15 Norwegian Fjords Cruise Tips You Need To Know

First time sailing on a cruise through Norway? In this blog post, I’m dishing 15 essential Norwegian fjords cruise tips that could make or break your trip — when to sail, what to pack, mistakes to avoid and more.

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Cruise the Norwegian fjords in the summer.

The best time to cruise the Norwegian fjords is in the summer, particularly in June and July. In the summer, you can experience the infamous midnight sun, score the best weather and avoid wintery weather-related cancelations. However, the summer is also peak tourist season for Norway, so expect higher cruise prices during these months.

Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that, because of the midnight sun phenomenon, you will not be able to see the Northern Lights in southern or central Norway fjords in the summer. So, if you’re going to Norway in hopes of witnessing the Auroras, you’re better off booking your trip in September through March.

Pack warm layers.

Despite traveling in the summer, don’t be fooled. Norway is cold. Anticipate high midday temperatures of around 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 degrees Celsius) in Norway in the summer. As such, packing warm layers is crucial to ensure you have a comfortable Norwegian fjords cruise. Long pants, warm socks, long sleeves, and a jacket or coat are essential. I personally packed my cream Columbia packable down jacket, and I’m very thankful I brought it. Nights and mornings on the cruise ship are exceptionally chilly.

Book Norway cruise excursions early.

Furthermore, Norwegian fjords excursions sell out fast, as most people want an easy way to venture outside of the ports to see more of Norway. Booking Norwegian fjords excursions through your cruise line is the easiest route to book excursions; although, this is also the most expensive way to book excursions. Instead, to save money, book your Norway excursions through the Norwegian tour companies themselves or through tour websites like Tripadvisor, GetYourGuide or Viator.

Unfortunately, we were unable to book excursions through our cruise ship (Royal Caribbean’s Anthem Of The Seas) because all of the worthy excursions sold out. So, instead, we booked this Flam, Stegastein and Borgund Stave Church tour through Tripadvisor. In Olden, we were able to purchase shuttle and tour tickets for Briksdal Glacier and Loen Skylift directly from the Norwegian tour companies in person at the port right off the ship.

Choose your Norwegian fjords itinerary wisely.

The best itinerary for a Norwegian fjords cruise includes port stops in Olden and Flam, as well as sea towns like Stavanger and Bergen. Obviously, choosing the best itinerary for you can truly make or break your trip. For example, if you love nature and the mountains but choose a city-only itinerary, you’ll definitely feel like you’re missing out on Norway’s fjord magic. Personally, my favorite Norwegian fjord cruise port was Olden, with Flam as a close runner-up.

Choose your Norwegian fjords cruise line wisely.

Likewise, like your cruise itinerary, choose your cruise line and ship wisely. If you prefer cruise ships with all of the bells and whistles — nightly Broadway entertainment, casinos, dozens of bars and interactive activities galore — I recommend sailing on a larger cruise ship, such as Royal Caribbean’s Anthem Of The Seas. Although the world’s largest and most impressive cruise ships cannot physically sail through the narrow fjords, there is certainly no lack of things to do on the larger ships.

On the contrary, perhaps you prefer smaller, close-knit, more personable cruise lines. You’re content with a pool and a hot tub, and don’t need the bells nor whistles to avert boredom. In this case, you’ll have no problem enjoying the smaller ships that sail through the fjords daily.

Avoid sailing out of Southhampton.

Numerous Norwegian fjords cruises sail out of Southhampton, UK, including ours. If you are a UK resident, sailing out of Southhampton shouldn’t be as much of a hassle as it was for us. But, if you are coming from the US or another country outside of the UK into London Heathrow, like we did, I would opt for a cruise sailing out of Oslo instead. We learned the hard way that sailing out of Southhampton when you don’t live near Southhampton is a headache.

First of all, we assumed that there would be a train from London directly to the Southhampton cruise terminal, but we were wrong. The closest train station from the cruise terminal is about a mile away, which means you will either have to catch a rideshare/taxi or walk with your luggage the remaining mile. Taking a rideshare/taxi from London will run you around $200 USD each way.

Second of all, because there are thousands of passengers embarking and disembarking the same ship around the same time, you need to pre-book your rideshare/taxi back to London from Southhampton. Otherwise, you may not be able to find one the day of.

Splurge on a balcony stateroom.

Nevertheless, once you’re on the ship, the views are magnificent. If you choose any cruise sailing to splurge on with a balcony stateroom, I highly recommend splurging on a fjords sailing. Truly, nothing compares to the epic Norwegian fjord views from the peaceful privacy of your stateroom balcony. I’m honestly so thankful that I did not have to go to the crowded, cold, windy upper decks to enjoy the views.

