our goodbyes to Gurkan and Anatoli. I went for a final drink in the Colony Club with George and Kathleen, who had very kindly been supplying me with a glass of wine from their wine package over dinner most of the week, and by good fortune Eamonn and Deidre came by too.

 

My wonderful dining companions - thanks for the craic, it makes such a difference to a solo cruiser

 

By now, as promised by the Captain, the ship was rolling quite uncomfortably and I think we were all glad of the excuse of last night packing to retire fairly early. I stuck my head out on deck - it was dark, wet and windy. Time to go home!

Edited June 26, 2012 by Cotswold Eagle