Right, I have some time to offer some meaningful input.
We did a one way Bergen to Tromso and although I had not been on a cruise beforehand (and haven’t since - not my way of holidaying), it was pretty good as it’s still a ‘coastal steamer’ rather than a floating conspicuous consumption palace. We got off the ship once or twice each day to do the local excursions.
Sailing up into the fjords - check
Spectacular scenery - check
Pretty token cabin - check (but other than sleeping each night, why would you need anything other than a small room with bed and ensuite?)
Auroral show - check! (whilst sailing on the appropriately named Polarlys)
I recall it was pretty expensive, but then so was driving around Norway before and after the Hurtigruten part of the trip.
I don’t think you’d be disappointed booking a coastal Norway cruise with Hurtigruten.
We too are on the Polarlys. As well this was our first cruise and I'd never had a desire to cruise. The thing to remember with all these ships as they're not just cruise liners. They're working ships used to move people, their cars and cargo between coastal ports.
We did the return 11 day voyage and loved it. I'm glad we did both directions as you stop at the night ports during the day on the return voyage. We opted for a relatively cheap room on the lower deck with just a port hole. We spent very little time in the room apart from sleeping. We tended to get off the ship at every port we stopped at long enough (30 minutes plus). For the shorter ones we'd just go for a short stroll. You're never far from land so the is constantly amazing scenery.
I did sneak a peak at some of the "better" rooms. To be honest, I don't think it would have been worth the extra expense. The suites (or whatever the term for the big rooms with extra are) sure looked better, but I just don't think this is the kind of trip where you want to just sit in your room or watch TV.
At first I thought the price we paid was expensive. However, in hindsight it was stunning value. 11 nights accommodation and all meals provided. Alcohol was extra and you could buy packages. We didn't though. A couple of nights we did order a special bottle of wine though. I thought the food was excellent. Sufficient variation with an attempt to source food local to the area.
@karen blancfield can you give me more details on the crampons you purchased please?
We picked some up in Norway. The rubber type that you can slip over any shoes. We grabbed some from a sports store in Kirkenes. I don't recall exact price but they were cheap. I'm pretty sure they're going to be easy to find anywhere there and cheaply too.
If you have specific questions or area you want more info about, please ask.
The company has many different ships. We did some research into ones that looked more appealing to us and then worked on dates that aligned. For the most part though, I think they're relatively similar.
I felt it was a pretty well run operation and I didn't have any gripes.