http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/ 181-46 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/cruise-reviews/hurtigruten/ms-nordnorge.html This was definitely an adventure that both me and my wife have been looking forward to. Medical evacuation insurance is required and you have to be in good health. They are so far away from medical services that this is required. Temperatures in Antarctica can be very cold we had -3 degrees C so you will need really warm clothing. Also layering is a good way to go. We had some rough spells crossing the Drake Passage and my wife got quite seasick but luckily it didn't last for too long. The food onboard was average but nothing great. I am usually not a real fish person but I guess the Norwegian cuisine calls for a lot of fish. This is what you can expect onboard though I don't care to see another herring for a while. Though they do of course serve a lot of other foods onboard and most of the time it is buffet style. Prepare for a lot of downtime on this cruise as crossing the Drake take a while. There isn't a lot to do on the ship so bring some good books or puzzles or whatever entertains you. No TV or DVDs so don't expect to be enterainted that way. Antartica itself was beautiful and we went later in the Season so we saw the Penguin chicks. We had about 10 shore landings which lasted a little over an hour. The scenery was beautiful and I went through 1000's of pictures and filled my memory card so remember to bring enough with you. Overall a wonderfull trip on Ms Nordnorge and was a once in a lifetime experience. ]]> Tue, 06 Jan 2009 23:01:56 -0600 181-45 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/cruise-reviews/hurtigruten/ms-nordnorge.html I am a single windower and I decided to take a cruise on the Ms NordNorge which is a working ship that sails from Bergen to Kirkenes. The boarding process was easy and no sooner that I had arrived and I was on the ship. I arranged for my dining and was seated at a table with some very delightful people from all over the world. I opted for a single cabin due to the price and was quite surprised at how small it was. Even with just me in there it seemed quite a tight space for moving around. The food onboard was nothing exciting though they did have a lot of seafood. I do like potatoes but even for me it was served so often that I will take a break from them when I get back. We made alot of stops along the way as they are transporting cargo to all the destinations. I think they make over 30 stops for the whole trip. The scenery was beautiful and we had some really good shore excurisions. This wasn't a very luxury ship though it is comfortable and laid back which is what I needed. It was a good trip though I wouldn't sail here again. ]]> Tue, 09 Dec 2008 22:56:32 -0600