Cruising the Norwegian Fjords!

Wow! that's the first words that come into your head as you cruise into Geiranger Fjord in Norway... breathtaking scenery and an air of peace and tranquility..... but do not be fooled into thinking that all there is to do is cruise up and down looking at the glacier valleys... if you want to relax then why not!! You can sit in the jacuzzi and watch the world go by or join a coach tour and learn a little more about the area. My husband and I like to join the more active opportunities available....five days of kayaking, speed boats, glacier treks and rafting on the glacial lakes later we figured we had a great time!!

We went with my husband's sister on a 7nt Norwegian cruise with P and O Cruises on Oceana. We had a balcony cabin and my sister in law had an inside cabin as I got her a really great deal for a single traveller. Prevously I have always done a fly-cruise and flown out to meet the ship , this was the first time I had actually embarked the ship in Southampton and how fantastic! we set off after breakfast on the saturday drove to Southampton in a couple of hours, pulled up at the terminal and it was so easy. We had booked parking so out bags were taken to the ship , we signed a form and our car was driven off to the car park and we just walked on to the ship with a small bag each.

The first day was at sea and lovely weather so we spent it on deck in the jacuzzi and relaxing with a book by the pool bar then it was formal night... lovely to see everyone all dressed up in black tie and evening dresses! The food was absolutely wonderful and our waiters were some of the best we have ever had!

Our first port was Stravanger where we boarded a catamaran and zoomed out to see all the inner fjords and the famous Pulits rock - with a stop for hot waffles! the next day we spent kayaking and exploring in the beautiful Geiranger fjord... unexpectedly goats were a highlight of our holiday as everywhere we went we got visited by goats as they have their summer holidays on the mountainsides - one of them even tried to board the instructors canoe and nearly got wet! Next came a visit to Olden where my sister in law went off for a glacier trek and had the time of her life! It was one of the more expensive excursions as you would expect and we had already done this in Alaska so we choose to trek up to the base of the glacier and then go rafting on the lake below it - had great fun and saw the glacier calving down into the lake! We got back to the ship and decided to go out on a jet boat with friends for high speed thrills! Our last port was Bergen and we went into town to explore with full intention of going up the funicular but we were so busy window shopping we ran out of time!

The food in the main restaurant was wonderful every evening, great selection and something different to choose from every night. We tried the Marco Pierre White speciality restaurant one evening and the seafood platter was to die for! the Yacht and Compass was a traditional english pub, great to meet all our friends after our days on shore and swap stories... then it was Magnums champagne bar for pre-dinner drinks and Le CLub for the disco and drinks in the evening...

This is great for an easy and really interesting break from the UK, stunning scenery, fantastic ship with really friendly staff and great food and entertainment.... home from home!!