Escaping the heat of Bergen was a ‘win’ as we boarded the ship with over 300 guests. Eleven ships (seven with the Hurtigruten line and four with Havila) ply the coastline operating as something between a cruise and ferry. So some freight is carried and you can get on or off the ship permanently depending on where it stops. The ships have destinations where the passengers can disembark for sightseeing and excursions and there are other stops that may occur in the night for freight purposes. Our ship was modern and beautifully appointed. Not too big yet not too small. The staffing was high, well trained and the food was fabulous. The main draw is of course to look at the dramatic Norwegian coast line with its rocky profile, waterfalls and quaint mountain side farms.

The progress up north is slow and on the second day we went a considerable distance up a fjord to view some waterfalls.

The beauty and serenity is complete as you quietly sail. The weather has remained unseasonably hot and if you subscribe to global warming then the Norwegians have a lot to answer for. Over half of their exports are oil and gas and 24% of GDP is based on this drilling. The Norwegian government is a part owner of the sector and enjoys returns from the industry as well as tax. Rather impressively much of this money, over the last 25 years, has gone into a Sovereign Wealth Fund that stands at $1.5 trillion. Norwegians, per capita, are the second wealthiest people on the planet. There is some angst, politically and socially here, about continuing to extract fossil fuels but I rather prefer their model of coping with a guilty conscience rather than penury. Whilst major industrialised nations, outside Europe, continue to copiously burn fossil fuels our dash for net zero will have no measurable improvement in containing temperature levels.

There are several excursions on each stop. They’re fabulously expensive at between £100 to £170/person per trip. The one we booked got cancelled due to a low subscription! We have others planned, fingers crossed. There is always the alternative of getting off the ship and doing your own thing.

This we did at Trondheim and looked around the city centre and stunning Lutheran cathedral.

Here is where they coronate their Kings. I asked one of the Cathedral guides if there was much affection for the monarchy and she said there was ambivalence. She went on to outline that the Crown Princess’ son was under investigation for several rapes and assault. This man is the Crown Prince’s step son.

All in all it was an interesting stop and enabled some walking steps to be done. The food is regular and delicious on the ship and exercise is needed to cope with the calorie flow.