Check Costco Travel for Norwegian fjords cruise deals.

That being said, it is no secret that balcony staterooms are typically much more expensive than interior staterooms. If you are cruising on a budget but still want the luxury of your own private balcony, I recommend you check Costco Travel for Norwegian fjords cruise deals. We booked our Norway cruise through Costco Travel with a balcony stateroom (and many other additional inclusions) for a fraction of the price of regular balcony staterooms. If you want a full review of my past experiences with Costco Travel, watch my Costco Travel YouTube video here.

Wake up for sunrise.

Similarly, wake up for sunrise while cruising through the Norwegian fjords, especially when cruising into mountain towns like Flam and Olden. This is one of my best Norwegian fjords tips. Every night, the captain announced the time of the next morning’s sunrise as well as the estimated time of when we were going to pull into that day’s Norway fjord from the North Sea. He said, “If you can manage to wake up, the views will the worth it.” He wasn’t lying.

I woke up at 4:30 a.m. most days on our Norwegian fjords cruise, and I have no regrets. It was riveting waking up, grabbing my Starbucks from our mini fridge that I ordered the night before, walking out onto our stateroom balcony in my pajamas, and watching the fjord unfold before my eyes — so many mountains, so many massive waterfalls and so many quaint towns.

Bring a sleeping mask for the midnight sun.

In contrast, if you like to sleep in, you should bring a sleeping mask when cruising through Norway in summer. Throughout the summer months, the sun only sets for a couple of hours, and the sky never truly gets dark. In mid-June, the sun never actually sets. Basically, nighttime is not dark. While the cruise staterooms do have blackout curtains that make your room completely dark, it may be worth bringing a sleeping mask just in case.

I have this affordable satin sleeping mask from Amazon, and I love it. Because it is satin, it is better at preventing both wrinkles and breakouts than other masks.

Know that the ports are small.

In addition, it is worth noting in advance that most of the Norwegian fjord port cities are very small. With the exception of ports like Oslo (Norway’s capital) and Bergen (Norway’s second largest city), many of the fjords ports are made up of only a few souvenir shops, a few excursion companies and a few restaurants. In fact, most of the Norwegians working in these port cities don’t even live there. They commute from neighboring cities.

Therefore, most of the sea towns (e.g. Bergen and Stavanger) are very walkable. However, the mountainous port cities like Olden and Flam, require booked excursions and shuttle buses to visit the main sightseeing spots. Again, book these excursions early. If you are unable to pre-book, get off the ship early in the morning to try to book day-of excursions at the tour company stands.

Don’t confuse the Norwegian currency with other krona.

Arguably, the worst mistake you could make while traveling to Norway is confusing the Norwegian krona with another krona currency. Not all krona are equal. Many countries refer to their currency as “krona,” such as Sweden, Denmark and Iceland. However, each of these types of krona hold different values, and they are not interchangeable. Meaning, you cannot use Swedish krona in Norway or vice versa. It’s like comparing US dollars to Canadian dollars — same name but very different currencies.

I saw another cruise passenger in a Norway souvenir shop during my trip who asked her US bank for “krona” cash before her trip. I could only imagine how much money she paid in currency exchange fees. Turns out, the bank gave her Swedish krona, not Norwegian krona. As you could imagine, the shops in Norway could not accept her cash. She was stranded without cash purely because her bank did not understand the different krona currencies.

The takeaway? You have to explicitly ask for “Norwegian krona.” You cannot just ask for “krona.”

Luckily, Visa and MasterCard credit cards are accepted everywhere in Norway. The best way to avoid this issue is to bring a travel credit card that does not have foreign transaction fees. You can find all of my travel credit card recommendations here.

Try a Norwegian pastry (or two).

Moreover, you cannot visit Norway without trying the delectable array of Norwegian pastries. From iconic cinnamon rolls to doughy jam-filled buns with glaze, Norway has the best pastries my family and I have ever tasted in our lives. (Yes, even better than France.) You will find a plethora of coffee shops and bakeries scattered throughout the port towns, so don’t forget to stop in for a pastry.

Taste whale, reindeer or moose in Norway.

Lastly for my Norwegian fjords cruise tips, in Norway, you will be given the unique opportunity to taste rare meats, such as whale, reindeer and moose. You can try these meats in a variety of forms, from reindeer hot dogs to whale sausage to moose burgers and more. I personally tried a reindeer hot dog and would recommend it purely for the novelty. I also purchased a souvenir package of whale sausage for my husband.

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