Norwegian Fjords Cruise

I had a great opportunity in May 2018 to join a Familiarization Trip for Travel Agents with Royal Caribbean to sail the Norwegian Fjords that was focused on Independent Travel Agents (Discounted, not free). The cruise embarked and disembarked in Copenhagen, Denmark and stop in four ports in Norway. Since European flights are so affordable, we also added 5 days to end in Paris (that’s a whole other adventure!).

The first adventure occurred while waiting to board our flight in Calgary. While sitting in the Premium Lounge we were watching a hockey game and noticed that the game was being played in Denmark- and hey aren’t we flying to Denmark? So on our phones we go, and guess what the International Ice Hockey Federations World Cup was happening, so we bought tickets for the game Saturday night Czech vs. Slovakia and said “so what?” to jet lag!

We stayed at Wakeup Copenhagen for our first pre night cruise. (Read review of the hotel) Our one day in Copenhagen we didn’t rest. We walked all around Copenhagen, with a stop at the infamous Little Mermaid statue- I suggest skipping this for sure not worth it IMO. We also checked out some great food. Hot Dogs are super popular in Denmark (we saw 4 hotdog stands before we even left the airport!) and they are delicious. Special sauce, fried onions, pickles, ketchup, and mustard-YUM!

A note is that Denmark is not cheap, the average cost for two of us to eat was around the equivalent of $90 CAD (without alcoholic beverages).

Photo: Hot Dogs from Jeppes Hot Dog Stand in Copenhagen

The transportation system is awesome in Copenhagen, making it easy to get to the hockey game that night where a lot of fun was had and as a Canadian even I was shocked at the exuberant crowd and the amount of beers and shots they consumed at the game!

Photo: Making friends with the Slovakia fans before the game

The next day we took the local bus to the Cruise terminal- cost the equivalent of about $7 CAD each and wasn’t too difficult. We were excited to finally board the Serenade of the Sea. This would be our second ever cruise, our first was with the Norwegian Sun through Alaska in 2016. We arrived for check in at 11:30am. The terminal here is a bit chaotic, though this may have been because this was the first sailing of the season.

Serenade of the Sea is one of Royal Carribbean's smaller ships, she is built to sail in scenic places, with glass elevators and large windows, and a great viewing lounge, it was perfect for sailing in the Fjords.

Onboard, rooms were still be completed so we checked out the decks and started with a game of mini golf. The ship also has a swimming pool and two hot tubs outside on the top deck as well as a pool in the covered solarium, which is good as the weather in Norway can be a bit Finicky. We were in an inside room, 7583. The room was smaller than the other inside we had on another cruise line, but wasn’t tiny. It has all the basics we needed, make sure to note that there are showers only, and I feel that if you are a larger person that you could feel a bit squished in the bathroom.

The training on board was over 2 days (our two at sea days). They focused on the various cruises and ships offered by RCL and the specialties they have on certain ships. As a Certified Autism Travel Professional, I thought that their cruises with Autism friendly activities was really nice to hear more about and something I know a lot of families could use to have a more enjoyable vacation for them and their children.

The food was good, lots of places to choose from. We tried Giovanni’s Table, the Italian Restaurant for lunch. The portions were HUGE! It was served family style and tasted great. If you have a bigger appetite or want a meal to totally indulge in then you will be happy with the bang for your buck here!

For dinners, our seating was at 8:30 nightly, and my partner and I enjoyed that seating time, so we didn’t sway from it. The service was great, we had the beverage package (buy in advance to your sailing as the cost is over $100USD more per person on board!) and the wine that was included was good. One evening we were treated to a dance by the kitchen staff which was absolutely amazing!

Now the ports! The cruise had four ports: Stavanger, Bergen, Alesund, Geiranger. At the ports we were not scheduled by the FAM, rather encouraged to explore as we chose.

Port 1:Stavanger

We decided to do the hike to Pulpit Rock, a wonderful Fjord that had an incredible view and an item that was on our bucket list. This hike cost $275 USD for the two of us (booked through the cruise line). The hike was a 2 hours up, 30 min a the top, and 1.5 hours down. It is one of the best views I’ve seen, but for those afraid of heights this might not be the best thing to do! Photo: At the top of Pulpit Rock

Port 2:Bergen

Bergen is beautiful. We took a hop on hop off bus through the area and visited the tulip parks and walked through town. We also took the free funicular, one of Norway’s most visited attractions that takes you to a stunning view-point at Mt Fløyen. This is a wonderful city to simply enjoy the day. There are also some tours available to choose from on the ship.

Photo: Coming down the funicular

Port 3: Alesund

The day we went to Alesund it was cool and rainy, so we didn’t do too much, we walked up the 418 stairs to the lookout point, which is free and gives a nice overview of the town, then we found a brewery which is right by the dock and drank a flight (or two) of beer.

Photo: View from the lookout point in Alesund, Norway

Port 4: Geiranger

This stop is a world UNESCO heritage sight and the second port that had us really excited. Here we rented what is called a Twizy car that we booked ahead of time. This is a small electric car that fits two people, it is enclosed but does not have windows. It has a gps that speaks to you and tell you when to stop and gives you history of the area as you are driving. It was so much fun, we drove up to the lookout point at the top, but unfortunately it was still closed for the winter (it was opening on the following Monday!) but the ride was fun! We also saw a lot of goats and I got to hold some babies. There was so much to do at this port, from Kayaking, hiking, and driving around that it was hard to pick one thing to do. One advantage to coming to this port on RCL is that you get to dock with RCL while other cruises have to tender in! So that was a big win.

Photo: A loud baby goat in the fields of Geiranger, Norway

Overall this cruise was simply incredible. We love nature and hiking and exploring so everything about this fit our personalities. If you have cruised Alaska and are looking for another exploration cruise then this is a great option for you! I believe that if people love cruising Alaska, that they will also love this cruise! The average temperature of Norway is around 20 degrees celsius, we were fortunate during our time there that it was unusually warm and sunny at 24 degrees- the locals said that it was so hot and likely going to be one of the hottest weeks there for the season. This cruise is a great option if you are looking for something a bit different and exciting. This is not for discount cruisers or hot weather cruisers. The price point is between the $1,600-$4,000 USD per person for the cruise. This price point is similar to some of the Alaskan Cruises and with a similar focus on nature and adventure. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions!