I did this a couple years ago on the Kong Harald, but due to a breakdown was transferred to MS Lofoten
The Lofoten is a bit smaller than the one I had booked on (the smaller of these two)
This meant a little more basic, and “interesting” in a storm crossing to Lofoten, but the standards on board are fine, with lots of brass and teak making a traditional environment
The trip itself is stunning and I spent hours with a book and cameras truly relaxing and letting the mountains, fjords and scenery pass by. Sunsets and sunrises are breathtaking and when I went in
February at a reasonable civilized hour, their is a running commentary of the sights you pass and some local history, if you wish they will call you at night if the Northern
Lights make a appearance
Now for the negatives
Food ichoice is fairly fixed with local sourcing, so if you want alternatives then speak to the staff
Alcohol is expensive on board, so we would buy ashore and then use the Hurtigruten thermal mugs to take our “tea” on deck.
Excursions are expensive, but unfortunately the limited time in a port often makes them the only practical way of seeing an area......Nordkapp is an example
The other downside of the Ferry aspect is if you have a cabin near the loading doors, it can be noisy at night
Finally .... the Northern Lights. These are stunning at sea and if you are lucky and get a backdrop such as Trollfjord even better, however forget photos if the weather is anything apart from a mil pond, long exposures are not compatible with a small ship like Lofoten
All in all, if you accept that it is a ferry, accept the limited time ashore and the costs, then it is a really fantastic trip, and well worth doing
.....and talk to the locals who they are traveling between towns as they can give tips as to bars, local sights etc
You do get to go ashore when the ship lands, but you are on a ferry, not a cruise ship, so time is limited 30 minutes in some cases so for instance we did not have time to visit the monument to the Witches at Vardo
I would also liked to have more time in Trondheim
I got to see the bike lift, but only by missing out on part of the Nidaros tour
Also some visits are in the dead of night. If you do the round trip this sorts itself as one way is a night visit the other wayis a day one
