Norway's Fjords by Mail Boat

The fjord cruise A tale of the "most beautiful journey in the world"!

In late May and early June 2000 we took a wonderful trip that I am glad to share with friends. We visited three northern European capitals (Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen) but, above all, we travelled the whole Atlantic coast of the Scandinavian peninsula (starting from Bergen and arriving at Kirkenes - on the Norway-Finland-Russia border) aboard the mail boat that links all the little towns of this beautiful peninsula.

The journey began from Italy on a Sunday in late May and, after a day spent in the boat's departure town (Bergen), whose "Nordic port" character we appreciated as well as that of a very lively post-medieval town, we boarded one of the mail ships that every day provide the link for goods and passengers to northern Norway.

The ship we chose was one of the latest generation and was truly comfortable; it carries over 500 passengers and the six days spent on board are more than rewarding. Having no experience of other kinds of "cruises" we cannot make comparisons, but personally we were very satisfied both with the location of the cabin (deck 6, outside, with a view of the ports we docked at) and with the general treatment on board; in particular we did not feel out of place in our "casual" clothing even though (at the served dinner) there were also many people in elegant attire. Most of the cruisers were American (with the value of the dollar, no wonder!) but on board we also made friends with other Italians, mostly young people on their honeymoon.

The spectacle offered during this journey is unique; both in the fjords and in the different towns visited during the "stops" there are things of indescribable beauty and uniqueness. Among these, the most memorable for us was the night of the "midnight sun" spent north of the Arctic Circle during a very "trying" passage between very high mountains (still covered in snow) in one of the most striking fjords of the whole journey. The only disappointment we suffered was the visit to the North Cape, also because of the particularly unlucky day (fog, snow, wind over 70 km/hour). Afterwards, moreover, we suffered a strong seasickness because of the ship's exit into the ocean, whereas until then it had "tacked" sheltered by the fjords.

If we were to advise friends to repeat our journey, we would therefore advise them to book the passage from Bergen (the southern departure stop) to Tromso (which also has an airport), thus avoiding both the North Cape and the "dip" in the ocean.

For specific information on the cruise you can go to the site: (obviously in English). In any case we are always available to provide further details by writing to salve_fi@yahoo.it.

Barbara and Sandro Salvetti - Florence