Honningsvag - North Cape Public Bus

[LilaC123]

We'll be landing in Honningsvag in July 2017 while cruising on HAL. I have looked everywhere I can think of regarding information on public transit to the North Cape. Does anyone have information on the public transit instead of using the HAL excursion - which is very expensive?

Does one need to book ahead on the bus going up to North Cape if using the bus system in Honningsvag?

Thank you in advance.

[sammiedawg]

It's been four or five years since we were there.

We rented a van with two other couples and drove up there, stopping at a bird sanctuary on the way. We also stopped to see the herds and stayed as long as we wanted each place.

Others took the public bus, some said you could not book ahead while others said they had a reservation. For the bus it is important to get off the ship ASAP and go catch the bus. We were docked right in town and it was an easy walk. I heard no complaints about the bus, everyone was given a timetable to choose a time for the return trip.

 

I'm not sure what ports you have but Norway is an expensive place to visit, most people researched and DIY. Prices may have dropped with oil prices, not sure.

 

We prebooked our own reservations in Geiranger for Mt Dalsnibba at a fraction of the cruise line cost. We booked our Stavanger pulpit rock cruise at a fraction of the cost. Both were within a five minute walk of either the ship dock or the tender point.

We booked our own group Flam train in advance, one person collected the money on board and got group tickets. You must choose a time in advance for both directions. You can also go stand in a same day line for individual tickets.

We booked our own activities in Bergen, Alesund, Tromso including the funicular, museums trains and boat rides.

[Richie46]

We went to the North Cape last year on the Prinsendam and booked a bus on line through Bookfinnmark. The cost was 1358NOK which was about half the cost that Holland America was charging. On the ship people were told that there was no commentary on their bus, just pick up and deliver. On our bus we had commentary the whole way with stops to see the deers and even went to a crab farm. The bus left from the port.

[Globaliser]

Does one need to book ahead on the bus going up to North Cape if using the bus system in Honningsvag?

I did this a couple of years ago. You do need to book ahead to get on the bus to North Cape, although there doesn't seem to be either a system or a need to book ahead for a specific bus to get back to Honningsvag. Based on that experience, what I would recommend is getting off the ship as soon as you can in the morning, heading straight to the tourist information place where they take the bookings, and then booking for a time that suits you. If you like, you can then go back to the ship to wait and/or do other things until your booked time.

 

If you haven't already been there, you may find more information on the Northern Europe forum: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=192

[scluvsrain]

Good info. Thank you. I'm cruising on the Prinsendam in July as well.

 

 

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[LilaC123]

Thank you all for good information. Sammiedawg, I will most certainly look into booking excursions for ourselves after your comments. Thank you very much. My sister and I are sailing on the Koningsdam on July 9th - 23rd, and our stops seem to be the same places you stopped Sammie.

[LilaC123]

It's been four or five years since we were there.

We rented a van with two other couples and drove up there, stopping at a bird sanctuary on the way. We also stopped to see the herds and stayed as long as we wanted each place.

Others took the public bus, some said you could not book ahead while others said they had a reservation. For the bus it is important to get off the ship ASAP and go catch the bus. We were docked right in town and it was an easy walk. I heard no complaints about the bus, everyone was given a timetable to choose a time for the return trip.

 

I'm not sure what ports you have but Norway is an expensive place to visit, most people researched and DIY. Prices may have dropped with oil prices, not sure.

 

We prebooked our own reservations in Geiranger for Mt Dalsnibba at a fraction of the cruise line cost. We booked our Stavanger pulpit rock cruise at a fraction of the cost. Both were within a five minute walk of either the ship dock or the tender point.

We booked our own group Flam train in advance, one person collected the money on board and got group tickets. You must choose a time in advance for both directions. You can also go stand in a same day line for individual tickets.

We booked our own activities in Bergen, Alesund, Tromso including the funicular, museums trains and boat rides.

Oh, I forgot to ask.... did you book the Flam train, the Geiranger and others on the day you landed at those ports, or before you left on your cruise? Thanks in advance. Lila

[comcox]

When I was there this summer I used KO-Sand tours who run a van up to the North Cape Center with a few interesting stops on the way. They were cheaper than the ship's tour which was only basic transport up and back. They meet you at the visitor center right at dock and always time their tours to ship's schedules.