Home from 11 day Norway-Iceland-Scotland cruise -- ask me anything!

[girlbomb]

Hello, Disboards! The hubs and I just got back yesterday from an amazing 11-day cruise on the Magic that took us to Norway, Iceland, and Scotland. I'm going to write a full trip report, with some scanned Navigators, but in the meantime, please feel free to ask me any questions you might have about this itinerary, and I will be glad to relive the memories!

 

[DCSWO]

Did you leave from Copenhagen? If so, could you talk about the boarding process there? I am taking a trip out of there next summer but there isn't too much info on foreign embarkation. Thanks!

 

[girlbomb]

Did you leave from Copenhagen? If so, could you talk about the boarding process there? I am taking a trip out of there next summer but there isn't too much info on foreign embarkation. Thanks!

This itinerary left from Dover in the UK, so I don't know what Copenhagen's cruise terminal is like, but the UK boarding process was much like the US one. We were able to take the Magical Express from Heathrow Airport in London, though we had to get our luggage ourselves in order to clear immigration and customs. Once we were cleared and we headed into the main terminal, there were four or five people holding Disney signs -- they told us where to put our luggage (on a huge cart with many other bags), gave us a red sticker, and told us we were on the Cherry bus. About 15 minutes later, the Cherry bus was called, and we followed someone holding a Disney sign to the bus.

The bus ride was about two hours with a pit stop, and it took us right to the Dinsey cruise terminal, which looks very much like the one in Port Canaveral. They screened our carry-ons at the door, then we waited 5 minutes for a rep to check us in. Nothing unusual about the check-in process -- show your passports and travel documents, promise you're not deathly ill, get your picture taken for security -- then we were given a boarding group number. Ten minutes later, we boarded through the doors into the atrium, and the magic began.

 

[DCSWO]

Thanks. Look forward to reading your full report. Sounds like a great itinerary.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

A couple and their daughter and DW, DS and I will be going on this next year; Copenhagen to Dover.
Did you do DCL excursions while in Iceland and/or Scotland? If so what were they and how would you rate them? While we are in Norway we are hoping to meet up at one of the ports of call with some friends that live in Norway. So we don't know yet what we will do in Norway as far as excursions are concerned. But if you want to include a short report on any excursions you may have taken while in Norway that would be great!

 

[SteveMP]

I have a couple questions. How jealous am I on a scale from 1 to 10? And, did you see the northern lights?

 

[MUN]

Did you leave from Copenhagen? If so, could you talk about the boarding process there? I am taking a trip out of there next summer but there isn't too much info on foreign embarkation. Thanks!

I don't want to highjack the thread, but we took a DCL cruise from Copenhagen. I would be happy to answer your questions if you PM me. Otherwise, you may wish to start a new thread with your questions.

MUN

 

[girlbomb]

A couple and their daughter and DW, DS and I will be going on this next year; Copenhagen to Dover.
Did you do DCL excursions while in Iceland and/or Scotland? If so what were they and how would you rate them? While we are in Norway we are hoping to meet up at one of the ports of call with some friends that live in Norway. So we don't know yet what we will do in Norway as far as excursions are concerned. But if you want to include a short report on any excursions you may have taken while in Norway that would be great!

Hi, MinnesotaMouseketeers! We did these excursions with Disney:

Stavenger, Norway: Lyjsiford by Land and Sea

This was an hour bus ride to a place called Bakers Paradise, where approx. 200 people got off their busses at the same time. In a large tent, there were long tables, and baskets of waffles came around with pots of cream and jelly. There was water and "saft," which is watered down juice. After exploring the area on foot for a while, we walked down to the ferry dock, which was right there. The ferry took us on a 2 hour ride through one of the fjords, where we got to see things like waterfalls and goats, as well as Pulpit Rock (from below). It was spectacular. The ferry conveniently deposited us back at the cruise terminal. I recommend the ride through the fjords, which you can set up through Disney or on your own.

Alesund, Norway: Walking the Trail of the Yoogun Trolls (or something like that)

We expected this to be a walking tour of Alesund with interesting stops along the way. This was not that. We were led from the dock to a nearby theater, where we watched a stage performance about the various troll mythologies, and were taught an incantation that we were supposed to say to the trolls (who are all stuck in concrete carvings on local buildings). The incantation began with, "Vadi vaki boom boom, vadi vaki boom..." This is when me and DH looked at each other with some dismay. We're good sports and fun lovers (obviously, since we're on a Disney cruise), but this felt kind of dumb. The tour started at a building one block away. We were shown the troll, then we were told its story, then we were supposed to chant. The next stop was about 6 feet from the first one, and we realized we weren't going to see much of the city at this pace, so we peeled off. Maybe fun for kids, but monotonous and random for adults.

To be continued!

 

[lklgoodman]

That troll thing sounds like something they did on Amazing Race a few months ago.

 

[girlbomb]

That troll thing sounds like something they did on Amazing Race a few months ago.

It was exactly that. We shoulda known!

 

[abja09]

Hello, Disboards! The hubs and I just got back yesterday from an amazing 11-day cruise on the Magic that took us to Norway, Iceland, and Scotland. I'm going to write a full trip report, with some scanned Navigators, but in the meantime, please feel free to ask me any questions you might have about this itinerary, and I will be glad to relive the memories!

I was on this cruise too! It was such an amazing trip! My son and I loved every second of it. Norway and Iceland were so beautiful!

 

[girlbomb]

Okay, more port excursions through Disney:

Akureyri, Iceland: Myvatn baths

We walked around town in the morning, then took an afternoon tour to the Myvahtn nature baths, which is similar to the Blue Lagoon in Reykjavik, but less popular/crowded. An hour bus ride to the baths, about an hour and a half for bathing in the geothermically heated mineral pools, then the ride back. I loved this, even though it was cold and rainy that day. The baths felt great, even if getting out of them didn't. They insist that you shower in a communal shower without a suit on before going to the baths, and I could see that some people really did not want to get naked and wished they had been warned in advance. There was a quick stop at a waterfall for pictures, but it was pouring rain, so we didn't stay long. Loved this excursion, would do it again.

Reykjavik, Iceland: Land of Fire and Ice all day adults only extravaganza

We did this on the second day in Reykjavik -- the day before, we snorkeled/scuba'd the Silfra crack, using an independent vendor, Magma Dive, who we liked very much. This bus tour started early and went all day, with four stops: A national park where you can see the edge of the European tectonic plate, a lunch stop at the Hotel Borealis (YUM), some geothermal springs with an active guyser, and a geothermal power plant. This was mostly enjoyable and covered a lot of ground. Unfortunately, our tour guide spoke in a low, halting drone that was difficult to understand and unpleasant to listen to, but the tour itself was worthwhile. Not sure if we would have chosen to go to a power plant if we were left to our own devices, but it was interesting enough.

Inverness, Scotland: All-day adults only Highlands and Loch Ness bus tour

Another marathon day with mutliple stops and drive-bys. This time, the guide was EXCELLENT, and was a wealth of information about her native Highlands. We stopped at Crowdor Castle (the grounds are better than the castle), then we had an hour and fifteen minutes in the town of Inverness, which was just enough time to get lunch and take a picture or two. Would have been nice to have more time there. Drove through beautiful small towns, past battlefields, to the ruins of a castle on the shores of Loch Ness. Dear, dear Husband kept encouraging me to point at the water and yell, "OH MY GOD, THERE IT IS!" I declined.

 

[girlbomb]

I have a couple questions. How jealous am I on a scale from 1 to 10? And, did you see the northern lights?

Probably a seven? And no. Hence the -3.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

I have a couple questions. How jealous am I on a scale from 1 to 10? And, did you see the northern lights?

Probably a seven? And no. Hence the -3.

I'm assuming that even though it's July, it's still close enough to the summer solstice that your night was very short in Iceland?
I'm really hoping that because next years cruise out of Copenhagen is in August and we will be in Iceland on the 21-22; we will have longer nights and hopefully a better chance to see the northern lights
Anybody been to (or live in) Iceland mid/late August? I would like to know what to expect.

Thank you girlbomb for your responses!!!

 

[aggiedog]

Sorry to disappoint you, but you won't see the NL in August. Even mid September, there is only about 45 minutes of true darkness. The earliest you might see them is October.

Still, plenty of amazing things to see in Iceland. The Land of Fire and Ice tour sounds like the Golden Circle, which is the most common tourist tour. If you are overnighting in Reykjavik, I'd recommend a south coast tour, which is less crowded and full of crazy beauty. If not, consider a private tour that gets you away from the crowds a bit. Goecco and Extreme Iceland are some of the more well known companies.

Bring waterproof layers if you are going to spend any amount of time outside. Do not bring an umbrella - it will be eaten by the wind. Bring warm clothes even in the summer. We were there June 1st and had down coats, hats, gloves, scarves. Layers are key as it can easily go from sunshine to sideways sleet every 10 minutes.

 

[girlbomb]

I was on this cruise too! It was such an amazing trip! My son and I loved every second of it. Norway and Iceland were so beautiful!

I can't believe how lucky we were to have such a terrific experience. The hangover, though! Ouch!

 

[amberwc]

@girlbomb if you had to pick only 1 experience or excursion to repeat from the trip, what would it be?

 

[girlbomb]

@girlbomb if you had to pick only 1 experience or excursion to repeat from the trip, what would it be?

Ooh! Tough one. But I think it would be seeing whales and dolphins from the top deck of the boat -- if you're going to the North Sea, definitely bring your binoculars!

 

[tldrobs]

Were the seas really rough?

 

[girlbomb]

Were the seas really rough?

The passage from Iceland to Scotland was the roughest. The motion of the boat was hardly noticeable except for those two days. There was a dropped tray in Lumiere's one of those nights, the pools were closed and some top deck staircases were off limits, and we were all walking like we were drunk. My scopalomine patch saved me from real discomfort, but I was definitely happy when things calmed down.