Havila Polaris cruise

The big trip has finally arrived. Our 12 day northern lights cruise on the Havila Polaris from Bergen to Kirkenes to Bergen.

The trip was amazing, stopping at all the ports up and down the coast. Havila have four ships that offer this cruise but they also transport freight and port to port passengers from town to town. Something happened at every port, either passengers or cargo got on or off. Some ports only stopped for 10 mins for this to occur, at all hours of the day an night.

EXCURSIONS

Bodø: Rib Boat Adventure & Sea Eagles

We suited up like Teletubbies before boarding the rib boat to see the world’s strongest maelstrom. The tidal current only appears as the tide flows in or out, so we caught a partial glimpse. It’s created by water depths of 400 m and 500 m on either side of a 30 m deep channel, causing the water to swirl and bubble. At full tide, it would be spectacular. Along the way, we spotted sea eagles and learned about the surrounding rock formations.

Tromsø: Reindeer feeding and meet the Sami People

This was amazing! We took a bus to a Sami farm where 200 hungry reindeer waited. After meeting the Sami in a yurt around a central fire, we each got a bucket of feed. The reindeer were gentle but we needed to be cautious of their huge antlers. We wandered among them as they approached for food, then enjoyed hot drinks, reindeer stew, and a lesson in Sami history and joiking (traditional singing).

Kirkenes: Dog Sled and Snow Hotel

Another wonderful experience! We started by feeding three friendly reindeer, then visited the sled dogs—187 in total, each with a unique name. Their largest litter had 12 puppies, all of which survived. With staff from 12 different nationalities, the puppies were named after capital cities like Prague, Copenhagen, and Malmö. The highlight was definitely the sled dog ride—an amazing, unforgettable thrill.

Fun fact: it hasn’t snowed yet, but they stored snow from last year under insulated blankets to create the sled track for this season.

We ended the day at the Snow Hotel, where everything, from the bar and rooms to the beds, is made entirely of ice. It’s a chilly -4°C inside! Built six years ago, it’s slowly melting, and a new one will be constructed in the next few years.

Port Stops

We wandered through some of the other ports when we were docked for longer, one was at midnight in Tromsø. Others were Hammerfest, the worlds northernmost town, Trondheim and Honningsvåg.