Welcome Back to Norway

View our Norway Photo Albums

Now everybody can travel to Norway without having to quarantine 

(Norway, January 26,2022)  Today marks the first day since early 2020, where the Norwegian border is open to all visitors without having to quarantine. Due to COVID-19, the Norwegian government had to shut its borders and demand self-quarantine for all travelers without the EU COVID certificate. This practice ended at midnight, and now travelers from outside the EU are also free to visit Norway without a 10-day quarantine period. 

For Norway, this is great news. A joint Norwegian travel industry hopes this latest change in guidelines will have positive consequences for the entire tourism industry, as international guests are now finally able to visit again. 

Acting director for Visit Norway, Audun Pettersen, is excited about the border re-opening: “Welcome back! We have waited so long for this day to come, and we have really missed our visitors from around the world. Finally, people can start to plan their vacations and travel to Norway again. This means so much to us and the entire industry.” 

Travelers who come to Norway will still need to test and register upon arrival. This test is free of charge. If you don´t possess a valid, digital COVID certificate approved by the EU (documenting that you are fully vaccinated or have been infected with COVID-19 during the last six months), you will take have to take a test no more than 24 hours prior to arriving in Norway. If you arrive by air, the test can be taken during the last 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure time of the first flight of your itinerary. 

Read more about traveling to Norway and the latest COVID-guidelines: https://www.visitnorway.com/plan-your-trip/coronavirus-and-travelling-to-norway/

We've visited Norway several times.   Our most recent voyage was during winter where we had the opportunity to see Northern Lights multiple times during our coastal cruise.   You can read all about our journey to Norway in our Diary Hurtigruten Classic Voyage Bergen blog post.

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Where have you explored? 

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Visit to Bronnoysund

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Brønnøysund

A pretty little town rich in history and maritime atmosphere 


Brønnøysund is situated on a narrow peninsula on the mainland, surrounded by islands and water. Here, you're actually at the halfway point along the western coast of Norway. The small coastal town of 5,000 inhabitants is centered on the narrow but strategically situated harbor, that caters to all trade and fishing. It is a vibrant and pretty little town with an attractive visitors' marina.

We spent some time some strolling among the shops just across from where we docked - including a Coop food store. to stroll around the streets – perhaps a walk along Havnegata, where you can enjoy looking at the small boats and bustling life of the archipelago. Sample the street life and go into one of the pubs, or treat yourself to a delicious meal at one of the restaurants.

Shortly after leaving the town, we made a slight detour for ....

  Torghatten

On deck we saw the strange mountain Torghatten (rising 850 ft above sea level), famous for its
distinctive hole right through the middle. The hole is 525 ft long, 115 ft high, and 65 ft wide, and was created during the Ice Age.


Stay on deck to see the hole from the sea, as is natural for seafarers (who in the past were the only ones visiting the place).

Additional photos can be found on our Norway Shutterfly page

Brønnøysund
Torghatten





Click on the image to the right for more Blog posts about this trip.

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Where have you explored? 

Gather your travel and food pics and join us Wednesday night for the latest installment of #FoodTravelChat 

Vesteralen Embarkation

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Bergen Embarkation 

The embarkation process in Bergen was rather quick. Our shuttle bus dropped us off just outside the terminal building. We brought our luggage inside and waited in a short line to be checked in.

We presented our paperwork, passports, and credit card as usual and were given our cabin card keys. Our checked luggage was tagged and put on a conveyor belt and off we went to get onboard.

We were directed up the escalator to a waiting room where we were greeted and told about what would happen next.

Safety Briefing

If you've been on cruises before, the first difference you'll notice about sailing on Hurtigruten MS Vesterålen is that you are required to sit through a safety briefing before you embark the ship.

The waiting room was filled with a number of passengers when we got there.  We were told the briefing would start in a few minutes.

One of the crew members introduced the safety briefing which was shown on video monitors located throughout the room.   You'll notice in the image above that this isn't your typical life preserver.  In fact, it's a thermal protection suit which makes sense since we'd be sailing in some pretty cold waters during the next 12 days.


A sticker was placed on our card to indicate that we had completed the safety briefing.  We were then directed to the ramp leading to the ship.

Exploring the Ship

Once onboard the ship, we explored the public areas until we were able to get into our cabin.  Pictured here is the cafe and gift shop which is where we waited.


Hungry between meals?  Want a cup of coffee or hot chocolate or perhaps a treat of some sort...  the Cafe was the place to go to purchase something to eat or drink.   It was also a meeting place before meals or excursions.

Additional photos can be found on our Norway Shutterfly page

MS Vesteralen (Facebook album)

Click on the image to the right for more Blog posts about this trip.

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