Hurtigruten could be an interestingly different offer to typical cruise ships as they also provide ferry services along the Norwegian coast and you get to see some areas typical cruise ships would not visit. The itinerary is driven by the deliveries made at 34 ports during day and night - unfortunately that does not always cater well for cruising passengers. Some stops are much too short to explore the coastal towns - some villages are too boring to justify further exploration.

My mistake was to stay on board for 11 days (Bergen north to Kirkenes and back south to Trondheim) - a trip they are trying to push on their website, because these kind of customers are the more lucrative for them, however it quickly gets boring, especially if the weather is bad as should be expected in coastal Norway.

A few of the excursions do get around this problem by starting in one port and reembarking at another (Geiranger Fjord tour, Nordkapp tour, Lofoten Island tour) - I did enjoy those. Read more