Hurtigruten
Hurtigruten
Was dreaming about a trip to Norway and thought the Hurigruten would be ideal, somehow got it into my head it was a hop on hop off type of service but a google only finds full on cruise packages, so are there local coastal services to ferry me between interesting cycling locations or do I need to think again?.........
Re: Hurtigruten
Hutigruten can be used for short hops, but you'll probably have to go to the Norwegian website for the timetable of sailings. I think you may need to book a few hours in advance of boarding though. Hurigbaten are faster though and will still take bikes (for, I think, half the adult fare) and you can just walk on and pay on board.
www.hurtigruten.no
www.hurtigruten.no
Re: Hurtigruten
This is the timetable and pricing you'll need for hurtigruten:
http://www.hurtigruten.no/Global/Brochu ... g_2009.pdf
http://www.hurtigruten.no/Global/Brochu ... g_2009.pdf
Re: Hurtigruten
Hopping on and off the Hurtigruten is certainly possible (and good fun), but you're right that they don't seem to advertise the fact to their English-speaking audience. But the UK booking office will sell tickets (and reserve bike spaces, etc) for short hops (or would do, a couple of years ago). If you want to check out times, availability and prices in advance, I think the best thing to do is to go to the Norwegian site (http://www.hurtigruten.no): follow 'Start bestiling', then in the 'Velg produkt' box select 'Distansereise', then just pick the stops you want. (As far as I recall, it isn't possible to make bike bookings via the website, though.)
My impression is that pre-booking isn't really necessary for the short hops: you could just turn up and buy a ticket on the spot, unless you're travelling at very high season and/or want to be certain of getting a cabin -- or (like me) are very risk-averse...
There are also lots of local ferries which connect the places which are too small or off the beaten track for the main Hurtigruten boats -- many of them are run by this company: http://www.torghatten-nord.no/; many others are operated by local companies -- local tourist offices/municipalities often have links or details on their websites.
My impression is that pre-booking isn't really necessary for the short hops: you could just turn up and buy a ticket on the spot, unless you're travelling at very high season and/or want to be certain of getting a cabin -- or (like me) are very risk-averse...
There are also lots of local ferries which connect the places which are too small or off the beaten track for the main Hurtigruten boats -- many of them are run by this company: http://www.torghatten-nord.no/; many others are operated by local companies -- local tourist offices/municipalities often have links or details on their websites.