We flew out of Bergen and landed in Ålesund, a small port town that was a good base for two of the Fjords I wanted to visit.

Day 6 – Thursday, October 6, 2022

After breakfast at our hotel, we drove ourselves toward Geiranger, where our Geirangerfjord cruise would depart. Along the way, we made a few stops to admire the beautiful landscape and scenery —even in rainy weather. There were so many waterfalls and I’ve never seen so many bright yellow mountains before.

Our first stop was at the Flydalsjuvet viewpoint and I didn’t expect it to be so stunning. It was a fantastic 360° view with mountains, waterfalls, and the charming town below into Geirangerfjord.

We grabbed a pizza before boarding our car on the ferry cruise. The scenery hit us pretty quick and it was spectacular to see the fjord walls up close paired with roaring waterfalls. It was quite the sight and we both agreed it was prettier than Nærøyfjord.

As we approached Hellesylt, the town on the other end of the fjord, it was pouring rain and we started our 2-hour drive back to Ålesund. We had a few stops along the way to admire the cabins and a roaring waterfall.

In Ålesund, our first stop was Fjellstua viewpoint you could hike up or drive. Of course, we’d pick drive. At the top, it was crazy windy and cold but the view overlooking Ålesund was beautiful and unlike any I’ve seen.

We wandered the Brosundet area before returning our car rental. There were a few beautiful old buildings to see here and in town. It was a quiet and charming stroll.

For dinner, we decided to eat at Zuuma, a popular sushi place. It had a nice interior and the sushi rolls were definitely hitting our Asian food cravings.

Day 7 – Friday, October 7, 2022

Today, we were boarding a Hurtigruten cruise for a day. This is a Norwegian cruise that sails the entire coast over 12 days, from Bergen to Kirkenes. It’s expensive and we didn’t have time for multiple days. We would sail from Ålesund to Hjørundfjord and back to Ålesund in a day for $78. It would be a nice preview of this expedition cruise line for future Arctic adventures.

This cruise wasn’t like the large American cruise companies at all (eg. Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian). It is much more relaxed with smaller cruise ships. When we went, it was more quiet with senior groups and a few adult couples. Food is not included, there is no onboard entertainment and you can board on and off at any port along the Norwegian coast.

We boarded around 10am and finished “exploring” the ship in 15 minutes. There aren’t that many lounge spaces, restaurants, cafes, etc. It was nice nonetheless and perfect for seniors in my opinion. We stayed on the upper deck admiring the views as we coasted towards Hjørundfjord.

Around 12:30pm, we docked near Urke, a small village on the eastern arm of Hjørundfjord. I originally planned to take the tender boat to shore but it was pouring so instead we headed to the cafe for lunch. Chi had fish and chips and I had a sirloin steak. It was about $60 total for us both, pricey but not as outrageous as the $75 per person lunch buffet. I enjoyed my meal while Chi’s was overly fried and not good.

After lunch, the skies cleared so I suggested going to the tiny town for a bit. While there isn’t much to do on shore, it was actually great to get off the board and admire the surrounding views. To my surprise, the weather was actually pretty good —it was dry and there were patches of blue in the sky. This short stop suddenly made Hjørundfjord a tie for my favorite with Geirangerfjord. Hjørundfjord was grander and you could see snow-capped mountains in the distance. Whereas Geirangerfjord was more intimate and had larger waterfalls.

I strolled around the tiny Urke town but the best views were at the dock. We went back to our ship where Chi enjoyed the outdoor deck hot tub and I had a hot chocolate. I was definitely jealous that he could hot tub and sauna with fjords views.

We slowly cruised back to Ålesund and arrived around 6pm. We had dinner at Zuuma again because it was pretty good and the other options around didn’t appeal to us.