Oslo to the Arctic

Arrive in Oslo and transfer to your hotel in the city centre by train or airport coach (payable locally). Check in for a two-night stay at your chosen hotel on a breakfast basis.

Enjoy a day in Oslo – you’ll be spoilt for choice with a huge array of museums, galleries, shops and restaurants to visit. Must see places include Vigeland Park – home of many sculptures, the Resistance Museum and the Akershus Fortress dating from World War II. An Oslo Card is available to buy and offers unlimited free travel on all kinds of public transport (boats, buses, trams and trains) and free admission to most museums and sights.

After breakfast make your own way to the train station for the journey to Myrdal. Enjoy the wonderful rail journey through some spectacular scenery ‘Over the Roof of Norway’ to the mountain station of Myrdal. Change to the Flamsbana Corkscrew Railway one of the world’s steepest railways, which spirals it way down to Flam along an incredible route past cascading waterfalls and snow-capped mountains. The total journey time is approximately 6 hours. Stay in Flam for two nights.

Situated in the innermost part of the Aurlandsfjord, a tributary of the Sognefjord, Flam is surrounded by steep mountainsides, roaring waterfalls and deep valleys. Explore this beautiful area by bike, kayak or hiking. There are several activities which can be pre-booked.

Return on the Flamsbana railway to Myrdal, change trains and continue to Bergen. The journey time approximately 4 hours. On arrival in Bergen please make your own way to your chosen hotel where you spend two nights on a breakfast basis.

Spend the day discovering the delights of Bergen. With its vibrant mix of chic cafes, the atmospheric Hanseatic quarter Bryggen and some excellent musuems and galleries, Bergen is best explored on foot. Stroll around the cobbled streets and narrow alleyways, take in the colourful and quirky Hansa warehouses that line the harbourside, explore the old fortress at Bergenhus and stop off at the Fish Market to enjoy its delicacies. End the day at one of the many eateries, from fish restaurants to coffee bars.

Morning free in Bergen. This afternoon make your own way to the port and check in for the voyage.

After the first night on board, you can start your day by waving to the Havila Voyages headquarters just off Torvik. Ålesund, is renowned for its art nouveau architecture with beautiful brick houses and warehouses. In the spring and summer the ship continue to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Geirangerfjord, which has steep mountainsides and dramatic waterfalls. In the winter months opt for a small boat cruise into Geirangerfjord from Alesund.

This morning you’ll dock in the historic city of Trondheim, which was founded over a thousand years ago. Nidaros Cathedral is the landmark of the city; it is Norway’s national shrine and one of the largest cathedrals in Northern Europe. The voyage continues out into the fjord, into an abundant archipelago and heads for northern Norway.

Mark crossing the Arctic Circle with a ceremony and continue onward into the Arctic regions. It means midnight sun in the summer, while winter days are merely a shade less dark than night-time and, possibly, Northern Lights in the evenings. Nature is powerful with northern Scandinavia’s largest glacier, the world’s strongest tidal current and encounters with the majestic sea eagle. In the evening, Lofoten’s fishing villages, steep mountains and Vikings await.

The voyage continues on through narrow fjords and past wild mountains to Tromsø, a city characterised by hunting and fishing, polar expeditions and courage. Now you have also reached the land of the Sami, Norway’s indigenous people.

As far north as you can get – by land and sea. For many, the visit to the North Cape is a high point and a goal for voyages along the Norwegian coast. Up here in the polar landscape, nature is at its harshest and most desolate, but between bare plains and rugged cliffs people cling on and reap nature’s bounty.

You are now as far east on your voyage as you can go. The border with Russia is only a few kilometres away, and the road signs in Kirkenes are in Norwegian and Russian. Disembark and make your own way to your hotel, or choose one of the available excursions.

Make your own way to Kirkenes Airport in time to check in for your flight.