Norway - Hurtigruten Classic Voyage North

I have done the cruise twice - once in May, once in September. I would do it again and again and have recommended it to many friends. The scenery is spectacular. The ships are nice. The food fantastic. Do yourselves a favor - go!

We have taken the Hurtigruten from Bergen to Kirkenes and would happily do it again. We have never been on a big cruise ship nor have any interest in them.
The scenery is the entertainment. At night they had a singer and a pianist in the bar.
The food was outstanding.
Land excursions were booked with a different company and arrangements made on board. Most places you visit are right at the port, no need for an excursion. We took one that went farther out and regretted bothering to take it.
Few from the US were on board when we went, under 10%. Mostly Northern Europeans, British and Scottish, interesting fellow passengers.
We booked directly with Hurtigruten by phone. Your link is to a third party NOT to Hurtigruten. Their link is Hurtigruten.com

Thank you both for the quick replies! We have no interest in big cruise ships which is why Hurtigruten was so appealing. Nice to hear they are good.

Thanks for pointing out my link is to 3rd party. It’s been hard finding detailed information on sail dates, costs, cabins, etc. using Google searches. I will reach out to the company directly.

This is their own website-

https://www.hurtigruten.com/destinations/norway/

I've done them twice, both in mid winter, as the Round Trip voyage, and thoroughly recommend them. I just did my own thing at each port call so can't tell you anything about the excursions.
I sailed on a couple of very old ships which they used to have in the fleet, not the more modern ones they have now so my ship experiences are irrelevant.
The timings are very clever on the round trip voyage so that the ports you call at in the middle of the night northbound you call at by day southbound.
They sail every night of the year with the odd mid winter exception, and still are cargo boats first and foremost. Cargo is handled at every port. But very comfortable passenger vessels as well.
They are also ferries- anyone can book passage between any two ports, so you meet lots of different people.
On one of the few open water passages, out of Trondheim northbound we sailed into a force 12! But in summer that won't happen.
This is the full timetable-
https://www.hurtigruten.com/coastal-practical-information/sailing-plan/

We sailed in August.

Just a heads up. My most recent information is that only zero emissions ships will be allowed to enter UNESCO designated fjords starting in 2025. I don’t know how this might impact your cruise (if at all), but it is something to be aware of.

My daughter and I are taking this 7 day cruise cruise next March. I have joined a Facebook group “Hurtigruten Insiders”, which has a lot of valuable information (for this route and others).

Thank you all for great information!!

We did a wonderful cruise with Royal Caribbean of coastal Norway up to the North Cape in 2019.

Prior to that, I researched several cruise lines, including Hurtigruten.

What threw me off Hurtigruten were the following:
1) Price was significantly higher that other cruise lines like Royal Caribbean and NCL.
2) You didn't get a balcony cabin like you would on Royal or NCL, you got a cabin with something line a window. I think some H. ships had balconies, but it was expensive to upgrade.
3) The H ships stopped in a lot of ports, but mostly for only 30 minutes or so. The H cruise that was in my time frame only had three ports were you could take an excursion (like you would on Royal or NCL) for a day trip. Our Royal cruise had six ports for day excursions.

Do your research before you book

Regarding above post-cheaper is not always better and since no one has done both a mass market ( RCL and NCL) and compared it to Hurtigruten, I would go with the local company.

Hurtigurten lost half of their government contracted routes a year or so again. They were re-assigned to Havila cruise lines using brand new low emission ships that use electric (silent) travel in the fjords traveling the same route. The Hurtigurten ships are older and lack the window and balcony spaces that the new Havila ships have. They travel the same ports and time lines as it’s a government controlled route providing vital services to the northern communities first and foremost. We traveled the Bergen-Kirkenes route last September in a huge, cabin with floor to ceiling windows and balcony with exceptional food and drink that we couldn’t duplicate for the cost on a non cruise week in Norway. Their website is www.havilavoyages.com.

Thank you for the link to Havila Cruise Line! I had not come across them in my searches.

We are not interested in a traditional cruise; Havila and Hurtigruten style coastal voyages, complete with many ports of call, is just what we want.