MS Nordnorge to Norwegian Fjords

Firstly, bear in mind that Nordnorge is not a true cruise ship; she is an extremely comfortable ferry that takes people and supplies right along the ports of coastal Norway year round, as well as round trip tourists coming on board to see the Northern Lights in winter.

There is no organised entertainment as such, no casino or swimming pool, and only one bar. Because the ship sails in Norwegian territorial waters, prices for everything- including alcohol- are eye watering. A party boat she is not.

Cabins are small- you throw you own duvet on the bed at night- but the small bathroom floors are heated, a nice touch. Elsewhere, the ship has many comfortable lounging areas, with floor to ceiling glass windows, for viewing the incredible scenery.

Food is served, buffet style, in a beautiful, aft facing dining room. Breakfast and lunch are opens eating, buffet style, with a range of hot and cold dishes. Dinner is a set table, three course affair without choice. It typically revolves around local dishes such as potatoes, meat and fish. What it lacks in choice is more than compensated by the superb taste.

On Nordnorge, the real entertainment lies outside the windows. Vast, snow draped mountain sides, flecked with the skeletons of pine trees, parade past your eyes at all ours. The pale, red glow of the returning sun casts an eerie glow across the horizon just after breakfast until around three in the afternoon.

Nordnorge took us smartly in and out of small, otherwise inaccessible places at all hour of the day and night. Never to be forgotten was a fabulous husky ride through the pine forests at Tromso, or the still, silent, isolated splendour of standing on the top of the North Cape, surrounded by ice. The Nordnorge brought you right up close to nature in the raw each day and night, and then moved on to the next incredible view.