This was my first trip to Scandinavia and it exceeded all my expectations. On arrival in Tromso we had over 5 hours to wait until the trollfjord docked, so Hurtigruten arranged a husky sledge ride. At the airport we all changed into our ‘cold weather’ gear before being taken to the villmarkssenter on the outskirts of Tromso to meet our sledge team. There are over 50 friendly huskies, and under a clear starlit night we took off in pairs with our teams of dogs under the watchful eye of their handler.
Wrapped up in fur skins we were whisked over icy crisp snow fields with just the headlamps of the handlers to guide our way, it was a truly magical experience. On our return we were then treated to local food served in a lavvo (like a teepee) where we sat around an open fire eating, drinking and listening to local folk tales; that is until a shout from outside told us that the ‘Northern Lights’ had appeared, we then experienced over 30 mins of wonderful swirling lights in the sky, they literally danced before our eyes - truly awesome and so much more impressive than I imagined.

We disembarked the ship at Harstadd and took a trip overland enjoying a stop at Trondenes Kirk and museum. We took a ferry across one the fjords and tea and local cakes were served whilst we enjoyed the most stunning scenery before arriving at Sortland to re-board the trollefjord. We then continued our journey south through the Lofoten Islands.

This delightful coastline is enchanting and the small ports of call all offer a pleasant sojourn whilst the ship goes about its freight business. It is fascinating learning about the Norse mythology as you pass points of interest and you can only begin to imagine how these tales were borne out of the influence of the awesome vistas.

This kind of journey is not for those who want to be cosseted by a big cruise liner, but it’s for those who enjoy the dramatic scenery, and the friendliness of the local people, for whom these ships are a lifeline. This type of holiday is for travellers not tourists.

For a winter short break the Northern Lights experience is very worthwhile and the 12 day round trip from Bergen is ideal in the spring and summer months when day and night becomes one.

Norway in common with all Scandinavian countries is not the cheapest holiday option, but a trip with Hurtigruten offers a unique and friendly insight into Norwegian culture, well worth the extra cost.