The Norwegian fjords and the Baltic Sea may be a great combination – even the Passenger Shipping Association lumps them together for the purposes of counting cruisers – yet they are also like chalk and cheese.
The Baltic region is all about cities, history and culture, while the fjords’ big selling point is its majestic scenery. People go to see the steep canyons, snow-capped mountains and centuries-old glaciers.
Generally, the fjords attract older people looking for a sedate cruise, while the Baltic suits experienced clients out to discover new places.
Historically, both have been thought suitable for the older market, but families can enjoy them too as there’s lots of fun activities for children to do, such as high-speed boat rides down the Stockholm archipelago, hiking and biking in Tallinn, cycling in Visby and boat rides in Gdansk.
Hurtigruten sales and marketing director Kathryn Beadle says passengers choose the fjords primarily for the scenery, but they are also attracted because it’s a safe destination, and close to the UK.
“Cruisers can immerse themselves in the food, environment and culture. The average age of our passengers is 50-plus in summer, but during winter, we get more teens, attracted by the soft-adventure activities,” she says.
The Baltic region and fjords have some things in common. They are both in northern Europe and have a limited season. Hurtigruten sails the Norwegian coast year-round, but most cruise lines go between mid-May and mid-September.
Many lines alternate Baltic and fjord cruises. MSC Cruises’ MSC Opera is sailing to both destinations from Dover this summer; Celebrity Cruises is alternating between the two on voyages from Amsterdam.
Growth from UK
According to figures from the Passenger Shipping Association, 295,000 Britons cruised in northern Europe last year, up from 256,000 in 2008, when the region overtook the Caribbean to become the Brits’ second-favourite cruise destination.
Much of the growth is due to the fact it is cheaper to fly to the Baltic or fjords than to the Caribbean, which helps keep prices down. Several cruise lines sail to both areas from the UK, cutting out the need to fly at all.
It also has a lot to do with increased awareness of the region generated by Cruise Baltic and Cruise Norway, marketing companies tasked with promoting their own areas.
Cruise Baltic director Bo Larsen says as a result of their efforts, which have included agent training, 60 cruise ships will be sailing 300 Baltic itineraries this summer.
Disney Cruise Line will be visiting the Baltic for the first time this year, on debut voyages from the UK, while French cruise line Compagnie du Ponant is basing new ship Le Boréal in the region.
Cruise Norway says 118,000 Britons cruised the region last year, 3,000 up on 2008. Their figures exclude Hurtigruten, which operates a daily ferry service in each direction between Bergen and Kirkenes, on the Russian border, even though it is sold outside Norway as a cruise experience. Beadle says they carry 15,000 British cruise passengers a year.
Cruise Norway managing director Wenche Nygård Eeg says: “Demand for cruising the fjords is growing year on year from the UK. We are geographically close, share a common history and it’s value for money.”
Eeg says 34 cruise lines will be sailing down the Norwegian fjords in 2010, the same as last year.
The Baltic
The jewel in the Baltic’s crown is St Petersburg and most cruise ships stay two days, sometimes three, in the city as there is such a lot to see, including opulent palaces and cathedrals. As they stay overnight, most cruise lines take the opportunity to offer evening excursions to the ballet or opera.
But there is a lot more to the Baltic region than the former Russian capital. Most cruise ships call at Copenhagen in Denmark, Stockholm in Sweden, Helsinki in Finland and Tallinn in Estonia.
They might then also add Gotland, a Swedish island in the Baltic, Oslo, the capital of Norway, Gdynia, to visit Gdansk in Poland, and Wärnemunde in Germany, for excursions to Berlin.
Between them, they offer a diverse selection of attractions, from museums and markets to high-speed boat rides – in Helsinki as well as Stockholm – to more sedate trips around the canals.
Built on 14 islands connected by 40 bridges, Stockholm has a number of highlights including an Under the Bridges canal boat ride and the Vasa Museum, built up around a
17th-century war ship that sank in the harbour on its maiden voyage and was pulled from the mud in 1956.
Tallinn has quaint cobbled streets and an imposing Russian-inspired cathedral, Helsinki has a church hewn into rock in the middle of the city, a colourful market selling local handicrafts and the quirky Sibelius Monument built to commemorate Finland’s favourite composer.
In Copenhagen, there’s the Frihedsmuseet, which tells the story of Danish resistance to the Nazi occupation, and Tivoli Gardens, a fun park dating back to 1843, with rides, restaurants and stage shows.
Copenhagen is the biggest destination in the Baltic, handling 675,000 passengers and 331 cruise ship visits in 2009.
Norwegian fjords
Hurtigruten operates 11-night round-trip cruises between Bergen and Kirkenes, or passengers can cruise one-way, but otherwise there are no cruise embarkation ports in Norway. Instead, cruise lines sail into the region, either from the UK or ports such as Amsterdam and Copenhagen.
All visit Bergen, the biggest port, which welcomed 282,500 passengers in 2009, one-third of them from the UK. Cruise lines on one-week itineraries from the UK usually visit Ålesund, Stavanger and Olden. Those on two-week or longer cruises call at a number of places, including Geiranger, Tromsø, Trondheim, Kirkenes and Honningsvåg.
In Bergen, the main attraction, apart from the Unesco-protected, 11th-century merchants’ houses along Bryygen, is a funicular railway to the top of Mount Fløyen, which offers views across the town and fjords. There are walks from the top back to town.
From Stavanger, passengers can take a tour to the Lysefjord, from where they can look up and see the Pulpit Rock – a famous landmark in Norway that hangs over the fjord. From Olden, there are excursions to the Briksdal Glacier.
In Tromsø, the main attractions are the Catholic Church and Polar Museum. In winter, Hurtigruten has reindeer sledging and excursions in search of the Northern Lights. From Honningsvåg, you can go to the North Cape, the most northerly point in Europe.
Sample product
Hurtigruten: An 11-night Classic Round Voyage from Bergen to Kirkenes and back starts at £1,590 per person cruise-only for departures in June and July booked before June 30. Flights cost from £320 per person. hurtigruten.co.uk/agents, 020 8846 2666
Princess Cruises: A 10-night Scandinavia and Russia cruise from Copenhagen on Star Princess, visiting Stockholm, Helsinki, St Petersburg (overnight), Tallinn and Gdansk, starts at £1,339 per person on departures until August 30, 2010, including flights and transfers. princess.com, 0845 355 5800
Swan Hellenic: A 14-night Norwegian Fjords cruise roundtrip from Portsmouth on August 5, 2011, visiting Farsund, Stavanger, Geiranger, Flam, Olden, Alesund and Trondheim starts at £1,895 per person cruise-only including excursions and gratuities. swanhellenic.com, 0844 871 4603
