As afternoon turns towards evening, board your ship, MS Trollfjord. Once you’ve settled into your cabin or suite, you’ll meet your Coastal Experience Team. You’ll get to know each member of the team as they give lectures and organize onboard activities throughout your voyage.  

Meet your fellow guests in the ship’s two-story panorama lounge and watch as the capital’s twinkling lights fade into the distance.

Day 2: Settle in at Sea

This is your chance to settle into your cabin, get a taste of Norway’s coastal cuisine in the ship’s three restaurants and bar, and start to get to know your fellow passengers. 

You’ll have time to simply watch Norway’s spectacular southern coast glide by. Take it all in from the expansive Observation Deck, from the comfort of your ship’s two-story lounge and bar, or as you sweat it out in the panoramic sauna. As well as the views, this stretch of coast is home to more than its fair share of enthralling stories. Find out more about Norway’s coast and the voyage ahead in the lectures, presentations, and onboard activities planned for today.

Day 3: Fjord Views and City Culture

Today, you’ll wake to views of beautiful Lysefjord. The 26-mile-long fjord is home to one of Norway’s most famous sights: Preikestolen (The Pulpit Rock), which towers almost two thousand feet (604 meters) above the fjord’s shimmering waters. Kjerag mountain, at the end of the fjord, reaches even higher. Along the way, watch for mountain goats, waterfalls, and the famous Kjeragbolten, a glacial boulder wedged high up in a crevasse.

You’ll spend much of the rest of the day in Stavanger, a colorful waterside city with an international ambience and a lively cultural scene. Discover the architectural relics of Gamle (Old) Stavanger, which includes Northern Europe’s best-preserved collection of wooden houses, and Norway’s oldest cathedral, dating from the 12th century. You can also visit the Norwegian Petroleum Museum, pop into a local boutique shop, or simply enjoy a beer on the waterfront.

Day 4: A Picturesque Town

After breakfast on the ship, you'll dock at Ålesund, a town that spreads out across a string of islands. Many of the buildings here, from the bright colors to the rounded spires, were inspired by the Art Nouveau style, which was popular in the early 1900s. You can also visit the Atlantic Sea Park, Norway’s first marine science center. This is one of Northern Europe’s largest saltwater aquariums, providing a home to seals, otters, and crabs, as well as many other kinds of marine life. You can even see Humboldt Penguins here, a species otherwise absent north of the equator.  Join an optional excursion to explore Ålesund on foot or by bus, as your guide reveals the town’s surprising secrets to you.

Day 5: An Ancient Fishing Town

The cozy fishing port of Rørvik in the picturesque Vikna archipelago may look small but it has a huge history that is told through both the landscape and the town’s collection of museums. Here, you can join an optional excursion and time travel through the last 10,000 years and get a glimpse of the future, thanks to the Ice Age-carved landscape, carefully preserved 19th-century living rooms, and the ingenuity of Norwegian salmon production – each preserved and explained in three excellent museums. 

In the afternoon, we’ll continue sailing north through the Vikna archipelago made up of 6,000 islands, islets and reefs. The local gardens bloom with plum and apple blossoms in the spring, even at 65°N, thanks to the maritime climate. As you sail through the night, you’ll leave the Helgeland coast behind us as we cross the Arctic Circle.

Day 6: Lofoten Islands

Today, explore Lofoten. As soon as you see the towering peaks with fishing villages clinging to their sides, you’ll understand why this island chain is praised as one of Norway’s most stunning locations.

Dock in the town of Svolvær mid-morning. Located on the island of Austvågøya in the heart of Lofoten, Svolvær is the biggest town of the archipelago, humming with shops, restaurants, galleries, and cafés to enjoy. You can also admire views of the Svolvær Goat, a nearby mountain named for resembling a goat and its horns. A variety of optional excursions are available from Svolvær, including winter fishing, paddling along the coastline in a kayak, or embarking on a bus tour to learn more about Lofoten’s history.

Day 7: The Gateway to the Arctic

Tromsø, an urban city 217 miles north of the Arctic Circle, is buzzing with life, with everything from trendy restaurants and cafés to boutique shops selling local crafts and produce, and even high fashion. MS Trollfjord will be in port here for eight hours, giving you plenty of time to join optional excursions and explore the city yourself. Tromsø is the place to tick off some of those bucket-list experiences. Optional excursions include dog sledding or snowmobiling through the snowy scenery, seeing reindeer, visiting a snow igloo, or exploring this remarkable Arctic city on a bus tour.

Day 8: The Northernmost Point

Arriving early in the morning, you’ll have a full day in Honningsvåg. This far north, winters are long and snowfall is high, so get ready for some fantastic winter scenery and activities. Feel the snow crunching under your snowshoes as you hike across the plains with your Coastal Experience Team. On optional excursions, you could try your hand at ice fishing, a beloved winter tradition in the far north. Get a taste of the local delicacy, king crab, which is caught in the waters around Honningsvåg and served year-round. The highlight of any trip to Honningsvåg is a visit to the North Cape which looks out over the Barents Sea, also available as an optional excursion. This is one of the northernmost points of mainland Europe, and as we’re visiting in winter, you can even choose to get there by snowmobile.  Having reached the northernmost point of your voyage, you’ll turn around and begin going south as you sail away in the evening.

Day 9: The City of Northern Lights

At 70 degrees north, the town of Alta is far above the Arctic Circle. The area is known for particularly good Northern Lights visibility, so keep your camera ready.

On an optional excursion, you can find out more about day-today life in Alta, see prehistoric rock art and visit the Northern Lights Cathedral, which has an exhibition showing how Alta became the epicenter for ground-breaking research of the Aurora Borealis between the 19th and 20th centuries.

Increased snowfall in the winter allows for some truly authentic Arctic excursions, like dogsledding. You can try this on wheels if you’re here when there’s no snow on the ground! The snow and climate of Alta also create the perfect conditions to build and maintain the Igloo Hotel. Located on the banks of river Alta and made from 250 tons of ice, this is the world's northernmost ice hotel, decorated with ice sculptures and wall carvings. Alternatively, join your Coastal Experience Team on a hike to Mount Komsa. The views are mesmerizing.

Day 10: Arctic Beauty Awaits

Narvik was originally developed as a year-round, ice-free port for the nearby iron ore mines. Nowadays, it’s known for its World War II heritage and as a gateway to active pursuits such as skiing, dog sledding and hiking. For a journey through the heart of the region, hop aboard the Arctic Train and travel along the iconic Ofoten Railway, treating yourself to panoramic views of majestic mountains. For panoramic views of Narvik from above, ride the cable car to the top of Narvikfjellet.

Day 11: Cruise the Inner Coastal Route

After Narvik, head south along the enchanting Norwegian coast. You’ll be in awe of windswept islands, sheltered bays, and some of the most beautiful fjords in the world. It’s also inhabited by a wide range of wildlife, such as majestic Sea Eagles. When Hurtigruten started sailing north of the Trøndelag region in 1893, much was still unknown about the coastline. But, over the years, they've become experts in these waters. Today, they are among the few with the maritime knowledge and skill to take you through the many skerries, islets and hidden fjords that characterize this stretch of coast.